Page 582 — Like an Open Book
Story time! Tell a story like the one in the comic: A time when out-of-character or meta knowledge helped a player get motivated.
(Like I even needed to prompt that, but at this point in the buffer I'm busy packing for the aforementioned long freaking trip that I'll have just returned from yesterday in your time, so I'm tired and ain't got much else for the Author's Note.)
Transcript:Rainbow Dash: <sigh> I can't believe we're going to spend a month getting tickets for everybody.
DM: Well, it doesn't have to be one person per session. They could be mini-adventures or something if they go quickly enough.
Applejack: And besides, if yer still lookin' for a motivation, I got one for ya: This is basically the final boss of the social stuff.
Rainbow Dash: What?
Fluttershy: Well… It's nobles, so the Thieves Guild is probably involved… And somepony doesn't want us there…
Applejack: If we treat this like a story arc, then every social thing we've dealt with so far is leading up to this Gala.
DM: That is the very definition of metagaming.
Applejack: So whaddaya think? How'd you like to go there and do something about it once and for all?
Rainbow Dash: This really shouldn't be working, but… Urgh, it's working. Fine, I'll play along.