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Message: <blockquote data-quote="robertsconley" data-source="post: 9665964" data-attributes="member: 13383">I appreciate the relationship example and that you want to talk about character, I not sure how it addresses any of the questions I raised in the portion of my post you quoted. Those questions weren’t about outcomes in general or about theme arising from character interaction, they were about the procedural differences in how the game is run, including resolution mechanics, the use of clocks and timelines, and the role of referee adjudication.What I’m asking for is engagement with those distinctions as system and method, not as tone or emphasis. If the claim is that our approaches are “not really different,” then those differences need to be addressed directly.Taking your narrative example as a separate topic. I am going to attach the Golden House section from my Scourge of the Demon Wolf adventure.In a normal weekly campaign, I would something about a fifth of the detail if it was the focus of the campaign. For example, me running a solo campaign for a player.  So I would have the player make a character and either sub him in as one of the conclave's inhabitants. Or in the case of the character below an outsider who been invited to stay.We would do a pre-game and the result would be a background like this. Note the background is worked out between us.Marcellus of AlectoRace: HumanClass: Mage of the Order of Thoth (4th level)Age: 32Background for Marcellus of AlectoYou were born in the city of Alecto, a modest port in the southern foothills of the Majestic Mountains, and showed talent in the arcane arts from a young age. At twelve, you were accepted as an apprentice into the Conclave of Cisora near Modron, a bastion of the Meditus Society known for diplomacy, negotiation, and keeping the Order of Thoth in balance with kings and clergy.You rose steadily. By the age of twenty-five, you were drafting letters between conclaves, assisting in conferences with church envoys, and developing a reputation for calm competence. Then came the Baron's War on the borderlands, a dispute you were assigned to mediate. You failed. Or perhaps, more accurately, you couldn’t prevent the inevitable. The massacre that followed, over two hundred dead, left a mark on your reputation and your conscience.Afterward, you requested a sabbatical, citing exhaustion. Your petition was approved, and Knifeada, a fellow Meditus mage whom you once aided during a mission in the Majestic Mountains, arranged for you to take residence as a guest scholar at the Golden House.You have now lived at the Golden House for several months. Knifeada has vouched for you, giving you access to the Meditus correspondence, Swarton’s archives, and the lower library. You are not a full member of the conclave, but you wear the sigil of the Meditus Society with Knifeada’s personal mark, enough to open most doors and cause others to tread lightly.Still, it is not a peaceful retirement.For now, you read. You listen. You offer counsel. You join Knifeada for lunch, and from time to time you find yourself drawn into conversations in the library or the outer study. You’re rebuilding yourself slowly, discreetly.But you can feel it: the Golden House is not a tranquil place. There are old rivalries, hidden ambitions, and something that festers beneath the surface.Whether you stay, whether you leave, whether you act, that is for you to decide.And perhaps, this time, you’ll do better.[HR][/HR]Then we would start out the first session with something like this.Me: Charles OK you are now settled in at the Golden House. It is May 1st and you are joined at breakfast by Knifeada. During breakfast she turns to you.Knifeada (Me): Marcellus Good morning!Marcellus (Charles): Good morning, Knifeada. You’re up early—have the scrolls started whispering again, or is it just the smell of the cook's bread?Knifeada: I was up late getting reading for the expedition with Vainvid, I wanted to sleep in but today's is the last day of preparation before heading with VainvidMarcellus (Charles lowers his voice slightly):I had a feeling that was coming soon. Are you expecting a quiet trek or something more... instructive? I can still recall our last “routine survey”—you, me, and that griffon’s nest that wasn’t supposed to exist.Rob's Note: the griffon's nest is something that Charles improvised. Similar to what went on with Adam and Brendan.Knifeada: Yeah, that was a mess, but Vainvid got hold of Crandell's Treatise on the wildlife of the Cloudwalls. He thinks that the area where the second ley line goes through is not as dangerous, so we are going to check there for the viz source.Rob's Note: I accept the improvisationMarcellus: Second ley line? You’re referring to the shallow convergence that runs south of the Bone Spires, right? I remember Eckart always said it was too diffuse to be worth the trouble. But if Vainvid’s right... that would place the viz spring near the old bear trails.(Charles pauses, tapping a finger on the table)You want me to keep an eye on anything while you're gone? I’ve noticed Swarton seems unusually preoccupied lately.Rob's Notes: Another improvised detail. Note among my experienced players this will happen a lot at the start of the campaign but fade away as the campaign as by then the players would have built a social web complex enough that there is little need to flesh thing out further. But it doesn't entirely disappear.If the player tries to improvise something that contradicts something they don't know about then I would take a break and quickly work out a new set of details with them. Maybe I already have an adventure locale prepared, it is not the bone spire but Raven's Crag. If I can work it in-game as a correction of the character's memory, I will do that as much as possible.Knifeada: No you got it mixed up with Raven's Claw. But it is the one south of it. But with Vainvid's knowing how to steer clear of any local lairs, I should have the time to zero in on a source of viz. As for Master Swarton, he came to me last night and told me to put you on indexing and summarizing his latest batch of correspondence. Also, to make it more fun, he is having you do some of Grandmaster Master Witely's papers. He expects you in his office after breakfast.Marcellus (Charles groans softly, but with a dry smile):Ah, yes, Swarton’s idea of amusement. Indexing his letters is like decoding politics written in three dialects and a grudge. Adding Witely’s? That’s just cruelty with structure.(Charles pauses, then adds with a shrug)Still, better than copying safety procedures for Dwarlard again. I’ll stop by after I see you off, then. If anything important crosses my desk, I’ll be sure to note it in a way that looks boring enough for no one else to read.Knifeada: OK, while I am done here, I'll catch you before the end of the day in case you have any questions.  See you laterMe: OK Charles what do you do?[HR][/HR]Then we will proceed from there, playing out the day.  Prior to this, I would have a rough timeline for the next couple of weeks of in-game and let it play out as Charles as Marcellus interacts with the various NPCs. For example, Arbela's attempts at summoning a demon result in missing ritual components, and her taking an interest in summoning magic. Two apprentices get blamed for the missing ritual components by Fondvette, who loses her temper, causing discontent. Then there is Knifeada's expedition to the Cloudwalls. After each session, I would alter my notes in light of what Charles did as Marcellus. Using what I talked about earlier about outcomes and consquences.And much of this, like the above, would play out in first-person roleplaying, similar to how it would play out verbally at a LARP.</blockquote>

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