tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2657266526705426756.post6165558826579352216..comments2024-03-26T04:58:54.326-04:00Comments on The Wandering Gamist: The Interstate Model of Campaigningjedavishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08586249502818922886noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2657266526705426756.post-75232828822057778682012-03-19T09:59:49.504-04:002012-03-19T09:59:49.504-04:00That's probably true; it matches my experience...That's probably true; it matches my experience playing Traveller fairly well. Whiteboards are also excellent; I picked up a 4'x4' one from a graduating senior, and it has frequently been covered in campaign notes. Not so useful when one's roommate is also a player in one's game, though...<br /><br />And with a name like "The Good Gaming Blog", how could I not? :P So no problem!jedavishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08586249502818922886noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2657266526705426756.post-42064012334774577422012-03-19T07:04:25.490-04:002012-03-19T07:04:25.490-04:00Really I feel that the interstate model fits what ...Really I feel that the interstate model fits what most people actually get in a sandbox game. You get to a point and there is a cross-roads, and then another, and you can even find your way back home. I keep a whiteboard or file on larger games to keep track of the player's current 'map' and the intricacies if need be, and then go from there. I love the usage as you present it here, however, and thank you for joining my blog :).<br /><br />Slainte,<br /><br />-Loonook.Loonookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03516744778746551490noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2657266526705426756.post-49148864961820257302012-03-14T14:36:59.993-04:002012-03-14T14:36:59.993-04:00That's fair. Mechanical failure can end eithe...That's fair. Mechanical failure can end either kind of trip, though; I suppose that equates most accurately to the DM giving up in an RPG metaphor.<br /><br />It's hard to say with literary works, since railroad vs sandbox vs interstate is really more of a question of how much freedom your players have. In a novel, there are no players, so there can be no agency... Also, I recommend to you <a href="http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=612" rel="nofollow">DM of the Rings</a>, for a humorous and railroady take on it.jedavishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08586249502818922886noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2657266526705426756.post-89254059243620403872012-03-14T10:41:28.489-04:002012-03-14T10:41:28.489-04:00I love the analogy and your coined phrase "In...I love the analogy and your coined phrase "Interstate." Evocative and appropos. The only thing I would add is that sometimes, you have to cut your trip short or turn around and call the whole thing off. Or go back because you forgot something. That's part of the sandbox nature of things -- the road leads to Destination X, but it's up to you whether to stay on the path or even get there at all.<br /><br />Not possible on a railroad, as you show.<br /><br />I think the Interstate (or the appearance of it, anyway) is illustrated aptly in the LotR trilogy. The hobbits, then the Fellowship, then Frodo/Sam and the Three Hunters made their own way along their branching roads. Even, as Bilbo noted, that the very road out of Bag End led to the Lonely Mountain ...Gene Sollowshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11329711228140134967noreply@blogger.com