Minimum Detail

Overview first, zoom and filter, details on demand. - Ben Shneiderman's information-seeking mantra. In an apparent paradox, I find both the node-based scenario and the Carved from Brindlewood approaches to prep unsatisfactory. The first is too rigid; the second is too loose. I want there to be a core truth in the GM's mind that informs how the world responds to the players. I want there to be a reasonable cause-and-effect to everything that happens. Cause and effect is hard when you don't control both sides of that equation, and I think that's part of why working in this medium is so difficult! So, why did I prep a dungeon map and a Meatgrinder for my His Majesty the Worm game? Because in a dungeon game, that level of concreteness is the minimum prep. I find working on a dungeon like that to be fun and fulfilling, because I know it will be useful. On the other hand, for Homefront play yesterday in Stonetop, I did no prep whatsoever. I think one of the reasons Stonetop is so good is…