“there are more general agendas and principles that you hopefully follow whenever you get together with other people to play a game.”
The Agenda Behind the Agenda
Games that identify themselves as Powered by the Apocalypse (PbtA) pretty much always have a list of agenda items and principles for the GM.
Didn’t you mean “address the characters, not the players” or am I remembering this wrong this whole time?
Emir Pasanovic I think that’s what I said, isn’t it? (It’s possible I fixed it in an edit but didn’t remember doing so… I made a number of quick fixes right after posting.)
Yeah, it’s fixed now, I’m just fast enough to see your text before you edit and post it. 😀
The reason why I brought it up is an interaction w/ a 5e DM on Rolecast: he outwright told me I need to start writing “So-and-so Does this or that” instead of “I do this or that” when acting as my character. Apparently it’s easier to follow when you say the name AND have it next to your avatar at every given time because it increases the roleplay in everyone…?
Anyway, I don’t appreciate ppl telling me how to roleplay when it makes no sense and I was literally doing it right without insulting or otherwise hurting anyone present or otherwise. So I said I won’t do it and he kicked me out.
Now, how’s that for a GM principle? It’s pretty much insane to me to go to any group and tell them how to roleplay. I will always address my players as their characters but insisting they address eachother the same way or say/write his actions a certain way that is not part of the game… Insane.
Hey Emir Pasanovic. So, your story is an interesting test/application of the “social-level” principles I posted.
Let’s consider the GM’s basic request: Hey Emir, I’d like you to write your posts in 3rd person, saying, like “Thrognor draws his sword” instead of “I draw my sword.”
I know that’s different from how you might usually play, but I find it makes the whole thing read a lot better and it’s easier for everyone to track what’s going on. The other players are all on board and have gotten used to posting like this, and we find it works better for us. Is that cool with you?
Stated like that, it’s the GM communicating wants and talking about what they like in order to play the game they want to play. I also think the request as I wrote it is treating you with respect.
Now, from you how you describe it, the GM did not treat you with respect, and it’s not clear that he gave you any context beyond “I think it’s better that way.”
But if it had been phrased as a request, respectfully, and with context, would you have taken issue with it?
Sure, opening with a demand around the table is never a good thing. First time he said it I didn’t even understand what he was talking about the way he put it.
Emir Pasanovic One of the things I find frustrating when listening to Actual Play podcasts/tubes is when players use first person with their characters. It takes me out of the moment since I have to process who they are based on the sound of their voice. It can take a while to unfold, during which time I’m not listening to what they are saying.
I’ve been listening to the KOTN AP podcast since 2012, and still have trouble matching voices to characters.
The GM in your game may experience a similar dilemna.
It’s play by text, my character’s dialogue has an avatar and his name at all times. (except when I’m typing in OOC chat, when it’s just my nickname).
This reminds a lot of discussion around the Social Contract, which was a pretty hot topic in the early-ish 2000s. gnomestew.com – Social Contracts for RPG Groups
Jeremy Strandberg I’m lucky that I’ve never been at a table that egregiously violated these principles. But it is very worth talking about. Not being mindful of helping everyone have a good time makes it that much more easy to violate these principles in lots of smaller ways. GM-ing is complicated, and it can become easier to prioritize the fictional world and ignore the real world.