You are not the Director

[Fifth Element]

It's quite clear what Umbran meant - just insert "like" into "D&D games are not ... movies".

He expanded on what he meant, for instance listing the multitude of roles the DM fills. Why get hung up on one phrase?

 

[Fifth Element]

Meh...reading it, I don't see why a poor analogy is necessary to deliver such basic GMing advice.

 

[Dausuul]

Thanks for this deep insight; the author agrees that the analogy isn't perfect.

However, if D&D games were movies, it wouldn't be analogy, would it? An analogy need not have a 1 to 1 correspondance to be valuable. Although, of course, it may be seriously flawed, saying A is not B does not indicate that an analogy likening A to B is "seriously flawed".

Similarly, weem's analogy (the post before this one) is not "seriously flawed" because D&D games are not bowling.

RC

True, but there are good analogies and bad analogies. I think Umbran's point, which I agree with, was that this particular analogy is too flawed for the use the author wants to make of it.

The Internet is neither a big truck nor a series of tubes, but it's more like a series of tubes than it is like a big truck*.

[SIZE=-2]*Warning: Recursive analogies can lead to stack overflow.[/SIZE]

 

[coyote6]

Can I be an Executive Producer? I want the big title.

Ooh, wait, most of my games are way more like TV shows than movies. Can I be a showrunner? Or do gnomes forbid that, too?

 

[Theo R Cwithin]

The Internet is neither a big truck nor a series of tubes, but it's more like a series of tubes than it is like a big truck*.

Oh, I don't know... Seems to me that a big truck full of horse hooey is actually a pretty spot on analogy for most of the internet.

 

[Doug McCrae]

The GM is, in part, a direector (he does direct some of the action - just not the PC's actions). He's also producer,writer, key grip, best boy in some cases the caterer.

You forgot disappearing the dead hookers from Ben Affleck's trailer.

 

[jaerdaph]

Oh, I don't know... Seems to me that a big truck full of horse hooey is actually a pretty spot on analogy for most of the internet.

You must spread some Experience Points around before giving it to the_orc_within again.

 

[Raven Crowking]

It's quite clear what Umbran meant

"It's not worth discussing"?




RC

 

[nedjer]

In-game I'm looking to be a choreographer. But not in a dancing around in tights sort of a way

 

[jaerdaph]

You forgot disappearing the dead hookers from Ben Affleck's trailer.

You must spread some Experience Points around before giving it to Doug McCrae again.


LOL!

I'm reminded me of something a lady friend of mine who does extra work and bit parts on television shows once said to me about her career. "Let's see - I've played a hooker, a hooker, a dead hooker, an onlooker, and an onlooker at a dead hooker. "

So through his or her NPCs, the DM/GM is also an Extra. Humbling, isn't it?