thread: 2009-06-22 : Secrets: the Smelly Chamberlain
On 2009-06-24, Simon Rogers wrote:
Vincent, you say
I don't think that rules about who has authority over what can change when things become true. I think that they can change which outcomes happen.
as if "the rules and their outcome" are not the centrally important determinant of what happens in a non-fucked-up group. If you are following the rules, then then they almost always determine whether an outcome is true. The first thing in any game is the central contract to play by the system unless everyone disagrees (or sometimes if the GM disagrees). So where the system (including authority) impacts the fiction, it determines the truth in most cases.
The big difference between the Smelly Chamberlain and Betty is that her paranoia is induced as part of the system. It's like this:
GM to Betty: In Fear Itself, the standard rules are that your character's mental illness is simulated by all the other players. Are you OK with this? If not, you can just act something out yourself [rules option].
Betty: I'm OK with it.
GM with group (no Betty) [negotiation over which mental illness - GM has final authority]
Betty continues playing, wondering when she might find out what her PCs mental issue is.
What would your answers be to the Smelly Chamberlain?
