Map-and-key RPGing contrasted with alternatives

[niklinna]

I only meant "lighter" in the sense of fewer and more streamlined rules, but with the same core design.

But that's only the impression I had; I own neither (only Mouseguard).

Wow, if Torchbearer is the "light" version I can't say I'm interested in Burning Wheel! Torchbearer 2 is right at my threshold for complexity and tough choices (although I was figuring it out toward the end of our run).

Edited for clairity.

 

[niklinna]

Dogs in the Vineyard - Looked for it back in the day, but only available on the second hand market at unreasonable prices.

I cleared out most of my old RPG books a while ago, but this one I held on to, and I am very glad I did (even though I still haven't gotten to play it! ). Most of those others are replaceable, should I want them back.

 

[Campbell]

An approach to play that my home play group has regularly been pursuing in our trad play since we started playing together is what Paul Czege has referred to as a social crawl. Basically, you create a scenario with an inciting event wherein you have a diverse group of NPCs connected to it with all sorts of different agendas and intersecting relationships. As players you each have either a group agenda and/or set of personal agendas to pursue related to the scenario. The objective of play is basically to interact with various NPCs to find out these connections and leverage them to realize said agendas.

Prep pretty much consists of designing the relationship map and NPC agendas. At regular intervals you move the agendas forward. It's somewhat like Blades in the Dark faction game with individual NPCs and hidden agendas.

It's basically map and key but like with people instead of places.

 

[Bedrockgames]

Related to the session I posted, here are my campaign notes replicated on my blog (the maps are copies of my originals as I had turn order, NPC wound trackers, and other scribbles in the original notebook). This is a very rudimentary map and key approach I suppose: SCHOLAR OF XIA KINGDOM

Incidentally we are on session 14 of that campaign. Originally just meant it to be a 1-2 month thing but it had traction for whatever reason

 

[Bedrockgames]

An approach to play that my home play group has regularly been pursuing in our trad play since we started playing together is what Paul Czege has referred to as a social crawl. Basically, you create a scenario with an inciting event wherein you have a diverse group of NPCs connected to it with all sorts of different agendas and intersecting relationships. As players you each have either a group agenda and/or set of personal agendas to pursue related to the scenario. The objective of play is basically to interact with various NPCs to find out these connections and leverage them to realize said agendas.

I often do stuff like this. Not familiar with this term, but definitely like starting out with the players connected to an event or events unfolding around many NPCs. It isn't always oriented around something like an 'inciting event' if I understand the term, but there is usually a web of relationships, connections, goals, etc that are related to a key thing or things going on in the campaign setting.