My kids go through different phases of movie watching. Sometimes, they're pretty easy going and flexible, able to sit down with something that I've picked-out for them without a problem. Other times, like last night, they're motherfucking intractable and I have to suggest half-a-dozen movies before I hit upon something they'll willingly accept.
That's why we watched Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery last night (again). It's a good movie, I laughed... whatever. Towards the end, Austin Powers mentioned the "Fembots" by name when he probably shouldn't have known what the bad guys were calling them.
My 2nd eldest daughter caught that and remarked on it. I said, yeah, that's true... but what about the part of the movie or story that we can't see? Not like "behind the scenes" as in documentary footage about how the movie was made, but everything that happens with the characters, plot, etc. not shown - because on some level, there must be stuff going on that we're not privy to, that occurs when the camara isn't on them. It goes on in the background. We don't know everything, just the highlights, but it still exists somewhere, the story playing out, away from our perception.
And then I told her, "That is the essence of D&D." When I asked if that made sense to her, she looked at me and said "What? Oh, I wasn't listening." And so it goes... I simply left it at that because, after all, we were watching a movie. No one had paid good money to hear me lecture about roleplaying games. But since you're here reading this blog post, let's dive-in a bit before toweling off.
The kind of immersion that makes you feel like you're really there, experiencing events first-hand, is only part of the whole, but probably the most obvious. Another part is the sense that the world and story are happening whether the players and their characters are paying attention to it or not. You know how babies learn about "object permanence"? It's a little game called peek-a-boo. You hide your face behind your hands and the baby learns that just because it can't see you, that doesn't necessarily mean you aren't still there.
Well, same goes for the entire campaign setting. Make the characters and their players believe that it exists outside of their perception and interaction. Even if they didn't exist, the world would be there and things would be going on, involving various people, creatures, magic, the Gods, and forces of nature.
Not only does this help mitigate continuity errors, it's what gives RPGs their power.
Rather than having me rattle off a list of hypothetical examples, I want to hear from you. Ok, ok... just one. The next time a PC wants something from an NPC, say something like "You approach Karl huddled close to the other hirelings. Seeing you, Karl breaks off from his conversation with his peers to ask if there's anything you need."
It's obvious that the NPCs were talking amongst themselves, some communication excluding the PCs. Perhaps not by design, but regardless, the player (even if his character doesn't mention it) will be wondering in the back of his mind what the Devil the NPCs were conversing about - he might wish he was more engaged or be curious about what he'd missed out on or worried that the NPCs are plotting against him. If he asks in-game, have Karl say "Oh, it was nothing." When really, you know they were arguing about the color orange (which came first, the color's name or the fruit?).
Now, it's your turn! Comment below with something you've used to make the campaign world "real," continuing to run like a wound-up watch, even when no one is looking.
Hope everyone had a magnificent Xma'as (feel free to tell me about it below)! Before the new year, I'll blog about my having watched the first season of Stargate SG-1.
Enjoy,
VS
p.s. Want the hardcover Cha'alt trilogy? here's how! Want to join the Kort'thalis mailing list to stay up-to-date on what's going on in the skinematic Vengerverse? This is it!! Last but not least, I'm organizing a based-as-fuck RPG convention in Madison, WI this July. Grab your weekend badge for VENGER CON IV: Post-Modern Apocalypse!!!
