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Message: <blockquote data-quote="hawkeyefan" data-source="post: 7353460" data-attributes="member: 6785785">I think your first paragraph above is the crux of my issue with Permerton's stance. Essentially, does "worldbuilding" in the sense of the GM concocting backstory for the campaign serve only to deny player agency? Does it offer anything else? I think the clear answer is that it can. If we can imagine a GM who creates an interesting and compelling story that incorporates or at the very least does not contradict or suppress player goals, then I think that's all that is needed in order for the idea to have merit. Perhaps the Gm has come up with a villain that he has worked into each character's stories in some way, connecting them all but without forcing them along certain paths. The GM has a loose idea of where things will go or what some characters may or may not do, but leaves plenty of room for change along the way. There are pre-authored elements in this case, but I don't think of this as the same thing as a linear style adventure where the characters move along the pre-defined path and do not deviate from it.  Perhaps there is a chance that it could be done poorly....but I think the same can be said of any style of play or method of GMing. I think a couple of possible answers to this question may be: - to take many story threads offered by the players and make a cohesive narrative out of them- to introduce an element wholly unexpected by the players because it is not directly connected to their stated desiresI think more have been offered in the thread, but those are the couple that seem the most relevant to me at the moment. Neither may be necessary....it's quite possible for the players to have goals that dovetail nicely with each other, or which are more group oriented, and a GM may not need to work to weave them together. It's also perfectly fine for a game to not have a cohesive narrative, and to be more episodic. It's also quite possible that through the course of play, something wholly unexpected is introduced spontaneously. Those moments are great and I'd never want my game to be without them. So I would never say that anyone's game must have a certain level of GM direction happening; I've played games along the lines of Penny For Your Thoughts, and I understand the value and enjoyment of collaborative storytelling. All I am saying is that it is a method that can be useful, and need not devolve into the negative version that is being put forth.</blockquote>

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