Re: (TFT) TFT Healing

[lifeisfun@aol.com]

Thanks for replying Erol,
 
Please don't mistake my enthusiasm for my own viewpoint for an exibition of "march-in-step" dogma.  Of course there are people whose standard for "fun" revolves around a different truth.  But, in my opinion, there are hundreds of great games that focus on quick-reward.  In fact, I'd say that "quick reward" is a liabitity to TFT, not a strength.  The online games do it so much better.  To me, it's the slow attention to detail and the complexity of a near death challenge that makes Melee classic and interesting.  
 
So, I hope I do not come across as saying that one way or the other is Bad GMing.  Rather, I was trying to point out what I thought was good GMing.  Clearly, I like to find my own characters in an epic struggle where only a hero will prevail.  And when the opponents fall quickly and easily, I am usually dissapointed. 
 
A point of clarification.  Reading back the thoughts I wrote below, I do not mean to say that the GM should  "scale" a battle at the last minute according to how hurt everyone is.  Rather, I know some GM's who are very mathematically gifted and write the missions beforehand knowing that the party will likely be injured at this point and design the encounters to be a lesser challenge.  I was simply pointing out that if a GM designs every encounter to match a party's full strength, then you can count on people belly-aching.  Very simply put, the best GM's consistently challenge the group and offer up moderate but interesting rewards.
 
I'll say this for certain; I don't condone GM's fudging rolls or clearly abandoning the rules to give the party a break.  I'd much rather see a GM present obvious clues that a party is clearly overmatched by the mission and should turn tail and flee.  And if the group ignores the clues, then they deserve what they get.   Pride and chance claim all in the end. 
 
Thanks for noting the location of the newsgroup discussions.  It's good to read history.  But that said, I'd like to think that the debates are still alive and well.  In fact, I'm embarassed for those who quit the newsgroup you were talking about simply because a group of others tried to complete the debate.  I swear that my own little group still debates the same issues we have been quibbling over for 20 years now.  The only thing to do is to keep playing.  The truly controversial issues people debate in TFT come up again and again.  And depending on the situation, a ruling can go one way or the other, so hang in there and you might find the very case that proves your point.  
 
And, again, what I am hoping is that this list is still interested in relaying some of the specific cases where a rule went this way or that.  It takes courage to step forward and stand by a ruling, and I applaud anyone who does so, even if I don't agree with how or why they play.  I wish that the rules always went my way in real life too, but I don't get all bent out of shape when things don't go my way.  
 
Good Fortune,
Rick
 
 
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: ErolB1@aol.com
To: tft@brainiac.com
Sent: Sun, 10 Sep 2006 4:43 PM
Subject: Re: (TFT) TFT Healing


In a message dated 9/10/2006 10:42:08 AM Central Daylight Time, 
LifeIsFun@aol.com writes:


> Every GM is different, that goes without saying.  But, I find that the  
> better GM's (and i'm not in this list, i'm way too lenient) tend to be able 
> to  
> match battles and write missions that intentionally scale according to a  
> predicted health level of the party.  It is as if they know that the first  
> battle 
> will attempt to get the heroes to show off, and maybe use up a bit too  much 
> of 
> their "special occasion" items.  And the second battle is usually a  grind 
> that eats up healing stores.  And after that the good GM's tend to be  able 
> to 
> predict that the party will be hurt and they scale the opponents with  
> placement 
> or tactics even if they had not already expected the group to be in  pain.

It's not just that every GM is different, it's that different groups and 
different GMs look to get different things out of a game. Often radically 
different things. For example, scaling difficulties to the power of the party is 
seen 
as really BAD gamemastering by many groups and GM - and not good GMing at all. 


There was once a usenet newsgroup, rec.games.frp.advocacy, where a lot of 
really great discussion took place. There were even some fairly heated debates, 
but what kept the group on an even keel was the consensus that different groups 
had different goals for their gaming, as exemplified by (but not limited to) 
the Threefold. 

Then a bunch of posters came along who did not accept this, who preached the 
One True and Right Way to GM, and the group died. 

There are groups where "railroading GM" is an insult, and groups where the GM 
isn't doing his job if he doesn't conduct the group along the tracks he's 
laid down. There are groups where constantly being forced to fight when damaged 
makes the adventure a grim chore - the anti-fun - and groups where having to 
fight when wounded is the very core of the fun. There are groups where the GM is 

cheating if he fudges the rolls, and groups where the GM is a screw-up if he 
doesn't fudge rolls to make for a better game. There are groups where the 
point is to play elite ultracompetent types who don't ever have to sweat the 
small 
stuff, and groups where not having to sweat the small stuff makes the game 
boring and pointless.   

Different GMs and players play for different reasons and find different 
things fun. And they play in different styles in order to support their 
different 
goals wrt what they want out of a game. 

Erol K Bayburt
Evil Genius for a Better Tomorrow
=====
Post to the entire list by writing to tft@brainiac.com.
Unsubscribe by mailing to majordomo@brainiac.com with the message body
"unsubscribe tft"
________________________________________________________________________
Check out the new AOL.  Most comprehensive set of free safety and security tools, free access to millions of high-quality videos from across the web, free AOL Mail and more.
=====
Post to the entire list by writing to tft@brainiac.com.
Unsubscribe by mailing to majordomo@brainiac.com with the message body
"unsubscribe tft"