GNS / Big Model Open House

[benlehman]

Hi.

I know that a fair share of RPG theory interested folks read this blog.

I'd like to test my own understanding of GNS / Big Model.

So:

I will answer any questions about the Big Model or GNS that you have, if you ask them in response to this post or in a private e-mail to me.

It would help if you would first read the essays here and here. These other ones won't hurt. Just the top part of the last two is fine.


a few ground rules:

1) I'm going to try to explain a theoretical model to you. I don't want to argue whether it is right or wrong. You can come to your own conclusions about that. If you post, I will assume that you are trying to understand the model, no more, no less.

1a) If you want to destroy the model, may I suggest that understanding it is a good first step?

1b) So no "that's stupid," stupid though it may be. "That doesn't make sense, please explain it a different way" is fine.

2) I will not diagnose GNS goals of games I've never played. I will not discuss any theory applying to LARPs, because they are complicated. I will not discuss books, movies, plays, improv theatre, ballet, or any other artform in the context of GNS, because doing so is stupid. I will discuss games which I have played, as examples, but pretty much only at the request of the GM who ran said game.

2a) If you ask about the GNS of your game, do not take a diagnosis that isn't what you want it to be to be an insult. It isn't.

3) I may add ground rules as things progress.

Comments

[arianhwyvar.livejournal.com]

When you make a decision, is it entirely based on "what the character would do?" or are there other considerations

I want it to be entirely based on what the character would do. In recent years I have more often taken into account outside factors, and come grudgingly to believe that sometimes it is good to do so. Sometimes there are things I think a character would do that I can't bring myself to do, and then I have to rationalize to myself reasons why the character would do it my way instead. I'm much happier when I make decisions based thoroughly on what the character would do, esp. when I can react without stepping outside the role to consider it.

Imagine a situation where your character could, reasonably, choose to go off and be a monk...

If I still wanted to play that character in the game (which I probably would; I have a damned hard time letting go of my characters), I would choose to stay, and rationalize an IC decision for same.

the PC group will be vastly weakened...

Is it a problem that the PC group will be weakened? Presume so, and that this will make the other players unhappy/stop them from accomplishing things they really want to do/etc. If I knew this, I would probably try to get that reflected IC in the game, and use that to drive my character to the other decision. If my character cares about the other characters, perhaps them asking for help will be enough. If I am really torn, because I cannot rationalize my character far enough from their current direction to keep the game fun for other people, I may ask the GM for help giving me an impetus to change my character's direction. I don't feel I can simply change my character's mind with no trigger: why would they suddenly feel different? Nor do I feel I alone can make up things happening off stage to have major effects on my character: it feels false or unacceptably unreal.

if you stay with the group for one more session, you will run into your long-lost father...

I would rather not know this and have it be a factor (esp. because if something would have a certain effect on a character partly because of being a surprise, I would much rather have it actually be a surprise). But I do like seeing character-relevant issues addressed, and would almost certainly take that as 'find some excuse to stick around another session, even if I don't change my decision'.

[benlehman.livejournal.com]

If I am really torn, because I cannot rationalize my character far enough from their current direction to keep the game fun for other people, I may ask the GM for help giving me an impetus to change my character's direction.

In practice, how often do you do this? Just curious.

yrs--
--Ben

[arianhwyvar.livejournal.com]

I can't think of a time when I've done it to save the fun of other people, though I can think of a few times I've asked for help to keep the game fun for myself when I've really got my character into an unpleasant rut. Offhand I can think of 2 or 3 times I've mentioned to a GM that I could use some trigger to change to get out of a rut; there have almost certainly been more. I don't tend to demand it, though, and often I manage to find something else to make into my trigger that wasn't deliberately handed to me by the GM. I just feel better about it the less I have to do what feels like a dubious reach.