Managing Expectations in TTRPGs - Discussing What We Do and Don't Like

When it comes to TTRPGs like D&D and Pathfinder (pronounced pat-h-fin-der), I think the trickiest part is managing expectations. That is to say that I have had a lot of personal experience with trying to run one kind of game, and players trying to play another kind of game, or vice versa if I'm a player. For me, it's very unsatisfying to tell players, "I'm running a game for heroic characters", and someone still brings a joke character, and someone else still brings a character of neutral alignment and needs some extra motivation to do anything. Ugh.

This article is my attempt to work out a way to manage these expectations. The first thing is to identify the motives, experiences, interests and influences of the participants. Some people's only exposure to fantasy might be Adventure Time. You might think I'm making that up, but I'm not! I have played with that guy. He didn't know any of the classic fantasy conventions and he played like it.

We're going to start with some useful vocabulary. Ask and discuss these questions:

• Influences or Interests: What movies, books, comics, video games, tv, etc. have you seen? that you like? What do you like about them?
• Disinterests: What do you dislike about TTRPGs, genres, literary conventions, etc. Some people are open to anything, some people aren't! For people with discerning tastes, this is as important.
• Experiences: Previous experiences with TTRPG(s). What did you like about them, what did you not like? Players may have learned some things that you would like them to unlearn.
• Motives: Why are you interested in TTRPGs? What about this hobby is fun for you? What makes you want to play a TTRPG?

My Interests: My favorite work of Fantasy might just be Kentaro Miura's Berserk. Let's discuss why. The art is badass. The dark themes are interesting. The scenarios are interesting. There's a sort of cosmic horror to it. Guts is just this regular guy who manages to become above average by sheer effort and a will to survive. He has an extraordinary tenacity for survival in the face of overwhelming odds. His opponents are often otherworldly and nightmarish in power and scale but they have such simple motives like eating people or avoiding boredom. He even earns their respect with his will and fortitude. What else? It's otherwise a low-magic, earth-like setting. The horror elements almost replace the fantastic elements, and I think that's really cool!

I also like Vampire Hunter D for some similar reasons, and because I think it's stylish as hell. In this setting, Vampires became the rulers of the earth. To the extent that the word noble became synonymous with vampire and few people use the word vampire. Humans are cattle. That's pretty dark. The titular character is D, and he's a Dhampir. That means he is a half human half vampire. Because of this, he's rejected by both humans and vampires. He's also secretly the most badass character in the setting. The question is what does he want and why? It seems to me that the author intends to leave these things up to interpretation or inference, but we are to come away believing that this is not a character with ordinary motivations.

Tim Burton's Sleepy Hallow was pretty fucking stylish too. In this movie, everyone's dressed in a period era outfit, there's only one monster and he's an absolute badass, no one understands the monster or magic, and the fantastic elements are not casually accepted by anyone. They're all as wild as if you went out for a walk and met an extra-terrestrial.

Generally, low fantasy settings or earth-like settings where the supernatural or extraordinary are rare and maybe even intrusive upon the ordinary world are interesting. Monsters are monsters! Magic is dangerous or even forbidden. The elements of the fantasy that make fantasy unique are kept low so that they when they are used, they have a greater effect, like a guy who never says curse words finally dropping an f-bomb. I also like the low fantasy, dark fantasy Campaign Diaries of Professor DM on the Dungeon Craft YouTube channel!

Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean is cool for similar reasons. The fantastic elements are presented as curses, and they present the supernatural as dangerous and mysterious. If you had to assign all the characters in that movie a D&D class, they would either be fighters or thieves (rogues). 

My Disinterests: You might think I don't actually like fantasy, and there might be something to that, but I don't like pure horror and I'm not into the horror TTRPGs because in those you play as a survivor or a victim. I do want to be a hero. Fantasy can be pretty @#$%^ nerdy. The way nerds use wizards, vampires, demons, and lycanthropes can be really cringy because they make it mundane and ordinary. Monsters aren't monsters anymore, they're just like cat people or something. And then there's people who think it's racist to kill monsters and take their stuff, and those people are just detrimental to the hobby. I don't like elves, dwarves, hobbits, and some of the other fantastic races that have become standard like Tieflings, half-orcs, and dragonborn (dragon people). These things make me feel like I'm watching the Muppets. I don't like that magic is common and ordinary, like a skill or an art that people can just pick up and learn. What's so special about magic if everyone can do it?

My Experiences: I have mostly played 5e D&D. It's pretty lame. There's furries. There's scalies. Goblins, bugbears, and other monsters are humanoids or goblinoids, and so they're treated like an exotic people. I don't like that. Demons from the Christian hell are not people. Even goblins should be monstrous. D&D makes me feel like I'm Eddie Valiant in Who Framed Roger Rabit. Tonally, it's lame. Players play these goofy characters, or they make characters who are kind of goofy conceptually but are intended to be played serious. It makes it difficult for me to care. I don't care about non-humans, and I don't care to humanize the non-humans. I'm hoping for something more serious, but this can't help but feel cartoonish. Besides that, the player characters get pretty powerful, and after a while they play like they know they are. Powerful player characters are antithetical to horror. I have played mostly in Faerun and Eberron, and slightly in Draconlance, Spelljammer, the Underdark, and Greyhawk; but I think 5e modernized it all made it all lame. It's casual and accessible and safe. Even the modern Ravenloft setting is kind of watered down and plebian. I also hate chaotic and evil player characters! They're dicks and they spoil someone's fun. I want PCs who can play as a damn team. And I don't want to be a villainous character, and I don't want to be a character who would particularly tolerate villainous companions or allies. But when you play D&D, this game permits evil and chaotic player characters, and so do most GMs, so I have to put up with it.

Motives: I have lost interest in tv, movies, comics, anime, and books because I think it used to be good, now it's not; but I still want to indulge in some narrative entertainment. I want an outlet for creativity, I want to socialize, and I want to play a game!

I think this was a particularly interesting exercise and I recommend you all do the same.

Here's what I learned about myself: I am not down for any game.

I want an earth-like or low fantasy, human-centric setting where magic and monsters are rare and dangerous. The line between fantasy and horror is blurred. Monsters are not people, they are monsters, and they are opposed to humanity. Magic-users are rare, maybe even feared and hated. Stakes are low, not epic. Characters are generally relatable; scenarios are generally plausible; environments are generally realistic. Your character is an ordinary or above average person. You are not great, but you can earn greatness. You have a chance to become a hero, and I want you to aspire to be, but if you become a villain, I take your PC and make them an NPC in my setting, and they become the property of the me, the GM. Don't do anything you wouldn't do in real life. Play your character like you care what happens to them. This is low, dark fantasy.

Types of Fun (MDA Framework)

I want to give you some GM advice that no one teaches except for the Angry GM. Go read his article(s)  on his website on this subject if you think I suck at it. The subject is MDA Framework and how you can use it to make your game appeal to different players.

You every hear that condescending "having fun wrong" comment on the internet? Sure you have. Usually in internet conversation where someone tells someone else that "all fun is valid". Ugh. Look man, I'm sure some people have fun punching puppies or kicking kittens. That's an extreme example, but I'm not going to work out an intelligent example right now, I'm trying to sell you on an idea. You might understand what you have fun doing, and you might understand why it's fun for you, but can you say you understand how other people have fun or why that stuff is fun to them?

Let me introduce you to a concept called MDA Framework. MDA means Mechanics-Dynamics-Aesthetics, and it's a concept that tries to explain how video game players have fun. Here's the simplest break down. The Mechanics of a game are what the designers see, but the player doesn't perceive the mechanics, they perceive the Aesthetics (or sensations). In D&D 5e for a very specific example, the game designers have worked out the math so that the players succeed about 65% of the time at things their character is good at. Those are the mechanics. The player doesn't recognize this though because the mechanics are not explained like that in the official books; instead, what the players recognize is that they succeed an amount of time that feels just right. Not too much so that the game isn't too easy, but not too little that the game is too hard. It's an aesthetic; a sensation or a feeling.

What about the Dynamic in MDA? Shut up. That's a stupid question. Ahem.

What is the value of the MDA Framework? Because the people who invented the MDA Framework came up with a list of different ways that players have fun. This is a pretty clever idea. There's a list of eight different ways (or sensations) that people have fun, with other ways being less common but also identified.

One aesthetic is called challenge. That's a pretty easy to recognize concept. Fun comes from challenge when people derive pleasure by succeeding based on choices they made when failure was a possibility. That's easy to understand, right? Now, how about the aesthetic of fellowship. Fellowship is a type of fun that is derived from a sense of belonging. To simplify this, there are people who like to play multiplayers because they like being included in a group or team. Belonging is more valuable to them than the activity.

So, go look up the list of eight MDA aesthetics because it's worth having an understanding of the different ways there are to have fun. Different people have fun in different ways and being able to identify those ways are going to make you better at social forms of play or producing a product intended to entertain an audience.

Then there's also GNS Theory. GNS stands for Gamism, Narrativism, and Simulationism. I think these words are pretty self-explanatory. GNS Theory is simpler than MDA and a bit less useful. One difference is that GNS theory uses Simulationism to describe a person who wants an experience that they can be immersed in. Something that disrupts immersion, like a game mechanic that feels arbitrary for the sake of using a game mechanic and that does not adequately simulate the make-believe world, spoils immersion. That's a fine and dandy concept! But MDA describes fantasy as an aesthetic of wanting a make-believe world, expression as wanting to create a character to express yourself and narrative as an aesthetic of a satisfying story, and MDA presents these as distinct where as GNS's Simulationism might lump these kinds of fun but not adequately describe them as separate.

MDA is more complicated than D&D's attempt to explain different kinds of players: Problem Solvers, Hack-n-Slashers, and Actors. D&D will cause you to overlook sensations, like fellowship. How many of you have seen GMs asking for help engaging certain players in their games? Some players are engaged even though they don't look it. They're having fun just being included. Where D&D says actor, MDA says expression, narrative, and fantasy, which are not the same, and may cause you to fail to engage certain players by misidentifying the ways they have fun.

So let's look at a real example of how all of this knowledge could help me to provide a more satisfying experience as a Game Master.

I think one of the ways I like to have fun is discovery. Discovery is the satisfaction of finding something that was hidden based on choices I made. This can be a secret door, a secret fortress in the woods, or learning a about the castle's steward secret arrangement of selling the lord's wine to the thieves' guild. One thing that discourages this kind of play is a game mechanic! Let's say that I as a player describe examining a bookshelf in a dusty old room. I say I slowly, thoroughly read all the titles on the spines, and if a book doesn't have anything written on its spine, I pull it out and read the front cover or on the inside pages for a title. I say I'm looking for a book about magic, the occult, or the arcane, or something mystic and weird. Because I'm a magic-user, duh. You as the GM could say that I find a book called "The Interstice: The Space Between Spaces". I think that sound interesting and I would like to take that book. Cool, done! But if you instead make me roll dice to see if I spot that book, that feels arbitrary and failure discourages me from engaging in that kind of play again. Why do you think that there needs to be a mechanic to see if I spot this book?

Rolling dice to find something in plain sight also ruins the aesthetic of submission (or immersion) because it makes no sense that I could miss something that I think should be obvious and have no chance of failure! This also spoils the sensation of narrative because my character is not stupid, but you've made me doubt the competency of my own character. I should not have a chance to fail at discovery for something that's in plain sight if I take my time, but you introduced random chance where it shouldn't factor. For some situations, you use the logic of the narrative, not the game mechanics!

So, learn these ideas. Teach them to others. This will help you to communicate your needs to others, and it will help you to help others to communicate their needs to you. This has been a public service announcement brought to you by the letter Q. All hail Q, the most useless letter of the English alphabet. We could literally replace you with K and no one would miss you. I hope you die in a fire you lame ass letter.

How to Create a Fantasy Setting (Loria)

This post is about creating a setting for a fantasy TTRPG from scratch with only what is minimally necessary. In other words, the essentials. Why? Because reading and studying and learning a setting book or gazetteer is time consuming and effortful. Sometimes, it's just easier to rely on people's basic assumptions about a fantasy world and make it up as you go. This post is motivated by a YT video called Minimum Viable by @Earthmote and by the simplicity of the Alfheim Setting section of the ICRPG book. I'm going to start broad and then go to specific.

Sliders and Dials

First, genres, subgenres, and various concepts found in settings and fiction. Let's treat these like sliders or dials. Let's say fantasy and sci-fi are sliders that go from 0 to 10 where 0 means none, 1 means a very small amount, 5 means a medium amount, and 10 means an extra or exceeding amount. If I said I had my fantasy slider set to 2 and my sci-fi slider set to 0, this probably describes a low-fantasy, earth-like setting.

Other sliders can be magic, monsters, (because magic and monsters can be distinct from fantasy), horror, intrigue, mystery, action, adventure, religion, dungeon-crawling, and whatever else you can think of. If I exclude a slider, it means either it hasn't been considered yet, or its set to zero (0).

Let's say I have a setting with the following sliders: fantasy 3, horror 6, magic 2, and monsters 8. I think this tells people to expect some fantasy and some magic, but more horror and more Monsters. Maybe we could assume it's a dark, low fantasy letting. Thus, the expectations are starting to form!

If I had to describe Star Wars, I would put Fantasy low, and Sci-fi would be somewhere in the middle. You might disagree! So, there are some things to define with a simple one or two sentence explanation.

The Force in Star Wars is both the religion and magic sliders combined! The Force is ever-present, and it's very important thematically, but most characters don't concern themselves with it at all! Experts in the force are very rare, and they're limited to factions; rarely independent. I put sci-fi in the middle because I think there could be more sci-fi in Star Wars. For example, Star Wars does not have an abundance of cybernetics and they're usually crude or plain rather than stylish. Narratively, they're replacements, not enhancements. There's also little to no merging of the human mind with a computer like connecting your nervous system into a machine or the internet. Therefore, no transhumanist concepts. I would also say that in Star Wars, the fictional tech is not trying to be scientific, it's not making a commentary on technology, and it doesn't intend to speculate on the future of technology on humanity. For example, little to no personal portable computers like a smart phone; they have clunky robots instead. They have cloning technology, but they only use it to make an army. Daily conveniences of tech are not shown, like cooking appliances or entertainment. So, in summary, tech is just a part of Star Wars because it's cool and because the setting is futuristic; it's an aesthetic more than a theme!

Now, let us make a checklist of ordinary parts of a setting. What are some basic concepts of setting?

1. Society (structure, culture, art, values)
2. Politics and Government (systems, leaders, laws)
3. Economy
4. Religion(s) and Faith
5. Military, War, and Defense
6. Geography and Climate
7. History
8. Technology
9. Other (like magic and monsters and extraordinary stuff)

If you can write a one sentence description of each item on the checklist above, or maybe three simple bullet points, you will define the ordinary parts of the setting. If you can work in one NPC such as a governor for Politics, a shop keeper or merchant for Economics, or a local expert for history, then you're already fleshing out specifics. Consider that the list both describes the setting and reflects what the player characters would know about the setting! 

Here's a sample I made for The Empire of Loria:

1. Society (structure, culture, art, values)
1. Human only. Resembles a mix of ancient Rome, Mediterranean, and European
2. A patriotic empire who believes that their society is the greatest in history! Loyalty is the norm.
3. Cowardice and crime are abhorred. Disloyalty is comparable to treason. Punishment is typically strict.
4. Itinerant people without loyalty to the empire are called Evrwyrs (ever-way-ers) and are commonly regarded poorly
5. People say Oy instead of Hey, Aye instead of yes informally, and they never say OK (that's a modern word)
2. Politics and Government (systems, leaders, laws)
1. Feudal. An upper class of nobles whore right to rule comes from God.
2. A clergy who props up the nobility and quells the masses
3. The empire is subdivided into counties; each county is distinct but a part of one empire!
3. Economy
1. They have many, many trades and are a self-sustaining land
2. There is a Porters Guild which delivers goods across land and sea
3. A rising Merchant Class is opening the doors to industry
4. The currency is called Lora. Fractions of a Lora are called pence as in pennies or cents.
4. Religion(s) and Faith
1. Luciusim; A generic western religion resembling Christianity dedicated to Lucius, God of light and life
2. Worshippers are called Lucians; The empire is massively Lucian! Pagans and apostates are discriminated against. Evrwyrs are follow a pagan faith.
3. The religion is led by a high priest, Richard IV.
4. The city of High Mark is considered the capital city, where the High Priest lives 
5. Magic is regarded as witchcraft, as evil, and is forbidden.
6. Superstition is ordinary
5. Military, War, and Defense
1. They have a standing military that constantly defends the boarders
2. Military service is mandatory for one male in each family
3. Lately, mercenaries have been used more and more
6. Geography and Climate
1. There is a portion of land where three continents that meet around the Middle Sea; this area is called Midland. The empire possesses all of the land immediately around the sea.
2. Mediterranean climate; Long, warm, dry periods with short, cold wet periods.
3. Areas of Midland outside of the Empire of Loria are referred to as "Barbaroy", the lands belonging to savage barbaries (or barbarians).
7. History
1. The empire is 225 years old; We are now in the year 225 LE (Lorian Era).
2. King Cornelius Lora I conquered much of the region called Midland.
3. The current emperor, Cornelius Lora VIII, has been slain! His only known heir is a witch and a murderer.
8. Technology
1. Medieval era technology. Quality steel is available. Glass goods and books are expensive.
2. Some early guns, but they are rare and expensive.
9. Magic and Monsters
1. Magic-users are feared, rare, and secretive.
2. There is no established magical culture (traditions, clothing, etc.).
3. Monsters are rare and universally eat humans. People in the more populated parts of the world go their entire lives without encountering them. There are no experts or expertise in monsters.
10. Central Conflict(s) - Major Conflicts within the Setting
1. The city of Cornelia in the County of Cornelia has been devastated by a mercenary sieged followed by barbarians and occupations by the armies of neighboring Lora counties. Displaced refugees from Cornelia are everywhere.
2. The noble class has been devastated by in-fighting. All of the nobles appointed by a Lora are now dead! Has the divine right to rule has been rescinded?
3. The High Priest has been oddly absent, and the Church has been oddly silent on recent events.
4. The county of Alexandria has withdrawn from the Empire. It was a great and powerful kingdom long before Loria.
5. An infamous witch called The Heiress, supposedly the bastard daughter of Lora VIII, has recently repelled an army from High Mark single handedly, and killed the first Paladin anointed in a generation.
6. A miracle healer disappeared from High Mark with The Heiress. He has returned, but the healing he performs have not resumed.
7. The Merchant Class of Odegrad has led small rebellion against the nobility of Odegrad following the mysterious death at sea by the governor of Odegrad, Count Reginal Gilcrest.

This is just a single region, not the entire world. Now that I have a region conceptually, I can do Q&A and fill out any gaps if needed. Notice I didn't name the continent because that's not important; I named the region, which is Midland, and the empire is called Loria. Also notice that the setting is rich with conflict. There's a lot that's happened. There's a lot that's ready to happen. I am introducing you the players right into this moment in time. You are a character from this setting; What do you do?

Counties of Loria as they ring the Middle Sea

Below I have listed the major counties of Loria and provided some simple, brief details of them. I have not created a map! Maps are overrated. Where the previous portion described Loria, this portion describes the sub-divisions of Loria. I am 

1. Odegrad in the Northwest
1. Considered the most progressive and industrious
2. They have the greatest naval power in the empire
3. Home of the Porter's Guild and the Merchant Class
4. Military colors are bronze and blue. Symbol is a Hawk.
5. Prominent Noble Houses: Gilcrest, Arc de la Chance
2. Cornelia in the Central - North area
1. The capital, and long considered the safest and most prosperous portion of the empire
2. Is now in ruins!
3. Military colors are red and gold. Symbol is a Crown.
4. Has a lot of flat plains good for farming, hearding, and ranching.
5. Prominent Noble Houses: Lora, Magnus
3. Gargalad in the Northeast
1. The most authoritarian portion of Loria with the strictest laws and highest taxes
2. Military colors are orange and black. Symbol is a dragon.
3. The only county that does not touch the Middle Sea. Connected to the middle sea by rivers; The area along them is swampy.
4. Prominent Noble Houses: Gargaladius, Ebonoble, Frost
4. Arcadia in the East
1. The most patriotic and ready-to-fight county
2. Military colors are red and blue. Symbol is a Lion.
3. Has a lot of hills.
4. Prominent Noble Houses: Cidvermillion, Silvance
5. Alexandria In the Southeast
1. The oldest, longest-lived county
2. Has very rugged, green land
3. Military colors are black and green. Symbol is a griffin.
4. Prominent Noble Houses: Alexander, Northcast
6. High Mark in the Southwest
1. Capital city of the Church of Lucius
2. The central portion of the county is largely a desert; the perimeter is forested.
3. Military colors are red and white. Symbol is a cross.
4. Prominent Noble Houses: None! Governed by the church.

Specific!

Now, when you set a story in a location, you set in in a very, very specific place! Like a single town or city, or an area of wilderness.

Port Bleu is a small barony in the County of Gargilad. I'm going to bring back the checklist I used above specifically for this small place. I can flesh it out some more with key locations and characters, even factions and their conflicts, but I won't (for now). You could also add rumors, news, and gossip!

• Society: The population is largely poor. There's a lot of laborers here. There are some merchants, but they don't have permanent residences here, instead having a presence through a proxy to manager their enterprise for them.
• Militiamen
• Local experts
• Thieves or criminals (organizations?)
• Politics: The governor is Baron Allan Frost. He's charming and generally noble, but he's subservient to Count Gargalad who is strict. Laws here are strict.
• Minor Noble House
• Economics: The city doesn't produce anything. Instead, it's dedicated to importing and exporting goods! The harbor is full of ships with flags from all over Loria.
• Merchant: Franklin Greene, local merchant (lesser)
• Pawn Shop
• Eatery
• Inn or Lodge
• Religion: There's an abbey of the church called Bella Iris Abbey. They have a witch hunter here.
• Father
• Witch Hunter
• Military: The soldiers wear blue gambesons. They wear kettle helmets and they carry bucklers and small swords.
• Captain, Sergent
• Jailer
• Geography: The city is situated on a great lake connected to the Middle Sea by a great river. The town is three days south of Gargalad.
• Local features (caves, hills, woods)
• Minor location (village, fort, settlement)
• History: This town was built after the empire was established. It was built to connect Gargalad to the rest of the empire by water.
• Event
• Local Conflicts: This is where you detail the opportunities and obstacles in town. The town was recently captured by Arcadia during conflict. Baron Frost was captured. During that time, the town was in chaos. His ability to govern is now called into question.
• Large man-eater in the water
• Smugglers, thieves, raiders
• Evrwyrs stealing work from Lorians