(no subject)

posted by [identity profile] marcus-sez-vote.livejournal.com at 01:14am on 08/02/2005
I tend to agree with you, and I think the GM in question would have the flexibility to say, by fiat even, allow the door to be hacked open with an axe if one was available. If the door had a "magic shield" on it and was unbreakable by mundane means, then also by fiat the axe would not work. In all these cases system can replace fiat, but the player's choice is not taken away. Using noisy means of entry, attempting another entry, forcing someone to open the door for them, etc. all constitute choices that can impact the flow of the story. I think there's a lot of flexibility possible, even if it is run by fiat. The main concern in that case is to have someone who is flexible, creative, and open to your participation...and it can mean adjusting the overall outcome of the game if things get crazy...but leaving the major themes/protagonists/whatever intact. I think it is a poor GM that cannot adjust for player decisions and incorporate them. Though I've probably not GMed as much as those participating in this discussion I can still say that players will be "smarter" and "stupider" in a game context than you can possibly imagine.

Be well.
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evilmagnus: (Default)

(no subject)

posted by [personal profile] evilmagnus at 01:48am on 08/02/2005
You win a cookie!

(sorry, bwain fried from having to think on a Monday)
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(no subject)

posted by [identity profile] wirednavi.livejournal.com at 05:18am on 08/02/2005
The player's choice - their participation - is still taken away even if the GM can continue to come up with plausible reasons to do so within the game world. Just because it doesn't descend into 'You can't go away from the dungeon! A huge Tyrannosaurus blocks the way!' doesn't mean that the player's attempts to influence the game aren't being blocked.

The key here, I'd say, is that it is often far more satisfying and interesting to say, 'sure, you can do X, but it will have Y effect' instead of 'No, you can't do X because there's this problem (which is something I placed there because I don't want you to do X)'.
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