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<blockquote data-quote="JamesonCourage" data-source="post: 5531082" data-attributes="member: 6668292"><p>What did he think in terms of it being a rule purely for the sake of balance?</p><p> </p><p></p><p></p><p>Okay, if this is how he sees things, and he's trying to be logical, then showing him that being surprised is worse isn't good enough.</p><p></p><p>If you tell him flat-footed from initiative means maybe being flat-footed for one round, while being surprised means maybe being flat-footed for two rounds, he's still going to complain, even though being surprised is obviously worse.</p><p></p><p>And that's because when you're flat-footed, it means you aren't defending yourself adequately at all. And he's correct in making that comparison (surprised to losing initiative). He wants to know why he doesn't defend himself as well after losing initiative, not when he's surprised. And realistically, you should be able to defend yourself better than when you're surprised (and you don't).</p><p></p><p>So, you won't win the realism argument with him. He's correct. However, if you tell him that's it's a balance issue, and that certain classes were given abilities with that system in mind (barbarians, rogues, etc.), then perhaps you can convince him to stomach it with no objections.</p><p></p><p>If you keep trying to justify something on his terms (realism), then you're not going to succeed, because he's correct. It's not because he's stubborn (though he might be). It's because he has a valid point. Don't engage it. Tell him you can see his point, and you'd be okay with him houseruling it if he was running a game. But, for balance in your game, you're okay with playing it by RAW. You'd prefer balance within the game system for fun over realism in this one scenario, and that's your ruling.</p><p></p><p>Just express that to him. Be sincere, be honest, be compassionate. I mean, if you're playing with friends, people should be able to understand and move on. He might get a little frustrated if the rule ends up hurting someone in the party later on, but I think if you talk about it, he'll let it pass without too much commotion.</p><p></p><p>Remember, you're playing with friends. Friendship should always trump disagreements. Anyways, play what you like <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="JamesonCourage, post: 5531082, member: 6668292"] What did he think in terms of it being a rule purely for the sake of balance? Okay, if this is how he sees things, and he's trying to be logical, then showing him that being surprised is worse isn't good enough. If you tell him flat-footed from initiative means maybe being flat-footed for one round, while being surprised means maybe being flat-footed for two rounds, he's still going to complain, even though being surprised is obviously worse. And that's because when you're flat-footed, it means you aren't defending yourself adequately at all. And he's correct in making that comparison (surprised to losing initiative). He wants to know why he doesn't defend himself as well after losing initiative, not when he's surprised. And realistically, you should be able to defend yourself better than when you're surprised (and you don't). So, you won't win the realism argument with him. He's correct. However, if you tell him that's it's a balance issue, and that certain classes were given abilities with that system in mind (barbarians, rogues, etc.), then perhaps you can convince him to stomach it with no objections. If you keep trying to justify something on his terms (realism), then you're not going to succeed, because he's correct. It's not because he's stubborn (though he might be). It's because he has a valid point. Don't engage it. Tell him you can see his point, and you'd be okay with him houseruling it if he was running a game. But, for balance in your game, you're okay with playing it by RAW. You'd prefer balance within the game system for fun over realism in this one scenario, and that's your ruling. Just express that to him. Be sincere, be honest, be compassionate. I mean, if you're playing with friends, people should be able to understand and move on. He might get a little frustrated if the rule ends up hurting someone in the party later on, but I think if you talk about it, he'll let it pass without too much commotion. Remember, you're playing with friends. Friendship should always trump disagreements. Anyways, play what you like :) [/QUOTE]
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