As a writer I believe that good storytelling is character driven. A strong story is about how your characters deal with a situation and their internal motivations driving their choices. The subtleties of how the situation interacts with their internal motivations can lead to satisfying thematic underpinnings, giving the story a sense of meaning.

But when you have no control over the main characters at all, and your fun little pack of Cheeto gobbling weirdos aren’t going to give you a Daniel Day Lewis performance anytime soon, you don’t just get to sit back and watch the fur fly. Almost all players need a very compelling sense of situation in order to put themselves into their characters and start getting dramatic.

In tabletop RPGs, plot has to do the work of character until the story gets rolling. The best you can do is know when to let off the gas and coast.

In case it’s not obvious I’ve been obnoxiously thinking aloud and refining as I go. Thanks for letting me selfishly use your comment as a chance to think about this stuff.