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Message: <blockquote data-quote="KidSnide" data-source="post: 5083515" data-attributes="member: 54710">Well, I'll try to give some examples of potentially good storytelling technique that would be much less commonly employed in a more sand box oriented game.  Are they examples of "A" (or maybe "B")?  I don't think so, but intelligent people could probably differ on that point.  In any case, I think storyteller GMs take more control over what happens in the game.  Here are two examples:"The GM decides what the next adventure will be."The GM doesn't decide what the next adventure will be in-game.  There's no mystical force preventing the PCs from picking a different adventure, it's just that the universe is set up so that the GM's next adventure is the logical thing to do.  IME, the most common example is that the PCs work for someone and are invested in their careers.  They have the power to quit their jobs and go do something else, but that's a big deal and the GM is on mostly safe ground in assuming that the PCs will do what their employer asks.  The advantage of this is that the GM has more world knowledge than the PCs and is better situated to decide what would be the most fun.  Once the PCs get to the adventure, it can be as sandboxy as the GM wants, but it's a big help to planning when you know which situation to prepare.  Also - and maybe more importantly - the GM can guide the PCs towards the situations in which they have the most leverage over the game world and their actions can produce the most interesting consequences."The GM can include a plan with a situation."One of the differences that's been discussed up thread is how much time the GM allows the PCs to discuss what they're going to do.  One way to "cut to the good part" is to set up a situation and give the players an acceptable default plan.  For example, if the PCs are trying to hunt down a notorious pirate (who is otherwise unimportant to the other things that are going on), the GM can say "here's a way you think would work."  The PCs are free to ignore the default plan and spend a couple hours planning an alternative.  But, if there are no interesting consequences to the exact manner in which how powerful and well-connected PCs hunt down a less powerful and unconnected pirate, then it's a waste of time having the players figure out the plan, even though knowing the plan is relevant to setting up the subsequent fight.I don't think this is intrinsically different than skipping over four weeks journey.  It's just that a story telling GM has a stronger opinion about which parts of the game will be the most fun to play and so is more willing to designate something "a boring bit" and skip over it.-KS</blockquote>

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