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Judgement calls vs "railroading"
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<blockquote data-quote="Ilbranteloth" data-source="post: 7087781" data-attributes="member: 6778044"><p>Which is all well and good, assuming that's the way you want to play the game. And I think that's what bothers a lot of RPG players too - they don't like somebody else telling them how to play the game.</p><p></p><p>Yes, BW benefits from its focus. If that's the style of game you want to play, then that's the starting point for that style of game. One of the main reasons that D&D suffers in that regard is that it's designed to accommodate multiple styles of play. This isn't anything new, though. There have been plenty of games over time that have picked a specific aspect of how D&D or AD&D were played and focused on that specifically. It started with both in-house releases like the articles in Dragon magazine (and really the alternate combat system in <em>Men and Magic</em>, and then 3rd party publishers like ICE with Arms Law and Spell Law before rolling it into their own RPG based on their principles.</p><p></p><p>But right from the beginning "Burning Wheel’s character creation drips with character history. History breeds conflict. Conflict means taking a stand. What will your character stand for?" is something that's not always a goal of me or my campaigns.</p><p></p><p>I absolutely <em>love</em> the character finding themselves style of story. You start as a simple farmer, or the son of the town smith, or something else in a world where your life is pretty much known from an early age. You will work the family farm, until the farm is yours. And for many folks like this, they have no other ambitions.</p><p></p><p>Like that majority of the world. Sure, I want to have nice things for us, and make money, and give my kids the chance to follow whatever path they aspire to. But most of us think in terms of job/career, have a few hobbies, save money for the kid's college fund, and hope to be able to retire at some point. </p><p></p><p>Luke in Star Wars is a great example of this. He had no ambitions, no aspirations to be something great. Sure, he has some history - more than the average farmer. But for Luke (and the player if an RPG), a lot of it is potentially hidden/secret history to be introduced later. He's not <em>dripping</em> with anything, and certainly not anticipating on breeding conflict. The biggest stand he's trying to make (and failing) is that he wants to go to university.</p><p></p><p>The feel of my game is based as much on TV series like legal and police shows as Game of Thrones. The intrigue and drama isn't always based on conflict and taking a stand. There's a difference between challenges and conflict. My game is more commonly centered on challenges than conflict. Mysteries, secrets, and lost treasures and legends, etc. </p><p></p><p>The focus is on building the stories of a group of characters that are friends, and work together to accomplish whatever their goals are. Some of them may be happenstance, like stumbling upon the ruins of a long forgotten tomb that they decide to explore. There might be conflict, but it's simply because they chose to explore a tomb where there are traps, constructs, and undead. The character growth isn't due to the conflict or taking a stand, it's between a group of friends experiencing life together.</p><p></p><p>I have had some groups that prefer that style, the more epic style, single primary story arc with the BBEG at the end. And I can do that too. But it's not our primary approach.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ilbranteloth, post: 7087781, member: 6778044"] Which is all well and good, assuming that's the way you want to play the game. And I think that's what bothers a lot of RPG players too - they don't like somebody else telling them how to play the game. Yes, BW benefits from its focus. If that's the style of game you want to play, then that's the starting point for that style of game. One of the main reasons that D&D suffers in that regard is that it's designed to accommodate multiple styles of play. This isn't anything new, though. There have been plenty of games over time that have picked a specific aspect of how D&D or AD&D were played and focused on that specifically. It started with both in-house releases like the articles in Dragon magazine (and really the alternate combat system in [I]Men and Magic[/I], and then 3rd party publishers like ICE with Arms Law and Spell Law before rolling it into their own RPG based on their principles. But right from the beginning "Burning Wheel’s character creation drips with character history. History breeds conflict. Conflict means taking a stand. What will your character stand for?" is something that's not always a goal of me or my campaigns. I absolutely [I]love[/I] the character finding themselves style of story. You start as a simple farmer, or the son of the town smith, or something else in a world where your life is pretty much known from an early age. You will work the family farm, until the farm is yours. And for many folks like this, they have no other ambitions. Like that majority of the world. Sure, I want to have nice things for us, and make money, and give my kids the chance to follow whatever path they aspire to. But most of us think in terms of job/career, have a few hobbies, save money for the kid's college fund, and hope to be able to retire at some point. Luke in Star Wars is a great example of this. He had no ambitions, no aspirations to be something great. Sure, he has some history - more than the average farmer. But for Luke (and the player if an RPG), a lot of it is potentially hidden/secret history to be introduced later. He's not [I]dripping[/I] with anything, and certainly not anticipating on breeding conflict. The biggest stand he's trying to make (and failing) is that he wants to go to university. The feel of my game is based as much on TV series like legal and police shows as Game of Thrones. The intrigue and drama isn't always based on conflict and taking a stand. There's a difference between challenges and conflict. My game is more commonly centered on challenges than conflict. Mysteries, secrets, and lost treasures and legends, etc. The focus is on building the stories of a group of characters that are friends, and work together to accomplish whatever their goals are. Some of them may be happenstance, like stumbling upon the ruins of a long forgotten tomb that they decide to explore. There might be conflict, but it's simply because they chose to explore a tomb where there are traps, constructs, and undead. The character growth isn't due to the conflict or taking a stand, it's between a group of friends experiencing life together. I have had some groups that prefer that style, the more epic style, single primary story arc with the BBEG at the end. And I can do that too. But it's not our primary approach. [/QUOTE]
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