What Makes a Good TTRPG System?

In our latest episode, we delved deep into the responses to a question we had posted on Facebook (which you can view here). The exploding popularity of tabletop RPGs (TTRPGs) – which you can trace to the release of 5e and the expanding popularity of live-stream play – has put a predictable target on WotC’s back. What we asked was where players see shortcomings in 5e and if there are games that do those things better?

DM Thorin had made a good point in our initial question: “different groups say that 5E is a bad or limited TTRPG. But they never explain why they feel that way – it’s like the “why” is supposed to be obvious.”

The answers ran the entire spectrum and, not surprisingly, consistently contradicted each other. Mechanics were too loose. Mechanics were too tight. Too simple. Not simple enough. Rules were too stringent. There weren’t enough rules. … You get the picture.

Playing a TTRPG is an incredibly subjective experience, almost like a Rorschach test. Some players feel that every system should meet them where they are, as opposed to them giving up some measure of control and enjoying the fun that can be had with the game they’re playing. I mean, if my friends want to sit down and play Axis & Allies, should I spend the whole night explaining why Arkham Horror is “so much better” or should I play, strategize, shit-talk, laugh and have a hell of a good time play A&A?

Don’t get me wrong, different systems and mechanics are better at handling certain things – this is an objective fact.

Each of the Wise DM’s has played multiple systems and enjoy explaining the intricate and crunchy differences in how each one handles what can be problematic or missing in others. This often leads to us adding or subtracting from the games we run to make an even more enjoyable experience.

The one thing we try not to do, though, is destroy someone else’s fun because it didn’t meet all of our own standards.

With this in mind, I wanted to shift our perspective away from the system and edition wars that populate so many social media feeds to something much more basic: What makes a TTRPG in the first place and what could we learn from that to improve our enjoyment of all our games (instead of firing shots at someone else’s fun)?

What’s a TTRPG, Anyway?

The essence of any TTRPG can be broken down into one simple formula.

1. The game runner (i.e., the DM or GM) narrates what’s happening.
2. The players decide what they would like to do.
3. The game runner adjudicates how those decisions play out.
4. The game runner narrates the consequence of those actions.
5. Return to step 1.

That’s it. That’s every single TTRPG that has ever been developed in five easy steps. It always amazes me how something so simple can create such fantastical and elaborate games for decades.

What is interesting, though, is that 80% of that formula has absolutely nothing to do with the system, mechanics or game that you are currently playing.

Go ahead, do the math … I’ll wait.

The only time mechanics come into play in this process is Step 3: The game runner adjudicates how those decisions play out. Everything else is narration, imagination and communal storytelling. With that in mind, let’s delve into what makes a good TTRPG.

The Narration

You and your party have spent the last several days navigating the dense jungles of this faraway land and have, finally, come upon the mountain – the mountain that marks the temple where the rumored treasure lies buried. Pulling back some of the dense jungle growth, you see an ancient statue. You have arrived!

Every TTRPG session begins in a similar way. The DM, GM, Judge, Keeper of Arcane Lore, Master Game Dude, whatever, describes how the current story, environment or event is playing out. They might go into detail about what the characters see, they might recap the previous session, they might have a long monologue that sets the stage for the entire campaign (try not to do this last one, your players will miss most of it!)

At that point, with the beginning of the session’s story in place, the most important six words are uttered:

“What would you like to do?”

The Decision

Dr. Jones: “I’d like to check the map I’d found to see if I can determine where an entrance might be.”

Barranca: “I’m going to tie our pack animals off on a nearby tree so that they don’t run away.”

Satipo: “I’d like to investigate the surrounding area to see if I find anything interesting.”

Given the set-up, the players then decide what they would like to do, whether amongst themselves or individually, and respond back to the game runner. Arguably, this step could also be based in mechanics in the sense that the decisions the players are making can be informed by the game being played. But, in its purest form, any good TTRPG allows for ANYTHING to happen, so this point becomes somewhat moot.

Here Come the Judge

This is the point where the arguments over what TTRPG’s do and don’t do well occur, in this small but important step. In our current example (Which, if you haven’t figured it out, is the opening sequence of Raiders of the Lost Ark; and if you haven’t figured that out, it will be very hard for us to be friends!) the game runner can approach this in a multitude of ways depending on the system.

This is when the proverbial rubber meets the road in a game’s mechanics. What does the game runner ask from the players? Skill checks? A percentile roll on the Universal Table? Skill roles for the Investigators?

Why this is important, and something we’ve discussed in multiple episodes, is that we are playing a game and a game needs to have at least a skeleton of rules or we run the risk of marshmallowing out into nothing. Without some consistency in how the adjudications take place, a session can quickly morph into “Dave’s Game” instead of whatever TTRPG you’re playing.

This balance between rules/mechanics and the collaborative storytelling of the game itself can be traced back to the very beginnings of TTRPG’s, with the collaboration of Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson on what would become the first iteration of Dungeons & Dragons.

According to the biographical graphic novel, Rise of the Dungeon Master: Gary Gygax & the Creation of D&D by David Kushner, Gygax felt that there could be a rule for every situation while Arneson wanted the rules to sit lightly  on the session and serve the DM. I feel like the early books reflect this conflict as you would have in-depth charts and rules, akin to its wargame predecessors, yet all of it would be at the DM’s discretion. “It’s YOUR game,” they would say again and again.

So … what do YOU want out of YOUR game? That’s the question you really have to ask. 

I don’t agree that there are inherently bad games or bad mechanics – just games and mechanics you’ll like more and like less.

One thing that is true and has to be understood is that, while you can absolutely have a rule or mechanic to handle every situation (ala Gary), that will absolutely slow down and interfere with the overall game flow (ala Arneson). And as we know, in the end, Gary agreed with Arneson.

The Narration: Part Deux

Alright. Dr. Jones, you check your map and get a sense of which direction to head and take the lead, crossing over a small river and finding a small handmade arrow stuck in a tree. Satipo, knowing this region well, you deduce that this arrow has been poisoned by natives of this region. Barranca, you realize that there must be some natives following you, as they have not attacked your party yet. Continuing on, you come upon a large lake fed by a waterfall.

What would you like to do?

There you have it: The beginning of one of the greatest adventure campaigns of all time in 5 easy steps. Now, which game system would be the best for it? That’s the million-dollar question, but remember what we learned here: Find the one that speaks to you. There are hundreds of systems out there. Some will fit your playstyle more than others, but all of them are useful, lovingly crafted and, most importantly, fun. Let’s all just enjoy this hobby together and stop trying to make every game fit a certain mold.

Just play.

Play different games. Play with different groups. Discuss the mechanics. Find what works and what doesn’t. Adapt. Evolve. Have fun. Just don’t destroy someone else’s.

Until next time, heroes … LIVE THE ADVENTURE!