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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Tom Cashel" data-source="post: 2047557" data-attributes="member: 321">(Hey, this must be the new EN World, where even the Moderators can rot perfectly good threads with back-and-forth exchanges that no one else wants to read. Take it to e-mail, y'all!)EDIT: See how thread-rot afftects us all? I didn't even realize I was adding onto/restating what fusangite and mythusmage just said.I don't think "story" is something that the GM creates on their own, at least not in your typical D20 game. In White Wolf games (for instance) the GM is expected to plot an opening, several scenes, and a ending. But not so in D20--the rules don't mention anything about plotting a story ahead of time.Story happens in real time if the GM has put the pieces in place.The onus is on the GM to create interesting supporting characters (NPCs) with their own motivations, engaging scenery (but not scenes), and one or more "hooks" to get the players going. Once the players choose how they'll go after that first hook, your story has begun."Story" doesn't have to be complex. "Once upon a time a man woke up. He went down to the corner for some coffee and a newspaper. The rest of his day was uneventful. The end."Not compelling or particularly interesting, but it is a story.So the GM must set out the components, and make them more interesting than "waking up," "corner store," "coffee," and "newspaper." What the PCs do when they encounter the GM's set-up creates a story. The story can be written down later, or just remembered and retold to unwilling listeners.I guess what I'm saying is that "story" in gaming should be the interaction between the players and the many components laid out by the GM. I think RPG stories created collaboratively, without any preconceived notions (on the part of players or GM) of where the story will go or conclude, end up being the most rewarding for all involved.A book on how to set up the pieces so that collaborative storytelling can happen would be very interesting. Maybe I'll write it.</blockquote>

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