Previous Topics
In RPG Theory

8/23/2003 Dave Panchyk: Social software considerations
When I pointed this article out to Ron, he suggested I post it here. This article focuses on groups on the Internet and how they behave (and have always behaved)…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Dave Panchyk, lumpley, Bankuei, cruciel, John Kim, Valamir, Marco, Mike Holmes.

8/20/2003 Dev: Pure Probabilty mechanic
(Just an idea, no game attached.) Imagine if you just had a big index of probabilities for lots and lots of stuff that might just randomly happen, and whenever something…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Dev, MachMoth, M. J. Young.

8/20/2003 Windthin: Proficiency and Pitfalls
Well... I've been thinking about how to show mastery, proficiency, in skills, and these are some thoughts that occured, and a possible solution I'd like feedback on. First off, I've…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Windthin, iago, bcook1971, Ron Edwards, M. J. Young, Andrew Martin.

8/20/2003 bcook1971: Bag of Questions and a Dilemma
Some questions. (This starts out RPG Theory and turns GNS. Wasn’t sure where to post it.) I’ve been trying to find a comprehensive glossary of terms and acronyms with no…
In RPG Theory
Participants: bcook1971, Jack Spencer Jr, Andrew Martin, Alan, ethan_greer, Garbanzo, jburneko, M. J. Young, Bankuei, Emily Care.

8/17/2003 Jeph: Character sheets as the equivalent of plot webs?
So yeah. Do you remember, back in elementary school, when your fourth grade teacher told you how to start planning a story? You made a little blurb in the center…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Jeph, Andrew Martin, jdagna, M. J. Young, Ben Morgan, gobi, iago, Ron Edwards, Nathaniel, Windthin, David Chunn, Mike Holmes, WDFlores, ross_winn.

8/17/2003 jdagna: The System's Role in Exhaustion Escalation
I've been lurking on Exhaustion Escalation in Illusionist Play but I've never been a part of enough illusionist play to contribute much there. However, system got only a small…
In RPG Theory
Participants: jdagna, Jack Spencer Jr, M. J. Young, Rob MacDougall, Windthin.

8/16/2003 Jack Spencer Jr: generic genre?
I continue to pick up games when I find them Scored Top Secret & Star Frontiers for $2. Not bad. Browsing the Top Secret book, I noticed something. the Foreword…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Jack Spencer Jr, AgentFresh, Mark Johnson, Marco, M. J. Young, kamikaze, simon_hibbs, John Kim, Cemendur, Mike Holmes.

8/15/2003 Jonathan Walton: The Limits of Roleplaying: Solitaire
Reflecting on a bunch of the stuff that was brought up in this thread, I was especially drawn to the idea that roleplaying necessarily involved "shared imaginative space." This goes…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Jonathan Walton, M. J. Young, Mark Johnson, ejh, Tim Alexander, Jack Spencer Jr, simon_hibbs, RARodger, Noon.

8/15/2003 talysman: an approach to multiple simultaneous GMs
over in the Smacked Upside the Head with a Guitar thread, which I just now noticed (having just gotten back from a trip,) Michael (anonymouse) raised the idea of swapping/reversing…
In RPG Theory
Participants: talysman, gobi.

8/15/2003 Marco: The gap between CRPG's and Pen and Paper breached!
Check this out: http://www.gamespy.com/fargo/august03/realrpg/ It's a joke (a pretty good one, IMO)--but it does raise issues with the pervasiveness of trends of dysfunction in the RPG experience. My own experience…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Marco, Windthin.

8/15/2003 sirogit: Personality mechanics that work(for you)
Thanks to Ron for the GNS essay which I grabbed this phrase out of and may even have have mislabeled for something else entirely. Thanks Ron! I've always found personality…
In RPG Theory
Participants: sirogit, Alan, gobi, Valamir, Mike Holmes, Rob Donoghue, Ron Edwards, John Kim, talysman, AgentFresh, M. J. Young, Windthin, Emily Care, Zheng He, Jack Spencer Jr, Andrew Martin, James Holloway, kamikaze, Walt Freitag, Lxndr, Hunter Logan, Paul Czege, RaconteurX.

8/15/2003 John Kim: Handling Detail and What it Means
In the thread on escalation, Gordon thought that the stuff on detail escalation should be split into a separate thread. So here it is... Going back to the comment that…
In RPG Theory
Participants: John Kim, Alan, Jack Spencer Jr, Windthin, M. J. Young, Mike Holmes, Gordon C. Landis.

8/14/2003 GB Steve: Narrative rpgs make good card games
In this thread, I propose that MLwM would make a cracking card game. Now thinking about this a bit more, it seems apparent that much the same could be said…
In RPG Theory
Participants: GB Steve, Mike Holmes, Valamir, Wolfen, iago, Ron Edwards, gobi, contracycle, simon_hibbs, RaconteurX.

8/13/2003 Hunter Logan: The problem with published rpgs (rant, long)
I've been following some of the more recent threads in rpg theory and I haven't really wanted to say anything. Then, over the weekend, I went with my friend to…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Hunter Logan, Dr. Velocity, Alan, John Kim, pete_darby, Bankuei, Mike Holmes, Jack Spencer Jr, contracycle, WDFlores, Gordon C. Landis, Wolfen, M. J. Young, Jeph, Clinton R. Nixon.

8/13/2003 Hunter Logan: Benefits and Uses for Metaplot
I think the ongoing discussion of metaplots is pretty counterproductive. Metaplots are tools, and they can serve a purpose. They can provide a more dynamic background for a game world,…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Hunter Logan, xiombarg, AnyaTheBlue, Valamir, contracycle.

8/13/2003 anonymouse: Smacked Upside the Head with a Guitar:
or, FLCL-inspired play design. (FLCL - pronounced 'Fooly Cooly' - is a six-episode anime series from Gainax. i watched it again after a space of a few years this past…
In RPG Theory
Participants: anonymouse, Paul Czege, Mike Holmes, gobi.

8/12/2003 Marco: More illusionism
[b] This was split from a thread about players modifying dice results in Actual Play.[/b] Assuming that the GM ran a game "straight" (pinball-sim, here's a map, go explore ...…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Marco, Ron Edwards, Mike Holmes, Walt Freitag, cruciel.

8/12/2003 Jack Aidley: Developing Mr. Jack's Crunchy Combat System.
This is a sort of follow on from 'Crunchy' scene-resolution, in which I suggested I figure the basic reason D&D combat gets dull is because of it's take turns standing…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Jack Aidley, kregmosier, M. J. Young, HMT.

8/12/2003 madelf: celtic mytholgy in RPGs
Some may remember a while back I had a thread going where some debate cropped up about pagan religions, their inherent morality/amorality, and the impact of religion on society. I…
In RPG Theory
Participants: madelf, taalyn, simon_hibbs, contracycle, Ron Edwards, ejh, Windthin, John Kim, James Holloway.

8/11/2003 Matt Snyder: 'Exhuastion Escalation' in illusionist play
In another thread, Ron Edwards, while discussing possible pitfalls in Illusionism, wrote: And finally, such play may suffer from "exhaustion escalation," in which the game-world crises become larger and larger…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Matt Snyder, Ron Edwards, jburneko, Jack Spencer Jr, GB Steve, WDFlores, Walt Freitag, contracycle, Marco, Mike Holmes, Gordon C. Landis, John Kim, cruciel.

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Subsequent Topics
In RPG Theory

8/25/2003 Jack Spencer Jr: What is a Mechanic?
The discussion in this thread has been sidetracked a bit by some disagreement on what constitues a mechanic or not. This seems like an worthwhile topic to discuss. In that…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Jack Spencer Jr, Mike Holmes, Valamir, lumpley, Lxndr, Walt Freitag, Wormwood, iago, Hunter Logan, jdagna, Cemendur, M. J. Young, simon_hibbs, HMT, Marco, Erick Wujcik.

8/25/2003 Windthin: What is Freeform?
This thread shoots off, basially, of "Stumbling Around a Rebuttal" and "What is a Mechanic". Somebody mentioned defining freeform... so let's. Some seem to think of freemform as formless, devoid…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Windthin, Lxndr, jdagna, lumpley, Hunter Logan, John Kim, M. J. Young, Halzebier, Mike Holmes, Jack Spencer Jr, Cemendur, Emily Care.

8/26/2003 Windthin: Wordpower: Terminology at Work
There's been talk of late here about terminology. I've noticed that most games strive to develop their own terminology. They borrow a bit from others, but it's their own terms…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Windthin, HMT, Mike Holmes, John Kim, M. J. Young, contracycle, simon_hibbs, Alan.

8/28/2003 Mike Holmes: Mike's Standard Rant #6: Concepts are Dime a Dozen
I've had all I can takes and I can't stands it no more! As usual, I'm posting this as shorthand for a post that I make all too often. It's…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Mike Holmes, Bankuei, John Kim, Jeph, M. J. Young, WDFlores, simon_hibbs, Lxndr, Jack Spencer Jr, Windthin.

8/30/2003 bcook1971: Plotting for Group Involvement
(If this is well-trodden ground, whoever references the respective posts, please share your approach to searching.) My core dilemma is creating game play that features the functional value of involvment…
In RPG Theory
Participants: bcook1971, Rob Donoghue.

8/30/2003 Bogie_71: Are attributes necessary?
If this is in the wrong forum, I apologize, I wasn't sure if it was theory or game design. Alright, I know I don't read all this as much as…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Bogie_71, gobi, HMT, talysman, MachMoth, Simon W, M. J. Young, simon_hibbs, Nathaniel.

8/30/2003 Michael Bjorklund: How to avoid Railroading!
Hi! This is the first time I am actively participating in this great forum, which I have only recently discovered. So your comments will be welcome:-) The following on railroading…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Michael Bjorklund, Bankuei, Mike Holmes, Ron Edwards, M. J. Young.

8/30/2003 Cemendur: Towards an Addictive Personality Model of Lousy Play
Towards an Addictive Personality Model of Lousy Play · the Hero: tries to make the group look good by achieving success. · the Scapegoat: diverts attention from the problem by…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Cemendur, talysman, Ron Edwards.

9/1/2003 MachMoth: D20 Donjon... Uh, wait!
I think this topic could have stood up in Actual Play, but I always consider the Theory forum as a catch all. Anyways, my players have shown interest in playing…
In RPG Theory
Participants: MachMoth, Bankuei, jdagna, Dev.

9/2/2003 Daredevil: Brief Critique of Relationship Mechanics
Hey'all. There's one thing that causes me trouble when considering various relationship mechanics. Though I'm not 100% familiar with the game HeroQuest (or HeroWars) I'll bring it up as an…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Daredevil, Valamir, Mike Holmes, Walt Freitag, joshua neff, Gordon C. Landis, John Kim, Jeff Klein, RaconteurX, contracycle, cruciel, M. J. Young, Aelios, pete_darby.

9/2/2003 linux: More Indecision
I am trying to weigh the pros and cons of the following problem I have. This pertains to the relationship between skills and attributes in my system. (D denotes things…
In RPG Theory
Participants: linux, Noon.

9/3/2003 Marco: Video Games aren't fun enough ...
One thing that's often said here is that RPG's won't be main-stream in their current configurations (i.e. even popular games fall short of being pop-culture or main-stream intertainment). Here's an…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Marco, pete_darby, Valamir, Mike Holmes, Gordon C. Landis, talysman, contracycle, cruciel.

9/3/2003 Dev: Character and Game Balance! or... um, not.
Please point me to the right thread if this has come up before. <g> Among the many reasons I can't sleep tonight is this singular, eerie thought: I'm happily playing…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Dev, anonymouse, Noon, Ben Morgan, Mike Holmes, Rob Donoghue, Marco, Ben Lehman, RaconteurX, Michael Bjorklund, M. J. Young, contracycle.

9/3/2003 MongoosePaul: d20 and narratavism
Not sure if this fits better here or in the GNS forum but given it's not specifically GNS I opted for here. Ohh and long time reader, first time poster,…
In RPG Theory
Participants: MongoosePaul, joshua neff, Rob Donoghue, Mike Holmes, Bankuei, greyorm, Cemendur, Ron Edwards, Clinton R. Nixon, Ben Morgan, RaconteurX.

9/4/2003 MachMoth: Metagame & Mechanics
It's my new game. In M&M, you play the part of a person playing a roleplaying game. You gain experience points for actions such as taking advantage of rules, hammy…
In RPG Theory
Participants: MachMoth, Jack Spencer Jr, Andrew Martin, Cemendur, pete_darby, Ron Edwards, mrteapot, Christopher Weeks, Dauntless, John Kim, Halzebier, M. J. Young, Valamir, Marco.

9/4/2003 sirogit: Rules for accuracy in a near free form setting
I had an idea for a rule to enforce accuracy within a near-free-form setting. That is, characters have some sort of readout of ability/status, Attribuites, skills, Traits, what have you,…
In RPG Theory
Participants: sirogit, Mike Holmes, Noon.

9/5/2003 Carson: Designing a TV show for Gamers
Hi all, I spent some time designing a TV show about gamers and roleplayers, mainly DND players. I am now in the semi-finals, going up against other TV show ideas,…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Carson, Little_Rat, Andrew Martin, Mike Holmes, Tim Alexander, hix, Perrina.

9/5/2003 MachMoth: Character Generations (no the other kind)
I was talking about a game I had run, on another forum, and wondered if any formal (I use the term loosely) RPG had been done like it. I originally…
In RPG Theory
Participants: MachMoth, Andrew Martin, contracycle, Tim Alexander, Mike Holmes, Ron Edwards, RaconteurX.

9/5/2003 Andrew Martin: Pushing the envelope / tragedy of the commons
M. J. Young wrote this in http://www.indie-rpgs.com/viewtopic.php?t=7826 : Because the player actually doing the write-up of the abilities isn't playing that character, he's less tempted to push the…
In RPG Theory
Participants: Andrew Martin, John Kim, Mike Holmes, Marco, cruciel, simon_hibbs, M. J. Young.

9/6/2003 ch1kopp1: Plot Determination Mechanics
Hi all, I'm looking for reference material for a game concept. I'd like to build a game in which the GM assigns basic elements to a plot, such as antagonist(s),…
In RPG Theory
Participants: ch1kopp1, RaconteurX, Sparky, anonymouse, M. J. Young.

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