What is "Sim-Lite"?

Summary

El juego 'Broken Empires' se define como un juego de rol de fantasía dramática y ligero en simulación. El creador enfatiza la importancia de los personajes tomando acción y persiguiendo objetivos para avanzar en la historia, contrastando con juegos de rol más tradicionales. La fantasía se presenta como un género familiar pero con elementos únicos, y 'Sim light' indica un equilibrio entre detalle y fluidez en el juego. El énfasis en la inmersión y las consecuencias de las acciones de los personajes, junto con la interacción entre el jugador y el juego, crean una experiencia rica y dinámica.

Takeaways

• 🌐 El juego 'Broken Empires' se describe como un juego de rol de fantasía dramática y ligero en la simulación.
• 🎭 'Dramatic' hace referencia a la necesidad de que los personajes tomen acciones y enfrenten obstáculos para lograr sus objetivos, creando así la narrativa del juego.
• 🧙‍♂️ 'Fantasy' implica que el juego está en un género que es interno y consistente, con referencias culturales y geográficas que son familiares para los jugadores.
• 🕹️ 'Sim light' indica que el juego busca un equilibrio entre la simular profunda y la resolución rápida de conflictos, sin ser un juego de rol completamente de simulación.
• 🎲 El progreso y la obtención de puntos de experiencia en 'Broken Empires' dependen de la persecución de objetivos por parte de los personajes y de enfrentar riesgos al lanzar dados.
• 🏰 El juego está diseñado para ser inmersivo, con un enfoque en la experiencia de los personajes y la historia que se desarrolla a través de sus acciones.
• 🗣️ 'Role playing' es crucial en el juego, donde las decisiones y el lenguaje utilizados por los jugadores influyen en el resultado de las interacciones en el juego.
• ⚔️ Los conflictos y las interacciones sociales son fundamentales en 'Broken Empires', y se resuelven a través de la combinación de habilidades de personaje y suerte al lanzar dados.
• 🌟 Los objetivos de los personajes y los obstáculos que deben superar son esenciales para el desarrollo de la trama y la experiencia de juego.
• 🧩 El juego ofrece un mundo abierto y de arena de juego, donde los jugadores tienen libertad para establecer sus propias metas y el GM desafía esas metas con obstáculos.

Q & A

¿Qué significa 'dramático' en el contexto del juego 'Broken Empires'?

En el juego 'Broken Empires', 'dramático' se refiere a que cada personaje debe tener deseos y tomar decisiones para superar obstáculos a fin de lograr sus objetivos. Esto es fundamental para crear una historia y experiencia de juego interesantes.

¿Cómo se define 'fantasía' en el juego 'Broken Empires'?

La 'fantasía' en 'Broken Empires' se refiere a un género que, aunque tiene elementos mágicos y fantásticos, debe ser internamente coherente y proporcionar un marco de referencia familiar para que los jugadores puedan entender y interactuar con el mundo del juego.

¿Qué es 'simulación ligera' y cómo se aplica en 'Broken Empires'?

La 'simulación ligera' en 'Broken Empires' busca un equilibrio entre la resolución detallada y la rapidez de juego. Ofrece suficientes detalles para que los jugadores sientan inmersión y realismo, sin sacrificar la fluidez del juego.

¿Por qué es importante que los personajes tomen acción en 'Broken Empires'?

En 'Broken Empires', la toma de acción es crucial porque es la única manera de avanzar en el juego. Los personajes deben perseguir sus objetivos activamente para obtener puntos de experiencia y desarrollarse dentro del juego.

¿Cómo se ganan los puntos de experiencia en 'Broken Empires'?

Los puntos de experiencia se ganan al perseguir metas y superar obstáculos, utilizando habilidades y enfrentando desafíos que se presenten en el juego. Esto puede incluir tanto conflictos físicos como sociales.

¿Qué papel juegan las 'Stakes' en el juego 'Broken Empires'?

Las 'Stakes' son fundamentales en 'Broken Empires', ya que definen lo que está en juego en cada encuentro. Representan lo que los personajes pueden ganar o perder al perseguir sus objetivos, dando un sentido de urgencia y significado a las acciones del jugador.

¿Cómo se aborda la inmersión en 'Broken Empires'?

La inmersión en 'Broken Empires' se logra a través de la扮演角色 y la toma de decisiones que el personaje haría en situaciones dadas. Esto puede incluir hablar en primera persona y asumir la identidad del personaje para una experiencia más rica.

¿Por qué es importante la elección de palabras en las interacciones sociales del juego?

La elección de palabras es crucial en las interacciones sociales porque直接影响 la habilidad que se debe utilizar para resolver la situación. Esto requiere que los jugadores se comuniquen claramente con el GM para que se pueda determinar la habilidad adecuada para el desafío.

¿Cómo se mezclan las decisiones del jugador con las habilidades del personaje en 'Broken Empires'?

En 'Broken Empires', las decisiones del jugador y las habilidades del personaje se mezclan al permitir que las elecciones de táctica y diálogo del jugador informen qué habilidad se debe utilizar en un desafío, creando así una experiencia de juego dinámica y enriquecedora.

¿Cuál es la filosofía de diseño subyacente en 'Broken Empires' que guía su desarrollo y gameplay?

La filosofía de diseño de 'Broken Empires' se centra en la dramatización de la fantasía, la inmersión en el personaje, y la importancia de las decisiones y desafíos que enfrentan los personajes para avanzar en el juego, todo en un marco de mundo coherente y familiar.

Outlines

00:00

🎮 Introducción al juego de rol 'Broken Empires'

El presentador introduce el juego de rol llamado 'Broken Empires', enfatizando la importancia de los términos 'dramatic fantasy' y 'sim light role-playing game' en la filosofía de diseño del juego. Expone que estos términos no son solo de marketing, sino que tienen un significado profundo y están relacionados con su experiencia de más de 40 años en el ámbito de los juegos de rol. El juego se basa en principios y filosofías claves que el creador considera cruciales para el diseño y la experiencia de juego, y busca transmitir estas ideas a través de la mecánica y la narrativa del juego.

05:01

🌟 La importancia de la 'dramática' en los juegos de rol

El presentador discute el término 'dramático', aclarando que no se refiere a juegos de historia, sino a la esencia de la dramaturgia que implica un personaje que desea algo y toma decisiones para superar obstáculos. En 'Broken Empires', los personajes deben tener objetivos y tomar acciones activas para avanzar en el juego, lo que crea una experiencia de juego dinámica y enfocada en la superación de desafíos. El juego fomenta la inmersión y la interacción con el mundo, donde los personajes no son pasivos sino que influyen en el entorno y reciben respuestas de él.

10:01

🔮 El género de 'fantasy' y su conexión con la experiencia humana

El video describe el género 'fantasy' como un medio para explorar la verdad de la experiencia humana en un mundo fantástico y coherente. El presentador enfatiza la importancia de la consistencia interna y la referencia cultural en la construcción de un mundo de juego que sea inmediatamente reconocible y comprensible para los jugadores. 'Broken Empires' utiliza culturas y entornos que son familiares para los jugadores, pero con elementos únicos que lo hacen fantástico, manteniendo un equilibrio entre lo conocido y lo extraordinario.

15:02

⚔️ 'Simulación ligera' y su impacto en la experiencia de juego

El presentador explica 'simulación ligera' como un enfoque que busca un equilibrio entre la resolución detallada y la velocidad de juego. En 'Broken Empires', se opta por una experiencia de juego que ofrece detalles significativos sin sacrificar la fluidez del juego. Se abordan temas como la inmersión, la importancia de las decisiones y la representación de acciones y consecuencias en el mundo del juego. El juego incorpora elementos narrativos que enriquecen la experiencia de juego sin caer en la rigidez de una simulación total.

20:02

🗣️ El rol de la 'rol扮演' y la 'juego' en la experiencia de juego

El video subraya la importancia de la interacción entre el rol de los personajes y los mecanismos de juego en 'Broken Empires'. El presentador discute cómo la inmersión en los personajes y la toma de decisiones basadas en sus objetivos es fundamental para el progreso del juego. Se enfatiza la necesidad de establecer apuestas claras en cada encuentro, donde los personajes tengan algo tangible que ganar o perder, creando una dinámica de juego en la que las decisiones y las acciones tienen consecuencias significativas.

Keywords

💡drámatico

El término 'drámatico' se refiere a la esencia de todos los juegos de rol y dramas, que involucran a un personaje que desea algo y toma decisiones para superar los obstáculos. En el video, el presentador enfatiza que este elemento es crucial para el desarrollo del personaje y la historia dentro del juego 'The Broken Empires'. El drama se crea cuando los personajes toman acciones activas y el mundo reacciona, creando una dinámica de acción y reacción.

💡fantasía

La 'fantasía' es el género del juego de rol presentado, que se centra en mundos internamente consistentes y reconocibles para los jugadores. El video menciona que, a pesar de ser un mundo fantástico, debe ser lo suficientemente similar al nuestro para que los jugadores puedan entender las reglas y las leyes del mundo, permitiendo así tomar decisiones significativas.

💡simulación ligera

La 'simulación ligera' (sim light) es un término que describe el equilibrio que el creador busca en su juego, entre la resolución detallada y la resolución rápida. Se busca una experiencia de juego rica en detalles que no ralentice excesivamente el juego, permitiendo que los jugadores se sumerjan en el mundo del juego sin perder la dinámica de juego.

💡rol de juego

El 'rol de juego' hace referencia a la interacción entre el jugador y el personaje que controla, donde el jugador asume la identidad del personaje y toma decisiones en su nombre. En el video, se destaca la importancia de la inmersión y la representación honesta del personaje para avanzar en el juego y obtener experiencia.

💡experiencia

La 'experiencia' en el contexto del video se refiere a la forma en que los personajes del juego obtienen puntos de experiencia al perseguir sus objetivos y superar obstáculos. Esto no solo se limita a combates, sino que también incluye interacciones sociales y desafíos no combativos, subrayando la importancia de la acción y la superación en la narrativa del juego.

💡objetivos

Los 'objetivos' son los deseos o metas que los personajes persiguen en el juego, que son fundamentales para crear la historia y el drama. El video enfatiza que los personajes deben tener objetivos claros y tangibles, ya sea algo que quieran lograr o algo que quieran evitar, para que el juego tenga un propósito y los jugadores tengan un sentido de dirección.

💡apuestas

Las 'apuestas' son lo que los personajes ponen en riesgo durante un encuentro o situación en el juego. El video explica que las apuestas son cruciales para crear tensión y significado en las interacciones del juego, ya que definen lo que se gana o se pierde al superar los obstáculos.

💡inmersión

La 'inmersión' es el proceso por el cual los jugadores se sumergen en el mundo del juego y asumen la identidad de sus personajes. El video discute cómo la inmersión es esencial para la experiencia de juego, ya que permite a los jugadores tomar decisiones basadas en la perspectiva de sus personajes y vivir la historia del juego de una manera más auténtica.

💡mecánicas de juego

Las 'mecánicas de juego' son los sistemas y reglas que rigen cómo se resuelven las acciones de los personajes dentro del juego. En el video, se menciona que, aunque es importante la inmersión y el rol de juego, las mecánicas son igualmente importantes para determinar el éxito o fracaso de las acciones de los personajes y para introducir un elemento de sorpresa y diversión.

💡contexto

El 'contexto' es la situación o entorno en el que se desarrolla una interacción o decisión en el juego. El video destaca la importancia de que los jugadores entiendan el contexto para poder tomar decisiones significativas y para que los juegos de rol sean inmersivos y emocionantes.

Highlights

The Broken Empires is a dramatic fantasy, sim light role-playing game designed to immerse players in a world where character actions drive the narrative.

The game emphasizes 'dramatic' as a core principle, meaning characters must actively pursue goals and overcome obstacles to create a compelling story.

Experience points in The Broken Empires are earned by pursuing character goals, not just through combat or treasure acquisition.

The game is set in a fantasy world that is internally consistent and provides a frame of reference for players to easily understand and engage with.

Fantasy in The Broken Empires is about meaningful choices within a world that, while fantastical, is grounded in recognizable and consistent rules.

The term 'sim light' refers to a balance between detailed simulation and speed of play, aiming for a game that is rich in detail but not overly cumbersome.

The game mechanics are designed to support role-playing by requiring players to make decisions as their characters would, influenced by both player choice and character skills.

Stakes are crucial in The Broken Empires; every encounter should have clear risks and rewards that matter to the characters.

The game encourages an open-world sandbox approach where players are free to set their own goals, with the GM providing challenges to overcome.

The Broken Empires is designed to be adaptable, allowing GMs to house rule and adjust the game to suit their group's preferences.

The game's design philosophy values both role-playing and game mechanics, creating a dynamic where player decisions and dice rolls work together.

The game's creator discusses the importance of creating tension through dice rolls, which adds an element of fun and excitement to the gameplay.

The Broken Empires aims to provide an immersive experience where players feel the consequences of their in-game actions and choices.

The game's system for social encounters is detailed, requiring players to consider their character's skills and the context of their actions.

The creator shares insights from over 40 years of gaming experience, influencing the design and philosophy of The Broken Empires.

The game is designed to be a partnership between players and the GM, with a focus on collaborative storytelling and world-building.

Transcripts

so the game is called the broken Empires

role playing game and the blurb

underneath the title is dramatic fantasy

Sim light role playing game so what does

that mean well those aren't just

buzzword marketing words anything like

that those are words that actually do

mean a great deal and there's a reason

why we have them in there so these words

actually speak a lot to my design

philosophy and what I'm trying to

achieve with the game and also kind of

what I value as a as a player as a GM

there's a core set of principles and

philosophies whenever

you're designing a game or even playing

a game really or running a game that you

kind of kind of keep coming back to over

over a career like I've I've been doing

this for over 40 some years and certain

things have come out as being like these

are important these are really crucial

things and because this game the Rogen

Empires is basically the best of 40

Years of

Gaming I'm looking at all the different

pieces I'm putting in the games and I'm

sort of thinking about why I chose those

things and that's where dramatic fantasy

simite role playing comes into so I

wanted to talk to you about what it

means so I've I'm super Hightech here

I've made some notes on my phone so I

want to go over these and I want to talk

about it and I want to sort of expound

upon it so the first word in that

description is dramatic so what exactly

does that mean there's there's a lot of

baggage with that

word uh in gaming circles there's a lot

of people that assume when you're

talking about dramatic it means you're

talking about story games and I am

absolutely not um story games for me are

some a very different Beast they're I'd

call them RPG adjacent I mean

technically they are RPGs but they seek

to serve a slightly different audience

they they seek to scratch a slightly

different itch than what I'm trying to

do with the game um so there's baggage

with that term so let me explain exactly

what I do mean when I say dramatic in

dramatic fantasy simulate thing so all

role playing games and in fact all drama

ever made is about a character wanting

something and then making a choice to

overcome the obstacle in his or her way

in order to get what they want that is

the essence of all drama you need a

character that wants something and that

character makes a choice takes an action

in order to overcome the obstacles in

their way and by doing so they arrive at

the conclusion and either they achieve

what they want or they don't but if you

have a character in any drama and I'm

talking movies TV plays anything

anything short stories anything if you

have a character that does not actively

take action make a choice then you don't

have drama then you don't have a story

because if you have only passive

characters in other words passive

characters that are sitting back waiting

for the world to happen to them those

are extremely dull characters with rare

exception so in the role playing game in

this game in the in the broken Empires

the idea that characters must take

action they must want something that is

absolutely crucial to the game

experience you can't just sit down at

this game and say I'm just going to be a

fighter and I'm just going to see what

happens I mean you can but you're going

to be you're going to quickly realize

that you're not advancing because so

crucial to the core principles of this

game are the ideals of take action

overcome

obstacles that the only way to advance

your character in this game is per is by

pursuing your goals that does not matter

what those goals are the goals could be

something as lofty as I'm going to track

down the Assassin who killed my parents

or I'm going to overthrow the kingdom

that invaded my homeland as a child or

it could be something as simple I'm

going to go into that dungeon and get

the treasure before I get

killed really it's as simple as that but

if you have a character that does not

want anything you don't have a game you

really don't so in the broken Empires

the only way to advance your character

the only way to earn experience points

is by actively pursuing those characters

goals and that is up to the players to

figure out and with the GM of course

it's a it's a partnership in

that the player characters must want

something or else there is no drama

there's no story they must want to push

on the world and when they do the world

pushes back somewhere else that is the

cycle of Drama Action and reaction I do

a thing and it affects the world and the

world responds this is the game and this

is all drama and this is how you advance

your character if you want to get

experience points in the broken Empires

you have to have a character with strong

wants and you set those up at the very

beginning and also those evolve over

time right they evolve with the story of

the

character and there's ways to do that

mechanically but it's very simple it's

it's essentially at the end of the

session you talk with the GM and the

rest of the table and you say did I

pursue my objectives and and there's a

very specific meaning in pursue your

objectives in the broken Empires it's

not just did I do a thing no it

specifically means did you put something

at risk

by Rolling

dice in order to achieve what you want

because the game is so robust in terms

of its conflict Arenas rolling dice

isn't just about combat physical combat

it is also about social interactions

it's about uh difficult

travel so these things all are arenas in

which to explore your character's wants

and desires to roll dice to use your

skills and to try to overcome the

obstacles that is is how you get

experience it's not by killing monsters

it's not by accumulating treasure these

things are their own rewards killing

monsters before they kill you is its own

reward obviously you survive to fight

another day gaining treasure is its own

reward but only through pursuing what

you want what your specific goals are to

you get experience now that could mean

kill the monster right I it's kind of

like in the in the game iron sworn how

you swear a vow I'm going to slay the

Beast that killed my best friend

whatever right okay in that case yeah

killing the monster that's pursuing your

goals or taking any actions using your

skills to overcome the obstacles that

are in your way between you and killing

that monster or you know gaining

treasure could be a goal too I'm going

to become the richest thief in the city

of aner okay cool then anytime you take

risks roll dice to overcome obstacles in

pursuit of that goal you get experience

points so dramatic that's what it means

it means that every character every

player character in the broken Empires

is about pursuing their goals and that

is what will create the drama of of the

character's story if you will the next

thing is fantasy well this is probably

the easiest one fantasy is a

genre uh a lot of people have asked me

actually is the broken Empires uh good

for sci-fi well I mean you could twist

it into a Sci-Fi game but it's fantasy

it's literally in the name fantasy uh it

still deals with people first and

foremost that is a crucial distinction

about fantasy that a lot of people

sometimes don't

make any good fantasy the the best

fantasy is always about being internally

consistent right you need the world to

make sense to the reader or to the

participant in this case and there has

to be a frame of reference that the

player characters the players rather can

grasp or the reader if it's a book or

the viewer if it's a TV show there has

to be a frame of reference that the that

the participants can grasp so that they

know exactly what the setting is right

so look at Game of Thrones Game of

Thrones is clearly fantasy it's very

internally consistent the rules of the

world and I'm talking about the books

here specifically the rules of the world

are set they're very similar to our own

world but there's differences there's

magic very subtle magic there's dragons

right there's things like that there's

the night king or the the the white

walkers as I believe they're called in

the

book it's internally consistent this

fantasy and there's a frame of reference

clearly westos is Northern England or

rather all of England with a bit of

Spain and a bit of France it's westros

is clearly the British Isles right

there's aspects of Scandinavia in there

and Os is clearly kind of like the

Mongols and the Eastern steps and things

like this and you know places more quote

unquote exotic so that frame of

reference is immediate it's not our

world it's clearly not our world but

it's close enough that we go oh yeah I

know what this is so in the broken

Empires you will see that the cultures

represented there are very familiar

they're not complete ripoffs you're not

going to find an actual England there

with the English political system of

feudalism and things like this but

there's an area well there are areas

rather in the world like the Westlands

which you know they're very familiar

they're they're like oh I think this

kind of feels like England or angavar

angavar feels a lot like France you know

ortio dandala feels a lot like Spain at

the sort of at the height of its Armada

years um frame of reference is very

important for me because I want my

players to immediately be able to see

and feel and hear and taste and smell

the world that they're in and the best

way to do that I have found in my

experience is to give them frame of

reference right this is like a little

like ancient Egypt with some some Saudi

Arabia mixed in you know medieval Saudi

Arabia boom oh okay I got it it's desert

there's camels I understand the the I

understand the the the costumes I

understand the type of weapons people

use you know it's it's a thousand one

Knights Arabian Knights that kind of

stuff um it's it's immediately

understandable and recognizable so

that's that's what I mean by fantasy in

this it's internally consistent and

there's a frame of reference we get it

we understand you know a lot of people

say things like Lord of the Rings which

is one of the great fantasy stories of

all time oh well it's just escapism I

submit to you it is absolutely not

escapism because the best fantasy is

always about the truth of The Human

Experience it just happens to take place

in a Fantastical world but that world

has to be consistent so that we can make

meaningful choices as characters that's

crucial and that world also has to be

recognizable we need to understand what

the rules of physics are obviously does

water run back backwards or uphill in

this world we need to know that in order

to make meaningful choices so the broken

Empires is a very familiar fantasy world

uh but there's some some weird things in

there um but I I call those out in in

the book in the setting guide of the

book and by calling them out they get

highlighted as oh that's unusual because

it goes against the frame of reference

that we're expecting and that's kind of

what helps to make it Fantastical right

it's all about meaningful choices that

your players cannot make meaningful

choices in a world that they do not

recognize and that they

uh do not recognize the laws of the

internally consistent laws so Sim light

this is the big one simulation light so

I've talked about this in a previous

video but every game exists on a

spectrum on one end you've got detail of

resolution and on the other you got

speed of resolution so a simulationist

game Falls obviously closer to the

detailed

resolution whereas a rules light game

tends to fall closer to the speed of

resolution

so my

goal with the broken Empires is to find

for me as close to the perfect balance

as possible now of course that's

subjective and it's a matter of

individual taste for me I like

simulation but not too much simulation

that it bogs down the speed of play but

I need enough details that yeah that

means we're going to have to take a

little more time in order

to uh come to a resolution of like a

combat or something right yeah it's

going to take a little more time there's

going to be more roles because those

roles tell you things that are

interesting and uh uh what I would say

crucial details to understand how the

fight looks and feels as opposed to I

rolled against your armor class and did

five hit points damage right to me

that's very functional that's over here

in speed of resolution very very

functional I'm talking about D and D but

it's it's boring to me I was bored by

DND D's abstractions almost immediately

when I first started playing I recognize

their functionality and I recognize

their importance and I recognize how

easy it is to get into that right but

that's not my core audience with the

broken Empires my my core audience is

for people who want a little more meat

on the bone who want a little more

detail and who are willing to understand

that in order to get that detail you

have to you have to sacrifice a little

bit of play speed a little bit being the

key here

because you know you could have a game

like harmas again one of my favor games

or a game like mithis a game which is a

huge influence on the broken Empires to

me mithis is just a little too far to

the simulationist side of things uh by

that much but it's enough to make me go

ah it feels a little cumbersome but

that's just for me I can only design for

me some of you are going to love where

this game sits on the Spectrum some of

you going to say oh that's way too many

rules it's way too crunchy some of you

going to say why didn't you put more

details about infe infected wounds in

there which by the way I have there are

in Ed wound rules in there or whatever

right you're going to say but well why

don't you have stackable armor right I

got to tell you this is just where I'm

going to land on that spectrum and

either you're going to be cool with that

or not and of course as a GM if you're

running this game for people of course

you can house rule it duh that's what we

all do but uh rules is written I'm

trying to find a place that for me

pretty much hits that perfect spot um I

mean there's abstractions in every RPG

uh where the abstraction Falls is what

defines this game as a simulation rather

than a a sort of rules light game um as

I said we don't do Five Points of damage

we you know uh puncture you in the right

arm and cause you to drop your sword in

pain right or whatever um there is still

abstraction in this game there has to be

there's abstraction in every game uh the

games that have tried over the years to

avoid to to eliminate all abstraction

are unplayable you know like uh what was

it Phoenix command from the old days you

know these are games games that tried to

basically calculate the the individual

trajectory of each bullet based on wind

speed and all and no no no no no for me

way too much way too much uh but so too

uh uh too little is Iola D20 oh look I

beat your armor class therefore I do

some points of damage and there's no

other effect until you're at zero that's

that's no but not to me uh anyway so

there's always abstractions including in

my game right certain things are going

to be abstracted resolve is a good

example of that resolve is a met

currency in the game but it's based on

what the character has it's not some

it's not some narrative currency it

doesn't say you as the player get to

edit the scene by spending this meta

currency that's something like fate

would do that is not done here resolve

is a reflection of what the character

can actually do and that's an that's an

important difference to me this is a

simulationist game but it's not a fully

simulationist game I borrow a lot of

narrative narrativist ideas from other

games because I think they're really

great so I like the idea that you can

spend resolve points which is a meta

currency even though it's based on your

own uh characters abilities and such

that you can spend those to give

yourself a little leg up you know to

increase the success level or to do a

reroll right I have no problem with that

hardcore simulation a lot of them hate

that no the dice rule of the day what

they say goes H that's not where I'm

sitting with this anyway so that's

that's Sim light right and again I've

talked about this before so role playing

game that's the last part of uh dramatic

fantasy simate role playing game now

this is very important um both of these

terms are of equal importance to me role

playing and game and they're very

different things but they come together

under the term role playing game in a

beautiful manner that gives us all of

these wonderful experiences we've had

playing RPGs over these years role

playing is of course to assume the role

of a character in a fantasy world in

this case and make decisions that the

player thinks that the character would

make in those circumstances again this

kind of comes back to the simulation

right like you're simulating a world

you're simulating what it would be like

for this character to be in that world

and you're kind of seeing Through The

Eyes of this character to get that

experience that's called immersion right

one type of immersion there's there's

other types of immersion but for my

purposes here I'm divining immersion is

that in this game you know we we're

trying to immerse ourselves and our

characters to try and experience this

world of the broken Empires as though it

was real you know I mean we're not going

to laring we're not doing that we're not

putting on

costumes that's the

line but uh uh yeah we want to

experience the world as though it was

real and yes the default assumption is

that this is going to be played by

players who speak in the first person

and yes maybe they put on a funny voice

or an accent or whatever there's

absolutely no requirement for that um at

all but yeah the assumption is is that

you are playing the game and you are

making decisions as honestly as possible

based on what you think the character

would do in that moment

you know we say the words that our

characters would say now not everybody

plays like this and some people go back

and forth my own group here at home uh

my live group uh they kind of go back

and forth a lot they'll they'll speak in

character but then they'll they'll pull

back and kind of go to the third person

stance and say you know Joe the

Barbarian goes over here and does this

thing and then they'll jump back into

first person so it it doesn't matter you

know the only reason why I bring this up

is because some of the rules especially

in Social encounters assume that the

players are immersing themselves and

that they are honestly trying to portray

the character and so the words that the

players choose to use Serve to inform

the outcome of those social roles now

that doesn't mean at all that a

charismatic player is always going to

have a charismatic character at all what

it means is the player regardless of

their individual socialization or

Charisma or whatever the Player's Choice

of tactic and choice of words doesn't

matter how they say it but it does

matter what they say that is going to

inform that is going to

inform the skill that the character must

roll so you get this blending in social

conflict you get this blending of player

choice with what specifically they say

in that moment and context is King in

this moment a blend of that and a blend

of what the character skill is so if the

player opens his mouth and says words

words that are very clear to everyone at

the table and most especially to the GM

as being

intimidation then guess what that

character has to make an intimidation

role now if the character is no good at

intimidation they're going to fail that

role and they're going to cost the party

in that moment because you have a

tolerance level uh this is this is

heavily inspired by the One Ring

although I do it slightly differently

you have a tolerance level with NPCs

you're trying to convince of something

uh you know important NPCs you know as

soon as you fail past the tolerance

level you've lost you've lost the

encounter so if you open your mouth as a

player and you say things that imply a

certain tactic you better understand the

skills that the character has because

that is the skill that's going to be

rolled uh it's I know it sounds a bit uh

authoritarian when I say it this way but

trust me this has worked so well for us

over the years it's so awesome it's so

immersive and it's and and players very

quickly learn how to adapt to that it

it's just fantastic some of the most

tense situations I've ever run have been

in games where I've used these rules

these social counter rules and uh it's

fantastic uh in any event the the the

point of all this is that anytime a

character takes an action to overcome an

obstacle because remember that's that's

what we're doing here anytime they take

an action to overcome an obstacle in

order to get what they want we need to

know whether or not they succeeded right

so you're playing the character you're

role playing but but now you have to

roll the dice and that's where the game

comes into it the game mechanics it is a

blend of two I am playing my character

and I I make an impassion speech and I

even though if I'm am not an charismatic

person or I don't know the words I I say

what the character says and I choose

those words and then the GM says Ah roll

and Inspire okay now the game comes into

it now it's about the

mechanics does the skill work that's

going to be based on your character

skill and it's going to be based on the

luck of the dice we roll dice in these

games because it's fun and because dice

represent all of the unknowns that the

game system does not specifically call

out the dice represent chaos they

represent all of the things we have not

taken account of but still affect the

outcome so this Crepes tension rolling

dice creates tension and tension is

fun that's why we do it there could be

no tension or fun without characters who

are pursuing things that matter to them

again it comes back to this

so the game in role playing game is just

as important as the role playing in this

game in the broken Empires you cannot

Advance your character unless you

immerse yourself in that character and

you pursue their goals and you allow the

dice to be rolled and you allow the

character skills to be challenged and

you allow those characters you you you

force your characters to try and

overcome obstacles that they need to

overcome in order to achieve what they

want everything in the game around

revolves around that everything revolves

around those core principles and this

brings us of course to Stakes right how

do we set Stakes what is at stake in the

scene Stakes are everything if you're in

in a in an encounter in the game

everything is about Stakes what is a

steak a steak not something you eat with

a knife and fork the stakes I'm talking

about

are what what are you risking things for

what are you trying to achieve what is

the obstacle and what is the gain what

is the thing you get by overcoming that

obstacle and what are you risking that's

the stake either the character has to

have something tangible to gain by

pursuing the goal or they have to have

something tangible to lose by not

pursuing the goal and you know I haven't

written all of it yet but in the GM

section I'm going to really try and

Hammer that home the idea that every

encounter should be about Stakes should

be about the stakes of the characters

right not every single time right

there's going to be Random Encounters

and oh my God we got attacked by Bandits

and whatever now the stakes are just

survive or whatever you know that's

going to be you know that's that's not

uncommon but I'm talking

about I'm talking about things that

matter to the characters as the GM you

have to give the the character's

opportunities in order to overcome them

because that's the only way they Advance

right so what you get is in the broken

Empires you get a you get an open World

sandbox where the players are all free

to choose whatever goals they want but

it is the GM's job to throw obstacles at

those goals so

that the players can overcome them and

achieve their goals and get

better everything comes back to

that so

dramatic fantasy siml role playing game

with the important Stakes on the side

and maybe a

potato these are the these are really

crucial philosophical ideas that I

wanted to talk about um because they

really do underpin so much of my design

philosophy in everything I do in the

game so I hope that was helpful and uh

I'd like to hear your ideas and thoughts

on on the stuff I've said um leave a

comment below and we'll get a discussion

going all right thanks guys