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Author 	Topic: Part I: Core Concept  (Read 962 times)

*Le Joueur <http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=73>*

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*Part I: Core Concept

<http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?topic=1073.msg10066#msg10066>*

« * on:* December 26, 2001, 10:23:00 PM »

------------------------------------------------------------------------

December 26th, 2001 -

At the behest of my friends here on the Forge, I will present

Scattershot at the point I have it.  Even though this is a

work-in-progress, I am not trying to present a diary of the progress.

 Expect the lead component of this thread to undergo changes as

Scattershot does.  This edition was originally put together on

Wednesday, December 26th, 2001 (think of it as a late Xmas present).

 This series of articles will detail strictly the mechanics of

Scattershot, articles relating to the techniques of 'how to play' will

have to wait until I have more of them centralized and organized.  The

third major component of the game, the setting and genre material is

will be addressed once I get a new batch of playtesters.

Since I have to start somewhere, I will begin with the theories that

have become the central design premise of the mechanics.  This is one of

a number of articles that inter-relate and I hope to make frequent use

of links between them (which is part of the reason I have separated them).

The central point of Scattershot is that all gaming is fundamentally

about context with emotional investment (I described this much earlier

in this article

<http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/viewtopic.php?topic=457&forum=4>.)

 Concepts like 'suspension of disbelief' and 'flow of play' exist

primarily to support 'staying in context.'  Another central concept is

that gaming /depends/ on in-game actions having rational consequences.

      The formalization of consequences to aid 'flow of play' is exactly

      what Scattershot's mechanics are meant to be.  "Aiding the 'flow

      of play'" is one of the reasons that Scattershot's mechanics are

      also deliberately designed to function as a form of communal

      language during play.  Instead of having to describe the process

      of using an ability in detail and accounting for potential points

      of contention, a participant can simply refer to using a specific

      mechanic by its name.[/list:u]I know this sounds trite and

      obvious, but it needs to be said; play is shared.  

            This concept becomes important in fixing the reasons that

            Scattershot has mechanics.  Both consistency and

            impartiality are necessary for a kind of sharing that

            participants can feel is 'fair'¹.  Because of the emotional

            investment in play, there will be times when emotions can

            run quite high; it is important to have something impartial

            to fall back upon when those times involve conflict between

            the participants.[/list:u]Most of the time play passes

            between participants in no particular order as necessary.

                  This is an example of how informal most gaming is.

                   Under some circumstances, impartiality can become

                  highly important to one or more players.  At those

                  (frequently emotional) times, mechanics can formalize

                  even this normative form of play.[/list:u]Obviously,

                  under portions of game theory, an awareness of the

                  mechanics becomes a part of the play itself.

                        This is exceptionally important when discussing

                        whether or not mechanics should be applied to

                        specific situation in a game.  This decision has

                        a lot to do with how mechanics will be applied

                        during play.[/list:u]That's all for this

                        installment.  Next up, the differences between

                        players and gamemasters in Scattershot.

                        Fang Langford

                        ¹ That is fairness in the minds of the

                        participants.  Each will desire their own amount

                        of play (and even that will change from session

                        to session).  Mechanics go a long way towards

                        formalizing the tools that can be used to 'get

                        your share' of play.

	Logged

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fang Langford is formerly the creator of the Scattershot Role-Playing

Game System.  This project has been permanently suspended.  If you have

any questions regarding the implementation of it or anything else, he

can be reached at ripjack@mad.scientist.com

<mailto:ripjack@mad.scientist.com>

*Ron Edwards

<http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=9>*

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<http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?topic=1073.msg10076#msg10076>

*Part I: Core Concept

<http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?topic=1073.msg10076#msg10076>*

« *Reply #1 on:* December 27, 2001, 08:45:00 AM »

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Fang,

I'm not sure about what to say, except "Solid," in a kind of 70s accent.

Concrete mission statements beyond the usual "um, it's role-playing" are

rare and valuable.

The concept of game mechanics and events being applications

(expressions?) of emotional investment is excellent. I'm looking forward

to more. You've set the starting bar very high.

Best,

Ron

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*Le Joueur <http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=73>*

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<http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?topic=1073.msg10125#msg10125>

*Part I: Core Concept

<http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?topic=1073.msg10125#msg10125>*

« *Reply #2 on:* December 27, 2001, 02:18:00 PM »

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Quote

Ron Edwards wrote:

I'm not sure about what to say, except "Solid," in a kind of 70s accent.

Actually, this is somewhat on purpose.  From my experiences, many of the

gamers out in the 'hinterlands' still play in a '70s' way.  Since one of

the design specifications of Scattershot (and posting these will be a

while - I need to find them) is that it be 'familiar' to experienced

gamers far and wide, it will have an intentional '70s flavor.'

(And I know how you meant that, it just seemed like a good opportunity

to talk design specifications.)

Quote

You've set the starting bar very high.

Thank you.  I think it is obvious that I do this in all things.

Fang Langford

	Logged

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fang Langford is formerly the creator of the Scattershot Role-Playing

Game System.  This project has been permanently suspended.  If you have

any questions regarding the implementation of it or anything else, he

can be reached at ripjack@mad.scientist.com

<mailto:ripjack@mad.scientist.com>

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