Resource Management, or How I Learned To Stop Worrying About Rations and Love Mana

[haakon1]

However, have you read about blorb play haakon? Blorb Principles

Not until now with your link.

From a quick read, I think I agree with and already do most of it.

I agree with the concept that PC actions x with prepared materials x dice rolls is the way to go as a DM.

I also agree that illusion of choice (“one of these doors has a demon behind it, ooh, you picked left, that has the demon”) is not fun to me as DM or a player.

Predetermined outcomes or plots that cannot be deviated from are not fun to me.

But this approach does require a lot of prep (or randomization).

To give you an example of prep … for my since 1998 email D&D game, they took literally over 6 years to do the Temple of Elemental Evil (even with the 1st and 2nd level already cleared based on the results of my own TOEE computer game, including a TPK of all but one character, who became the PC’s guide).

About two years ago, based on politics I had heavily foreshadowed (including a letter from the Viscount to the local rulers calling for the PC’s arrest and the rulers surrender by a certain date - they warned the PC’s based on the relationship the PC’s and the threat to themselves) and that were related to later-than-my-campaign in the official timeline developments in this area of Greyhawk published in the Living Greyhawk Gazetteer, I decided on a plot the Viscount would attempt. I decided he would hire the mercenary company the hobgoblins of the Mailed Fist (a product I discovered) to enforce his will against the village of Hommlet - basecamp for expeditions into the TOEE.

I decided to resolve that offscreen, so when/if the PC’s ever escaped from the Elemental Nodes, I’d be ready with what they’d find.

I resolved it by asking one former player what the “good guys” of Hommlet would do about a looming threat from the Viscount.

Then I asked another former player to command the Mailed Fist. The latter was about a 4 hour conversation, with no dice, about how he’d roleplaying the invading forces. It was a ton of fun, and gave me the answers for the situation the PC’s eventually found when they returned.

Not improv, not random, but also not DM deciding the world to block or support whatever the PC’s try to do.

I’m going for a simulationist world around the PC’s.

 

[dbm]

I haven’t seen this particular scenario.

It was pretty de rigueur for BECMI D&D. You got XP for the treasure you extracted from the dungeon / adventure and encumbrance was actually measured in coins so the concept was sign posted very strongly.

 

[Willie the Duck]

What is the difference between spending 1 arrow to attack or losing one suplly of ration for the day compared to, say, a spellslot for a fireball or 3 Focus to teleport after getting hit?

One thing is a resource that is spent to make things happen. Exciting!
The other thing is a resource that is spent to not die. Boring!

I think a main factor is the quantity and lack of scarcity. In a typical campaign there would be no problem loading up 100 arrows, using only 1 per shot, meaning you need to track 100 events before it even matters. Similar for food, oil, torches etc. The likelihood for actually having the tracking pay off in terms of drama or real choices are really low.

I think these triangulate a large part of the issue. Generally speaking, running out of rations or lamp oil* is something that typically happens to a gamer approximately once. The result -- death or having to turn around and leave the dungeon (possibly bumbling your way out if you realize the situation too late) -- being systematically anticlimactic. There on out, players will have their PCs carry these supplies (and/or emergency escape buttons) in excess of the situation their GMs will throw at them -- something most RPG games makes relatively easy (in cost, options to do so, etc.). Thereon out it becomes simply a number that goes down, then goes back up, but never hits 0 and certainly never does anything interesting.
*and probably arrows, although some will be more lax on this, as it usually isn't as completely adventure-ending

Secondly, if something interesting is to happen with this, generally it is going to hinge on decisions made at adventure start (either you packed enough food for X or not). Perhaps there is a decision on whether to do something (press on, take this detour, etc.) because it is unclear if you have sufficient supplies, but honestly it's hard to set that up in a fair and reasonable way. Doubly challenging to make the decision and consequences-of-a-wrong-decision entertaining.