Blog - Constructing The Sample Adventure:
Friday, May 2, 2008I'm currently tasked with the job of making a sample module for my team's tabletop RPG.
My lead gave me some pointers on how to construct the module in such a way as to actually teach the players how the game works, easing them into the systems in increasing complexity.
I noted, along with Brenda, how closely his advice rang true to the Valve model of game design.
[Here's my brief summary of the Valve model, for those unfamiliar: 1.) Show the player something new they'll need, often letting them see it used by someone/something else. 2.) Let them use it in a no pressure, sandbox-like situation 3.) Have them use it under light pressure 4.) Expect mastery of the new technique/tool.]
I guess I had never thought of the Valve model as being relevant for use in a tabletop RPG, but it is indeed brilliant.
Especially so, as at least currently our game is on the over-complicated side.
The system is still quite elegant, but decidedly over-complicated, particularly given the target market for our design goals.
Having the sample mission that comes with the game designed in a way that cleverly, subtly, gets players comfortable with their character sheets, then role-playing, rolling for skills, and finally upping the ante with some light combat...
...well, that'll be a very useful tool indeed in getting our potentially tabletop-n00b players comfortable with the game.
This is, for the record, another instance where writing and design collide in a particularly fascinating way. I'm tasked with writing the events of the story in such a way that its organization eases the player gently into increasingly more complex systems. Ah, narrative design...
Labels: design, tabletop RPG, valve model, writing
posted by Brian Shurtleff @ 8:03 PM
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