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<blockquote data-quote="Manbearcat" data-source="post: 8250979" data-attributes="member: 6696971"><p>Complete aside and I don’t want this to get a life of its own. I’m just pointing it out because it highlights how important clarity of collective priorities are in design and how misalignment of Skilled Play priority plus other priorities can create dysfunction at the table.</p><p></p><p>You see a lot of GMs lamenting CharOp and relying upon “Story Before” or “Blocks” to aggressively shut down CharOp players. This creates major dysfunction and bad feelings at the table.</p><p></p><p>The problem is when systems reward (and perhaps designers even point it out) mastery over build decisions. The player then interprets this as an important (or perhaps THE important) avenue for Skilled Play in the game. And they love the MtG Skilled Play aspect of deck building and then trying it out against live opposition (this is the playing portion of the game...”the opposition” is the GM’s obstacles).</p><p></p><p>But now they’ve been blocked or foiled by their assymetric power relationship with a Story Before/Block-activating GM.</p><p></p><p>Bad feelings and dysfunction because of lack of clarity in play priorities and the nature of Skilled Play.</p><p></p><p>Some would say this is exclusively a “social contract issue”, but IMO design has to take its healthy share of responsibility here.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Manbearcat, post: 8250979, member: 6696971"] Complete aside and I don’t want this to get a life of its own. I’m just pointing it out because it highlights how important clarity of collective priorities are in design and how misalignment of Skilled Play priority plus other priorities can create dysfunction at the table. You see a lot of GMs lamenting CharOp and relying upon “Story Before” or “Blocks” to aggressively shut down CharOp players. This creates major dysfunction and bad feelings at the table. The problem is when systems reward (and perhaps designers even point it out) mastery over build decisions. The player then interprets this as an important (or perhaps THE important) avenue for Skilled Play in the game. And they love the MtG Skilled Play aspect of deck building and then trying it out against live opposition (this is the playing portion of the game...”the opposition” is the GM’s obstacles). But now they’ve been blocked or foiled by their assymetric power relationship with a Story Before/Block-activating GM. Bad feelings and dysfunction because of lack of clarity in play priorities and the nature of Skilled Play. Some would say this is exclusively a “social contract issue”, but IMO design has to take its healthy share of responsibility here. [/QUOTE]
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