D&D General DM Authority

[Chaosmancer]

Do you remember the point the post you are replying to was originally countering?

Off the top of my head? No. This tangent has been running for most of a week by this point.

 

[Oofta]

sigh

Of course DnD is more than that. I actually don't personally like mega-dungeon hack and slash games.

But the point I was originally countering was "It is impossible to play DnD without a DM"

Well, a hack and slash, kick down the door, kill the monster, take their stuff, repeat style game is still DnD. Might not be our favorite, but DnD it still is.


Now, if you want to say that it is impossible to play DnD in the style you prefer without a DM... then I'd say of course it is impossible. Because your style was built and predicated on the role of the DM existing.

Analogies are often in adequate, but if someone said to me "It is impossible to play soccer without a referee" I'd tell them they were wrong, if they said "It is impossible to hold the FIFA World Cup Soccer Tournament without a referee" well... I'd say they are right.

The game is bigger than one style though.

If it's still D&D to you, fine. It's not the game as described by the rulebooks. I would not personally consider what you've described as D&D. In my opinion it's a glorified ad-hoc board game using D&D stats. The game is flexible, but at a certain point it stops being D&D. I have a D&D based board game on my shelf, I don't call it D&D. If you have fun with what you're playing go for it.

But I'm done talking about this, I don't see what it has to do with the thread.

 

[Oofta]

Do you remember the point the post you are replying to was originally countering?

It started basically because chaos was claiming that you didn't even need to have a DM to play D&D therefore ... well, I'm not sure. Something about the DM not being the final rules arbiter I'd guess.

I asked how that would work, that it wouldn't be D&D to me. Which is still my opinion, it would be a randomly generated dungeon crawl board game. Those can be fun - I have one. Is it D&D? I'll leave that up to people to decide for themselves.

 

[loverdrive]

What you're now describing, to me, sounds much more like collective storytelling than a D&D game.

Isn't collective storytelling, like, the main thing about RPGs?

 

[Chaosmancer]

If it's still D&D to you, fine. It's not the game as described by the rulebooks. I would not personally consider what you've described as D&D. In my opinion it's a glorified ad-hoc board game using D&D stats. The game is flexible, but at a certain point it stops being D&D. I have a D&D based board game on my shelf, I don't call it D&D. If you have fun with what you're playing go for it.

But I'm done talking about this, I don't see what it has to do with the thread.

Interesting.

"There is no one true way." "People play the game the way they want, and that's fine" "To each their own"


"At some point the game stops being DnD" "It's not the game described by the rulebooks"

All things I can attribute to you. Hack and Slash Megadungeons are a style of DnD people enjoy, I acknowledge that. Seems you have an issue with that though.

 

[FrogReaver]

Interesting.

"There is no one true way." "People play the game the way they want, and that's fine" "To each their own"


"At some point the game stops being DnD" "It's not the game described by the rulebooks"

All things I can attribute to you. Hack and Slash Megadungeons are a style of DnD people enjoy, I acknowledge that. Seems you have an issue with that though.

There is no one true way. There are many wrong ways though

 

[FrogReaver]

It started basically because chaos was claiming that you didn't even need to have a DM to play D&D therefore ... well, I'm not sure. Something about the DM not being the final rules arbiter I'd guess.

I asked how that would work, that it wouldn't be D&D to me. Which is still my opinion, it would be a randomly generated dungeon crawl board game. Those can be fun - I have one. Is it D&D? I'll leave that up to people to decide for themselves.

Exactly my point.

Your original point was that some unknown but large portion of d&d games could not run without a dm as chaos described.

chaos coming back and saying his method works for one smaller subset really missed your overall point.

i wish he would have started off by addressing your original point.

 

[Oofta]

Interesting.

"There is no one true way." "People play the game the way they want, and that's fine" "To each their own"


"At some point the game stops being DnD" "It's not the game described by the rulebooks"

All things I can attribute to you. Hack and Slash Megadungeons are a style of DnD people enjoy, I acknowledge that. Seems you have an issue with that though.

You can call the Castle Ravenloft board game D&D if you want. I don't. That doesn't mean it can't be an enjoyable game.

Feel free to call what you're doing D&D, I would not. Disagree? Okay.

 

[jasper]

Isn't collective storytelling, like, the main thing about RPGs?

I thought playing a game was the main thing?

 

[FrogReaver]

I thought playing a game was the main thing?

I thought it was role playing my character.