[Torg] That D&D thing

[Salvador A. Melo]

any mechanical system can detract from roleplaying if the players are so
inclined, the ultimate ROLEplaying game is, probably, Cops and Robbers /
Cowboys and Indians. You know, the one almost every roleplaying game
references in the beginning when it says "What is a roleplaying game?" Or a
roleplaying thread on some message board. The point of the RPG as we know it
is to take mechanical rules, add player ingenuity, and create an interactive
storytelling process that is much akin to a game.
My point is, very little can detract from roleplaying if the roleplayers are
willing to try hard enough. The original marvel superheroes rpg advanced set
character creation was random (the basic only used premades from the comic
books), and It's not particularly easy to play a character whose stats were
all completely randomly generated with no rhyme nor reason to any
combinations. (like having the powers Speak with Animals, Gravity
Manipulation, and Fire Generation). But i'm sure someone, somewhere, could
do it, and do it well.

Of course, very few roleplayers are so good that they aren't going to get
any detraction from anything, but, most, i think, are good enough that with
a little effort, detraction can be minimized. If all the players want to do
is roll dice and see if they win, then it's okay to do just that, although i
personally would suggest getting a board game or something, on the other
hand, if they want to roleplay, they probably will. If the mechanics are
making it difficult, then try harder, or work at it from a different angle,
or do something else, or any combination thereof.

As for the skill challenges specifically, I will admit that, as presented in
the dmg, they are a mediocre mechanic at best. However, with a little work,
and some ingenuity, they can become much much more compelling. I would
highly suggest attempting to get your hands on some of the DDI "Ruling Skill
Challenges" articles, if your unwilling to pay for a subscription, then see
if you can find someone who has one and ask if they'll let you take a look.
Even if you don't play DnD, or you don't like the skill challenge system,
you will probably take away some shred of useful thoughts. Probably quite a
bit more.

On Thu, Aug 27, 2009 at 10:49 AM, Travis James Hall <
travisjhall at optusnet.com.au> wrote:

>
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: torg-bounces at justintimeadventures.com
> > [mailto:torg-bounces at justintimeadventures.com] On Behalf Of Phil Dack
> > Sent: Thursday, 27 August 2009 4:51 PM
> >
> > I never really saw the fuss about Skill Challenges in D&D4.
> > It was giving a fancy name to something that wasn't actually
> > particularly innovative, and that actually ran the risk of
> > increasing meaningless dice throwing rather than genuine
> > role-playing and problem solving.
>
> Mmm, yes.
>
> I remember that even in my earliest days of roleplaying, there were quite a
> few terms that encompassed using game mechanical representations of
> character abilities combined with innovative thought and roleplaying in
> order to overcome challenges set by the GM. Depending on the scope of the
> series of challenges and the system in question, we used to call them
> "adventures", "modules", "scenarios" and even "scenes", "acts" and
> "stories".
>
> Sarcasm aside, GMs for decades have been saying to themselves, "Yanno, the
> rulebook doesn't specify exactly how hard it is to complete these taks. I'd
> better just asign each a difficulty from the provided generic chart.
> There's
> an obvious skill for each, but if the players can make a convincing
> argument
> for using something else, I'll bite." String a series of those together,
> allow for roleplaying to affect matters, and you've got a
> scenario/adventure/module.
>
> Travis Hall
>
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-- 
There is no black or white,
Only Gray
There is no day or night,
Only Twilight
There is no light or dark,
Only Shadow
There are no extremes,
Only Neutrality
-- The Abridged Code of The Gray
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