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Respect Mah Authoritah: Thoughts on DM and Player Authority in 5e
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<blockquote data-quote="Manbearcat" data-source="post: 8436573" data-attributes="member: 6696971"><p>Situation framing and consequence handling is one of the primary responsibilities of GMing across all games. The only areas where situation framing is offloaded onto system or player is in a scenario like Dogs' Initiation Conflict (where the player authors the situation framing - "a kicker" - and the GM merely plays the antagonism) or an "ask questions and use the answers" scenario in PBtA games or in a high level D&D spellcaster's repertoire ("I'm using this divination spell for recon and now I'm using this teleportation spell; boom - we're in the Baron's chambers and he's totally not ready for us") or something like an Adjuration Ritual in 4e (we're exorcising this demon-possessed Paladin so integrate the SC mechanics with the combat mechanics) etc.</p><p></p><p>In Blades, players have lots of input on situation framing when it comes to Scores via what transpires in Information Gathering and the approach to the Score. What transpires in Info Gathering (both the fiction and how that fiction turns into an Engagement Roll and the attendant result) + Score type + Detail + Engagement Roll constrain the GM significantly in their situation framing (see my post above that depicts that winnowing of decision-tree).</p><p></p><p>Across all Story Now games, whether they're Sorcerer or My Life With Master or whatever, they have the following in common when it comes to situation framing:</p><p></p><p>* You're playing to find out. What is happening right now is not something that was scripted. There is no plot. So this conflict and this obstacle isn't Story Before. Its an emergent consequences, spun out of following the breadcrumbs of all prior play + fidelity to the game's principles.</p><p></p><p>* Everything that is onscreen is about the premise of play, which is about one dramatic need or another of a PC or the PCs at large. There is no table time devoted to conflict/theme/premise-neutral content. Something is always at stake and that something orbits one or more PCs.</p><p></p><p>* These games are pretty much exclusively table-facing from premise to procedures to system architecture that facilitates the flow from situation framing > player orientation > player action declaration > resolution > consequence. </p><p></p><p></p><p>[HR][/HR]</p><p></p><p>So where/how does GM authority over situation get constrained in D&D?</p><p></p><p>* When the conflict resolution mechanics generate finality (see the conversation of "win cons" which you appear to disagree with) such that the honored output of the conflict must feed directly into subsequent framing. You've killed the dude? The dude's dead. You've opened the portal and entered it to get into the Feywild? You're there. You've saved the daughter and the father? They're grateful and now you can parley with mechanical advantage (and remember above...they're going to be relevant to some PC dramatic need). Etc etc. </p><p></p><p>The dudes' not dead. You're not there. The father and daughter hate you and/or they're aren't relevant to PC dramatic need.</p><p></p><p>All of those are badwronguttercrap Story Now GMing. They're against the rules, principles, agenda, ethos of play.</p><p></p><p>* When the conflict resolution mechanics and action resolution mechanics are table-facing so when they generate finality, everyone at the table knows for sure that the GM is honoring the output of the conflict (which then must feed directly into subsequent framing).</p><p></p><p>* When play is formalized such that PC dramatic need is what play orbits around (eg Quests + Theme in Heroic Tier of 4e).</p><p></p><p>* When players actually have resources to call upon that outright dictate to the GM (rather than just influence) what the framing will be. "I have this Ranger ability that lets me bypass this perilous journey...so we're not trekking, we're at the town/tower/cabin/portal (whathaveyou)." "I'm adjuring the possessed Paladin...we aren't killing him." "I'm reconning and then porting us into the sanctum of bad guy x." "I'm whipping out Tiny Hut so we've got an LOLExtended Rest please and thank you." "When I'm in trouble from the law and on the run, the salt-of-the-earth folks hereabouts will take us in...we head straight for that big barn where the farmer is milking the cows..."</p><p></p><p>Etc.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Each of those things individually constrain or circumvent GM authority over situation framing. Together, they work in concert, to winnow a GM's decision-space further.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Manbearcat, post: 8436573, member: 6696971"] Situation framing and consequence handling is one of the primary responsibilities of GMing across all games. The only areas where situation framing is offloaded onto system or player is in a scenario like Dogs' Initiation Conflict (where the player authors the situation framing - "a kicker" - and the GM merely plays the antagonism) or an "ask questions and use the answers" scenario in PBtA games or in a high level D&D spellcaster's repertoire ("I'm using this divination spell for recon and now I'm using this teleportation spell; boom - we're in the Baron's chambers and he's totally not ready for us") or something like an Adjuration Ritual in 4e (we're exorcising this demon-possessed Paladin so integrate the SC mechanics with the combat mechanics) etc. In Blades, players have lots of input on situation framing when it comes to Scores via what transpires in Information Gathering and the approach to the Score. What transpires in Info Gathering (both the fiction and how that fiction turns into an Engagement Roll and the attendant result) + Score type + Detail + Engagement Roll constrain the GM significantly in their situation framing (see my post above that depicts that winnowing of decision-tree). Across all Story Now games, whether they're Sorcerer or My Life With Master or whatever, they have the following in common when it comes to situation framing: * You're playing to find out. What is happening right now is not something that was scripted. There is no plot. So this conflict and this obstacle isn't Story Before. Its an emergent consequences, spun out of following the breadcrumbs of all prior play + fidelity to the game's principles. * Everything that is onscreen is about the premise of play, which is about one dramatic need or another of a PC or the PCs at large. There is no table time devoted to conflict/theme/premise-neutral content. Something is always at stake and that something orbits one or more PCs. * These games are pretty much exclusively table-facing from premise to procedures to system architecture that facilitates the flow from situation framing > player orientation > player action declaration > resolution > consequence. [HR][/HR] So where/how does GM authority over situation get constrained in D&D? * When the conflict resolution mechanics generate finality (see the conversation of "win cons" which you appear to disagree with) such that the honored output of the conflict must feed directly into subsequent framing. You've killed the dude? The dude's dead. You've opened the portal and entered it to get into the Feywild? You're there. You've saved the daughter and the father? They're grateful and now you can parley with mechanical advantage (and remember above...they're going to be relevant to some PC dramatic need). Etc etc. The dudes' not dead. You're not there. The father and daughter hate you and/or they're aren't relevant to PC dramatic need. All of those are badwronguttercrap Story Now GMing. They're against the rules, principles, agenda, ethos of play. * When the conflict resolution mechanics and action resolution mechanics are table-facing so when they generate finality, everyone at the table knows for sure that the GM is honoring the output of the conflict (which then must feed directly into subsequent framing). * When play is formalized such that PC dramatic need is what play orbits around (eg Quests + Theme in Heroic Tier of 4e). * When players actually have resources to call upon that outright dictate to the GM (rather than just influence) what the framing will be. "I have this Ranger ability that lets me bypass this perilous journey...so we're not trekking, we're at the town/tower/cabin/portal (whathaveyou)." "I'm adjuring the possessed Paladin...we aren't killing him." "I'm reconning and then porting us into the sanctum of bad guy x." "I'm whipping out Tiny Hut so we've got an LOLExtended Rest please and thank you." "When I'm in trouble from the law and on the run, the salt-of-the-earth folks hereabouts will take us in...we head straight for that big barn where the farmer is milking the cows..." Etc. Each of those things individually constrain or circumvent GM authority over situation framing. Together, they work in concert, to winnow a GM's decision-space further. [/QUOTE]
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