RPGaDay Challenge 2019 - TRIUMPH

...TRIUMPH!

You want to talk about Triumph? I am a couple of days behind in the Challenge and I haven't lost my mind over it. THAT'S a Triumph!

Here's another - August 25th is my 42nd year Anniversary in the RPG gaming hobby. I played my first game, 'Basic' Dungeons and Dragons, on this date in 1977. 

Triumph, used as a noun, means a great victory or achievement. As a verb it means to achieve victory, to succeed. 

What does Triumph mean in game terms?

While I am sure it means different things to different people, personally it causes me to consider that while you can't really win an RPG, you can Triumph. 

Both the player and their PC have goals in a game scenario and even more so in a long running campaign. These goals vary but if reasonable and possible they can earn both the character and the player a Triumph. The key is to know what success means to you and your in-game persona.

It could be as simple as having the PC defeat a major enemy or the player [as their character] solving all the puzzles and riddles they encounter. Victory conditions can be set higher of course, with true accomplishment being met only when long term goals are reached. Maybe the PC wants to be crowned ruler of her country of origin or the player wants to finally make a character who survives from the beginning of a campaign all the way to the end.

As someone who primarily GMs and honestly prefers it that way, Triumph for me is the creation, running, and completion of a long term game. I'll go a step further and say that if the game ended a while ago and people are still talking about it, well Achievement Unlocked!

Funny thing is, now that I think about it, a Triumph comes at the end of an endeavor. I don't know if any of my current campaigns will be major accomplishments until they are over and done. Likewise, was your attempt to play a charming yet realistic policeman of the 1930s successful? We'll know when you are finished playing him. 

In the mean time, strive to run or play the best game you can. Knowing you are putting your all into it is a sort of personal Triumph all its own.

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Barking Alien