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Elsewhere, someone asked me to explain how Apocalypse World, or any game, might hinder or support certain kinds of play. This has been a question asked 1000s of times over the last 20 yrs, but by whatever grace, this time I found a way to answer with I think greater clarity:
Imagine the games of soccer and basketball. You could try to play soccer with a basketball, you might even have a fun time, but the ball is not designed for that game, it would behave differently.
Likewise, trying to play basketball with a soccer ball would be very challenging because a basketball Must Bounce and soccer balls are not built for that! Now imagine trying to play tennis with a basketball.
#ttrpg
#PbtA
Moves and Skills: a thread
Premise: as a gamer, I started playing trad games such as VtM (mostly) and D&D (sometimes).
In time, I found out about PbtA and, later, FitD and I fell in love.
Everything that follows, comes from a person who enjoys every kind of rpg
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#PbtA
Moves and Skills: a thread
Premise: as a gamer, I started playing trad games such as VtM (mostly) and D&D (sometimes).
In time, I found out about PbtA and, later, FitD and I fell in love.
Everything that follows, comes from a person who enjoys every kind of rpg
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So, who knows me know I am a sucker for new games. I am always reading new stuff to bring on our table.
So my group of friends is quite used to try out several new games every year (and yes, 2022 won't be different guys, sorry about that).
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So my group of friends is quite used to try out several new games every year (and yes, 2022 won't be different guys, sorry about that).
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The first PbtA game we tried was MotW (lovely game btw). Thanks to that I, as the GM, had finally clicked with this approach. What about my players though?
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A memorial games jam for David Graeber: itch.io/jam/intergalac… "The theme: 'live as if you were already free.' Make a game jam inspired by David Graeber's work, by anarchism, by revolutionary hope."
I'm going to thread a few relevant resources! David Graeber talks about Douglas Adams's Restaurant at the End of the Universe: economicsciencefiction.blogspot.com/2016/06/adams-…
Here @BluejoWalton writes about Graeber's Debt and writing SFF. "One of the problems with writing science fiction and fantasy is creating truly different societies. We tend to change things but keep other things at societal defaults." tor.com/2012/04/16/the…
A short piece of #PbtA #RPGTheory.
Many of Apocalypse World's rules refer explicitly to the interactions you have when you play.
Implicit: On a 10+, your character hits theirs. They choose where.
Explicit: On a 10+, tell them that your character hits theirs. Ask them where.
Many of Apocalypse World's rules refer explicitly to the interactions you have when you play.
Implicit: On a 10+, your character hits theirs. They choose where.
Explicit: On a 10+, tell them that your character hits theirs. Ask them where.
A lot of the time, it doesn't matter. The examples above are basically interchangeable.
But compare these:
Implicit: On a 10+, your character guesses what they should be on the lookout for.
Explicit: On a 10+, ask the GM: "What should my character be on the lookout for?"
But compare these:
Implicit: On a 10+, your character guesses what they should be on the lookout for.
Explicit: On a 10+, ask the GM: "What should my character be on the lookout for?"
These aren't interchangeable in the same way. In the implicit version, you have to kind of guess or interpret what interaction you should have with the GM, to get the result the rule describes. The explicit version describes the interaction directly instead.
Good morning!
I have an #RPGTheory thread for you.
I'm kind of serious about it, but I want to offer it for what it's worth, not to convince you, just for your consideration. Maybe you'll find it useful or interesting too.
I have an #RPGTheory thread for you.
I'm kind of serious about it, but I want to offer it for what it's worth, not to convince you, just for your consideration. Maybe you'll find it useful or interesting too.
It's about #PbtA, but PbtA games don't have any kind of lock or monopoly on it, at all. Take this idea and use it in every way that serves your own games, PbtA, non-PbtA, or anti-PbtA!
Here goes.
Here goes.
A normal roleplaying game models objects and entities in the game world. Sometimes in significant detail.
For example: Here's my dude, he's x-much strong, he's x-much skilled, he's got x-many hit points. He owns a sword that's x-much sharp and armor that's x-much hard.
For example: Here's my dude, he's x-much strong, he's x-much skilled, he's got x-many hit points. He owns a sword that's x-much sharp and armor that's x-much hard.
What it means is, play to find out what the characters make of their world. Both what they choose to make of their world, and, because Apocalypse World is a game of compromises, what they're able to make of their world.
This appears, more or less explicitly, on the back cover of the game.
A #PbtA #RPGtheory thread!
So you have a whole bunch of stuff in a game's design. Characters, fictional setting, dice, rules, abilities on character sheets, player roles like "player" and "GM"...
So you have a whole bunch of stuff in a game's design. Characters, fictional setting, dice, rules, abilities on character sheets, player roles like "player" and "GM"...
...And you have the moment of play, four friends talking together, live, right now.
It's tempting to say that the design-stuff "constrains" the moment of play, that the moment of play "enacts" the design-stuff. But I think that's backwards.
It's tempting to say that the design-stuff "constrains" the moment of play, that the moment of play "enacts" the design-stuff. But I think that's backwards.
In the moment of play, you reach into the design-stuff and choose what of it you'll bring to bear. Better to say that the moment of play draws on the design-stuff, that the design-stuff is there as a resource for the playgroup to use.
Let's talk about the #PbtA games. In particular: mechanical design that leans prescriptive or suggestive. Neither term is probably as precise as it should be but are useful for discussing the trends in this design space.
All of the games have mechanics and have moves that reflect both of these trends. Prescriptive moves are usually extremely precise and specific. Therefore, they are also less open to interpretation from the player.
Suggestive moves are more nebulous; often more flavorful, too. These moves are similar to Defy Danger and Act Under Fire, in that they are less precise and are used to cover a wider range of possible variables and goal post where the fiction should be headed.
