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Message: <blockquote data-quote="aramis erak" data-source="post: 7974456" data-attributes="member: 6779310">I decided to bring a more mathematical example.Take the magic square  puzzle... fill a 3x3 grid with the numbers 1-9 such that the sum of each row and each column adds up to the same sum. That sum, it turns out, is 15..<table style='width: 100%'><tr><td>A B C    D E F G H I</td><td>A+B+C = 15 D+E+F = 15 G+H+I= 15</td><td>A+D+G =15 B+E+H = 15 C+F+I = 15</td><td>set [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I] contains the same members of set [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]</td></tr></table>It has 8 solutions: Let's call solutions [K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R]...K is rotated 90° to make L, again to make M, and a third time for NO is a flip of K along the diagonal, P, Q, R are rotations of that. One pattern of solution, but 8 permutations of it in the workspace.Taking  [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I]=[8, 1, 6, 3, 5, 7, 4, 9, 2], rotated 90° gives set [6, 1, 8, 7, 5, 3, 2, 9, 4]Now, if we start the puzzle with an edge or corner filled, we block all rotations, reducing only to reflections, and thus have two solutions.With two non-center squares not on the same diagonal filled, the puzzle collapses to one of the original 8 only.Sudoku is a perfect exemplar - if given a blank grid, there are thousands of possible solutions. Each puzzle one is given in a book is a single solution to the larger blank grid sudoku... and so that blank grid sudoku is a superset of every single-solution sudoku puzzle's solution... but despite multi-thousands, if not millions, of valid solutions, the blank grid is hard for those who lack memory of a 9x9 solution.for more detail on this: <a href="https://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/2015/11/08/how-many-3x3-magic-squares-are-there-sunday-puzzle/" target="_blank">How Many 3×3 Magic Squares Are There? Sunday Puzzle – Mind Your Decisions</a>Which brings me to the relevance to RPGs and my original complaint about Mr. Pulsipher's omission...So, to explain more fully....Fundamentally, the point of rules in RPGing is to create a more managable condition for story to emerge than the blank slate of no restrictions at all of single-person-controlled narrative.Literally, a ruleset limits your ability to affect the story state. Even if it is just a group agreement to turns and "yes, and"/"yes, but"... that's a limit on agency in order to createplayability. The blank slate is comparable to the empty sudoku grid... where to begin? The choice of ruleset narrows that open story field by answering at least these following things:Who is narrates when?How is that transition made?When is randomization used to influence story state?When are point pools used to make store state?Most also answer theseWho is the group's designated rules authority? (Usually a GM, sometimes the group as a whole, a few leave it to player choice by vote)Who is the group's authority on the narrative (IE, Veto)? (Uually also the GM, but not always. EG: most VSCA games make the group vote the vetoWhat is a reasonable character's capabilities? (Usually defined in Character generation, often also in the opponents/bestiary sections).What is the genre? (Often to Subgenre level, tho' generic games officially don't, most have some genres where they are better fits than others.)What is the setting? (Either to a semi-generic set of tropes, or to a specific defined locale. Some to a single place, eg: Kagematsu is a single village)What kinds of activities are expected to be abstracted, which are expected to be detailed out, and which are left to the group's designated authority?All of these limit player agency via setting the scope of play. And reduce it to the point where it's playable, and, barring kitchen sinks like TORG or Rifts, strongly reduce the character options, and that reduces the opening salvo of agency: definition of character.And defining a character is, ultimately, he largest limit on agency. If you define your character as X, but not Y, then narrating anything that only Y could do implies is pre-agreed "but it fails" response, if even that soft a landing.Rules help keep the story state sensible (usually) and help control narrative flow, as well as just action resolution. Every rule reduces overall agency of the player, but, within reason, having some rules makes it more playable, just like having some filled in spots on the magic square or the sudoku makes it easier.But, rules can become cumbersome, unlike starting hints in sudoku... (tho' excessive hints in sudoku make it less rewarding as well as easier.) So the balance point has to be found, and differs by group... more rules for easier narration of consistent and/or genre appropriate story, in exchange for incresed handling time and/or release of story state direction to the mechanical resolution.Every rule affects either story state or story authority, and thus reduces agency of at least some players.</blockquote>

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