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posted by [personal profile] benlehman at 02:12pm on 20/02/2008
I found this little gem, from the Evilhat Productions forum in 2003:
"The difference between a good RPG setting and a poor one is not the stuff that people usually talk about-- Style, Color, Signature NPCs, Genre, etc. It is the ability of the setting to provoke interesting, relevant, and meaningful (in game) conflict that makes it a good setting."

Hah. I guess I wasn't a total moron back then.
There are 4 comments on this entry. (Reply.)
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posted by [identity profile] benlehman.livejournal.com at 12:43am on 21/02/2008
Brain damage.
 
posted by [identity profile] drivingblind.livejournal.com at 12:55am on 21/02/2008
Hunh. What was that in response to? :)
 
posted by [identity profile] benlehman.livejournal.com at 01:08am on 21/02/2008
the thread (http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?topic=7349.0).

It's interesting to see me answering completely as a GM, not as a designer. I think I'd take a very different approach these days. But the "design some characters, then design a setting to tweak at them" is a good skill, and might merit a second look.
 
posted by [identity profile] bar-sinister.livejournal.com at 03:24pm on 21/02/2008
Totally true. I just started a game set in 17th century France, and a little historical research made me realize that this period does exactly what you're talking about. Factions! Religious wars! It's amazing.

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