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In RPG Theory

2/28/2005 Vaxalon: "Bricolage" : BAH!
No, no, I'm not casting aspersions on the concept that the word "bricolage" is being used to describe. I'm casting aspersions on the choice of the word "bricolage". I don't…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Vaxalon, LordSmerf, contracycle, matthijs, GB Steve, Ian Charvill, Silmenume, Ron Edwards, Phersu, Artanis, Mike Holmes.

2/28/2005 zobmie: I dont have any skills. girls only like guys with skills...
Sorry about the subject, its a movie quote, but it DOES have to do with my question. I am trying to make a list of skills. A giant master list…
In RPG Theory
Participants: zobmie, Bankuei, Latigo, LordSmerf, M. J. Young, eef, Walt Freitag, lev_lafayette, Dr. Velocity, Dantai, Garbanzo, zephyr_cirrus, Jared A. Sorensen.

2/27/2005 Paganini: Theory Without Jargon - Help for the Desparate - Number 3
Last time I ended up by talking about how most contributions are automatically accepted by the group, but that some contributions need to be arbitrated by an agreed-on mechanical method.…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Paganini, Emily Care.

2/27/2005 Noon: Designing a relationship, not a rule?
Sort of split from http://www.indie-rpgs.com/viewtopic.php?t=14396 (also this thread seems similar: http://www.indie-rpgs.com/viewtopic.php?t=14497&start=0&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight= ) Ambiguity in rules. I'm sure you've encountered it. But first, imagine your handed a sheet of paper with…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Noon, Valamir, M. J. Young, kenjib, Ron Edwards.

2/25/2005 kenjib: Art vs. Craft in Play & the Role of Hard/Soft Rules
In looking at this journal on situation over at Vincent Baker's blog, Chris points out a distinction between soft advice and hard mechanics. I thought that this was an interesting…
In RPG Theory
Participants: kenjib, Bankuei.

2/24/2005 contracycle: Allan Kaprow and the Happening Game
I have come across something I find quite extraordinary and would like to propose it here for discussion, because I am not really qualified to examine this properly. I think…
In RPG Theory
Participants: contracycle, groundhog, J. Tuomas Harviainen, Revontuli.

2/24/2005 urizenhh: Design schematics
Hi Folks! Probably this can be found somwhere (at least I hope so), but my Search-Fu is weak. I just wanted to know if someone has tried to compile the…
In RPG Theory
Participants: urizenhh, timfire, M. J. Young.

2/23/2005 lev_lafayette: Roll 3d6 .... What is this?!?
D&D calls them "Abilities", GURPS, RuneQuest and the White Wolf System calls them "Attributes", whilst Rolemaster and the Hero System calls them "Characteristics". Roll 3d6 six times and allocate in…
In RPG Theory
Participants: lev_lafayette, Valamir, Ron Edwards, Noon, komradebob, JMendes, M. J. Young, LordSmerf, Bankuei, xenopulse, Nathan P., John Kim.

2/23/2005 Thor: Can players fill different roles in the same game?
I set myself a challenge, recently, to update my first game. The game was called Tiny Spies and was a espionage variant on the Fantasy Trip. I was thinking about…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Thor, TonyLB, timfire, Ron Edwards, Valamir, M. J. Young.

2/23/2005 Dauntless: Method to scale from Simulationist mechanics to Narrativist?
I was wondering if there was an elegant way to allow a character (and the game mechanics itself) to advance in such a way that at low "experience" levels, his…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Dauntless, J. Tuomas Harviainen, Paul Czege, Ron Edwards, Michael S. Miller, Thor, Valamir, xenopulse, timfire.

2/22/2005 Gaerik: GM-lite / GM-less Games
I'm not at all sure that this is the place to post this message but it concerns wanting to actually play, so I'll put it here. Ron can feel free…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Gaerik, TonyLB, M. J. Young, daMoose_Neo, CPXB, JusticeZero, Andrew Morris.

2/22/2005 bneuensc: Call for Papers
Please circulate this CFP to those who might be interested in it. CALL FOR PAPERS Ben Aldred and Bryn Neuenschwander are soliciting papers for an academic volume on role-playing games.…
In RPG Theory
Participants: bneuensc, Victor Gijsbers, Vaxalon.

2/22/2005 Dauntless: Setting: Best way to create anarchy on Earth?
I've been trying to decide how to create a scenario for my game background which devestates the world to a degree that it doesn't make it slide into barbarism, but…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Dauntless, komradebob, TonyLB, kenjib, Ron Edwards, ADGBoss, daMoose_Neo, M. J. Young, Bifi, zephyr_cirrus, Vaxalon, ScottM, lev_lafayette, John Kim, contracycle, Mike Holmes, Dantai, Shieldage.

2/20/2005 Space Cowboy: Percentage-based games
Hey all, I was asked to do a guest column for RPG.net on the conceptual and developmental history of Wild Sphere, an RPG I’m in the middle of writing. I’m…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Space Cowboy, Bret Gillan, Uccisore, TRance Junkie, Kedamono, JMendes, Trevis Martin, Jules Morley, efindel, Walt Freitag.

2/20/2005 Dauntless: Effects-based vs. Cause-based character creation
Many games tend to follow either an effects-based rules system or a cause-based rules system. Effects-based (EB) systems are concerned with what happens; the rules model how the effect takes…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Dauntless, MikeSands, jerry.

2/18/2005 Andy Kitkowski: Indiestry creating a new "Class" of hobbyist?
Just a quick thought I had the other day, wanted to throw it out there and see what it means. In the traditional Gaming Industry, there were pretty much two-three…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Andy Kitkowski, Ron Edwards, Nathan P., Valamir, Halzebier, daMoose_Neo, Vaxalon, b_bankhead, Noon, jerry, JMendes, Bob Goat, pete_darby.

2/18/2005 LordSmerf: Eidetic Reduction, is it only for LARPs?
Split from Bricolage APPLIED (finally)! A Husserl-derivative way of describing the difference between tabletop rpg (and larps very much like it) and experience-creation larps. In the former, the…
In RPG Theory
Participants: LordSmerf, J. Tuomas Harviainen, humis, clehrich, Walt Freitag, M. J. Young, Sean.

2/18/2005 John Burdick: Intentional ambiguity and Big Eyes Small Mouth
In response to Chris Lehrich mentioning the idea of ambiguity as a virtue in a game, I suggested that Big Eyes, Small Mouth (BESM) offers a kind of structured ambiguity.…
In RPG Theory
Participants: John Burdick, Noon.

2/16/2005 clehrich: Bricolage APPLIED (finally!)
[size=14px][b]RPGs and Bricolage: Theory and Practice[/b][/size] In Jay’s recent thread on a 1/3-baked idea, a surprising (to me, anyway) agreement was reached about Simulationism, reflexivity, and so forth. In many…
In RPG Theory
Participants: clehrich, Eero Tuovinen, Clinton R. Nixon, CPXB, Jere, John Burdick, Nathan P., J. Tuomas Harviainen, Nicolas Crost, Sean, LordSmerf, matthijs, Paul Czege, shaheddy, Harlequin, Walt Freitag, Dobamine, M. J. Young, komradebob, xenopulse, GreatWolf, contracycle, Silmenume, pete_darby, lpsmith, Scrubilicous, GB Steve.

2/16/2005 komradebob: History of theGM?
Kat Miller started a thread (http://www.indie-rpgs.com/viewtopic.php?t=14344) asking why someone would choose to be a GM. I can relate to many of the opinions and experiences posted to that thread. However,…
In RPG Theory
Participants: komradebob, ffilz, clehrich, Sean, Jere, Marco, Ron Edwards, Emily Care, John Kim, Doctor Xero, jerry, Rob MacDougall, Doug Ruff.

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Subsequent Topics
In RPG Theory

3/2/2005 Green: approaches to creating characters
When it comes to creating and playing campaigns, there are a lot of resources about setting, mechanics, and player dynamics, but relatively few dedicated to what is supposed to be…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Green, M. J. Young, Danny_K.

3/2/2005 Valamir: Plausibility, Realism and game design goals [an essay]
In this thread Most traditional as well as most narration-based mechanics would be plausible but not realistic. There is no particular effort at simulation. The game designer/GM/player may…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Valamir, Nicolas Crost, xenopulse, neelk, Marco, Gaerik, John Kim, Bankuei, John Burdick, LordSmerf, lev_lafayette, M. J. Young, Noon, Vaxalon, Dauntless, Nathan P., b_bankhead, Walt Freitag, Ian Charvill, Domhnall, Ben Terry, contracycle, James Holloway, JMendes, Sean.

3/2/2005 humis: The Process Model of Roleplaying
Hello all, the just published Knutepunkt Book contains an article by me and a few friends, titled "The Process Model of Roleplaying". While waiting for the electronic version of the…
In RPG Theory
Participants: humis, xenopulse, John Kim.

3/3/2005 btrc: Interesting new tech with possible game application
I saw: http://www.parc.com/research/istl/projects/dataglyphs/demo.html on a gadget blog, and tried it out. Turned six paragraphs of text into a 2" x 2" quasi-cunieform glyph, which I then printed, mangled a bit,…
In RPG Theory
Participants: btrc, Noon, J B Bell, zobmie, Sabazius.

3/4/2005 Dauntless: Metaplots: Creative Inspiration or Creative Limitation?
I tend to like the idea of a game having a metaplot running through it. From a purely business standpoint, it's an excellent way to get people to buy more…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Dauntless, xenopulse, TonyLB.

3/4/2005 gorckat: Ordinary vs Extraordinay Characters/Worlds
Mornin' all- Apologies if this belongs in Play (as prep), but while skimming a book on writing SF this morning, I came across a quote by CS Lewis, which I…
In RPG Theory
Participants: gorckat, Ron Edwards, M. J. Young, Nathan P..

3/5/2005 matthijs: Attempts to extend rpg theory into empirical research?
A friend of mine is writing an article on RPG theory, but wants to make sure he's not just covering old ground, so he asked me to post this question:…
In RPG Theory
Participants: matthijs, J. Tuomas Harviainen, Shreyas Sampat, Steve Verdon.

3/5/2005 Halzebier: Gamist Advice for D&D (long)
GAMIST ADVICE FOR D&D (LONG) Background Our D&D group has mostly gamist tastes, but I sense some simulationist and illusionist tendencies in some of the others. For this particular game,…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Halzebier, Bankuei, Simon Kamber, NN, tj333, JMendes, Noon, Vaxalon, M. J. Young, Sean, ADGBoss.

3/10/2005 Space Cowboy: RPG.net Guest Column on Wild Sphere's developmental history
RPG.net has just published a guest column discussing Wild Sphere's developmental and conceptual history: http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/columns/glove09mar05.html General comments and constructive feedback on the column or how well WS' rules meet their…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Space Cowboy.

3/10/2005 makeshiftwings: Game rules for social interaction
Hi, this is my first time on these boards, and I just want to say I'm amazed to find such a resource of great information on RPGs. Anyway, on to…
In RPG Theory
Participants: makeshiftwings, Walt Freitag, The Horror, MrSandman666.

3/11/2005 LordSmerf: Character death revisited (now with bricolage!)
I've been thinking about Chris Lehrich's stuff on bricolage and long term play, and a couple of comments on this post on Anyway really caught my attention. But I also…
In RPG Theory
Participants: LordSmerf, Marco, Kesher, Silmenume, contracycle, Brendan.

3/12/2005 Nathan P.: University Game Design
So Vaxalon found this collection of lectures for Cornell's Game Design Initiative progam. It's focused on computer games, but the course description does read "Students with no game design experience…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Nathan P..

3/12/2005 Domhnall: Immersive-Relevant Realism (essay)
I came across this site ~11 months ago and I posted this essay at that time: http://www.indie-rpgs.com/viewtopic.php?t=10632&highlight=. The conversation in the replying posts asked me the “why” regarding this structure…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Domhnall, Halzebier, Ben Lehman, John Burdick, LordSmerf, Marco, James Holloway, M. J. Young, NN.

3/15/2005 ADGBoss: Gamer Development
[b]Social Contract, Player Empowerment, & Game Master Blues[/b] If you were to take a survey of the entirety of the Role Playing community and ask them the question ‘How did…
In RPG Theory
Participants: ADGBoss, bcook1971, Doctor Xero.

3/16/2005 Domhnall: "Balance", "Fairness" ?
M. J. Young responded in a topic (Immersive-Relevant Realism (essay)) concerning the issue of game balance/fairness among character types. An argument that justifies a game system being imbalanced: balanced characters…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Domhnall, Troy_Costisick, JMendes, lumpley, Andrew Norris, Marco, M. J. Young, Noon, James Holloway, J. Tuomas Harviainen, Mike Holmes, John Kim, ffilz, The God of the Machine, OliverTheMerc, Ron Edwards, Kat Miller.

3/18/2005 anonymouse: [metasystem] Frames
(I apparently wrote this back in October and promptly forgot about it. wanted to get it posted, just because; I still think it's a cool idea, I've used it a…
In RPG Theory
Participants: anonymouse.

3/20/2005 ffilz: GMless D20
I've lately been pretty frustrated at getting a game going (see my actual play posts if you're interested), and I'm thinking of going back to D20 for it's ease of…
In RPG Theory
Participants: ffilz, Bankuei, John Burdick, darrick, M. J. Young, Ron Edwards.

3/20/2005 matthijs: RPGs without movies
This is a thought experiment. What if our cultural experiences weren't so strongly anchored in the visual media? What if movies & television didn't exist? How would we play RPGs…
In RPG Theory
Participants: matthijs, nellist, Domhnall, beingfrank, efindel, timfire, Ian Charvill, John Kim, ffilz, M. J. Young, Damballa, Lxndr.

3/21/2005 Paka: Regarding Theme
I don't believe that themes are determined before play. Themes, to my mind, happen during play. They happen due to the players' choices. I played a game of TRoS set…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Paka, TonyLB, lumpley, Marco, pete_darby, John Kim, Ron Edwards.

3/21/2005 TonyLB: Where can you talk about "Objective" and "Sub
Over in 20' by 20' Room, we had a fun conversation where we all tried to suss out what we think about objective and subjective rules. The main take-away was…
In RPG Theory
Participants: TonyLB, Silmenume, MikeSands, ffilz, Bankuei, Marco, Lxndr, John Kim, M. J. Young, Noon, Arref, Jasper Polane, Valamir, Simon Kamber.

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