Post by robosnake on Mar 16, 2016 19:34:22 GMT
Am I crazy? I couldn't find an Episode 67 thread that was already up. If I just missed, sorry.
So, in defense of sandbox games! Now, I know that you guys didn't come out against sandbox games necessarily, but it was definitely the category of games that you were least comfortable with, and the main reason I heard you mention was what is often called the "blank page problem" in both gaming and writing. Basically it's the moment when the DM looks at you and says, "What does your character do?" Without a framework, or a plotline, or a specific situation already set out, it's hard to just start from there - as hard as it is to start from a blank page and create a coherent story.
Now, I come at this having run lots of sandbox games, and I'd say that sandbox was my preferred style for the games that I run. I also acknowledge that D&D is not the best system to choose for a sandbox game - it is definitely built from the ground up with specific scenarios and linnear campaigns in mind, whether they are published adventures or ones that we come up with as DMs. But that isn't to say that a sandbox D&D game is impossible - I've run them and had fun, and played in them and had fun.
The key to a sandbox game is to remember that it is not plot-driven, but it is still character-driven. If you're handing your players a blank page, or you are handed a blank page, that is not the best way to run a sandbox game, in the same way that box canyons and railroading are not the best way to run a more linear, plot-driven game.
When I am setting up a sandbox game, if we imagine it is a metaphorical sandbox, I scatter things throughout the sandbox so that they are visible to the players at the beginning, and I bury more things under a little bit of sand, and still other things deeper down. So it isn't just a blank expanse of sand with me saying "OK, start diggin", but rather sand with some points of interest and landmarks already visible. Those landmarks in this case are not plot-points, but rather NPCs and NPC conflicts.
The best sandbox games I've run have been driven by strong NPCs, strong PC concepts, and all of them aimed at each other and at cross purposes. Create NPCs with agendas that conflict with one another, which are high-stakes, and drop PCs into the mix so that they can be the catalysts of change and conflict that they almost always are. Connect the PCs to some of the NPCs and their agendas for more fun. Once things get moving, and they should pretty quickly, the PCs have a way to engage with the world through their agendas and the agendas that they are contending against.
There also need to be some set-pieces and locations already sprinkled around. Essentially, a sandbox game has most of the elements of a more linear game, but in a sandbox game the players, rather than the plotline, determine the order in which things happen, come into focus, and change. I find that a sandbox style game takes more work than a linner game up front, but then takes much less work as we go, since each session is just building on what the players did in the last session. Update the NPCs' various plots and machinations, let the PCs know how those impact the world, and repeat.
Anyway, I wanted to say something about sandbox games, since you guys were not into them but I've had good experiences with them (and my players have too).
So, in defense of sandbox games! Now, I know that you guys didn't come out against sandbox games necessarily, but it was definitely the category of games that you were least comfortable with, and the main reason I heard you mention was what is often called the "blank page problem" in both gaming and writing. Basically it's the moment when the DM looks at you and says, "What does your character do?" Without a framework, or a plotline, or a specific situation already set out, it's hard to just start from there - as hard as it is to start from a blank page and create a coherent story.
Now, I come at this having run lots of sandbox games, and I'd say that sandbox was my preferred style for the games that I run. I also acknowledge that D&D is not the best system to choose for a sandbox game - it is definitely built from the ground up with specific scenarios and linnear campaigns in mind, whether they are published adventures or ones that we come up with as DMs. But that isn't to say that a sandbox D&D game is impossible - I've run them and had fun, and played in them and had fun.
The key to a sandbox game is to remember that it is not plot-driven, but it is still character-driven. If you're handing your players a blank page, or you are handed a blank page, that is not the best way to run a sandbox game, in the same way that box canyons and railroading are not the best way to run a more linear, plot-driven game.
When I am setting up a sandbox game, if we imagine it is a metaphorical sandbox, I scatter things throughout the sandbox so that they are visible to the players at the beginning, and I bury more things under a little bit of sand, and still other things deeper down. So it isn't just a blank expanse of sand with me saying "OK, start diggin", but rather sand with some points of interest and landmarks already visible. Those landmarks in this case are not plot-points, but rather NPCs and NPC conflicts.
The best sandbox games I've run have been driven by strong NPCs, strong PC concepts, and all of them aimed at each other and at cross purposes. Create NPCs with agendas that conflict with one another, which are high-stakes, and drop PCs into the mix so that they can be the catalysts of change and conflict that they almost always are. Connect the PCs to some of the NPCs and their agendas for more fun. Once things get moving, and they should pretty quickly, the PCs have a way to engage with the world through their agendas and the agendas that they are contending against.
There also need to be some set-pieces and locations already sprinkled around. Essentially, a sandbox game has most of the elements of a more linear game, but in a sandbox game the players, rather than the plotline, determine the order in which things happen, come into focus, and change. I find that a sandbox style game takes more work than a linner game up front, but then takes much less work as we go, since each session is just building on what the players did in the last session. Update the NPCs' various plots and machinations, let the PCs know how those impact the world, and repeat.
Anyway, I wanted to say something about sandbox games, since you guys were not into them but I've had good experiences with them (and my players have too).
