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<blockquote data-quote="Ovinomancer" data-source="post: 8039180" data-attributes="member: 16814">To answer &quot;what is railroading&quot; you first need to look at GM Force.&nbsp; What is GM Force?&nbsp; Most simply, it's the use of the GM's fiat power to enforce an outcome the GM desires.&nbsp; Force isn't good or bad -- I'd argue it's an important tool in the toolbox.&nbsp; Force can be innocuous or abusive, but only in how it is used, not in concept.&nbsp; For example, if a GM decides, in response to a PC action declaration, that some fiction exists that prevents that declaration, this is GM Force.&nbsp; A good example of this would be if a merchant has a particular item for sale and the GM determines it's not available because they don't want to deal with that right now.&nbsp; This is normal, and part of the GM's job in 5e (or most D&amp;D style games) to do.&nbsp; An abusive example would be the previous example of the castle gate being the only permissible entry to the fortification.Force now being defined, railroading is the accumulation of Force to a point that player agency is significantly reduced.&nbsp; Where that occurs is really dependent on the players involved -- it could be a single instance of Force, it might be almost all use of Force.&nbsp; Each of us knows it when we see it, but that's for us, not in general.&nbsp; Generally speaking, though, a threshold commonly held is when Force is commonly applied to macro-level choices in game.&nbsp; By this I mean those choices that determine what scene comes next rather than something in a scene, like combat tactics.&nbsp; If succeeding at a scene results in the next scene, no matter what, that is usually determined to be railroading. That's not necessarily bad, though, especially if the players are enjoying it.&nbsp; Agency is not a magic wand that creates fun, although it's usually required.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Ovinomancer, post: 8039180, member: 16814"] To answer "what is railroading" you first need to look at GM Force. What is GM Force? Most simply, it's the use of the GM's fiat power to enforce an outcome the GM desires. Force isn't good or bad -- I'd argue it's an important tool in the toolbox. Force can be innocuous or abusive, but only in how it is used, not in concept. For example, if a GM decides, in response to a PC action declaration, that some fiction exists that prevents that declaration, this is GM Force. A good example of this would be if a merchant has a particular item for sale and the GM determines it's not available because they don't want to deal with that right now. This is normal, and part of the GM's job in 5e (or most D&D style games) to do. An abusive example would be the previous example of the castle gate being the only permissible entry to the fortification. Force now being defined, railroading is the accumulation of Force to a point that player agency is significantly reduced. Where that occurs is really dependent on the players involved -- it could be a single instance of Force, it might be almost all use of Force. Each of us knows it when we see it, but that's for us, not in general. Generally speaking, though, a threshold commonly held is when Force is commonly applied to macro-level choices in game. By this I mean those choices that determine what scene comes next rather than something in a scene, like combat tactics. If succeeding at a scene results in the next scene, no matter what, that is usually determined to be railroading. That's not necessarily bad, though, especially if the players are enjoying it. Agency is not a magic wand that creates fun, although it's usually required. [/QUOTE]

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