Finished Appendix N by Jeffro Johnson

A great read 5/5.

And I  need to sched a sit down reread it:
1) for the jeffro criteria of bad and good rpg elements. I need to nail it down into a criteria for my gaming skills Gdoc.
2) to form a to read list so I can download it all in one sitting. I also need to improve on my author style analysis criteria. So that as I go through the yo read list I capture examples and great portions for analysis, modeling, and methodology development.
A good book for me has actionable knowledge - even if the action is directing me to knowledge. It also has a great criterias to allow me my own judgement and understand underlying assumptions.
I personally like alway checking the source material, always check or make accessible the sources. Having the derivative and originals is a great data point for comparisons.

Personal notes. 

I can relate. I'm born 1979. The guys that got me into gaming were guys 4-5 years older than me. the guys who got them into Gaming were 10-12 years older than me. I got to game with the guys who taught them to game like Bobby Navarro, Nikos Ong, Ben-g Perez etc... These guys were the original group of guys who played in the Baredo Home, during the early 80s when they first brought D&D in the philippines. So I have this weird relationship going half a generation to our senior Gaming Generation. I tried to read what they read, and saw how hey gamed.

Being able to look at the Source Material is always important. Especially when things can be so confusing and derivative and we lose track of inspirations and technique. We lose track of getting better if we can't track where we learned and our mistakes (and the mistakes of others).

After reading it I've set up my library to check out the sources. I love studying author styles, so learning how present day authors learned their techniques and pacing is a great learning experience and opportunity.

Complexity and Details; Bad Benchmarks

In the last Post I talked about how I use The 20 Rules of Formulating Knowledge as a criteria for books and knowledge in general.

I wanted to talk about some pet peeve, particularly Physical limitations. Something I talked about before and can be seen in how I use movement rules to look at how well a game models physical limitations. Now that shit doesnt matter in the grand scheme of things, at the same time details do matter. The whole argument about GURPS and other such crunchy systems is about how to deal with complexity.

This is where 20rffk applies and can make my life in gaming and work so much easier. It helps us by being able to deal with complexity - we are not afraid of it, neither daunted, or bothered in a way that would distract us. It is in mastering how we organized knowledge (what ever note taking system you use) and how we 5S our mind, workspace, or gaming space that allows us to deal with any sort of complexity.

Of course there are details to this thesis. There are Constraints (a term I  use to categorize a group of details that limit actions and goals) to consider.

• It helps that the Game Book educates or facilitates the learning of being better organized and able to prioritize. That it give knowledge that adheres to the 20rffk - so its saves time and facilitate practice in 
• That the game book has well defined goals and objectives for the gamers can use for themselves. Something more useful and SMART than FUN.
• That it teaches how to set up a feedbackloop between the Participants and the Goals.

Call to Action

to deal with Complexity we have to have a foundation of Knowledge acquisition and organization. 

1. Try to Define your SMART gaming goals. Define and Measure how you and your group, have fun. When you do, you slowly start creating testable criterias. 
2. Have a Methodology, Communicate that with your Peers or Group, and have feedback loop going. 
3. Organize your knowledge and feedback, adapt, think and feedback. 

The Distracting Rant I wanted to talk about

Physical Limitations are details worthy of our attention. Physical Education 体育 is one of those things related to First Aid, Being healthy, and understanding the Ethics of Being Healthy. Its one of those Skills that are prerequisite to a healthy and stable society. 

No your character cannot hike 30miles/48km a day carrying 60lbs/27kg for  like a month! Reasonable physical benchmarks have become more accessible each passing year. Its just amazing how a person without lifting skill can pick up 50% their bodymass and not injure themselves. 

You know how often I think of Physical Limitations- EVERY TIME I WORK OUT! EVERYDAY I wonder if I'm permanently injuring myself or making my core stronger so I can do HEMA in 30lbs of gear one day or when I play airsoft  with 20lbs of gear doing encircling maneuvers in hilly terrain with my 38 year old knees against guys under 30. That all my friends are suffering some kind of physical ailment and are trying to do some physical therapy to get over their weaknesses. 

I dont like character physical benchmarks and limitations to be set on SUPER specialized Modern day Olympians. I dont like Physical Limitations that fail to capture what IS remarkable. I don't like setting up the wrong benchmarks - that demotivate people from achieving tangible gains or appreciate every hard won millimeter. 

The same goes with Mental Limitations - my learning Chinese has taught me a lot of what it costs to be able to speak it and read it. That when every company tries to squeeze the productive hours of its employees to the last drop, that what is left is for self-care, family, relationships, and recovery - that there is barely any time or space for personal development. 

To sum it up, I dont like bad benchmarks. I know we make shit up in the fly but when more realistic benchmark comes up, lets be ready to adapt to a better model. We go through game mechanics the way we go through apps, games, movies, tv shows, etc.... Its a tiny detail - its wrong, but it annoys me to no end because everyday mandarin at broken has added up to more than 600 manhours. That just eating right takes about hundreds of hours of Tries, failed experiments, and going too far. That there is a lot of Human Experience behind some bad numbers. 

How I use the 20rffk to evaluate RPG books.

The 20 rules of formulating knowledge violates its own rules. I'm spoiling for anyone who hasn't read this and removing the chance to have this awesome discovery. When you realize it violates itself, then you may realize that it becomes the first exercise of the 20rffk.

Going back to TRPGs, below is the simplified version of the 20rffk.

1. Understandable. 
2. Simplified.
3. Organized.
4. Engaging. 

#5 User Friendly. Does it give me all the tools that saves me time to run my game. In one prep session can I print out all the tools? Tables, Character Sheets, Rule References, Flow Charts etc...

My Methodology

Basically this is Auditing, we check against something, typically criteria or SMART goals. 

1. Take note of Violations to the 5 point criteria.
2. Taken note when they go out of their way to explain further. If they use more than one way to explain a point and they used one of the 5 point criteria. 
3. Take note when I don't understand. 

The 20 rules of formulating knowledge Simplified to 4 points.

Understandable

1 Understand to learn.* (Do not learn if you do not understand)
2 Learn before you memorize
3 Build on the Basics

*my favored methodology is always to frame as an action and detail as a constraint. 

Simplified

3 Build on the Basics

4 Use the minimum information principle

5 Simplify and make discrete each bit of knowledge (originally Cloze deletion is easy and effective)

6 Use Imagery. It takes some visual planning and design to formualte what images help engage the audience as well as serve a learning tool. Rarely do game writer work with their designers for visual learning aids the focus more on engagement. 

7 Use Mnemonic Techniques

12 Optimize Wording

Organized

8 Use formulas, models, or definition (originally Avoid Sets). instead of creating a set and filling in the elements of the set, just use a formula to describe the category. 

9 Chunk Information (Originally Avoid enumeration; chunking means keeping this 2-4 bits long)

11 Track Interference (Originally Combat Interference)

12 Optimize Wording

18 Provide Sources

17 #3 and always create a link to the basics (originally Redundancy does not contradict the minimum information principle)

19 All relevant accessible and referenced. (original Provide Date stamping. in the case of TRPGs, create a way for people to see all the relevant topics under a category like the See Also section in wikipedia. this is for the purpose of updates, errata, and other such added details that accumulate over time)

20 Prioritize.

Engaging

6 Use Imagery. 

7 Make discrete Imagery notes, while keeping a holistic view (Graphic deletion is as good as cloze deletion)
13 Give tools for Personalization (Originally Refer to others memories; the best way to create tools for personalization is knowing your audience)
14 Personalize and Provide Examples. (allow the audience to be able to personalize)
15 Rely on Emotional States
16 Context cues simplify wording

Goals and Objectives

A strong relationship with our audience, even those who don't agree with us or have the same preferences. A methodology and process can be critiqued and communicated to other people. It creates a basis to align our perspectives as well as to allow us to include the perspectives of others. 

Assuming (Criteria, Goals and Objectives, and Methodology) is where a lot of miscommunication begins. Its better to have it all out and written for feedback than to not write it and make incorrect assumptions.  

Reasons

What caused me to write this is the argument about knowledge complexity. The 20rffk helped create a method of measuring complexity. I will post more on bridging the Gap of Audience and Product in the future. But this post and the related post are the basics.

Inaccessible Knowledge is knowledge that cannot be used or enjoyed. Everything learned occupies space (in its written form) and time, and it all adds up to make things more complicated and complex as to be inaccessible. If we are very connected with our audience and empathic of their circumstance we can overcome the Isolationist tendency of being in an Ivory tower with our knowledge.

Related

• My Biases/Criteria of RPG Review, Looking for Feedback

When the line of my Characters and me blur

So I'm a min maxer, also known as a munchkin, and the goal of looking for the optimal character combination went a bit too far or it can be said that it was not far enough.

Hey my character does something cool, why can't I do that? 

At first we say its fantasy, but then we research on line for precedents and other examples and then it doesnt seem so far and fantasy anymore. By accident, I started doing the first part of Problem Solving: I started gathering information and asking questions.

I can Change me.

Have a munchkin/min-maxer and you have someone who's mastered the ability to twist and justify any rational for an advantage. Someone who can start believing the mix of half truths and distorted perspectives they used to justify their character. After all its Role-playing and this is just another thing to pretend. 

But my Character kicks ass, his world view and skills are engaging. I like playing and pretending in doing the things I believe he does to maintain his ability as no ability exists in a vacuum. So I study, work out a little, track how I use time, calculate and evaluate my options. 

I am how I spend my time. 

If who I am is by my actions then what do I do? 

Hour/Week Character Points. Get a Guestimation of how much time do I spend doing stuff per week. If am how I spend my time then I know what I am by how I spend my time. You don't need to even go into great detail, you just need to be honest and it can be a honest secret of secrets.

Wow my character sucks balls. But wait, I've played mundanes before. What kind of gamer would I be if I couldn't manage this character?

Engagement and Empathy

My character is human. He has limitations, biases, and motivations. A challenge to overpowered would not just bankrupt him, but can demoralize him, and permanently alter the cost of improvement and his life. He has to be able to engage with the Challenges he faces. He has to be able to really believe he can change his mind, that he is not some hapless NPC that will stubbornly be in denial of actual conditions that conflicts with what they assume or believe. Maybe I can throw some of that Empathy to others and myself. 

30 hours a week working, 3 hours a week on health, 10 hours a week studying, 10 hours a week distracted, 50 hours a week sleeping, 2 hours a week on grooming, the rest on family and household (50+ hours). No time much for friends or socializing.