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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Crimson Longinus" data-source="post: 9418873" data-attributes="member: 7025508">But what does this mean in practice? What elements of the quest need the player to author? Goal? Opposition? Exacts setting details pertaining the quest? Because if "authoring" the goal is sufficient, it is happening in all sort of RPGs all the time.Also, what is difference between "breadcrumb" or "plot hook" and the setting just having interesting details that may or may not catch the attention of the players? Like in my 5e game the players have spend several sessions exploring ancient giant ruins and acquiring giant artefacts, as after a "random"* encounter with a giant carrying magical stone cube with memories sealed in it, one character decided that that they want to learn everything they can about the ancient (and bygone) giant civilisation.* Not really random, but just something that was not at the moment intended to be impactful, just a "filler fight" along the journey.I try to include little details that might catch the players imagination, but they're often not "plot hooks" in a sense that I have expectation that the players take some specific action, or any, regarding them. Just something that makes the world feel deep, and if players show interest to something, then I'll elaborate on that.But I think skill system in any edition of D&D is pretty freeform, and doesn't have just limited set of outcomes. Players can try weird things, and with good rolls they might work. For example in my last game a warlock decided to "reverse polarity" of enemy arcane ward that would trigger a trap, and with an excellent arcana skill roll they managed to change the ward from "lizardfolk may pass, everyone else triggers a trap" to "lizardfolk trigger a trap, everyone else may pass." It is not something I had considered, the player invented it on the spot, and as it sounded reasonable, albeit difficult, they could do it.You present gameworld and backstory here as separate things, and I agree, they are. As a GM I prefer to have authority over the world, i.e. metaphysics, creatures, societies etc, but in the background creation phase the players certainly are free to invent stuff within those parameters; NPCs, relationships, events etc. And sometimes it is also necessary to elaborate on the PC background later on, when things that were originally not detailed become relevant.</blockquote>

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