Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="Blue" data-source="post: 7760906" data-attributes="member: 20564">This did come off a bit judgemental, but just to run with it:D&amp;D came from wargames, and set the stage for a large amount of the games that came after in that mechanically there was a lot of focus on combat.&nbsp; This lead directly that in terms of time spent on mechanics, combat has the #1 slot over any campaign.&nbsp; (Again, this is just talking about mechanics - spending half an hour roleplaying and 45 seconds of that were a couple of social rolls is 45 seconds of mechanics time, even though it may be both a fun and important half hour spent.)With so much mechanical time spent on combat, systems wanted to make sure everyone can contribute, so every type of character has ways to hep the team.&nbsp; Usually there are different focuses on how someone can help, which leads to synergistic team play.&nbsp; For example, a healer or buffer might not do well on their own, but can provide a larger force multiple in a group then another striker.But that's not the only way to do it, and with more systems out there that shift some of the wall clock away from combat, or the &quot;need&quot; that everyone be good at combat, you get less tie-together at that point.&nbsp; Less mechanical pressure to work as a team.Some genres and archetypes are also better represented when people can split off and recombine.&nbsp; &quot;Lone wolf&quot; is a classic archetype.&nbsp; Deckers from cyberpunk literally can't take anyone with them.&nbsp; A Leverage-type Heist game not only needs multiple moving parts all at the same time, but being seen together could blow the whole thing.&nbsp; Marvel Heroic Roleplay specifically has mechanics for every hero for best/worst when working solo, buddy, or team and expects you to go back and forth during play.So I can see how as mechanics open up to genres where &quot;don't split the party&quot; is counter-productive, that gamers who play in those games (or have learned how to play from those games) can act solo or split-group as well as the &quot;traditional&quot; full-party-only viewpoint.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Blue, post: 7760906, member: 20564"] This did come off a bit judgemental, but just to run with it: D&D came from wargames, and set the stage for a large amount of the games that came after in that mechanically there was a lot of focus on combat. This lead directly that in terms of [I]time spent on [U]mechanics[/U][/I], combat has the #1 slot over any campaign. (Again, this is just talking about mechanics - spending half an hour roleplaying and 45 seconds of that were a couple of social rolls is 45 seconds of mechanics time, even though it may be both a fun and important half hour spent.) With so much mechanical time spent on combat, systems wanted to make sure everyone can contribute, so every type of character has ways to hep the team. Usually there are different focuses on how someone can help, which leads to synergistic team play. For example, a healer or buffer might not do well on their own, but can provide a larger force multiple in a group then another striker. But that's not the only way to do it, and with more systems out there that shift some of the wall clock away from combat, or the "need" that everyone be good at combat, you get less tie-together at that point. Less mechanical pressure to work as a team. Some genres and archetypes are also better represented when people can split off and recombine. "Lone wolf" is a classic archetype. Deckers from cyberpunk literally can't take anyone with them. A Leverage-type Heist game not only needs multiple moving parts all at the same time, but being seen together could blow the whole thing. Marvel Heroic Roleplay specifically has mechanics for every hero for best/worst when working solo, buddy, or team and expects you to go back and forth during play. So I can see how as mechanics open up to genres where "don't split the party" is counter-productive, that gamers who play in those games (or have learned how to play from those games) can act solo or split-group as well as the "traditional" full-party-only viewpoint. [/QUOTE]

Verification