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D&D Older Editions
Reconciling 4e's rough edges with Story Now play
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<blockquote data-quote="Manbearcat" data-source="post: 8997189" data-attributes="member: 6696971"><p>Involved an external conversation about the lines between Trad, NeoTrad, snd Story Now GMing. Figured I’d drop this in here as its relevant and fodder for conversation.</p><p></p><p>People have attempted to run 4e as Trad and it has significantly struggled to do so. A lot of people have run 4e as NeoTrad and it works because the transparent and enormously functional dials of 4e allow for “tuning” (GM curation of difficulty to match assurances of PC conception realization and thematic arc integrity).</p><p></p><p>But one of the primary reasons why 4e plays so nice with Narrativist and Gamism priorities is this:</p><p></p><p><strong>I NEVER have to modulate the <em>challenge dial</em> to ensure the <em>Story Now dial</em>. I can always have the accelerator to the floor (within the bounds of system parameters) for both.</strong></p><p>[HR][/HR]</p><p></p><p>It can surely be a fine line. The best way to examine that line is the organizing principles of the content you’re introducing as GM. The following will all produce divergent results:</p><p></p><p>* What does my setting backstory and metaplot continuity say should happen here (?) > Introduce that content.</p><p></p><p>* How can the present situation give assured expression to the player’s conception of their PC’s thematic arc (?) > Introduce that content.</p><p></p><p>* How can the present situation test what this PC purports to be about (through their player and system) so we can discover the truth of it (?) > Introduce that content.</p><p></p><p>———</p><p></p><p>None of those give expression to Gamist priorities. That is a either a separate axis entirely to these thoughts or a coefficient attached to each.</p><p></p><p>* How can the present situation introduce a maximally compelling and consequential tactical or strategic decision-space (?) > Introduce that content.</p><p></p><p>IMO, the reason why Story Now play “plays disproportionately nice with Gamism (G)” is because (most of the time) I can integrate the answer to that challenge-centered bullet directly above with the organizing principle listed above for SN content. For the other two, there will be serious tension or competing priorities that have to be reconciled with:</p><p></p><p>Press the G button too hard and you threaten the integrity of a player’s conception of their character or threaten the expression of their thematic arc satisfactorily resolving in line with that player’s preconception.</p><p></p><p>Pressing the G button sufficiently hard to optimize compelling and consequential decision-space means going outside of metaplot continuity or setting extrapolation.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Manbearcat, post: 8997189, member: 6696971"] Involved an external conversation about the lines between Trad, NeoTrad, snd Story Now GMing. Figured I’d drop this in here as its relevant and fodder for conversation. People have attempted to run 4e as Trad and it has significantly struggled to do so. A lot of people have run 4e as NeoTrad and it works because the transparent and enormously functional dials of 4e allow for “tuning” (GM curation of difficulty to match assurances of PC conception realization and thematic arc integrity). But one of the primary reasons why 4e plays so nice with Narrativist and Gamism priorities is this: [B]I NEVER have to modulate the [I]challenge dial[/I] to ensure the [I]Story Now dial[/I]. I can always have the accelerator to the floor (within the bounds of system parameters) for both.[/B] [HR][/HR] It can surely be a fine line. The best way to examine that line is the organizing principles of the content you’re introducing as GM. The following will all produce divergent results: * What does my setting backstory and metaplot continuity say should happen here (?) > Introduce that content. * How can the present situation give assured expression to the player’s conception of their PC’s thematic arc (?) > Introduce that content. * How can the present situation test what this PC purports to be about (through their player and system) so we can discover the truth of it (?) > Introduce that content. ——— None of those give expression to Gamist priorities. That is a either a separate axis entirely to these thoughts or a coefficient attached to each. * How can the present situation introduce a maximally compelling and consequential tactical or strategic decision-space (?) > Introduce that content. IMO, the reason why Story Now play “plays disproportionately nice with Gamism (G)” is because (most of the time) I can integrate the answer to that challenge-centered bullet directly above with the organizing principle listed above for SN content. For the other two, there will be serious tension or competing priorities that have to be reconciled with: Press the G button too hard and you threaten the integrity of a player’s conception of their character or threaten the expression of their thematic arc satisfactorily resolving in line with that player’s preconception. Pressing the G button sufficiently hard to optimize compelling and consequential decision-space means going outside of metaplot continuity or setting extrapolation. [/QUOTE]
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