May as well ask some more questions while I’m here. For the GMs, do you announce all matches planned on the card at the start of the session? Or just announce the first match and go from there?
May as well ask some more questions while I’m here.
May as well ask some more questions while I’m here.
I’m actually super interested in this, because I was thinking of announcing my whole card at the beginning of the catch-as-catch session, so people can better time manage.
With the, “Card Subject to Change” Stipulation to incentivize people to pay attention.
I will if they ask but there always seem to be better matches that evolve from backstage shenanigans. I’ll hint at the main event, certainly.
I think revealing the card in drips and draps is more dramatic and enforces the Always act like you planned it that way the whole time.
So, what’s the advantage to revealing the whole card before hand? There’s the element that it will encourage backstage politicking as people try to get their angles booked on that card instead of what creative wants. It might create a confrontational backstage situation that is more compelling for some.
I can see it both ways here.
Right! But does that change the game in any kind of fundamental way? NJPW cards (I can’t speak for Mexican or European cards) almost never change order and a ton of moves let you demand matches, stipulations, or any other forms of card manipulation.
Another thing is the complete change to the backstage/on-screen dynamic it almost demands in the manner in which the story is told.
For regular shows, I generally reveal the match as the game progresses. For PPV events, I will list the card well in advance.
Listing the card in advance gives the players something to aim for, but also reduces the in-the-moment ability for Creative to “make it look like that was planned all along” based on the events of play. I tend to err on giving yourself room, so I usually don’t lay out an entire card unless it’s a season-ending PPV kind of thing (because then we’re all on board with resolving feuds, etc)
Often after the first Episode, subsequent Episodes will have a match that’s been set up by Moves from the previous one, and honoring that is pretty important (otherwise those Move results end up not having much meaning, so why bother picking them, etc etc)
Past that, having a rigid card generally shifts the focus on swerves the players make from being “part of the show” to being more Kayfabe-breaking, so there’s bigger consequences, potentially, for doing things like booking or avoiding matches. In practice however I find that it generally works fine to add “surprise” matches or stipulations, and having at least a main event that everyone knows is coming can help players who don’t have specific goals of their own yet.
Generally, in practice, no game of WWWRPG is going to go as smoothly as a real-life NJPW show or something like that – the spontaneous changes are part of the fabric of the game!
Yeah that’s honestly the best reason to pick ‘reveal as you go’ style of match card. Plus, if the player changes the match you had planned in advance, then you have to figure out what the other guy that just lost a match is going to do.