Re: RPG in wargames (was EMG's Imperium)

From: David desJardins <desj@math.berkeley.edu>

Date: Thu, 17 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000

Benjamin Foy <bfoy@access5.digex.net> writes:
>> But I've played with folk who really, _really_ didn't like mixing
>> roleplaying and wargaming - they wouldn't do it themselves, and got
>> quite incensed when other players engaged in it.
>
> It doesn't hurt them and if they don't like it they can attack you or
> leave.

It depends what you mean by "hurt".  It can certainly damage one's
enjoyment of the game.  To take an extreme example, imagine playing
chess against a player who decided on moves by roleplaying rather than
based on strategy.  So perhaps your queen would take his queen, but then
his pawn would run away in fear, instead of recapturing.  This would get
pretty boring pretty quickly.  Either you win every time with little
effort, or you have to start making bad moves yourself to compensate.
Either way might not be much fun.

In general, if a player's roleplaying causes that player to make
inferior moves that are "in character", instead of the moves that are
most strategically helpful in a given situation, then it can upset the
balance of a game intended as a "strategy" game.  Most players don't
take their roleplaying to such lengths, but some do.  (Note: the same
thing can happen in wargames with players who play "historically" rather
than strategically.  Which is really another form of roleplaying.)

You're correct, that ultimately the only solution is not to play with
people that you don't enjoy playing with.  But, in the typical PBM, you
don't choose your opponents.  I find that one PBM game may attract one
type of player, and another may attract a different type.  So often I
end up choosing a game based on the type of player that I expect that
game to attract, rather than the mechanics of the games themselves.

David desJardins

References

Re: EMG's Imperium
Grant Gainey <ggainey@widget.com>
Wed, 16 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: EMG's Imperium
Gumpu Redkar <gumpu@gumpu.student.utwente.nl>
Wed, 16 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
RPG in wargames (was EMG's Imperium)
Grant Gainey <ggainey@widget.com>
Wed, 16 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: RPG in wargames (was EMG's Imperium)
Benjamin Foy <bfoy@access5.digex.net>
Wed, 16 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
EMG's Imperium
Grant Gainey <ggainey@widget.com>
Tue, 15 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: EMG's Imperium
jchromis@aol.com (JChromis)
Wed, 16 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000

Referenced By

Re: EMG's Imperium
Grant Gainey <ggainey@widget.com>
Wed, 16 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: EMG's Imperium
Gumpu Redkar <gumpu@gumpu.student.utwente.nl>
Wed, 16 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
RPG in wargames (was EMG's Imperium)
Grant Gainey <ggainey@widget.com>
Wed, 16 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: RPG in wargames (was EMG's Imperium)
Benjamin Foy <bfoy@access5.digex.net>
Wed, 16 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
EMG's Imperium
Grant Gainey <ggainey@widget.com>
Tue, 15 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: EMG's Imperium
jchromis@aol.com (JChromis)
Wed, 16 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000