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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ph0rk" data-source="post: 1512286" data-attributes="member: 16266">I do not agree; and disagree with storytelling/writing as a metaphor for RPGs in general.Roleplaying is -not- the same as regular storytelling because many of the tricks that make a good story don't translate well to an RPG.  Roleplaying is roleplaying; you're playing out a role with a varying amount of meta-knowledge about the world physics and plot.  The amount of meta-knowledge you use is dependent on the situation; keeping the group together, etc.Player characters (metgame or otherwise) seek out challenge; in most story types the challenges sought by the characters are secondary; it is the challenges thrust upon the characters by fate that matter and make for an engaging narrative.  Too much of this in an RPG can easily become railroading.I would never even use the terms "Protagonist" or "Main Character" in an RPG; every player and every player character is special.  They come to decisions as a group and work towards their goals that way.  A role playing game is less a story than it is a shared hallucination if you will.  Or an excellent mechanism for creating and delivering witty one-liners while playing a wargame <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />If, however, I were forced to pick a story metaphor to fit role playing games; it would be character driven over event-driven.  Ultimately it is the actions of the player characters that give the world its meaning and the 'story' its shape.  Any attempt to make things event driven (in the classical creative writing sense) ends up as railroading.  (This is not to be confused with coming up with fabulous events to throw characters for a loop.)IMHO thinking of the pcs in terms like protagonist and supporting character will ultimately lead to spotlighting, which is never fun for everyone outside the spotlight.</blockquote>

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