Brief personal intro and a vaugely on-topic question

[Maldur]

Interesting. WHat does "story" mean to you?

Dude, this sounds a bit like you want to find something to be able to say something like: "those ENworlders are dumb". Please prove me wrong?

 

[Desdichado]

He wants a personalized answer, not a textbook answer such as "its pretend" or a analytical answer like Psion'. He wants a look into your mind/psyche, not to read another textbook.

My answer would be the same either way. If he wants to find out what roleplaying means to me on a personal level, then he should ask that, instead of asking me to define roleplaying broadly, and then grouse about the answer because it's not deep enough for him to roleplay amateur psychoanalyst with it.

 

[Psion]

Why try to explain something that is already in it's simplistic terms and thereby make it a whole lot more complicated?

Now, I know Jack a little from RPGnet and his not exactly the hostile sort some of you are making him out to be.

I suspect that's because he thinks or feels that different gamers mean different things when they want a "story", and is wanting to know which category you fall in.

I supect that the main division in meaning might lie along the lines of story as a narrative recounted in which the pcs are entrained, vice story as a recounting of what happened (with much less implied corralling by the GM.)

 

[Turjan]

I supect that the main division in meaning might lie along the lines of story as a narrative recounted in which the pcs are entrained, vice story as a recounting of what happened (with much less implied corralling by the GM.)

You mean, along the lines of one of the countless railroading debates here on EN World ?

 

[Psion]

You mean, along the lines of one of the countless railroading debates here on EN World ?

Shhh. Careful. You might raise the hackles of a story gamer.

This really blends into the GNS discussions going on, but some use the story ideal as more than just a scenario, but a driver and decision maker. Which could amount to railroading, but not necessarily. The most enlightened so-called "story gamers" will focus on "a" good story, rather than "the" story.

 

[JPL]

What is roleplaying?

A bunch of nerds rolling dice.

Is that succinct enough for you? 'Cause I'm a lawyer.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

Darn Double Posts ...

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

What is roleplaying?

A bunch of nerds rolling dice.

Interesting. What does "nerd" mean to you?

Tongue firmly in cheek,

 

[UniversalMonster]

Patryn: LOL

But anyhow. I dunno. My group gets together every week to do what? We share the experience but I think people have different reasons for showing up and enjoy different things.

For me it's coming up with a plot twist or introducing some new encounter or twist to the "campaign epic". (I feel like I have to avoid hot button words like "story" as the term has been collectively crapped upon by the Egris-school). But anyhow, the basic deal is- right now one of the godesses of our collectively created little D&D campaign universe -all the players had a hand in coming up with details of the campaign world-- had an illegitimate daughter who has recently come out of exile and is now trying to take over the world, and the players control characters who want to stop her. So we get together every week to play it out. Right now the players are creeping up on the demigodess' fortress.

To put it perversely, or just for general hilarity's sake: I am simultaneously authoring the "story" and the players are controlling the main characters of the "story" and they have absolute free will to do whatever they like as the protagonists. The term used for that is the "impossible thing" I think? Yeah. But to heck with those terms, because thats just exactly what we're doing, and we do it every week. Also, we have pizza, and lately, a beer or two while we do it. Not too impossible after all.

I think the trick is I'm not actually authoring anything, I'm just providing the plot and the villians and the supporting cast and then describing a lot of scenery. And then the players are doing what they want, which is how we got to the point where they are right now. They could have just as easily ignored the current plot hook and pulled another one.

 

[Jack Spencer Jr]

Dude, this sounds a bit like you want to find something to be able to say something like: "those ENworlders are dumb". Please prove me wrong?

Prove you wrong? Hmmm. Well, it's like this. I used to participate on the Forge, but have stopped since I find it a vapid wasteland. But I still go there and browse the pedantic topics because I'm bored. I want to remove it from my rotation of sites I visit and as I said in the first post, I heard EN World is getting beyond d20. So it sounded like a good time to check things out.

Sound good?

BTW, I could probably call anybody dumb over the nature of story. For too many it means simply a narrative. And as for Egri, forget him. He has no teeth. We can take it back from his worthless hand without any trouble.