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<blockquote data-quote="volanin" data-source="post: 8177921" data-attributes="member: 69817">One of the best definitions I've seen comes from TheAngryGM: What defines a Tabletop RPG is that its rules are fiction-first instead of mechanics-first. To put it simply:In fiction-first rules, your actions are only bound by the fiction of the game. You can decide to do anything that fits the situation, and then you check the rules to see which one better suits your action. This is only possible because we have one or more human GMs to adjudicate these actions (even in GMless games, where everyone is technically a GM).In mechanics-first rules, your actions are bound by the game mechanics. First you look at the rules, and then you decide your action based on what the rules allow you to do. We have this in boardgames and videogames (even electronic RPG games, although they do have avatars, progressive improvement and cooperation).This was almost on target, but I have to disagree on the &quot;linear plot&quot; argument. Even in the most railroaded of games, with a very linear story, you have fiction-first characteristics. As long as I'm not breaking the story, no GM would be against me trying to swing from a chandellier to hit an enemy, or trying to seduce the empress. And that's why linear Tabletop RPGs and linear Electronic RPGs feel so different.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="volanin, post: 8177921, member: 69817"] One of the best definitions I've seen comes from TheAngryGM: What defines a Tabletop RPG is that its rules are [I]fiction-first[/I] instead of [I]mechanics-first[/I]. To put it simply: In [I]fiction-first rules[/I], your actions are only bound by the fiction of the game. You can decide to do anything that fits the situation, and then you check the rules to see which one better suits your action. This is only possible because we have one or more human GMs to adjudicate these actions (even in GMless games, where everyone is technically a GM). In [I]mechanics-first rules[/I], your actions are bound by the game mechanics. First you look at the rules, and then you decide your action based on what the rules allow you to do. We have this in boardgames and videogames (even electronic RPG games, although they do have avatars, progressive improvement and cooperation). This was almost on target, but I have to disagree on the "linear plot" argument. Even in the most railroaded of games, with a very linear story, you have [I]fiction-first[/I] characteristics. As long as I'm not breaking the story, no GM would be against me trying to swing from a chandellier to hit an enemy, or trying to seduce the empress. And that's why linear Tabletop RPGs and linear Electronic RPGs feel so different. [/QUOTE]

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