Challenging Players Notions

[Irmo]

Hi Bob,

Nope, D&D3E, though better in this respect, is still all focused on the killing, and the looting.

Which is fine, BTW. Once again we see the anti-gamist bias here. Know what? I don't like playing that way either. But that doesn't invalidate all those other D&D player's enjoyment of that form of play. IOW, you can't convince them that they are wrong. And it's wrong to do so.

Hmmmmmm.... I wonder if that shouldn't be separated a bit more.... being about killing and looting might coincide with being a gamist-supporting game, but is it a sine-qua-non? In other words, does a game, to be gamist-supporting, HAVE to endorse killing as the method of choice to solve a problem?

[Bankuei]

Sorry if I got a bit overboard there(try decaf huh?).

It is possible to challenge notions, but it may turn out that the players are quite happy and comfortable where they are in the end.  It may turn out that they just aren't open or receptive.  In the first case, they'll try out your new game, and decide they don't like it.  In the second case, the best you'll get is D&D mentality brought over to TROS.

I will back up Bob on the fact that one of the brilliant bits of TROS is that it can accomodate Gamists, Narrativist, or Sim play, depending on your focus.

The major things that people will have to understand to play TROS are:

•Fighting isn't rewarding in and of itself
As has been said, no reward for killing...

•SA's aren't set in stone
You can change them at will, not like alignments or most personality mechanics.

•SA's are rewarded on the spot, spent on the spot
"Use the force Luke!"  "Oh, yeah, now I understand the hidden technique!"

•You can get better, but you can always get dead
TROS has a very narrow margin of forgiveness.  You won't ever have 300 hp to let you survive 5 or 6 rounds of being stomped by a dragon.

•SA's tell the story, not vice versa
You can choose what the story is going to be about.  Your SA's tell you what to do, so don't try to "figure out" what the GM's story is.

Any other mentality will leave unhappy players.

Chris

[prophet118]

the most important thing about any game, is to give players the freedom they need, i have a problem with a wheel of time game i play in, i made a social charismatic character, and im bonded to my wifes channeler.... well according to the racial stereotype, shes going to be the one in charge and doing all the talking in public... even though our characters were made so that i am the public one, and shes not...

we are still going to play it the way we want, but the dm pretty much was going to inforce the stereotype