Re: (TFT) Is it an RPG or really a Tactical RPG? - Rick Weighs in.

[ErolB1@aol.com]

In a message dated 4/26/2008 4:12:04 PM Central Daylight Time, 
azog@bellsouth.net writes:


> However, I like a deadly combat system because it gives the players a  
> sense of accomplishment if they have a character who they have played  
> well, and who has managed to survive the perils and pitfalls of a  
> fantasy world.

This is another mileage varies thing. As I see it there are three ways a 
character can survive combat: 

1. The character got lucky. But getting lucky doesn't give me any sense of 
accomplishment. 

2. The player worked real hard to keep the character alive. This is where 
mileage varies: For me, this gives a sense of accomplishment but not enough to 
make up for the work required

3. The character is Just That Damn Good. In this case combat isn't deadly *to 
the character* even though it would be deadly to other characters in the 
gameworld. I can see how this would provide a poor and unsatisfactory sense of 
"accomplishment" for some gamers - but it's just the sort of satisfaction I seek 
out of a role-playing game. 

Maybe I should put it this way: There's a sense of accomplishment in winning 
e.g. a chess game against an evenly-matched opponent. But this sense of 
accomplishment is simply not on the table when I play TFT or any other RPG. It's not 
what I play rpg's for - I seek a different source of satisfaction than the thr
ill of a hard-earned victory. 

(This point came up on another forum a while back: Some gamers don't see a 
difference between the PCs winning because they simply outclass a weak but 
well-played opposition, and the PCs winning because the GM plays a strong opposing 
force stupidly. Other gamers (like me) see a big big difference: The first 
sort is a cheap but honest victory, while the second is a cheat and a harrowing 
experience to boot.) 


====

(I also note a certain "elitist GM" attitude in your phrasing that you may 
not intend. Did you mean to to say "I like a deadly combat system as a player, 
because it gives players like me a real and authentic sense of 
accomplishment..." or "I like a deadly combat system as a GM, because it gives the players 
subjected to it a virtuously authentic sense of accomplishment..."?)



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