You know what I want?

[lithera]

And I really thought I wouldn't ever be asking for this because it isn't my thing.

I want a clear cut victory.

I know, I know. I am the queen of complicated and pyhrric victories. I love stories that take forever to play out and have twists and turns and complications and unforseen connections and all of those things.

In my roleplaying, though, I am having a hard time remembering when I went on a quest to save the village/town/family/world/universe and so on and such and actually did it. I can't remember the last time I didn't, even with the best intentions, make something worse in the long run. I'm tired of vague plots with a lack of drive. I'm tired of all of the shades of grey and the sort of kind of victories.

I want a victory. I don't mind sacrifices along the way. In fact, I really sort of prefer having to /work/ for it and maybe losing a person or two along the way. (Honestly, I don't think, for instance that LotR would work as well without Boromir dying.) Doing all of that generally means knowing what the hell the challenges in front of me are and what problems I need to solve.

This is not meant to be a rant against the games I'm in now because I love the games I'm in now. I enjoy well crafted worlds that I get to explore and discover, where I don't entirely have a specific set of goals. I just miss the satisfaction of an epic world saving game where I actually win.

Comments

[apestyle.livejournal.com]

Heh, for a sec there I thought you were going to be talking Clinton and Obama.

[mizkit.livejournal.com]

Me too. :)

[thezzyzx.livejournal.com]

Add me to the list

[lithera.livejournal.com]

Well, that too, honestly. It would be nice there as well. It is a theme that applies to a few places in my life at the moment.

[moesmith88.livejournal.com]

We had some adventures where it was pretty basic; bunch of thieves/goblins/undefined uglies were threatening a town, and they needed adventurers to save them - a basic "Seven Samurai" kind of thing, ya know?

But, those were pretty basic and after awhile, we wanted something a little deeper and more complex...of course, when we managed to get into something like that, we'd either all die within an hour (either through in-fighting or massive attacks from assorted bad guys), or we'd so something so incredibly stupid (like burn down half the town we were using as a base of operations) that the DM wouldn't return our calls for a week or so...

But, yeah...the simple "Do A, B, and C - in that order - and all will be well" quests are fun, sometimes...

[lithera.livejournal.com]

I think it is partially a case of you want what you don't have on my part but I've been playing the deep thoughtful complex stuff for a decent while now, really.

[moesmith88.livejournal.com]

Maybe the occassional "win", as part of the larger scheme of things, may be what you need...some little side plot thingy, while working towards achieving some greater, larger end...

or, maybe I'm just rambling before my first cup of coffee...it could be either one, really... ;)

[lithera.livejournal.com]

That would potentially work.

[moesmith88.livejournal.com]

it could, indeed...it may be something worth mentioning to whomever runs your game - inserting a little side-adventure shouldn't be all that hard (speaking as a former DM, I mean), and it could be fun :)

[lithera.livejournal.com]

*chuckles* I may, in fact, bring it up. It also ties into my desire to mix up who I game with a bit more.

[moesmith88.livejournal.com]

Widening the gaming pool sounds good, too...when I was in high school, it was the same 6 guys in our group, and I think we just got sick of each other, after awhile.

[lithera.livejournal.com]

*nods* Yeah. I seem to have a hell of a time managing to do it, though.

[jameel.livejournal.com]

Burn it all.

[lithera.livejournal.com]

Hrmmmmm.

[moesmith88.livejournal.com]

Been there, done that...accidently, of course.

[candidgamera.livejournal.com]

I hear ya. I love a clean victory.

[lithera.livejournal.com]

It usually feels too easy for me, so I don't usually like them but right now... I really sort of miss being the good guys and saving the day.

[fireballof3.livejournal.com]

Hey, what about the necromancer den in the city (that's now our home)?

That was totally clear cut victory, and we kicked their asses to boot.

[lithera.livejournal.com]

Yeah.

That was the last one I could think of when I combed through. When was that... like... October? My sense of time is squishy in that game.

[fireballof3.livejournal.com]

It was last spring I think.

[lithera.livejournal.com]

Oooof. So a good year or so?

Yeah. It's been awhile.

[mike-mccall.livejournal.com]

I like clear-cut victory all the time. It's my style.

On the other hand, clear-cut heroism and victory doesn't necessarily have to mean a simple, straightforward plot. I do a lot of setting creation, and most of my settings are based on intricate, sophisticated plots that lead to heroes making the world a better place.

Sometimes the secret is to give a clear indication of how you made the world better, when the plot is complex.

[amit.livejournal.com]

We need an Apocalypse. :)

[lithera.livejournal.com]

*laughs*