The many types of Sandboxes and Open-World Campaigns

[Mannahnin]

Ah. I was thinking who decided completion. I’ve played in enough games where the GM had a different idea about what I was trying to do that I ended up getting no XP for my aspiration/goal/whatever that I know how much it sucks. When I saw how BitD handles it (the player decides), I was like: yes, this is correct. I had already been using group consensus for individual goals, so it felt like a natural evolution.

Ah, got it. The written text is pretty bare-bones, but I understand the intent to be collaborative. The player defines what their goal is and what success means. The DM might provide a little guidance if it seems vague or overly ambitious, something unlikely to be achievable in 2-3 sessions, to prevent the player from inadvertently making things too hard on themselves.

 

[Committed Hero]

Historically speaking, a sandbox is three dimensional representation of an environment for operational planning.

I believe that's a sand table. A sandbox as it was originally used is a child's place to play where there toys can be found if they dig.

 

[Committed Hero]

This is also why I think improvisation is important in a sandbox. Not everything has to be created before hand. A lot should be. But eventually the players go somewhere or look in some nook you hadn't prepared for. This happens in every single type of campaign but is even more common in a sandbox (even in the most linear of adventures, a player can ask something like "Whose the owner of that house over there" and you have to come up with an explanation on the fly).

It's not strictly necessary, but the amount of time the DM spends creating the world before play is proportional to the amount of time it takes to gather information about a location and present it to the players once they get somewhere. Especially if the journey is unexpected.

 

[Mannahnin]

I believe that's a sand table. A sandbox as it was originally used is a child's place to play where there toys can be found if they dig.

Yeah, I think the terms are distinct but both come up in gaming.

Sand table mostly in wargaming, where it's literally a heavy duty table with a walled top full of sand which gets moistened so it can be shaped into 3D terrain for miniatures play. Gygax famously had one of these in his basement at the 330 Center Street house.

Sandbox refers literally to a kids' play environment also walled and full of sand which they can shape and dig in, but figuratively to campaigns which are designed for undirected and creative play, like a child's sandbox.

 

[Committed Hero]

Sandbox refers literally to a kids' play environment literally full of sand which they can shape and dig in, but figuratively to campaigns which are designed for undirected and creative play, like a child's sandbox.

The idea being, if a kid pokes around enough he will find the plastic dinosaur.

 

[Reynard]

The idea being, if a kid pokes around enough he will find the plastic dinosaur.

Or that less desirable thing the neighborhood tom cat left....

 

[Reynard]

It's not strictly necessary, but the amount of time the DM spends creating the world before play is proportional to the amount of time it takes to gather information about a location and present it to the players once they get somewhere. Especially if the journey is unexpected.

This is probably less of an issue with modern organizational tools like campaign wikis.

 

[J.Quondam]

The idea being, if a kid pokes around enough he will find the plastic dinosaur.

A lasting memory of mine of playing in sandbox as a child: A friend stepped on the sand under which was hidden the head of a rake. Its buried handle flew up and hit me in the face, and I went flying backward. Comedy gold, and a massive black eye as a result.
Not unlike PCs in a proper "wander at yer own risk" sandbox campaign.

 

[Mannahnin]

A lasting memory of mine of playing in sandbox as a child: A friend stepped on the sand under which was hidden the head of a rake. Its buried handle flew up and hit me in the face, and I went flying backward. Comedy gold, and a massive black eye as a result.
Not unlike PCs in a proper "wander at yer own risk" sandbox campaign.

A neighbor of mine literally concussed himself this way a couple of years ago as an adult. Just like a cartoon. Sadly he's suffered several concussions over the years and so was particularly vulnerable.

 

[Thomas Shey]

This is an aspect where system really starts to matter a lot. In theory, you can tell players that they can do whatever they want. But in practice the mechanics of the rules system influence what kinds of behaviors are beneficial or detrimental to the players. Character advancement being the obvious number one. Players will gravitate towards behaviors that increase the rate ot character advancement, like doing things that get them XP. Establishing clear rules for what will get them XP and how much is a very great tool to guide the campaign without ever giving the players any directions in where to go and what to do.

Its possible to make that a non-issue though; while there are other elements where player choices make improvements easier or harder, in Fragged Empire, they level every three adventures/sessions no matter what they're doing. It disconnects their advancement from their choices in a way that makes the latter (at least in this area) more free.