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<blockquote data-quote="Raven Crowking" data-source="post: 4480043" data-attributes="member: 18280">Folkways, by William Graham Sumner, 1906, p. 20:There was an element in the most elementary experience which was irrational and defied all expedient methods.&nbsp; One might use the best known means with the greatest care, yet fail of the result.&nbsp; On the other hand, one might get a great result with no effort at all.&nbsp; One might also incur a calamity without any fault of his own.&nbsp; This was the aleatory element in life, the element of risk and loss, good or bad fortune.&nbsp; This element is never absent from the affairs of men.I not only expect this aleatory element in a fantasy rpg, I have no interest in a fantasy rpg that fails to evoke it.&nbsp; IMHO, fantasy (novels, films, short stories, or games) is interesting specifically because it can evoke the more primitive, fundamental aspects of our minds....what lies below rationality....and then give it meaning within a framework that our rational minds can comprehend.&nbsp; I expect a fantasy game to allow me to step outside modern modes of thinking, at least to some degree, and gain a wider appreciation not only of the rational process that created the game, but of the &quot;mythic universe&quot; as well.&nbsp; Likewise, I don't want a game that treats magic like technology; I want a game that treats magic like an extension of a universe that is rife with consciousness and will.Anything less seems sterile to me.(And note, that I am talking about fantasy rpgs here.&nbsp; I have different criteria for science fiction and superhero games.&nbsp; But, whatever the game, &quot;Don't whine at the table&quot; is always among my list of criteria.)RC</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Raven Crowking, post: 4480043, member: 18280"] Folkways, by William Graham Sumner, 1906, p. 20: [indent]There was an element in the most elementary experience which was irrational and defied all expedient methods. One might use the best known means with the greatest care, yet fail of the result. On the other hand, one might get a great result with no effort at all. One might also incur a calamity without any fault of his own. This was the aleatory element in life, the element of risk and loss, good or bad fortune. This element is never absent from the affairs of men.[/indent] I not only expect this aleatory element in a fantasy rpg, I have no interest in a fantasy rpg that fails to evoke it. IMHO, fantasy (novels, films, short stories, or games) is interesting specifically [i]because[/i] it can evoke the more primitive, fundamental aspects of our minds....what lies below rationality....and then give it meaning within a framework that our rational minds can comprehend. I [i]expect[/i] a fantasy game to allow me to step outside modern modes of thinking, at least to some degree, and gain a wider appreciation not only of the rational process that created the game, but of the "mythic universe" as well. Likewise, I don't want a game that treats magic like technology; I want a game that treats magic like an extension of a universe that is rife with consciousness and will. Anything less seems sterile to me. (And note, that I am talking about fantasy rpgs here. I have different criteria for science fiction and superhero games. But, whatever the game, "Don't whine at the table" is [i][b]always[/b][/i][b][/b] among my list of criteria.) RC [/QUOTE]

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