itch.io

That's odd, thanks for telling me. When this was initially posted the thumbnails looked just like the full screen version, but they have the same "corrupted" look on my end now, too. I've tried deleting and re-downloading them, but that doesn't resolve it. 

Whatever the problem is, seems like it's on itch's end. I'll try to contact them about it.

Yeah, you're not the only one. This hasn't really been an issue with other systems I've worked on---or even in (most) previous iterations of this general system---but I've compressed a lot of mechanics without altering the general organization and that's been causing trouble even among people who have played in this system before. I also didn't start working on it till a week into July, so that definitely didn't help.

I'll most likely restructure+rewrite basically everything, adding a spread or two to both rules chapters by the time I get done. There'll likely be an update around the end of this month/the beginning of next month once everything's rewritten and playtested 1-2 more times. 

I won't lie, this made me smile a bit---mainly because the writing here is so dramatic and really committed to the metaphor. It was fun, and I strongly agree with your thesis and ideas here. 

At some point I'll have to write out my thoughts on this subject in my own way, but for now I'll just direct others to here because I think that you've already perfectly captured them in a more entertaining way than what I would have written.

Fair on the first point. I would almost say that's too abstract for me, but I've definitely done similar dissections for my various games' touchstones, they've usually just been targeted---looking at 1 specific mechanic or system at a time rather than the game as a whole---and I (obviously) wasn't applying your theory to them. It's also good to get some clarification on prameya and danda as these aren't terms that I've encountered before.

On flow vs. look and DIY vs. dictated, however, I understood that you were trying to say a game (typically) isn't entirely 1 or the other, rather that its individual components are. My issue was that I didn't know how to turn that concept into a useable question. The example question you gave is a good direction, though. 

What intentioned spaces are littered throughout the game (if any)? how do these affect the outputs?

I think that gets people thinking about a game in terms of components, as well as how those components individually affect play.

This manifesto is interesting, and it's taking a different approach on this topic than I expected---focusing on discourse rather than design. I agree with the idea that online TTRPG discourse is generally shit (Reddit makes me want to climb up a roof and see if I can fly), and I like the idea of providing clear tools that enable this discourse. I did, however, have a bit of trouble following you here.

After 2-3 reads, I think I've got it, but I was unsure of what you were presenting initially. It seems like the framework  prompts people to ask the following questions about a game while they're discussing it:

• What are its inputs? That may be better split into:
  • What prior knowledge does it leverage (What is the expected prameya)?
  • How does it expect players to interact with it and each other (What is the danda)?
• What are its outputs, or the experiences that the game promises?
• What are its processes, or how does it turn those inputs into its outputs?
• How essential are those processes to producing its promised outputs?

I feel like there are 2 more questions in there---1 about flow vs. look focus, and 1 about how DIY vs. dictated play is--- but I'm not certain what those exact questions are based on this text alone. Still, I think I got the core idea and I like what you're getting at. 

Also, I like the idea that TTRPGs are machines that take inputs (player knowledge, experiences, and interactions) and turn them into outputs (a promised experience) via specific processes (a rules framework) because that's pretty close to my own working definition of game, though I place a much heavier emphasis on processes and outputs. 

The only part I disagreed with (and it's not really even a disagreement with you) is the "III. DIY Machinery."  I'm with Stone Cold Fox there: I think that those "spaces" are usually a form of very lazy, I'd even call it neglectful, design. They often offload the work of creatin those processes which deliver the outputs onto the players when I think that is solely the designer's job. That latter portion is related to some other strong opinions I have on what complete and good games look like, though, and I don't think acknowledging the existence of spaces/fruitful voids detracts from your overall ideas.

I don't think that I have much to add here, save for that I like the sections on completeness, clarity, and synthesis for stating with conviction that the game should be as complete a work as possible even in isolation. A lot of TTRPGs have a tremendous reliance on players building up knowledge form outside sources that they never share or only briefly touch on, and that makes them far less approachable (and fun, imo) than they otherwise could be.

Thank you. I've actually been slowly drafting these thoughts over the past year or so, and this jam felt like a good time to refine and post them somewhere. Sounds like my thoughts came through clearly, and I'm glad they did if that's the case.

Thanks for picking it up! I do want to note, however, that there are currently a couple of mistakes in the pre-gens (specifically the Oracle and Monolith). I don't know if itch.io will send out an email when I replace their files later, so if you're planning on running the game just be aware that I'll be updating the pre-gens later today and you'll need to redownload them.

If you find any of the rules confusing or have any questions, you're free to email me or join the discord. I'm usually pretty quick to answer.

Not yet. There's a ton left for me to do both in regards to rules writing (exact hostile and encounter building rules, Striker creation and advancement, etc.), advice (namely examples of play and skilled play), and illustrating. I'll also be working on a different game for a game jam using a modified version of this system simultaneously for a little while, so my attention will be split.

I do like what Joel Happyhil has done with DAWN: The RPG, however, and I'll probably follow a similar path. That means, at some point towards the end of this year or the beginning of next year, I'll put up an incomplete playtest version available for purchase at a discounted price, then increase the price gradually as the game nears completion.

Thanks amigo! It'll be a little while before I have enough done for someone else to Direct a session, but give it a couple of months and I'm sure I'll get there. You're still free to join that server if you want to chat about Fueled by Blood!, character action games, or game design---just know that I've only just made it, so there's no activity in it right now.