thread: 2008-03-03 : The Owe List
On 2008-03-06, Piers wrote:
It is a spotlight mechanic. The game gives attention to characters who struggle over characters who consistently win—which is why you can trade off the chance to reappear for the a bonus.
It is worth noting that if you want a character to come back, there is nothing to stop you bringing them back even if they do not appear on the we owe list. You just have to _wait_ until they are thrown up again by a draw from the oracle. (If you are really desperate, you can always ask someone to pick an appropriate element.)
But what the we owe list really does is force a narrative tension onto the game. When you are fighting, simultaneously, to get on the list and to achieve your goals you (the player) are continually forced into hard choices. Removing the We Owe list removes the mechanical incentive to do anything but win, win, win.
