Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Aldarc" data-source="post: 9142899" data-attributes="member: 5142">I don't think that a great depth of lore is necessary for world-building. I understand that some people like it. It inspires them and provides them structure. However, I also think that an overabundance of lore can also feel stiffling and it does not always translate to "playability."A rich depth of lore doesn't mean that the setting is all that playable. I was inspired when I first read Tekumel. I was impressed by the tremendous depth of lore and languages that went into the setting. You can look up glossaries and grammar books for the setting's conlangs. A sociologist could spend their time dissecting the social structures and cultures of the game. However, I also had no earthly idea what players would actually do in this setting. I still don't. My initial inspiration did not translate to being inspired to play or run the game. I also don't exactly think it's a coincidence that Tekumel has failed to gain much traction, even before the M.A.R. Barker scandal. And look at HarnWorld, another hyper-detailed lore-rich setting: it remains an incredibly niche setting despite being a medieval fantasy game. In contrast, Stonetop instantly clicked with me as a setting when I first encountered it as a series of "look at what I've done" posts on a Google+ Dungeon World community. There was barely any lore. There was a picture of the village and its surrounding environs, a playbook for the village, plus the game pitch: "the players play adventuring inhabitants of a remote Iron Age village and dealing with problems of the village." Without all that much lore revealed at that point, I knew what the adventurers would do. I grasped the playability of the setting nearly in an instant. All the world-building lore revealed since then, especially in the preview documents for the book, have been helpful but the world-building has really only reinforced what was already revealed.This is generally why I don't equate more lore with greater playability. There are so many playable worlds out there that are light on world-building lore and so many unplayable worlds (IMO) that are heavy on world-building lore.When talking about the playability of a setting, themes are easier for me to engage with as a GM and player than the sort of world-building that emphasizes lore. The Nentir Vale and World Axis setting is another setting, IMHO, that is built on themes over lore. I have an idea of what players can do less because the oodles and oodles of lore but, rather, because the themes that are supported by what lore there is.</blockquote>

Verification