JavaApp
First Post
Hey there. A bit of help for a newbie, if you would.
I am trying to put together a questionnaire for my players. I have based the questionniare on the old idea of the Four-Fold Way. This was originally discussed in Different Worlds Magazine, and I have seen it in other places since then. You can look at the text of the questionnaire for more on this.
However, I would like to have 20 questions, and I can only come up with seven. Would anyone be interested in contributing a question, in the style and format of those below?
If I get to 20 questions, I'll put together a PDF for the community and hopefully post it somewhere around here for future use.
Any comments or criticism about the questionnaire are welcome as well.
Thanks!
JavaApp
Welcome the Four-Fold Way Questionnaire! There are four distinct styles of role playing, known as the Four-Fold Way. The styles are:
a) War Gaming (a tactical, military style adventuring).
b) Power Gaming (the acquisition and use of power – even if this results in exploiting rules or campaign conventions).
c) Role Playing (assuming the persona of another person, and looking for opportunities to interact with other NPCs).
d) Story Telling (participation in grand plots and dramatic circumstances).
None of these styles are superior to the other. They are merely ways of playing. Each can be enjoyable, in its own way. Most people don’t exclusively enjoy one style over the others, and many people enjoying playing in two or even three of the styles.
The following quiz can help you to determine which style(s) of play you enjoy. Please fill out the following questionnaire, score yourself according to the instructions at the bottom.
1 – You come across an old man walking on the road, bearing an intolerable burden.
Do you:
A. Look for the ambush that will obviously be sprung when you volunteer to help the old guy.
B. Wonder what treasure might be concealed in what he is carrying.
C. Look forward to some pleasant role-playing as you help the man, and perhaps learn something about the countryside.
D. Wonder if the old man is a god in disguise, and if you are being tested for your charity.
2 – You have been tasked with clearing some brigands from an abandoned stronghold.
Do you:
A. Set up the standard assault procedure, i.e. reconnaissance in force, then a two or three-pronged assault with coordinated magical attacks for the greatest possible benefit.
B. Steal from a dragon, and set up a trail to the stronghold. Collect the reward when the Dragon flames the brigands, and then pick through what the dragon has left over.
C. Pose as a caravan bringing a princess to be married to a foreign ruler. Let the head of the brigands capture you, so as to sneak into the fortress and open the gate for your companions.
D. Call out the leader of the brigands to single combat, and spare his life should he prove honorable. If the demands of the ‘brigands’ are just, use them as the core of a revolution against the unjust state.
3 – You have been asked by your country to act as ambassadors to a powerful city-state. When you arrive, you are ambushed by forces that you trace to a powerful head of an important family.
Do you:
A. Immediately respond in force, killing the head of the important family before he can marshal more forces against you.
B. Raze the entire city, capturing it for your country.
C. Find the daughter of the head of the important family and woo her, assured that marriage will end the conflict he has with you?
D. Investigate the head of the powerful family to find evidence of his treachery, so that you can present it to the rulers of the city-state.
4 – You find, deep in an underground ruin, a powerful artifact of unknown power.
Do you:
A. Set up an elaborate testing procedure, that will ultimately lead to your full use of the powers of the artifact, but without the negative side effects.
B. Convince someone that you can manipulate to use the artifact, and observe the results on him.
C. Convince the rest of the party not to use the artifact, perhaps coming to blows over the issue.
D. Accept the doom and destiny that goes along with the artifact, and seek to fulfill it gloriously.
5 – You are tasked with destroying a tribe of goblins in the hills. When you fight your way to the village of the tribe, a shaman declares that his tribe is the last in these parts, and his kind will be extinct if you continue with your assault.
Do you:
A. Continue with the assault, making sure that the shaman dies before he has the chance to cast any more spells.
B. Continue with the assault, and after it is over declare yourself High Exterminator of the Last of the Perfidious Goblin Horde, and see if you can milk any more money out of it.
C. Convince the Shaman to take his tribe to a far away land, where they may live in peace.
D. Continue with the assault, but write a ballad about it later, lamenting the last stand of noble foes, now lost.
6 – One of your party has been dominated to act an agent from within, subverting your mission.
Do you:
A. Use the character as a funnel of false information to your enemy, thereby beating him at his own game.
B. Slaughter the traitor where he stands.
C. Try to provide a role playing reason for a new saving throw for the character, like reminding him his little brother back home.
D. Go on a quest to find a spell caster to reverse the spell or artifact to break the foul enchantment.
7 – There is a magic item that you and another party member both want.
Do you:
A. Argue that the item would be wasted if given to your companion, and demonstrate mechanically why it should go to you.
B. Agree to give up the item, if the player involved gives up an item you are actually more interested in.
C. In character, display how greedy/noble your character is through a speech to the whole group, explaining your reasoning.
D. Allow circumstances to dictate who gets the item. After all, if the GM wants you to have it for a special quest, he will give it to you.
Scoring
For each a you select, give yourself one point in War Gamer. For each b, one point in Power Gamer. For each c, one point in Role Player and for each d, one point in Story Teller.
What the score means:
20 = You are the Avatar of your style. Gamers of your type can feel it miles away when you approach.
16 – 19 = You are strong in the ways of your style. You prefer this style strongly, even to the point of disrupting the game you are in.
11 – 15 = You are a representative of your style. You like playing in this style, though other appeal to you as well. You can play with most types of people.
6 – 10 = You can play in this style, but it is not your favorite. Alternately, if you have three or more styles in this range, you have a taste for all the styles in this range, equally, and can play RPGs with nearly anyone and still enjoy yourself.
1 – 5 = You are uncomfortable in this style, and rarely play in it. There are certain people you never play with and you watch out for them at conventions, to avoid getting stuck with them for long periods of time.
0 = You can’t stand people who even occasionally play this way. You rarely go to conventions unless you have to, in a quest to avoid these sorts of people altogether.
I am trying to put together a questionnaire for my players. I have based the questionniare on the old idea of the Four-Fold Way. This was originally discussed in Different Worlds Magazine, and I have seen it in other places since then. You can look at the text of the questionnaire for more on this.
However, I would like to have 20 questions, and I can only come up with seven. Would anyone be interested in contributing a question, in the style and format of those below?
If I get to 20 questions, I'll put together a PDF for the community and hopefully post it somewhere around here for future use.
Any comments or criticism about the questionnaire are welcome as well.
Thanks!
JavaApp
Welcome the Four-Fold Way Questionnaire! There are four distinct styles of role playing, known as the Four-Fold Way. The styles are:
a) War Gaming (a tactical, military style adventuring).
b) Power Gaming (the acquisition and use of power – even if this results in exploiting rules or campaign conventions).
c) Role Playing (assuming the persona of another person, and looking for opportunities to interact with other NPCs).
d) Story Telling (participation in grand plots and dramatic circumstances).
None of these styles are superior to the other. They are merely ways of playing. Each can be enjoyable, in its own way. Most people don’t exclusively enjoy one style over the others, and many people enjoying playing in two or even three of the styles.
The following quiz can help you to determine which style(s) of play you enjoy. Please fill out the following questionnaire, score yourself according to the instructions at the bottom.
1 – You come across an old man walking on the road, bearing an intolerable burden.
Do you:
A. Look for the ambush that will obviously be sprung when you volunteer to help the old guy.
B. Wonder what treasure might be concealed in what he is carrying.
C. Look forward to some pleasant role-playing as you help the man, and perhaps learn something about the countryside.
D. Wonder if the old man is a god in disguise, and if you are being tested for your charity.
2 – You have been tasked with clearing some brigands from an abandoned stronghold.
Do you:
A. Set up the standard assault procedure, i.e. reconnaissance in force, then a two or three-pronged assault with coordinated magical attacks for the greatest possible benefit.
B. Steal from a dragon, and set up a trail to the stronghold. Collect the reward when the Dragon flames the brigands, and then pick through what the dragon has left over.
C. Pose as a caravan bringing a princess to be married to a foreign ruler. Let the head of the brigands capture you, so as to sneak into the fortress and open the gate for your companions.
D. Call out the leader of the brigands to single combat, and spare his life should he prove honorable. If the demands of the ‘brigands’ are just, use them as the core of a revolution against the unjust state.
3 – You have been asked by your country to act as ambassadors to a powerful city-state. When you arrive, you are ambushed by forces that you trace to a powerful head of an important family.
Do you:
A. Immediately respond in force, killing the head of the important family before he can marshal more forces against you.
B. Raze the entire city, capturing it for your country.
C. Find the daughter of the head of the important family and woo her, assured that marriage will end the conflict he has with you?
D. Investigate the head of the powerful family to find evidence of his treachery, so that you can present it to the rulers of the city-state.
4 – You find, deep in an underground ruin, a powerful artifact of unknown power.
Do you:
A. Set up an elaborate testing procedure, that will ultimately lead to your full use of the powers of the artifact, but without the negative side effects.
B. Convince someone that you can manipulate to use the artifact, and observe the results on him.
C. Convince the rest of the party not to use the artifact, perhaps coming to blows over the issue.
D. Accept the doom and destiny that goes along with the artifact, and seek to fulfill it gloriously.
5 – You are tasked with destroying a tribe of goblins in the hills. When you fight your way to the village of the tribe, a shaman declares that his tribe is the last in these parts, and his kind will be extinct if you continue with your assault.
Do you:
A. Continue with the assault, making sure that the shaman dies before he has the chance to cast any more spells.
B. Continue with the assault, and after it is over declare yourself High Exterminator of the Last of the Perfidious Goblin Horde, and see if you can milk any more money out of it.
C. Convince the Shaman to take his tribe to a far away land, where they may live in peace.
D. Continue with the assault, but write a ballad about it later, lamenting the last stand of noble foes, now lost.
6 – One of your party has been dominated to act an agent from within, subverting your mission.
Do you:
A. Use the character as a funnel of false information to your enemy, thereby beating him at his own game.
B. Slaughter the traitor where he stands.
C. Try to provide a role playing reason for a new saving throw for the character, like reminding him his little brother back home.
D. Go on a quest to find a spell caster to reverse the spell or artifact to break the foul enchantment.
7 – There is a magic item that you and another party member both want.
Do you:
A. Argue that the item would be wasted if given to your companion, and demonstrate mechanically why it should go to you.
B. Agree to give up the item, if the player involved gives up an item you are actually more interested in.
C. In character, display how greedy/noble your character is through a speech to the whole group, explaining your reasoning.
D. Allow circumstances to dictate who gets the item. After all, if the GM wants you to have it for a special quest, he will give it to you.
Scoring
For each a you select, give yourself one point in War Gamer. For each b, one point in Power Gamer. For each c, one point in Role Player and for each d, one point in Story Teller.
What the score means:
20 = You are the Avatar of your style. Gamers of your type can feel it miles away when you approach.
16 – 19 = You are strong in the ways of your style. You prefer this style strongly, even to the point of disrupting the game you are in.
11 – 15 = You are a representative of your style. You like playing in this style, though other appeal to you as well. You can play with most types of people.
6 – 10 = You can play in this style, but it is not your favorite. Alternately, if you have three or more styles in this range, you have a taste for all the styles in this range, equally, and can play RPGs with nearly anyone and still enjoy yourself.
1 – 5 = You are uncomfortable in this style, and rarely play in it. There are certain people you never play with and you watch out for them at conventions, to avoid getting stuck with them for long periods of time.
0 = You can’t stand people who even occasionally play this way. You rarely go to conventions unless you have to, in a quest to avoid these sorts of people altogether.
