official modules only in rpga - why?

[mhensley]

I just started playing in a living greyhawk game a couple of weeks ago. The dm is good and the players are fun, but the modules that we are forced to play are average at best and frequently quite lame. Why does the rpga require that dm's use the official mods? I can understand their use in a convention setting, but for regular play? The official mods all are set up for tournament style play with very little room for players to roleplay or to play through any long term stories.

Why doesn't the rpga trust dm's to run their own games correctly? As long as gm's agree to stick to the RAW and to strictly use the encounter and treasure tables, I don't see where there would be a problem. It certainly can't be much worse. I would rather put my trust in the dm that I know, not one that I don't.

 

[Kunimatyu]

Well, in Eberron: Mark of Heroes, there are "DM's Mark" adventures, where the DM creates his own adventure, and the players recieve the same amount of gold/XP they would for a module(I think).

However, it's mostly just a balance thing. It's far easier for the RPGA to review a set of modules than it is for them to make sure every DM isn't handing out +5 holy avengers to his buddies.

 

[kenobi65]

Because Living Greyhawk, just like any RPGA campaign, isn't just made for use in your home game. Allowing play of RPGA modules in "home play" is a concession that RPGA's made to its players, and they don't create different modules for home play, as a rule.

In theory, if your DM ran your group through Living Greyhawk modules, and you players never played those PCs anywhere else but in that group, it might seem OK if your DM modified the modules. But, they can't control for that.

You can take your Living Greyhawk PC and go play it at any RPGA Living Greyhawk event, anywhere in the world. Because PCs are "portable", there are very tight controls on XP, gold, magic items, even story events, to make sure that everyone is "playing by the rules."

The RPGA wants consistent running of modules from event to event, or at least to the extent that's possible, given different Judges. (The RPGA specifically doesn't call them DMs, because DM implies being empowered to make the kinds of changes you're talking about, and that ability lies with the campaign administration.) They want your experience in Module X to be as similiar to my experience in Module X as possible, so that when you show up at a convention, and say, "My PC got this nifty magic item in Module X", it's a nifty magic item that was *supposed* to be there.

Unfortunately, "trusting everyone to play by the RAW" just doesn't work; there's been too many examples over the years of players who abuse the system when given a chance.

Playing by the RPGA's rules gives you access to that library of modules that they have, but if it rankles your group, RPGA play may simply not be for you.

 

[der_kluge]

I think you listed most of the reasons why most people I know (heck, pretty much everyone I know) despises the RPGA.

Do yourself a favor - get out while you still have a soul remaining.

 

[IronWolf]

The RPGA isn't too bad for convention play in my opinion as in my experience thus far, scheduled games tend to run. So for me the RPGA has worked okay for convention games.

But for home games I agree that the RPGA is limiting and if you have a group of regular players you are probably further ahead to not bother with the RPGA except for maybe an occasional one-shot of some of the home play modules when there is one you really want to play.

 

[kenobi65]

Real nice, der_kluge.

I've had a ton of fun playing in the RPGA for the past 4 years. I've had frustrations, too...but if you keep in mind that it's not your home campaign, I think you can still have a ball. (Also, Living Greyhawk is without a doubt the most rules-bound and, unfortunately, munchkin-prone of the RPGA campaigns; the experience in campaigns like Living Arcanis, Living Death, and Living Force is very different, and far more condusive to role-playing and character development -- though that's not to say that those things are impossible in LG.)

As I said, it's not for everyone.

 

[Ceresco]

The RPGA isn't too bad for convention play in my opinion as in my experience thus far, scheduled games tend to run. So for me the RPGA has worked okay for convention games.

But for home games I agree that the RPGA is limiting and if you have a group of regular players you are probably further ahead to not bother with the RPGA except for maybe an occasional one-shot of some of the home play modules when there is one you really want to play.

There is a home play option for the RPGA. I'm fuzzy on the details but as I recall Ian Richards told me the the RPGA was supporting DMs playing their own campaigns. Also, there is no reason that the DM running a home game has to abide by any time restrictions. I personally reccomend playing Living Arcanis, which has some of the best written adventures available in the RPGA and lots of support from the publishers and fan base.

Edward Kopp

 

[kenobi65]

There is a home play option for the RPGA. I'm fuzzy on the details but as I recall Ian Richards told me the the RPGA was supporting DMs playing their own campaigns. Also, there is no reason that the DM running a home game has to abide by any time restrictions.

"Home Games" is a relatively new thing in RPGA (as opposed to "home play" of the RPGA's modules). With the "Home Game" option, the DM orders an RPGA "module", but that module is just a blank placeholder in the RPGA event system. You then get RPGA Player Reward points for playing adventures that you write yourself (or, by playing pretty much any published adventure, *other* than official RPGA modules).

However, that doesn't solve the issue that some players and DMs have -- they want access to the RPGA modules, but want the ability to adapt and rewrite the modules to fit their own campaign...and that's not an option.

 

[Altalazar]

After decades of gaming, I played my very first (and thus far only) RPGA game a few months ago. It wasn't exactly a great module, but I was glad to be gaming again after so long a hiatus, so I enjoyed it.

I didn't like the restrictions that much and I wonder just how much I'd enjoy playing it long term - I much prefer home games with long term campaigns with the same group of players / characters. RPGA just feels like it stifles things a bit too much.

Maybe if they improved the quality of the modules or strung together cool campaigns, that would make a difference.

 

[kenobi65]

I didn't like the restrictions that much and I wonder just how much I'd enjoy playing it long term - I much prefer home games with long term campaigns with the same group of players / characters. RPGA just feels like it stifles things a bit too much.

For me, RPGA is my only chance to *play*...I'm the DM for my two home groups.

I suppose my view of the RPGA is also colored by the fact, in some ways, it *is* like a home campaign for me. I've been fortunate to find a great group of a dozen or so other players, who are my primary RPGA "table mates". We play together online, and get together once or twice a year at conventions to play face-to-face. For example, I've played over 60 Living Force adventures, all but one with the same PC, and mostly with the same group of fellow PCs.

If my only RPGA experience was playing at conventions with a new assortment of 5 other players every time, I probably would feel differently.

Maybe if they improved the quality of the modules or strung together cool campaigns, that would make a difference.

Well, if you've only played in one module, I'm not sure you've got a good feel for module quality, unless you're basing that on what other players have told you, too. There are certainly some stinkers out there...but I've also played in a lot of well-written modules. (And, honesty, you could say the same thing about any published adventures...I'm not at all convinved that the RPGA has a poorer "hit rate" than any other publisher.)

Most of the RPGA's campaigns have plotlines and story arcs that cross multiple adventures, if not entire campaigns. It's not just a series of one-shot, unrelated modules.