Gaming : Playing to Spec.

[atolnon]

In the middle of a rant, a few weeks ago, Brent asked me why, if I have so many issues with the way my ST runs games, I bother to actually attend them.

"The games are a lot of fun." I said. " I just love complaining." Which is partially true - about complaining, I mean. It's not that I love complaining about friends, but I do like talking about gaming, and when I'm not extolling the virtue of something I'm usually in the mood to tear something to pieces. Changeling, for example, is a game I adore from fluff to mechanics, which didn't stop me from lambasting things as minor as the Autumn Courts mantles or the Contracts which, in my opinion, are the most lackluster part of the book.

So. That said, we both know I love Exalted, and I loved last Mondays game which, as I've stated, is run by the very same Frank. So now that my enthusiasm's been made known, let's get in to how I'm engaging this experience system and what shit I'm being forced to put up with in order to do so.

Brent and I are still getting a chuckle out of the incredulity our noble ST exibited with the prospect that my character was built with abilities and skills at rank 5. My explanation for him is the same as it is for you; that when you have hundreds of flashy toys to play with, with their own unique powers, it's really hard to get excited about adding one dot to an already prodigious dice pool. At the point where you're flying around Creation in magic tornado, have a condo in Heaven, and harness the stars themselves to cast blessings by imploring mechanical spiders that weave the plot of the world, getting a little better at dodging doesn't usually count as character development.

And that's the rub, actually. Because on Monday, we got a very solid chunk of experience, but it's still going to be another game before anyone has enough to buy even one Charm. When Charms cost 10, and level 5 on a favored skill costs 9, they're basically on par. And if you want to buy that pinnacle Charm, that requires Martial Arts 5 or whatever, then you're waiting two games providing you get all your exp. When you're buying ability 5, now you're waiting 4 games. 

There. That's it. Paying way, way more for less and it's not waiting twice as long after paying more to get the exact same result - this isn't character development. Character development is coming to respect a teammate even when you hate them. Character development is allowing love to blossom in a dead heart. It's admitting your hubris after your plans have come to ruin. That other stuff? It's ignoring the system at the expense of your self.

What I'm saying isn't that someone has to develop perfect system mastery. And if it makes way more sense to build, mechanically, a character that is slightly inferior in the long term because that's the best manifestation of that character's reality, then that's great. But I do balk, slightly, to be told I'm doing it wrong when I pay attention to the mechanics and plan accordingly. This is fun for me. And playing Panahon ng Kamusmusan, Age of Innocence, aka Amor Agbayani, Chosen of Serenity is fun for me. So yeah, I'm min-maxing. I'm minimizing my frustration with the system and I'm maximizing my fusking fun. So sue me.

Comments

[q99.livejournal.com]

Good points.

One thing I like from a different game, that is something I'd port to others, is Ironclaw's 'parallel XP' system. That is, instead of getting 10 xp to spend as desired, you get 4, 3, 2, 1 Xp, which you put into each of several things but can't be put into the same thing in the same session. So you'd put 4 into that charm you really want, 3 into that charm you kinda want, and then maybe put 2 and 1 into some stats. Since you can't put all your XP into the most mechanically cool/soonest awesome thing, you get advancement in those little less flashy things too. Make advancing the less flashy stuff mechanically viable.

[atolnon.livejournal.com]

I actually really like this idea because it kind of implies, mechanically, that your character is kind of learning organically. Like there are things they're focusing on, but they're still taking in experience from other stuff, too.

It also gives you an excuse to buy stuff you wouldn't otherwise buy because you've got to split that xp.

[q99.livejournal.com]

Exactly.

It's a rare player who'll focus entirely on optimization when they're trying to figure out where that 1 xp reward goes, so you get a bit more spice in their growth.

[beyturn.livejournal.com]

When you look at the fact that it's 9 experience for the fifth dot and it's only 1 bonus point for the same dot, it's way more efficient to spend the bonus points making your core abilities better and using experience to fill in the first few dots.

[atolnon.livejournal.com]

That's my opinion as well. When there's not a big difference, it's not that big of a deal. There are moments, however, when we see an especially obvious difference and I just think, "I'll make it up with 3-4 earned exp when the game starts. It'll be one session and nobody but me would even know - much less notice."

[qeyifame.livejournal.com]

Great writing! I want you to follow up to this topic!?!

[atolnon.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I've written about it before, so the odds are especially good that I'll write about it again.

[elendraug.livejournal.com]

At the point where you're flying around Creation in magic tornado, have a condo in Heaven, and harness the stars themselves to cast blessings by imploring mechanical spiders that weave the plot of the world, getting a little better at dodging doesn't usually count as character development.

I lol'd.