Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="Emerikol" data-source="post: 8239575" data-attributes="member: 6698278">I think some here are viewing the GM's notes as scraps of paper randomly scattered in a pile on a desk somewhere which seems to be a bit of a pejorative view.&nbsp;&nbsp; Our problem again is underlying assumptions that lead us to speak in a certain way about certain aspects of the campaign.For me.1.&nbsp; There is the pre-game creation of the setting which is a separate task and involves for me a good bit of work.&nbsp; It is a labor of love though so I do it.&nbsp; Some of this work is reused as I don't have to build a new world for every campaign.&nbsp; I can just create a new sandbox.&nbsp;&nbsp; The sandbox though is at least as much work as the rest of the world.2.&nbsp; There is the upkeep of the world.&nbsp; This happens in between sessions.&nbsp; It is still not done during gameplay.&nbsp; The goals are similar to #1 but less effort is demanded.&nbsp; You just push the calendar along.&nbsp; You may make some additions notes about plans for NPCs due to events the PCs have caused to happen and which now change the calendar.3.&nbsp; There is the immediate neutral refereeing of the setting for the players.&nbsp; This occurs during the game session when the other players are present.&nbsp; There is some improv here based on what has been defined in #1 and #2.&nbsp; Generally though I'm not inventing wholesale here.&nbsp; I am just building on the underlying foundation.Now players can be involved in all three stages.&nbsp; If my players have been talking and saying they'd really love to play a campaign where they are pirates, and I react to that and build such a campaign then they are giving some input on #1.&nbsp;&nbsp; If one of them asks me in between sessions if it would be okay if he defined the marriage rituals for his cleric's religion and we nail that down, that is #2.&nbsp;&nbsp; BOTH of these situations involve players NOT characters.&nbsp;&nbsp; The GM also does have final say on the world but the GM is also wanting a fun game so that issue is not a big deal at least for my games.In #3 though there is a very strong goal.&nbsp; Players ARE their characters.&nbsp; They do what their characters can do.&nbsp; The players don't separate their thinking from what their characters would be if those characters really existed.&nbsp; There is skilled play here and the players as their characters try to prepare, plan, and overcome challenges in the setting.&nbsp;&nbsp; There is also a high degree of agency.&nbsp;&nbsp; Go where you want, run if you need to, pick your poison.Now there are two more categories that I do not use.#4&nbsp; GM's creating the world on the fly.&nbsp; I realize the line might be fuzzy but there is still a divide.&nbsp; I know GM's who try to create an entire dungeon entirely on the fly.&nbsp; #5&nbsp; Players add to the truths of the world in a way independent of the GM but respecting what has already been established and keeping genre conventions in mind.We need words for all five of these and honestly we are using words to represent our take and others are seeing those words and not understanding or taking offense that the words are inappropriate.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Emerikol, post: 8239575, member: 6698278"] I think some here are viewing the GM's notes as scraps of paper randomly scattered in a pile on a desk somewhere which seems to be a bit of a pejorative view. Our problem again is underlying assumptions that lead us to speak in a certain way about certain aspects of the campaign. For me. 1. There is the pre-game creation of the setting which is a separate task and involves for me a good bit of work. It is a labor of love though so I do it. Some of this work is reused as I don't have to build a new world for every campaign. I can just create a new sandbox. The sandbox though is at least as much work as the rest of the world. 2. There is the upkeep of the world. This happens in between sessions. It is still not done during gameplay. The goals are similar to #1 but less effort is demanded. You just push the calendar along. You may make some additions notes about plans for NPCs due to events the PCs have caused to happen and which now change the calendar. 3. There is the immediate neutral refereeing of the setting for the players. This occurs during the game session when the other players are present. There is some improv here based on what has been defined in #1 and #2. Generally though I'm not inventing wholesale here. I am just building on the underlying foundation. Now players can be involved in all three stages. If my players have been talking and saying they'd really love to play a campaign where they are pirates, and I react to that and build such a campaign then they are giving some input on #1. If one of them asks me in between sessions if it would be okay if he defined the marriage rituals for his cleric's religion and we nail that down, that is #2. BOTH of these situations involve players NOT characters. The GM also does have final say on the world but the GM is also wanting a fun game so that issue is not a big deal at least for my games. In #3 though there is a very strong goal. Players ARE their characters. They do what their characters can do. The players don't separate their thinking from what their characters would be if those characters really existed. There is skilled play here and the players as their characters try to prepare, plan, and overcome challenges in the setting. There is also a high degree of agency. Go where you want, run if you need to, pick your poison. Now there are two more categories that I do not use. #4 GM's creating the world on the fly. I realize the line might be fuzzy but there is still a divide. I know GM's who try to create an entire dungeon entirely on the fly. #5 Players add to the truths of the world in a way independent of the GM but respecting what has already been established and keeping genre conventions in mind. We need words for all five of these and honestly we are using words to represent our take and others are seeing those words and not understanding or taking offense that the words are inappropriate. [/QUOTE]

Verification