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Why do RPGs have rules?
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<blockquote data-quote="innerdude" data-source="post: 9009839" data-attributes="member: 85870"><p>Of course it is. By selecting the Rogue class at level 1 in D&D, I am explicitly agreeing that until I gain at least 1 and possibly multiple additional levels, I can no longer declare as valid fiction, "I lay my hands on the injured warrior and divinely heal his wounds," "I cast magic missle," and "I hew the bugbear in half with my two-handed greataxe."</p><p></p><p>I can see, perhaps, that what you're getting at is that there are no explicit rules surrounding <em>how does my level 1 Rogue end up in a fictional position at all to declare either a correct or incorrect action declaration?</em></p><p></p><p>Well sure. Because unless explicitly stated in the rules, it is an assumed, unwritten rule that GMs control most of the broader framing. Which is why when a system goes out of its way to call out or modify that long held, unwritten rule, it is perceived as unusual.</p><p></p><p>Who and what determines if the level 1 Rogue's player is allowed to declare, "I walk into the village of Ardun and speak to the chief of militia"?</p><p></p><p>All of it is based on agreed "truthy" states in the fiction.</p><p></p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The character is capable of walking.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The village of Ardun is physically present in the fiction. (I.e., it hasn't been sucked into an Abyssal vortex and removed from the material plane.)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The distance to Ardun is reasonable within context. (If Ardun is 3,000 km away, it's a bit presumptuous to declare you walk there without intervening happenings.)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">There are no other external factors preventing foot travel (weather, rock slides, presence of a 5,000 troop army besieging the village).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">There's a person in the village with the title or equivalent of chief militia officer.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The chief militia officer can be sought and found upon arrival.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The chief militia officer has any desire to speak to the character.</li> </ul><p>In some systems the GM has assumed, unilateral authority to dispute the "truthiness" of any of those claims. In the case of many PbtA games, depending on context and how a player move was just resolved, the GM may have zero authority to dispute those declarations.</p><p></p><p>But ultimately the "truthiness" of any or all of the claims is based on negotiation between the group*. And that negotiation can be strictly interpersonal or mediated by rule. *Edit: often with an assumption that one member of the group has ultimate approval or veto power.</p><p></p><p>Sometimes that rule is, "As GM, I sometimes desire to remain fully impartial in rulings, and shall defer to an operator of chance in many instances."</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="innerdude, post: 9009839, member: 85870"] Of course it is. By selecting the Rogue class at level 1 in D&D, I am explicitly agreeing that until I gain at least 1 and possibly multiple additional levels, I can no longer declare as valid fiction, "I lay my hands on the injured warrior and divinely heal his wounds," "I cast magic missle," and "I hew the bugbear in half with my two-handed greataxe." I can see, perhaps, that what you're getting at is that there are no explicit rules surrounding [I]how does my level 1 Rogue end up in a fictional position at all to declare either a correct or incorrect action declaration?[/I] Well sure. Because unless explicitly stated in the rules, it is an assumed, unwritten rule that GMs control most of the broader framing. Which is why when a system goes out of its way to call out or modify that long held, unwritten rule, it is perceived as unusual. Who and what determines if the level 1 Rogue's player is allowed to declare, "I walk into the village of Ardun and speak to the chief of militia"? All of it is based on agreed "truthy" states in the fiction. [LIST] [*]The character is capable of walking. [*]The village of Ardun is physically present in the fiction. (I.e., it hasn't been sucked into an Abyssal vortex and removed from the material plane.) [*]The distance to Ardun is reasonable within context. (If Ardun is 3,000 km away, it's a bit presumptuous to declare you walk there without intervening happenings.) [*]There are no other external factors preventing foot travel (weather, rock slides, presence of a 5,000 troop army besieging the village). [*]There's a person in the village with the title or equivalent of chief militia officer. [*]The chief militia officer can be sought and found upon arrival. [*]The chief militia officer has any desire to speak to the character. [/LIST] In some systems the GM has assumed, unilateral authority to dispute the "truthiness" of any of those claims. In the case of many PbtA games, depending on context and how a player move was just resolved, the GM may have zero authority to dispute those declarations. But ultimately the "truthiness" of any or all of the claims is based on negotiation between the group*. And that negotiation can be strictly interpersonal or mediated by rule. *Edit: often with an assumption that one member of the group has ultimate approval or veto power. Sometimes that rule is, "As GM, I sometimes desire to remain fully impartial in rulings, and shall defer to an operator of chance in many instances." [/QUOTE]
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