Godmoding

Godmoding is a term used in board based role-playing games to describe two behaviours of players. The term comes from the "god mode" found in many video games, allowing a player to activate features such as invincibility, unlimited ammunition or lives, or similar power boosts. It is sometimes incorrectly spelled as "godmodding", perhaps from the powers of message board moderators. It is almost always frowned upon by other members of the game, because it is regarded as a form of cheating against the game's tacit rules.

Passive Godmoding

Godmoding can occur when a player describes an event or a series of events his or her character has taken against another character or interactive object, most often with the purpose of rescinding negative effects previously encountered or granting some other effect inconsistent with an objective view of the narrative. For example, a character may be afflicted with a disease only curable by rare ingredients, yet another character is "lucky" enough to find these ingredients in ten minutes. Godmoding is thus often used like a "Get Out of Jail Free card" when things don't go the way a player wants, rather than working with previously unfolded events.

It is also used to describe the act of creating or playing with an invincible character or using "perfect" equipment (such as unbreakable armour), or possessing limitless power, etc. Some players will create a brand new character, and that character is automatically gifted with skills, and nearly impossible to take on right from the start. In many cases, this happens when a newer character goes against an established one: the newer player may roleplay his or her character as if it were equal in power and rank to the more experienced one.

Active Godmoding

Godmoding can also refer to the case where a player definitively describes the outcome of their own actions against another character or interactive object. For example, if player A states, "A strikes B and B takes damage", they could be considered to be godmoding. Another example of this might be where a character is facing multiple enemies, and they redirect one foe's attack onto another. For example, Player A states, "B misses A completely, and strikes C instead."

Similarly, controlling characters that belong to someone else is also a form of godmoding.

• Player A: Character A throws a punch at Character B.
• Player B: Character B dodges the attack, grabs Character A and throws him out of a stained glass window. Character A flies at Character B, who warps behind him and slashes Character A in the back.

Unusually, this version of godmoding is encouraged in the d20 system game WWE: Know Your Role; while players will select a professional wrestling maneuver to use on an opponent, the entire sequence is dictated by the winner; the above scenario would be accepted (assuming a slash in the back were an appropriate maneuver). The game itself recommends that players be reasonable in this, as the player who decides on the sequence is determined by die rolls in the game.

Powermoding And/Or Autoing

Godmoding can be sub-divided into two similar categories commonly found within different areas of Play-By-Post Role-playing Games, which usually revolve around areas of external roleplay as in such diverse sites that range from Myspace to Youtube and to IMVU and so on. Although godmoding is often used to describe unfair rules within the realm of role-play, there are proper names for such things.

• Autoing: The act of making decisions and/or actions for the target of your roleplay. Example: U dye now *kils u an waches blod shot from ur arm*. Acts such as this are highly dishonorable and possibly the worst form of godmoding that can be acted upon.

• Powermoding: The act of constant regeneration and/or dodging of attacks and actions. This is commonly found in battle-situation role-plays. Classifications such as these are usually only used by the more experienced roleplayers, usually to be only used after a certain level of experienced is reach. Acts such as this are not entirely dishonorable, for they are hard to notice, however this classification usually halts the storyline from advancing any further, making the story both unfair and simply 'not fun.' Example: After being struck by the blade aiming for his jugular 'name of preference' would immediately use his anti-matter shield to regenerate within a matter of seconds. This would repeat throughout the storyline halting it completely.

Source

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godmoding - most links have been preserved, and will point to the appropriate pages on Wikipedia.