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Message: <blockquote data-quote="FormerlyHemlock" data-source="post: 9028950" data-attributes="member: 6787650">A story about a bear ISN'T a simulation, which is why the bear/goldilocks discussion is baffling. However, it can be the output of a simulation, which itself can be built around the mental model of a bear and can therefore have bear-like properties like a sense of smell keener than a bloodhound's.But you can't necessarily tell from a story what play agenda generated it, especially without any dialogue from those who were generating it.Story: "The fearsome dragon roared and blew fire at Conan, who barely dodged it and then threw his mighty axe--which embedded itself to the haft right between the dragon's eyes. It fell out of the sky with an enormous crash! Thus ended the days of Treacher Leech, the last of the western dragons."Is that story the output of a play agenda that's mostly Gamist, mostly Dramatist, or mostly Simulationist? You can't tell. But what if I add a dialogue transcript from the players?Transcript A:GM: the dragon blows fire at you! DC 18 Dex save!Conanist: I use my Inspiration. I've been saving it all session for this fight. [Rolls] 13, 18. Made it! Because I have Evasion from my Rogue levels, I take no damage.GM: okay, your turn.Conanist: let me see, I'm 10 squares away and my move would only take me 8 squares, so I couldn't attack this turn. Boromir is making death saves so I can't afford to Dash, and besides that would just give the dragon more attacks on me, so I guess I'll throw my axe. [rolls] Critical hit! [rolls] Brutal critical, plus another 10d8 because I'm spending a 4th level spell slot on a ranged Divine Smite, makes 78 points of damage!GM: the dragon only had 45 hit points left and is now at zero. The axe embeds itself right between the dragon's eyes. The dragon falls to the ground with a crash!Transcript B:GM: the dragon blows fire at you! [rolls] It is aimed squarely at where you're standing!Conanist: I haven't retreated yet this turn so I'll try a Dodge and Retreat to move to another hex before it gets here. [roll] Success!GM: Your turn.Conanist: Well, the dragon is only six yards away and I'm very skilled with an axe (skill 21). Its armor is thick but I was able to damage it before, and usually skull armor isn't THAT much thicker than body armor. And this thing is big, I think you said SM +4, right?GM: about 50' to 60' long with eyes the size of softballs, SM +4, right.Conanist: I'm going to throw my axe, aiming for its head, right between the eyes. That would count as a skull hit, right?GM: right. Let's roll. [both roll]Conanist: hit!GM: dodge fails!Conanist: eat hot iron, dragon! [rolls] 19 damage baby!GM: DR 9 on the skull makes that... 40 injury to the brain, which is a major wound [roll] and the dragon is knocked unconscious and falls 10' to the ground [rolls] taking another 18 points of falling damage [rolls] and dying!Transcript C:Okay, doing a good job of writing a FATE- or Dungeon-World-style transcript is beyond me. But I assert, without proof, that not only could both these games do a dragon-slaying fight, but that they wouldn't look like A or B. Prove me wrong!Can you tell what the people in A, B, and C value in their games?</blockquote>

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