Storytelling or Mechanics?

[Lady Savage]

The ongoing debate: what is more important in your tabletop RPGs, fluff/setting/storytelling or mechanics and dice rolls?

Personally, I am of the perspective that if I want to play a mechanically rigorous game where the focus is on gaining gold and experience, I would just play a video game. I play RPGs for the flexibility it offers in order to create better storytelling and the opportunity to play "make-believe" in a more advanced and mature way than I was when I was a little kid.

So, what's your opinion?

[nik the foamsmith]

i very much agree with you on the story being more important. but you also need solid rule system that just plain works and the dice to let you know when the lucky shot happens.  otherwise alot of players would just pretend to chew through cloud giants like me through a crowd of freehugsigners.   also a simple and effective rule set lets you play with the book open less often.

might be good to point out i am a larper and used to real time role play and combat but am limited in what i can do cause of the laws of physics so as for table top i want asystem ythat lets me do things beyond by ability

[Tumblecheck]

I don't really think it's something that can be answered in a universal setting.  Simply put, different people have different tastes.  Some people enjoy developing a character and delving deep into that person, where as other's just wanna hack and slash.  And while video games can provide an easy access to the hack 'n slash, table top games provide far more options as to how to get through an encounter, rather than a video game where ye're restricted by very specific mechanics. 

Personally, I try to get a good mix of RPing aspects and combat, when D&Din' it up.  I enjoy seeing PCs gettin' into their character and doing sticking with it, but it can get dull.  Plus certain RPing encounters can have me tryin' to speak fer a number of different NPCs and that can get dull after awhile.  That's where the combat comes into play. 

Overall, if I feel like I'm doing something that can have an impact on the world, then I tend to enjoy it.  That's why I "throw dice", because I can't get that same world impacting satisfaction from video games.

[Lady Savage]

Yeah, a lot of this depends on context. Before my first con I had only gamed with a close group of friends who I trust to play fair. When we get together we usually run fairly free-form games. However, with pick-up RPG groups like you get at cons, it's important to stick to the rules to keep things fair and standardized for people who aren't familiar with your obscure homebrew rules...

[Tumblecheck]

I find it a little difficult to really enjoy a tabletop game that is outside of my normal group of friends.  There's a certain dynamic that is lacking when playing with strangers.  And knowing that yer only going to get through maybe one adventure, I don't care as much about the character or the group.  So I tend to avoid the RPG room at cons.

[ragabash!]

Never let the mechanics get in the way of an awesome story.

That's rule number one.  No matter what the system.  However, it can also get pretty frustrating when the rules get completely thrown out the window and your characters aren't able to do what they are supposed to.  So I guess that's an addendum to Rule One.  Basically you want to maintain a fine balance between the too, and tip the scales towards story.

Of course having said all that, the dynamic of the group can change from campaign to campaign.  Even if all the players remain the same.  In my own groups we will often switch from rules heavy hack and slash DnD games, to story driven 7th Sea or White Wolf.  We'll pick the system that portrays best what we want to play next.  Let's face it DnD is basically a video game on paper.  It's social systems are horrible no matter which edition you pick up. 

[Tumblecheck]

aw, rags.  Don't be knockin' my D&D. 

[Dukat]

No, D&D is a video game on paper *now* after Wizards mutilated it. Give me second edition D&D any day.

[RichardtheDragon]

No, D&D is a video game on paper *now* after Wizards mutilated it. Give me second edition D&D any day.

would you settle for 3.5 munchkin?

anyways, I'm with Yahtzee on this one, I love RPG's where the story and game play go hand in hand *like final fantasy 1-6* most newer RPGs tend to have giant fence between the two that can morph into tigers if either of them get too close (note: this applies to both table top RPGs as well as ye old video games)

[Lady Savage]

No, D&D is a video game on paper *now* after Wizards mutilated it. Give me second edition D&D any day.

Hey Dukat, what's your THAC0?

[AgentMeister]

Feng Shui is more story/drama driven than dice and rules driven, and you only need 2 d6. It's great when you know the game world, but that isn't always necessary. Setting is not always relevant.

Rules can be bent. My house rules are simple and I try to state them at the beginning of the game.

1) If you can impress me, I may ignore the dice rolls. In fact, I may not even bother with dice.
2) If you amuse me beyond belief, ditto.
3) If you decide that your character (the Everyman Hero) is going to take his newly acquired gun and pull a Jack Burton by shooting straight up in the air to get people's attention ... you're going to get the same result. (Big Trouble in Little China is one of the movies that sort of inspired the game).
4) We're here to have fun. If 20 minutes of the game is spent with two people talking and interacting in Character and the rest of the group is watching in awe/laughter/with rapt attention, that's part of your movie.

Handcuff tricks, unique usage of eating utensils, and partly insane knowledge of the future are just part of the fun.

[Lady Savage]

I love Feng Shui because it's basically a complete Hong Kong blood opera/action movie wank--a great excuse to be as stylish and impractical as possible and feel ridiculously cool and powerful... Wish I could have played it at PortCon this year, but it didn't work with my staff schedule. (Of course, Feng Shui is not for everyone for these precise reasons. =P)

[AgentMeister]

Maybe next year!
And if you see me around the con, talk to me about setting something up. I'm pretty sure that if there's a table free, it can be used for an impromptu session. Or even another setting.

[Budfannan]

I had a blast with Feng Shui this year.  It was a great session.  I will be trying to play again next year.

Ian

[ragabash!]

I love Feng Shui because it's basically a complete Hong Kong blood opera/action movie wank--a great excuse to be as stylish and impractical as possible and feel ridiculously cool and powerful... Wish I could have played it at PortCon this year, but it didn't work with my staff schedule. (Of course, Feng Shui is not for everyone for these precise reasons. =P)

Jackie you just keep getting more and more awesome in my book.

Thanks for bringing Feng Shui to the table so to speak.   It's an awesome system where the dice constantly get in the way for me.  I can't roll decently in the game for crap.  Still love the world and the system though. ^_^

Oh and Tumble, I ain't knockin' the DnD, but it has it's strong and weak points.  And you know it.  And Dukat, come now, a video game?  Not quite that bad, it is a miniatures game now more than anything else though.