Re: style

From: David Dunham <david_at_...>
Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 08:01:00 -0700


Tim

> > the mechanics of a RPG, of whatever kind, should
> > represent the reality they are modeling, otherwise they are useless.
>
> I think the HW mechanics do just that, however the reality they are
> modeling may not be the one that you are familair with!

The Hero Wars mechanics don't model reality at all. They model drama. In other words, they don't model the *process* of determining an outcome so much as they simply determine the results.

This is wholly different from almost all games out there, and the difference takes getting used to. (If Alex F isn't listening, this is a genuine paradigm shift.)

Julian

> > But weapon ranks in Hero Wars are intended on avoiding a net edge (in
> > my experience, edges slow the game down), so they're designed to
> > balance armor.
>
> I realise this : storytelling vs. simulationism ...
>
> A mere question of GM style, in other words ... :-)

A Hero Wars narrator who wants to run a simulationist game should really think about using a different rules system IMO. (Which is not to say that Hero Wars games can't be realistic.)

> Historically, the romans beat the shit out of many celtic tribes
> because Rome had
> better equipment ...

Perhaps, though before many battles the Romans answered the single challenges, and I haven't read about any of these that were decided by equipment.

David Dunham <mailto:dunham_at_...>
Glorantha/HW/RQ page: <http://www.pensee.com/dunham/glorantha.html> Imagination is more important than knowledge. -- Albert Einstein

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