So, how has your game where magic is easy to learn, has been for millenia, and everyone does it instead of science been going?But do they have different meanings? Like, if we say a realistic or plausible D&D setting is one that isn't historically accurate, when our history is the only thing we have to base our understanding of the past upon, then we run into a problem.
If you look at the typical D&D setting, with it's arbitrary decisions on what advancements did or did not occur, and what things are impossible without magic, we end up with a world that is implausible.
Many innovations are reliant on other innovations that preceded them. Remove a link in the chain, to remove something that you don't feel "fits the D&D fantasy", and some other things that you feel do, have no logical reason to exist either.
Throwing magic into the mix just makes things even stranger.
Just one example- armor requires special training to wear, can be expensive, and has disadvantages (some real, some imagined) in D&D.
But Mage Armor, a first level spell that lasts for 8 hours does not- it's better than any light armor that exists, in fact.
Why don't we have armies of fighting men trained to be able to cast Mage Armor 1/day instead of light armor? Why aren't there better versions of Mage Armor, that can replicate heavier armors?
If magic can more effectively replace real world innovations, why do we have those innovations?
The reason of course, is usually handwaved as magic is hard to learn and requires special talent (despite the fact the rules don't reflect this in the slightest), that magicians are some kind of mafia or secret society hell bent on keeping non magicians down, etc..
Or that the resulting world wouldn't feel like the fantasy people want to play in, lol. So we get these debates about what is plausible, when our basic premise is completely flawed and falls apart if you examine it with any rigor.
But seriously, I wish every DM spent a little time sketching out why their campaign has the limits it does.
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In the real world why isn't everyone a doctor or engineer or trained artist or world renowned craftsperson or skilled scientist (or all five)?
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RE: default 5e