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Sorry - I think the point was missed...
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<blockquote data-quote="SWBaxter" data-source="post: 2398347" data-attributes="member: 27926"><p>Quite possibly. But of course, that has nothing at all to do with rules heavy versus rules light. For example, <em>HeroQuest</em> is generally considered to be a rules light game, while <em>D&D</em> is generally considered a rules heavy game. <em>HeroQuest</em> quite specifically details the in game benefits you gain from having your family support whatever you're doing versus the ramifications of being a black sheep, while <em>D&D</em> is pretty much silent on this matter. This means that <em>HeroQuest</em> is more consistent in that particular area, despite being a "lighter" game.</p><p> </p><p></p><p> </p><p>That's simply false; in fact, often the opposite is true. Rules-light games tend to be more consistent because they usually rely on a single mechanic for every situation, whereas heavier games have different subsystems that result in different levels of detail for various activities. That makes the rules-light games more consistent. What they lack is the detail and focus on specific areas of play. For example, <em>D&D</em> has lots of rules for killing bad guys, and comparitively few for most subtler forms of interaction. Choosing the right rules set becomes a matter of finding the right balance of coverage and focus. Usually, it's not as straightforward as light vs. heavy... <em>HeroQuest</em>, which as I mentioned is usually seen as rules-light, has an awful lot of detail and rules concerning how various augments stack together because that's an important part of the genre it's attempting to emulate. So while <em>HQ</em>'s basic system is pretty light, there's still a lot of pages dedicated to what the authors see as a core part of the game. Just like <em>D&D</em>, with at heart a pretty simple mechanic, has lots of pages devoted to killing bad guys and taking their stuff.</p><p> </p><p></p><p> </p><p>As a player, I only care about this in adversarial situations, which is not (IMHO) a particularly desireable element of the player-GM relationship. Often it's appropriate for a situation to be handled differently depending how important it is and how much fun it'd be to play through it. For example, say in a fantasy campaign there's a big war between the pseudo-Arthurian good guys and the Mordor-like bad guys. I would expect - heck, pretty much demand - that a battle be handled differently depending on whether the PCs are present. </p><p> </p><p>In summary, it does not appear to me that the line of argument you've chosen has much - if anything - to do with the relative merits of rules-light versus rules-heavy games.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="SWBaxter, post: 2398347, member: 27926"] Quite possibly. But of course, that has nothing at all to do with rules heavy versus rules light. For example, [i]HeroQuest[/i] is generally considered to be a rules light game, while [i]D&D[/i] is generally considered a rules heavy game. [i]HeroQuest[/i] quite specifically details the in game benefits you gain from having your family support whatever you're doing versus the ramifications of being a black sheep, while [i]D&D[/i] is pretty much silent on this matter. This means that [i]HeroQuest[/i] is more consistent in that particular area, despite being a "lighter" game. That's simply false; in fact, often the opposite is true. Rules-light games tend to be more consistent because they usually rely on a single mechanic for every situation, whereas heavier games have different subsystems that result in different levels of detail for various activities. That makes the rules-light games more consistent. What they lack is the detail and focus on specific areas of play. For example, [i]D&D[/i] has lots of rules for killing bad guys, and comparitively few for most subtler forms of interaction. Choosing the right rules set becomes a matter of finding the right balance of coverage and focus. Usually, it's not as straightforward as light vs. heavy... [i]HeroQuest[/i], which as I mentioned is usually seen as rules-light, has an awful lot of detail and rules concerning how various augments stack together because that's an important part of the genre it's attempting to emulate. So while [i]HQ[/i]'s basic system is pretty light, there's still a lot of pages dedicated to what the authors see as a core part of the game. Just like [i]D&D[/i], with at heart a pretty simple mechanic, has lots of pages devoted to killing bad guys and taking their stuff. As a player, I only care about this in adversarial situations, which is not (IMHO) a particularly desireable element of the player-GM relationship. Often it's appropriate for a situation to be handled differently depending how important it is and how much fun it'd be to play through it. For example, say in a fantasy campaign there's a big war between the pseudo-Arthurian good guys and the Mordor-like bad guys. I would expect - heck, pretty much demand - that a battle be handled differently depending on whether the PCs are present. In summary, it does not appear to me that the line of argument you've chosen has much - if anything - to do with the relative merits of rules-light versus rules-heavy games. [/QUOTE]
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