Share and Share Alike

Almost everything I do is collaborative.  Snooty Drunks is a collaboration between myself and co-host Brian, Apathy Games is a huge collaboration effort between the four of us.  Even all of my games are collaborative (though I’m still trying to figure out why Jeff thinks it’s a myth).  So why is it now that people seem to be taking notice that collaboration and sharing is a good thing.  It’s like someone sat up one day and said, “Oh hey, this Wikipedia thing really seems to be working out we should allow people to collaborate on it.”  But when is it to much?  At what point do begin to collaborate to often and begin to take away from something we could have done better on our own?

Tricks, Traps and Plot Twists

While I do like to collaborate with my players on my games, I don’t tell them everything.  If I laid out the entire story as I wanted to tell it including all the plot twists it would stop being fun.  Obviously some secrecy is needed to continue to make the game interesting, but could I make it better when collaborating with other GM’s?  For the most part I would say no, while I do read many RPG blogs and of course write one myself I don’t find that other GM’s can help me specifically with the story I want to tell or better help my players with the specific problem they are facing.  While they are great for general problems and sharing ideas for the most part I do have to adapt them to put my own spin and fit them into my stories.  That’s not to say that I don’t find them useful and have even borrowed some ideas from other people I just haven’t found anything to specifically help me with any problems I’m having with my players.

Character Secrets

I find the only real collaboration here should be done between the player and the GM.  Even then it should be mostly player led.  The player should be the one that comes up with the secret and begins the idea of the ramifications for anyone knowing the secret.  The GM should then follow suit with setting up the method in which everyone else should find out about it.  After all what’s the point of a secret when no one is going to find out about it?  In the end only a little collaboration should be done between the two if only to minimize the fore knowledge of the events to occur that lead to the other players finding out.

The Big Bad

I’ve never understood sharing the big bad with anyone, most of the time I’ve built to a specific feel of the campaign and it’s hard to communicate to anyone outside of the game.  Outside influence on the idea I’m trying to come up with typically doesn’t help.  I’ve found it best to use my own ideas and run them as I see it.  Third party assistance has typically only muddled my original idea.

What have you found helpful not to share with anyone?  Have you had any success being completely open in your designs?