Results 121 to 150 of 174
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2011-03-29, 02:19 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2011
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
Last edited by Cartigan; 2011-03-29 at 02:20 PM.
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2011-03-29, 02:22 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2010
- Location
- Minneapolis
- Gender
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
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2011-03-29, 02:49 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Ebonwood
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
...because there are aspects to DMing besides the mechanical? Because I actually consider the mechanics of gaming to be completely secondary to the narrative?
The issue I had when I posted here was lack of player participation in generating the basis of the narrative. Which, by the way, was resolved half a week ago and people keep posting.If asked the question "how can I do this within this system?" answering with "use a different system" is never a helpful or appreciated answer.
ENBY
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2011-03-29, 02:53 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2009
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
Last edited by Mystic Muse; 2011-03-29 at 02:53 PM.
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2011-03-29, 02:55 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Ebonwood
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
If asked the question "how can I do this within this system?" answering with "use a different system" is never a helpful or appreciated answer.
ENBY
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2011-03-29, 02:57 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2009
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2011-03-29, 03:08 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2009
- Location
- Maryland
- Gender
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
Then you don't understand what a game is. If your primary purpose is to play a game, bust out the rules and play. If your primary purpose is to tell a story, write a book.
There's a reason we don't describe it as "telling a game".
Your perception of which problems exist, and which lessons need learning may not match those of others. Such is life. And when a large number of people happen to share opinions that are contrary to yours, re-evaluation of why you hold those opinions is generally wise.
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2011-03-29, 03:13 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2005
- Gender
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
Though if it is a recurring problem, as it seems to be, people are validly offering a potential reason. Your players don't offer involved narratives/backstories because they don't feel attached to their characters. Killer DM style, or lack thereof aside, it's quite possible that if they had physical character sheets to take care of or even just hold at the tabletop, it'd feel more like 'theirs'.
Consider it, at least. Just because it's never been a problem for you before, doesn't mean it can't be an improvement.NOW COMPLETE: Let's Play Starcraft II Trilogy:
Hell, It's About Time: Wings of Liberty
Does This Mutation Make Me Look Fat: Heart of the Swarm
My Life For Aiur? I Barely Know 'Er: Legacy of the Void
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2011-03-29, 03:21 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Ebonwood
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
I think it's more because I was doing things backwards. I went to them asking for rounded characters in hopes that I would find plot hooks inside, when I should've been asking for plot hooks in hopes that I would find rounded characters inside.
Books aren't interactive. I'm here to roleplay, not rollplay.
Your perception of which problems exist, and which lessons need learning may not match those of others. Such is life.Last edited by Drakevarg; 2011-03-29 at 03:24 PM.
If asked the question "how can I do this within this system?" answering with "use a different system" is never a helpful or appreciated answer.
ENBY
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2011-03-29, 03:28 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2009
- Location
- Maryland
- Gender
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
This is a phrase I wish would die a horrible death.
Look at the words, though. They include the word "play". Not the word "tell". You and your players should be playing a game first. The story exists to enhance the game, not the other way around.
Perception is irrelevent in this context. The thread had a stated purpose, and it continued on after that stated purpose was accomplished.
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2011-03-29, 03:29 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2011
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2011-03-29, 03:32 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Ebonwood
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
You're entitled to your wrong opinion. I play DnD to tell a story. One I don't nessicarily know how it will play out. Think of it like improv theatre.
Welcome to the internet. Starting a thread doesn't let you dictate terms of posting.Last edited by Drakevarg; 2011-03-29 at 03:34 PM.
If asked the question "how can I do this within this system?" answering with "use a different system" is never a helpful or appreciated answer.
ENBY
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2011-03-29, 03:33 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2011
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2011-03-29, 03:35 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Ebonwood
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
If asked the question "how can I do this within this system?" answering with "use a different system" is never a helpful or appreciated answer.
ENBY
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2011-03-29, 03:38 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2011
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2011-03-29, 03:40 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Ebonwood
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
My players don't have the memory span of a goldfish. They don't need their sheets in front of their noses at all time to remember something like "I am good at jumping." Beyond that, since I never tell them the DCs for anything, all they really need to know is if a particular attempt succeeds or fails.
If asked the question "how can I do this within this system?" answering with "use a different system" is never a helpful or appreciated answer.
ENBY
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2011-03-29, 03:44 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2009
- Location
- Maryland
- Gender
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
See, I've done theater. I wouldn't consider D&D to be particularly close to even improv theater.
You don't play D&D to tell a story. That's a contradiction in terms. Playing D&D is something done cooperatively. Telling is something done from one individual to others. You can create a story together via gameplay, but you do not tell a story to others, unless you toss the game out the window. In that case, you are no longer playing a game.
As a rule of thumb, if the invite pitch for your game is "let's play D&D", then you have promised a game, and should follow through. If you have said "come over, and I'll tell you a story", then by all means, tell a tale. But don't promise one and do the other.
No, but it does let me get irritated and request a thread close when the discussion is rendered irrelevent.
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2011-03-29, 03:45 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2011
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2011-03-29, 03:54 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2009
- Location
- Portland, Or
- Gender
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
And yet in the two dozen or so sessions I've run since I started doing this I've never had a problem. (Discounting the whole "lost all my campaign data when my hard drive died" thing, which is not much different than leaving paper character sheets where your dog can get to them.)
Well, I would say it's a little different. I've lost/destroyed character sheets before. I've never had a a dog eat my campaign before. System crashes have certainly hurt a couple of things, but I've never had every single piece of important information in one single corruptable file before either...
so, I'm not sure it can be compared.
Unless you've got some James Bond kind of dog that is hell bent on destroying every piece of a campaign ever created. I guess I could see that.
Perhaps a dog with Geas cast on him or something, that goes to all my player's houses and eats their character sheets, and then comes to my house and crashes my computer and then proceeds to chomp down on all of my notes...
Oh and he somehow deletes my Mythweavers and Hotmail accounts as well.
Yep... exactly like a dog to do that.
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2011-03-29, 03:56 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Ebonwood
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
You don't play DnD to tell a story. I do.
Playing D&D is something done cooperatively. Telling is something done from one individual to others. You can create a story together via gameplay, but you do not tell a story to others, unless you toss the game out the window. In that case, you are no longer playing a game.
Personally, I don't see why "it irritates me and is not about the things I want" is a good reason to close a thread, but eh, I'm not a mod, so this sort of thing is not of importance to me.
Well, no. I just lost all my PC and NPC character sheets. All of my "campaign notes" exist exclusively in my head, with the exception of a few documents saying "this is the name of this town and the important people living there" since I can't be bothered to remember a hundred names crudely translated into French, Swedish, German and Latin.Last edited by Drakevarg; 2011-03-29 at 03:59 PM.
If asked the question "how can I do this within this system?" answering with "use a different system" is never a helpful or appreciated answer.
ENBY
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2011-03-29, 04:03 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2009
- Location
- Portland, Or
- Gender
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
Then I don't get it.
If your players know more or less what they have as far as skills, feats and such... it wouldn't take too long to rebuild all of their sheets. An hour or two at the most.
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2011-03-29, 04:06 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2010
- Location
- San Jose, CA
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
"I play D&D to roleplay, not rollplay! I tell a story, I don't deal with numbers! Oops, I just lost a bunch of numbers. We can't play."
Utterly ridiculous.
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2011-03-29, 04:07 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Ebonwood
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
Without looking at your sheet, can you tell me the attributes, skills, feats and equipment of a character of yours right now? Maybe you can, but I certainly couldn't.
I didn't say I don't deal with numbers. I said the numbers were secondary to the narrative. That doesn't mean they're completely irrelevent.Last edited by Drakevarg; 2011-03-29 at 04:08 PM.
If asked the question "how can I do this within this system?" answering with "use a different system" is never a helpful or appreciated answer.
ENBY
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2011-03-29, 04:09 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Oct 2007
- Location
- Chicago, IL
- Gender
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
...maybe until that request is granted, you might want to just stop checking this thread?
If you have gotten everything out of it that you wanted, it's probably not worth your time to read it when it is clearly just irritating you.
Just a bit of friendly advice - lord knows that particular strategy is how I escaped the Edition Warz intactLast edited by Oracle_Hunter; 2011-03-29 at 04:10 PM.
Lead Designer for Oracle Hunter GamesToday a Blog, Tomorrow a Business!
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Elflad
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2011-03-29, 04:11 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2010
- Location
- San Jose, CA
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
Last edited by Vladislav; 2011-03-29 at 04:11 PM.
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2011-03-29, 04:12 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Ebonwood
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
I've considered it, but I'm suffering from a spot of ennui at the moment and it at least occupies my attention.
Regardless, the campaign was limping as it was. And based on the material I'm working with now, I think it's for the best that the last one blew up.Last edited by Drakevarg; 2011-03-29 at 04:14 PM.
If asked the question "how can I do this within this system?" answering with "use a different system" is never a helpful or appreciated answer.
ENBY
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2011-03-29, 04:16 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2009
- Location
- Portland, Or
- Gender
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
Are you asking me as a player or as a GM?
As a GM? Nope. I don't know what all of my players have in their character's attributes or skills or equipment or whatever.
But as a player?
Well, because I have my character sheet with me, and I look down at it to make all sorts of rolls and changes and such... yes I can tell you within a point or two what all of the attributes are, as well as what skills were important to me (maybe not exactly what skill ranks in every skill, but a good ball park figur)
Equipment would be the worst, but then you can just give me WBL and I can build up the character from scratch with what I think he did have.
But... if my GM never let me see my character sheet? Nope. I couldn't do any of that.
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2011-03-29, 04:17 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2010
- Location
- San Jose, CA
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
In that case, admit the truth. The computer malfunction was not the reason the campaign ended, just a convenient excuse. And the campaign was limping because ... and now we have come full circle to the various issues of "storytelling" that you inflict on your players.
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2011-03-29, 04:18 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Ebonwood
Re: Dragging a rounded character out of them, kicking and screaming.
Assuming of course that I considered those acceptable parameters. Which I don't. Similarly if I'm playing chess and someone flips the board, I'm not going to allow them to put the pieces back "more or less" where they were before.
I covered that in the first paragraph of the OP.Last edited by Drakevarg; 2011-03-29 at 04:19 PM.
If asked the question "how can I do this within this system?" answering with "use a different system" is never a helpful or appreciated answer.
ENBY
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2011-03-29, 04:20 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2010
- Location
- Minneapolis
- Gender