D&D 5E [+] Explain RPG theory without using jargon

[FrogReaver]

Educate yourself how? The only real jargon that was used on the first page was by someone who listed examples of jargon he didn’t like. Then some other posters used some jargon, but it was of the kind that’s accepted and not forbidden, so no one complained.

Genuinely curious. What jargon did you see others use? I really want to evaluate this claim for myself so I need some specifics about what you are calling jargon in context of others.

 

[Manbearcat]

Here is my + takeaway from this thread:

The lesson I've learned is put a + on the next thread I post and then just start nuking folks from orbit with passive aggressive attacks or thinly veined aggressive attacks! I'll be totally free from reprisal! Complete immunity!

I'm just so shocked that this thread didn't work out! I had such high hopes after the first few posts!

 

[hawkeyefan]

Genuinely curious. What jargon did you see others use? I really want to evaluate this claim for myself so I need some specifics about what you are calling jargon in context of others.

Well @GMforPowergamers and @niklinna discussed the ones that were derided by @iserith, but that was more about clarification. The main post I was thinking about was by @Snarf Zagyg who used quite a bit of jargon, though he did explain his usage of most of it.

 

[FrogReaver]

We speak in jargon all the time on these boards. Stuff like the story, fudging, hook, the adventure, sandbox, world building, "living breathing world". It's just particular jargon that seems unwelcome. Jargon that describes games like Apocalypse World, Sorcerer, Dogs in the Vineyard. It's almost like what's unwelcome is the playstyle more than the jargon.

Maybe certain words/phrases are more approachable due to being closer to natural meaning, a basic analogy (hook -> fishing analogy about players picking a quest/goal to pursue), popularly used in other contexts (sandbox -> videogames), or don't have intricate meanings (fudging -> not abiding by dice outcomes), etc.

Just a thought.

 

[JiffyPopTart]

Here is my + takeaway from this thread:

The lesson I've learned is put a + on the next thread I post and then just start nuking folks from orbit with passive aggressive attacks or thinly veined aggressive attacks! I'll be totally free from reprisal! Complete immunity!

I'm just so shocked that this thread didn't work out! I had such high hopes after the first few posts!

Well, I found it helpful. There were some nuggets of gold and nobody is outright arguing there SHOULDNT be a TLDR (jargon!) for the topic.

 

[FrogReaver]

Here is my + takeaway from this thread:

The lesson I've learned is put a + on the next thread I post and then just start nuking folks from orbit with passive aggressive attacks or thinly veined aggressive attacks! I'll be totally free from reprisal! Complete immunity!

I'm just so shocked that this thread didn't work out! I had such high hopes after the first few posts!

Or maybe he rolled a success with no setbacks and this was his intent all along

 

[hawkeyefan]

The entire concept of "RPG Theory" discussed here is, from what I gather, some reference to some articles (posts, books, dissertations, whatever).

How is a random passerby to know you are discussing this very particular thing born of a few people and not just general "RPG design" without walking into a discussion and realizing that everyone seems to be speaking a different language from an experience you haven't shared?

It's not like someone used a word or phrase ive not run across. I understand the words "story first". What you can't glean from simple conversation is that "story first" has more baggage and meaning when used in the zoomed in context of "What some person wrote about this and who's text we are discussing".

RPG Theory is a general concept (not discussed here)
RPG Theory (tm) belongs to some author I've never read.

What does “random passerby” mean? Someone who’s only read some of the posts in a thread?

Honestly, I learned about this stuff by asking the folks who seemed to know about it. When folks were bringing up games I had never played, I didn’t assume I knew more about that game than they did. I looked things up outside of ENWorld. Ii actually bought some of the games and read them to get a better idea about some of these topics.

But mostly, if you ask questions, most folks will explain. Not always, or maybe not completely… such is the nature of communicating on a forum. But most of the time, people are willing to discuss these things.

As far as 5e and GM vs. player led...it's both. I have things running in the background that happen in a certain way unless the players interfere. They can choose to do so, choose to not intervene, or spend 4 sessions building a sandwich shop in their new Temple of Torm (exaggeration, but it was multiple hours dedicated to staffing and procuring goods for the sandwich shop). Our game is pretty freeform with contributions by everyoneas they are inspired to do that session. That being said in the absence of player input the GM will move time forward.

Right. This sounds pretty close to standard D&D, with less prep and a bit more improv. I’d still classify this as leaning more GM driven than player driven. It’s tough to say for sure given the minimal info, but that’d be my guess.

And just to clarify, there’s nothing wrong with that!

 

[Campbell]

Maybe certain words/phrases are more approachable due to being closer to natural meaning, a basic analogy (hook -> fishing analogy about players picking a quest/goal to pursue), popularly used in other contexts (sandbox -> videogames), or don't have intricate meanings (fudging -> not abiding by dice outcomes), etc.

Just a thought.

My personal stance is that the jargon of the dominant play culture is widely used and supported because it reinforces the values of the dominant play culture. The purpose is to reinforce norms. This whole "ivory tower" nonsense seems to be a way to suggest that the play we are trying to describe does not actually exist. That it's all just theory when some of us have more than a decade of actual practice under our belts.

 

[Manbearcat]

Well, I found it helpful. There were some nuggets of gold and nobody is outright arguing there SHOULDNT be a TLDR (jargon!) for the topic.

Awesome! That makes two of us! I found it helpful too. I didn't realize there was such a nifty ENWorld decorum hack like this! Now I know!

Or maybe he rolled a success with no setbacks and this was his intent all along

Oh, of that we can all have little doubt!

 

[hawkeyefan]

Maybe certain words/phrases are more approachable due to being closer to natural meaning, a basic analogy (hook -> fishing analogy about players picking a quest/goal to pursue), popularly used in other contexts (sandbox -> videogames), or don't have intricate meanings (fudging -> not abiding by dice outcomes), etc.

Just a thought.

Or maybe folks are just so comfortable with the jargon they use frequently that it doesn’t seem as much like jargon?

Like if someone requested a conversation about gaming to not reference the standard jargon of RPGs and D&D in particular, it’d likely be pretty difficult for many of us.

How would a DM describe what he does without referring to the story, or hooks, or fudging dice?