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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Haltherrion" data-source="post: 5122026" data-attributes="member: 18253">I don't personally see that many more advocates for a "sandbox". But there always do seem to be folks, even going back to the 80s on rec.games newsgroups, who speak of it as somehow superior to other ways of ref'ing. Since these are often the very senior, old time refs, they get a certain amount of respect. Myself, as in the very recent <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/271852-should-dm-accommodate-characters-characters-accommodate-dms.html" target="_blank">http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/271852-should-dm-accommodate-characters-characters-accommodate-dms.html</a>, I'm a big believer in seeing this as a spectruum and encouraging refs to choose a point on the spectruum suitable to their group's needs without there being special merit in one spot or the other on that spectruum (within in reason <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />). I think its persistent appeal is multi-fold:<ol> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">it can be a very fun way to play with the right ref, players and time.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">it may seem a "pure" way to play. The ref lays out the world, the players go play in it without any bias from the ref. Or a similarly, the creative work of many is better than the creative work of one.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">for some ref's it might also appeal from an effort point of view: I'll make the world, you players make the story. You don't like the story, its your problem. Or, I can't do story well, so I will do sandbox.</li> </ol>It seems to me that often when someone says they do sandbox, the imputed superiority of that method may not have been intended. We refs are arrogant creatures (world shaking powers do that to you) and it is easy enough to make a statement interpreted as implied supriority. Honestly, while I haven't come very close to sandbox in decades, it still holds a certain appeal to me but I stay away from it as much for in-game time management reasons as any other. It can be a lot of fun when your players together take the game places where no one person, ref or player, can take it on their own. But a well-crafted plot originated by the ref and shaped by the players can be a great deal of fun too and often more memorable.</blockquote>

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