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General Tabletop Discussion
*TTRPGs General
Should Campaign Settings include a metaplot?
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<blockquote data-quote="RFisher" data-source="post: 2934517" data-attributes="member: 3608"><p>I'm not entirely comfortable that I understand what is meant by "metaplot", but here goes it...</p><p></p><p>My first reaction is, "No!" A setting should be a backdrop to the PCs adventures & nothing more.</p><p></p><p>But...I recently read the statement that Tékumel was a world with a mystery. I'd never found anything I'd read about it particularly compelling until I read that. The idea that there is there is something about the world that doesn't quite make sense & that the PCs can discover why...that's interesting. (Although, I'm immediately less interested in what Tékumel's mystery might be as what mystery I could create for my own setting.)</p><p></p><p>But...I think that tends to be problematic for a published setting. For one thing, it's hard to keep the secret for long.</p><p></p><p>I have very sharp differences of opinion about published settings versus a particular group's "living" setting--whether it be fully homebrew or based on a published setting.</p><p></p><p>A published setting should be static. There shouldn't be an ever growing canon that keeps new players from feeling like they can never be as conversant with it as long-time players. The canon should be static.</p><p></p><p>Supplements for published settings (if such are truly necessary at all) do not need to be consistent with each other beyond the static starting point. Since each group's living version diverges from the published core with the first session, the DM is going to have to adapt any supplements to their version anyway. And not <em>every</em> supplement need be useful to <em>every</em> group. Supplement authors should be free to explore any direction they'd care to.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="RFisher, post: 2934517, member: 3608"] I'm not entirely comfortable that I understand what is meant by "metaplot", but here goes it... My first reaction is, "No!" A setting should be a backdrop to the PCs adventures & nothing more. But...I recently read the statement that Tékumel was a world with a mystery. I'd never found anything I'd read about it particularly compelling until I read that. The idea that there is there is something about the world that doesn't quite make sense & that the PCs can discover why...that's interesting. (Although, I'm immediately less interested in what Tékumel's mystery might be as what mystery I could create for my own setting.) But...I think that tends to be problematic for a published setting. For one thing, it's hard to keep the secret for long. I have very sharp differences of opinion about published settings versus a particular group's "living" setting--whether it be fully homebrew or based on a published setting. A published setting should be static. There shouldn't be an ever growing canon that keeps new players from feeling like they can never be as conversant with it as long-time players. The canon should be static. Supplements for published settings (if such are truly necessary at all) do not need to be consistent with each other beyond the static starting point. Since each group's living version diverges from the published core with the first session, the DM is going to have to adapt any supplements to their version anyway. And not [i]every[/i] supplement need be useful to [i]every[/i] group. Supplement authors should be free to explore any direction they'd care to. [/QUOTE]
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