@pyrephox said in Social Stats in the World of Darkness:
Even WoD has a merit called Common Sense that allows...
That's my point though ... having GM advice is not a foregone conclusion in every system. Some games make you pay for a Common Sense merit. Others have a Wisdom stat.
I've played in lots of different TTRPG groups - both conventions and various clubs/friends - and it was rare for anyone to ask the GM for direct help in solving the problem. Sure, you could ask informational type questions like "Do I know anything about ork customs so I don't inadvertently offend him?" But never "What's the best way to win this fight?"
I make no claims that this experience is universal, but I do believe it's fairly common. Whether you believe that or not, though, you have to acknowledge, as @Ganymede said, that people come to MUSHes with different experiences and assumptions about how the game "should" be played. Navigating that lack of a common ground is difficult.
@arkandel said in Social Stats in the World of Darkness:
I am starting to develop an intense dislike for that word - agency. It's being overused to mean "I never lose". That's not what it's supposed to stand for.
See, the thing is - people are claiming it's being used to mean "I never lose" but that's not what many (most? all?) of us are actually saying.
I use agency in the dictionary sense of exerting control. Not over what happens to my character - because that would actually mean exerting control over the environment, the NPCs, and other PCs - but over my character's thoughts and attempted actions. Deciding what a character thinks, says and does is literally a player's job IMHO.
And yes, of course, you have to respect the rolls if rolls are part of the game. But there are lots of ways to do that. Feeling intimidated and doing what the person is asking you to do because you're intimidated are two very different things. Perhaps I take a negative modifier on an attack, or pose standing up to them while literally quaking in boots, or any number of other possible actions that respect the roll while still retaining control over what I feel is my character's most appropriate reaction to that roll.
That's what agency is to me. And if folks don't like that way? Hey, I respect that. All I'm asking for is the same degree of respect in return.
Because it's really not about never losing. My characters have routinely been duped, intimidated, seduced, and manipulated into doing dumb things, and I personally know that's true for several other players who advocate for agency. It's just about staying true to the core of who that character is in your mind.