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On Skilled Play: D&D as a Game
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<blockquote data-quote="Manbearcat" data-source="post: 8291437" data-attributes="member: 6696971"><p>Couple thoughts on this.</p><p></p><p>1) I think your view of "playing to find out what happens next" is a little off in its orientation. "Playing to find out what happens next" as a GM means "don't prep plot...prep situation...put pressure on the PCs in the way the game intends and let what happens...happen." When it comes to players, its best formulated in Harper's Players' Best Practices in Blades. Bonds aren't a "roleplaying cue." They don't tell you "how you actually are oriented toward a relationship...they're how you think you're oriented toward a person/thing and we test that." This is "playing to find out" or Harper's "build your character through play." When the chips are down, the bullets are flying, things go to hell, and you have to act NOW...</p><p></p><p>* Will you protect those weaker than you?</p><p></p><p>* Will you prioritize or repay your oath to x?</p><p></p><p>* What is the trust relationship between you and y?</p><p></p><p>* Will you learn to trust the wild/magic or will you be willing to put your lives in other's hands?</p><p></p><p>Will find out through play. These things are flags that tell the GM "frame conflicts around this (eg the trust relationship between you and another PC or whether fate has dominion over you/the situation etc) and lets find out what happens."</p><p></p><p>Harper's "as a player your have an <em>expressive </em>role to play...not <em>just </em>a tactical one" is another huge part of this arrangement. Dungeon World is the exact same. Its right there. A tactical role is absolutely a big part of your role to play in this game (as a player of Blades)...but you also have an expressive role to play...be bold, do exciting stuff (don't turtle and talk yourself out of fun...you're sturdy...yu can handle it). I mean if Blades isn't about Skilled Play (as much as thematically expressive play), I don't know what is!</p><p></p><p>So I think what is happening here is I'm disagreeing with (a) you're orientation toward a players role in Dungeon World (which is basically the same as it is in Blades) and that is because I'm disagreeing with how you've internalized (b) "play to find out" and things like Bonds and Alignment. They're tests to resolve and reveal (we're playing to find out) the nature of your character. If you do <em>this </em>thing vs <em>that </em>thing, that is an expression of your character...that is resolving that bond if it firms up the question inherent to the bond. Bonds don't tell you how to spend your earned Hold, when and how to spend your Adventuring Gear, how to open up the move space for you or your allies, who to save and who to let the fates sort out. We learn about Bonds (etc) <em>when </em>you do that thing (spend Hold this way vs that). Making inventory decisions or spending Coin this way vs that way absolutely reveals (to you and everyone else) something about your character.</p><p></p><p>You're being <strong>tactical </strong><em>and </em><strong>expressive </strong><em>and </em><strong>finding out your character's</strong> nature (and the story that is emerging about them and their orientation to/relationship with the world) through the collective suite of decisions that are made in the shared imagined space. Its not one or the other. I think that is one of the difference we're experiencing (I'll get to the other one in my next post).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Manbearcat, post: 8291437, member: 6696971"] Couple thoughts on this. 1) I think your view of "playing to find out what happens next" is a little off in its orientation. "Playing to find out what happens next" as a GM means "don't prep plot...prep situation...put pressure on the PCs in the way the game intends and let what happens...happen." When it comes to players, its best formulated in Harper's Players' Best Practices in Blades. Bonds aren't a "roleplaying cue." They don't tell you "how you actually are oriented toward a relationship...they're how you think you're oriented toward a person/thing and we test that." This is "playing to find out" or Harper's "build your character through play." When the chips are down, the bullets are flying, things go to hell, and you have to act NOW... * Will you protect those weaker than you? * Will you prioritize or repay your oath to x? * What is the trust relationship between you and y? * Will you learn to trust the wild/magic or will you be willing to put your lives in other's hands? Will find out through play. These things are flags that tell the GM "frame conflicts around this (eg the trust relationship between you and another PC or whether fate has dominion over you/the situation etc) and lets find out what happens." Harper's "as a player your have an [I]expressive [/I]role to play...not [I]just [/I]a tactical one" is another huge part of this arrangement. Dungeon World is the exact same. Its right there. A tactical role is absolutely a big part of your role to play in this game (as a player of Blades)...but you also have an expressive role to play...be bold, do exciting stuff (don't turtle and talk yourself out of fun...you're sturdy...yu can handle it). I mean if Blades isn't about Skilled Play (as much as thematically expressive play), I don't know what is! So I think what is happening here is I'm disagreeing with (a) you're orientation toward a players role in Dungeon World (which is basically the same as it is in Blades) and that is because I'm disagreeing with how you've internalized (b) "play to find out" and things like Bonds and Alignment. They're tests to resolve and reveal (we're playing to find out) the nature of your character. If you do [I]this [/I]thing vs [I]that [/I]thing, that is an expression of your character...that is resolving that bond if it firms up the question inherent to the bond. Bonds don't tell you how to spend your earned Hold, when and how to spend your Adventuring Gear, how to open up the move space for you or your allies, who to save and who to let the fates sort out. We learn about Bonds (etc) [I]when [/I]you do that thing (spend Hold this way vs that). Making inventory decisions or spending Coin this way vs that way absolutely reveals (to you and everyone else) something about your character. You're being [B]tactical [/B][I]and [/I][B]expressive [/B][I]and [/I][B]finding out your character's[/B] nature (and the story that is emerging about them and their orientation to/relationship with the world) through the collective suite of decisions that are made in the shared imagined space. Its not one or the other. I think that is one of the difference we're experiencing (I'll get to the other one in my next post). [/QUOTE]
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