Re: (TFT) Is extra memory 'corrective' or 'inflationary'?

["Neil Gilmore" <raito@raito.com>]

----- Original Message -----
From: Pasha and Rick Smith
To: tft@brainiac.com
Sent: Saturday, November 03, 2001 9:15 AM
Subject: (TFT) Is extra memory 'corrective' or 'inflationary'?

Keep in mind that every GM's camppaign is different, and so the difference
between 'corrective' and 'inflationary' depends entirely on how much fun
you're having. So my answer's personal...

Is the desire for more memory corrective
or inflationary?

Inflationary, and I would further posit that it impedes, rather than
enhances roleplay. Look at Champions, for example. It's possible (but not
required) to crunch the numbers to the point where all your playing is the
numbers, and not the characters. Their original supplement of villians was
unworkable in most local games because they weren't crunched to that point.

I feel that it is a given that most groups
wish TFT had more memory available.

Everyone wants more powerful characters. It's a gamer's weakness sometimes.

I've said before that I feel a weakness
of TFT is that all powerful characters tend to
get medium high to high attributes in all
categories and that tends to make characters
feel the same. Various people have suggested
that with strong enough role-playing, it won't
matter and I agree. However new people learning
TFT may not be strong role-players.

I have not found this to be the case. IQ still limits which abilities a
character can have, and I still see a wide range of characters.

By making it more relatively easy to pick
up talents, instead of attributes, characters
should be more differentiated, which I feel is
a good thing. (If memory costs become trivial
the opposite effect occurs with everyone
buying all of the useful, standard talents.)

Since I don't see your symptom, I can't agree with your diagnosis.

Also some talents are simply overpriced.
Perhaps everything you need to know about
thieving can fit in 4 memory, but should Running
take up 1/6 of all talents for an better than
average IQ figure?  Should Mimic really cost 2
memory?

Yes, but I'll comment on that later...

3- More talents and spells have been added.
This gives people things to do with the extra
memory that they have.

Well, I've added a few myself, most notably allowing Fencing to be bought
for any of the basic weapon talents, and some esoteric skills really meant
only for NPCs (but PCs could get them if they tried).

My campaign style is one with experienced
characters in political arenas or fighting
huge problems that NPC's don't have capabilities
/ desire to deal with. My PC's try to change the
world in significant ways.  With the extra exp.
points being spent on superscripts, even high
level figures tend to have lower attributes in
one or more categories.

Well, most of my characters are just trying to get by. As well, the powerful
presence of the Thorsz does tend to discourage a lot of temporal power at
the beginnings of campaigns, though there are vast areas where a PC could
assert influence, if they wished.

Neil Gilmore
raito@raito.com
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