point of view that is presented, yet this medium also brings its own affordances. The heroic characters are those that would be player characters in the TRPG or CRPG. We are introduced to, as our primary protagonist, Shanhaevel, a mage and elf; as well as his love interest, the druid Shirral. The novel presents a good deal of depth in terms of character emotions and interactions, as the reader sees the relationship between Shanhaevel and Shirral develop and is also privy to many of Shanhaevel’s thoughts. Naturally, in the TRPG, relationships such as this one could also be developed, but all of that material would come from the players rather than the pre-written module. The novel does something else that is a shift from both the TRPG and the CRPG—it shows the point of view of the opposing side. Although it is clear that Shanhaevel is the main protagonist, the story shifts between his point of view and Hedrack, the head of the temple. We become privy to Hedrack’s interactions with Iuz and Zuggtmoy in a way that we never see in the TRPG or CRPG, where they are simply villains to be fought in combat or powers to be allied with. In fact, it is completely possible to play either the TRPG or the CRPG with no real understanding or explanations of the forces in the temple. In the TRPG, much of the inner workings of the temple must be discovered by players asking the right questions. For example, if the party captures Senshock (Zuggtmoy’s emissary) and uses ESP to interrogate him, they will find out a bit about Iuz and his plans (Gygax & Mentzer, 1985, p. 99). However, if the party kills Senshock or misses this encounter altogether, that information may never be obtained or the DM may need to incorporate this information elsewhere in the game. From some players’ comments about the political maneuvering in Temple, it is clear that the motivations guiding the NPCs can be a key part of the intrigue. However, from other players’ comments, it is probable that not everyone who plays the TRPG learns these details of character development. One of the affordances of the novel, then, is the ability to provide multiple points of view where the reader can shift perspective throughout the novel.
Each medium offers something to the story that the others cannot. Each shapes the story in a different way. In the TRPG the audience has more control over the framework of the story. The DM may choose to reveal information as he or she sees fit or adapt the story to fit within a different campaign world. However, short of incorporating additional media (such as video) into the gaming session, the DM would have a hard time representing the visual scenes in the story the same way that the CRPG does. The computer version also offers the chance to return to an earlier point in the story and begin again with the hope of a new outcome. The novel offers the least flexibility, but it also gives the reader more insight into different characters, allowing for a more complete perspective that is not achievable in the other media.3
Transmedia Narrative—The Nexus of Stories
It is apparent from the examples presented here that there are multiple differences among the experience of the TRPG module, the CRPG, and the novel all called The Temple of Elemental Evil. What is it then that allows us to recognize all three as the Temple of Elemental Evil? How might these texts and others work together to inform our understanding of a particular textual universe?
First and foremost, it appears that structuralist narratologists notion of story as separate from medium does not hold true for the transfer among the TRPG, CRPG, and novel. One very important reason for this is that story in the TRPG exists primarily in the oral discourse created by the gaming group as they play through the module. The module itself has some backstory, but it neither reads like a story nor determines what part of the story the audience will hear. Instead, each gaming group will individually access certain storylines and ignore others. As we’ve seen, some groups may ignore story altogether and