What is the point of GM's notes?

[Bedrockgames]

This is not about playstyle at all. I have a personal belief that prep exists to inform play, to make play more dynamic. That our shared experience is more important than our individual experiences. That's as consistent with sandbox play as it is for Story Now play as it is for Adventure Path play. I honestly do not see how it's all that contentious.

Except we are seeing it in this thread be used to advance playstyle arguments (much of the discussion has centered around the impossibility of a living world).

 

[Bedrockgames]

So, you're saying the people referring to "fiction" or "the fiction" are calling TRPGs literature?

I am saying it can and does create confusion about what the fiction means (and suggests elements found in stories, literature and fiction will be present). You are paving the way for thinking of the game as an unfolding story

 

[Ovinomancer]

Except we are seeing it in this thread be used to advance playstyle arguments (much of the discussion has centered around the impossibility of a living world).

Hmm, that is indeed troubling. Denying the existence of planets (or planetoids) that are alive is a dangerous game. Surely you have quotes to cite where people have said that living worlds are impossible? I think that many gamers would be outraged at such.

 

[prabe]

I am saying it can and does create confusion about what the fiction means (and suggests elements found in stories, literature and fiction will be present). You are paving the way for thinking of the game as an unfolding story

So you're saying we are confusing TRPGs with literature? Because I assure you, I am not.

Elements that will be found in stories that will also be found in TRPGs include (but are not limited to): setting, character, events, and theme. Just off the top of my head; and the events of the game will likely form some sort of narrative, in a post facto way.

I don't think your argument is as strong as you think it is.

 

[Ovinomancer]

I am saying it can and does create confusion about what the fiction means (and suggests elements found in stories, literature and fiction will be present). You are paving the way for thinking of the game as an unfolding story

Wait, living worlds unfold now?!?!

 

[pemerton]

It is but it is easy to slide into definition 1 (and one is very ambiguous so ripe for equivocation)

No one in this thread is doing that, except perhaps you. So why do you keep urging everyone else not to do it?

 

[Bedrockgames]

Wait, living worlds unfold now?!?!

Yes, we established that living worlds are futons about thirty pages ago. Please try to keep up

 

[prabe]

Yes, we established that living worlds are futons about thirty pages ago. Please try to keep up

It's not a living world, it's a futonic tesseract.

 

[Bedrockgames]

Hmm, that is indeed troubling. Denying the existence of planets (or planetoids) that are alive is a dangerous game. Surely you have quotes to cite where people have said that living worlds are impossible? I think that many gamers would be outraged at such.

All kidding aside, I am quite certain a number of posters challenged the very idea of living worlds. We had pages of debate over it. I am not going to comb through and grab quotes for someone who hasn't made a serious post towards me though

 

[Ovinomancer]

Yes, we established that living worlds are futons about thirty pages ago. Please try to keep up

That's very unclear. Are living worlds Japanese mattresses that are unrolled onto the floor, in which case this claim that they unfold is very confusing, or are they low wooden sofas that can be used as a bed, in which case "unfold" is doing a lot of work here. I don't think most gamers are going to understand what you mean by futon in this context.