Lunchtime Poll #31: Time Is an Illusion, Lunchtime Doubly So
I’ve said before that I tend to think of roleplaying as improv theater to a certain extent, and pacing is an important part of any production. To a certain extent, I think that if the timing is managed well, it’s invisible to the players. So, what are your thoughts on pacing?
The thinking that prompted this week’s question was the realization that I’ve made something of a habit lately of running games in which the game is the journey rather than the destination. This is a sharp contrast to several games I’ve played in which travel was a series of random encounters between Plot Arc A and Plot Arc B; nothing more than an opportunity to pick up some XP on your way to somewhere else. After a point, I think that the attempt to condense travel time starts to interfere with the game’s pacing.
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June 24th, 2005 at 12:07 pm
Lunchtime Poll #31: Time Is an Illusion, Lunchtime Doubly So
In Lunchtime Poll #31 Li asks: Ive said before that I tend to think of roleplaying as improv theater to a certain extent, and pacing is an important part of any production. To a certain extent, I think that…
July 1st, 2005 at 3:35 pm
sal
July 21st, 2005 at 8:57 am
For myself, this has always been true (easy for me to say…how can I be proved wrong?).
For the few games I have GM’ed I know what my players were doing…eyes on the prize…the level…the artifact…and so forth. For a good story (btw, I BE the narrative guy)in this realm, the GM must think of those goals as yet another step.
GM’s have to have fun and be satisfied with the game just as much as the players. To steal the improv idea from Li, it has to be improv…but with a director…and that director needs something to drive HIM forward. In my case, it’s the challenge of evolving my players’ goals into steps.
“You have found and freed the mighy wizard after battling through the Keep of Drudnord?” That wizard has a quest for you.
“You have found the mighty Blade of Nortik?” It will not work without the Gauntlet of Ozlow upon your hand.
These games aren’t meant to have endings, are they? I know that I never want to stop…