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Message: <blockquote data-quote="pemerton" data-source="post: 7928602" data-attributes="member: 42582">If someone remembers it on their way to the fridge, then why can't they write it down? Or just commit it to memory?And I still don't see how this is an argument in favour of prep. However much prep is done, there will be stuff that happens during play - outcomes of situations, details made up on the spot, whatever - that someone might later care about, but that weren't written down in the course of prep.I think I'm missing something here. Misremembering the score is a metaphor - what is it a metaphor for?If everyone at the table accepts that Bernard, who was introduced as a gnome, is actually a halfling, what's the problem? If someone remembers part way through the scenario that something got mixed up that's a different story obviously, but how big a risk is that? How often does it happen? If we're talking about whether GMing needs to be hard or not, what level of prophylaxis against possible problems do we think is appropriate?In my Traveller game, when the PCs assaulted a military outpost, it was important to know what range various people were from one another, because Traveller needs that information for its combat resolution system. It was generated randomly, during play, using the appropriate mechanical process. But once the combat is resolved, there's no need to have that information any more. It's almost certainly never going to come up again.The PCs have bribed NPCs, tricked them and in some cases swindled them. But from my point of view most of those NPCs are done - I've got no interest in re-introducing them into the game, and the players don't seem to either. Of course if a player were to wonder, "What ever happened to that guy who we screwed out of such-and-such" then that might be my cue to bring the character back in. But at that point, why would I not follow the player's cue all the way? Even if their memory is faulty, if mine's no better then nothing is lost by going along with them.Perhaps I'm underestimating the intricacy of some of these games that you and others are talking about. My judgements are based on what I've played myself, and what I've read (both modules for games, and reports by others of their play). I just don't see how extensive note-taking is necessary. And I don't see how, if the players aren't taking note of things that they might want to leverage, the GM taking notes is somehow necessary or even helpful to bringing about such leveraging.</blockquote>

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