I am now going to give a piece of RPG design advice. It came to me after thinking a lot about the Warcraft movie. 1/???

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

First, apparently what I do when I am stuck in bed, sick as heck, is think about random movies. A fevered mind leaves no stone unturned.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

Above all else, an RPG needs forward momentum for its player character. It's even better if the opposition has that, too.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

I think of it like this – in absence of active opposition, what does this character do? The answer is that character's forward momentum.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

The answer should always be something that your players want to do. D&D's core design is clever b/c its answer is "gain levels".

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

Becoming more powerful and getting more tricks to use is fun. It's a simple, easy, fun answer that solves a mountain of beginner barriers.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

A lot of design stumble because they lack a good answer. It's either vague or not particularly gripping.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

The absolute worst answer is "Do nothing." Player characters must always be agents of change. They must want to do stuff.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

Obviously individual players can opt for that, but I'm talking about at the design level, where you need to provide a good, default answer.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

The old d6 Star Wars game did a good job of this via its templates – they had clear ambitions. You knew what your character wanted.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

So, if you find yourself designing an RPG, always think about what the PCs would do if left to their own devices.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

If the answer is take a nap or sit around doing nothing, think about how your setting or genre assumptions can frame a more active stance.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

And this relates to the Warcraft movie because, fundamentally, the villain is the only one with any ambition in the movie.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

@fectin it's probably the best RPG of the 1980s.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

@mikemearls don't 5e backgrounds help with some of this?

— Dave Clark (@bedirthan) January 6, 2017

Yes! Intent was to help show why you start adventuring. I'm working on <redacted> to bookend the other side of a PC's lifespan. #wotcstaff https://t.co/YRBGTT8UaT

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

@mikemearls I’m looking forward to this. “gain levels” is a player’s motive (vs character’s, which is also important)

— 0verwrote (@0verwrote) January 6, 2017

yeah, and I think bridging gap between player and character is a key step in keeping people in RPGs, moving them from beginners to hobbyists https://t.co/7duR0mV0AJ

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

Example to follow up my thread – overthrow the evil king is a better RPG set up than stop the evil guy from becoming king.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

First one gives players ownership of destiny, makes them change agents. Second one preserves status quo.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

@mikemearls I ask the players to define: who they were (background/race) what they do (class) and what their legacy could be…

— josh @ bonfire (@joshmosq) January 6, 2017

I love the legacy question! That's a great, relatable way to approach character creation. https://t.co/dFGT8YRrqa

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 6, 2017

@Lord_Sicariousthe problem is the way it does that – left to their own devices, players are encouraged to seek out fights, not knowledge. yeah, and interesting that when i asked a few months ago, most DMs did not use XP, instead story awards #wotcstaff

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 7, 2017

@ravenheisenbergWithout leadership, the giants will eventually be hunted down and driven to extinction. So killing the king could end giants. cool! Very epic.

— (((Mike Mearls))) (@mikemearls) January 7, 2017