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<blockquote data-quote="Raven Crowking" data-source="post: 2961165" data-attributes="member: 18280">Rounser,I do see where you are coming from, and I understand why you would call some things &quot;railroading&quot; that I would not.&nbsp; Or, at least, I think that I do.&nbsp; However, I would be far more certain of your position if you could give us a simple definition of what railroading means to you.&nbsp; Mine is:&nbsp; Usurpation of player choice + linear play = railroading.&nbsp; That is a definition which can be used to examine a particular setup or campaign and determine whether or not railroading is present, and to what degree.&nbsp; A similar definition from you might be helpful.I am assuming that &quot;control over the course of the campaign in terms of which adventures occur&quot; is your working definition.&nbsp; Reading this, I see &quot;control over the course of the campaign&quot; as largely equal to &quot;Usurpation of player control&quot; and &quot;in terms of which adventures occur&quot; as being largely equal to &quot;linear play&quot;.&nbsp; The major difference between our definitions, IMHO, is that yours does not differentiate between legitimate authority and undue authority on the part of the DM.&nbsp; Usurpation is taking illegitimate authority, and it is the illegitimacy of the DM's action which is, to my mind, an important part of the definition.&nbsp; I am, perhaps, somewhat further confused by your examples, which seem to differentiate legitimate DM control from illegitimate DM control, at least when you are speaking about your own game.I opine that a useful definition is both clear and concise, and allows conclusions to be drawn from it in a reasonable manner.&nbsp; What you mean by &quot;railroading&quot; may meet these criteria to you, but I submit that others (myself included) are finding your definition somewhat less than clear.&nbsp; Regardless of whose fault it is, it is clear that a careful restatement of definition might be in order.RC</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Raven Crowking, post: 2961165, member: 18280"] Rounser, I do see where you are coming from, and I understand why you would call some things "railroading" that I would not. Or, at least, I think that I do. However, I would be far more certain of your position if you could give us a simple definition of what railroading means to you. Mine is: Usurpation of player choice + linear play = railroading. That is a definition which can be used to examine a particular setup or campaign and determine whether or not railroading is present, and to what degree. A similar definition from you might be helpful. I am assuming that "control over the course of the campaign in terms of which adventures occur" is your working definition. Reading this, I see "control over the course of the campaign" as largely equal to "Usurpation of player control" and "in terms of which adventures occur" as being largely equal to "linear play". The major difference between our definitions, IMHO, is that yours does not differentiate between legitimate authority and undue authority on the part of the DM. Usurpation is taking illegitimate authority, and it is the illegitimacy of the DM's action which is, to my mind, an important part of the definition. I am, perhaps, somewhat further confused by your examples, which seem to differentiate legitimate DM control from illegitimate DM control, at least when you are speaking about your own game. I opine that a useful definition is both clear and concise, and allows conclusions to be drawn from it in a reasonable manner. What you mean by "railroading" may meet these criteria to you, but I submit that others (myself included) are finding your definition somewhat less than clear. Regardless of whose fault it is, it is clear that a careful restatement of definition might be in order. RC [/QUOTE]

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