D&D General Playstyle vs Mechanics

[prabe]

How do you feel about character death with players consent, save or die, dangerous magic, no cantrips, level drain, lasting/permanent injury, potentially deadly survival rules, fantasy racial prejudice, and warlock/cleric power loss when acting against your god or patron?

These are all things I can accept in my game under setting-appropriate circumstances.

Some of those are things I'd allow in my games, others are things that I wouldn't do in 5e but might in other rulesets, some are things that wouldn't work in my current setting, at least one of those is a thing that I actively do. But our priorities are wildly different, we say.

 

[Lanefan]

I would, as a GM, take the explanation for such to be a creative challenge.

I might also - the first time.

But I'd punt on the challenge after a few more times and just say "screw it - you don't have contacts everywhere".

 

[soviet]

How do you feel about character death without players consent, save or die, dangerous magic, no cantrips, level drain, lasting/permanent injury, potentially deadly survival rules, fantasy racial prejudice, and warlock/cleric power loss when acting against your god or patron?

These are all things I can accept in my game under setting-appropriate circumstances.

You'd be surprised by how much of this I am on board with, but these are session zero or game rule preferences. The conversation was about players or GMs coming up with plausible justifications for uses of abilities.

 

[Micah Sweet]

You'd be surprised by how much of this I am on board with, but these are session zero or game rule preferences. The conversation was about players or GMs coming up with plausible justifications for uses of abilities.

The setting and the PC's knowledge and abilities make the action plausible. Find a way to justify using that criteria and I'm on board.

 

[soviet]

I might also - the first time.

But I'd punt on the challenge after a few more times and just say "screw it - you don't have contacts everywhere".

The challenge isn't just (or even mainly) on the GM.

Note also that many of theses abilities are more like 'you can make new contacts by virtue of your transferrable skills' than 'you know everyone in the world'.

 

[soviet]

The setting and the PC's knowledge and abilities make the action plausible. Find a way to justify using that criteria and I'm on board.

I'm not sure this means anything.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I'm not sure this means anything.

I honestly don't know what this means.

 

[dave2008]

it isn’t though, you can always come up with some highly improbable nonsense, it remains just that

What it you come up with something incredibly probable, yet obscure. I have no issue with so saying no, but it can also be fun and creative to say yes. That doesn't mean the answer is nonsense, though that can work too.

 

[hawkeyefan]

Immersion is subjective, so how one feels immersed really isn't a question of fact or flawed reasoning.

Yes, I understand that immersion is subjective. I have no problem with anyone’s preference.

I just find it odd how selective people can be with their reasoning.

What benefit do you gain from assuming that people whose opinions on this matter differ from yours are actually denigrating your playstyle rather than merely disagreeing with it?

Well, the words chosen were “highly improbable nonsense”… so yeah, that’s judgmental. Which is fine… people can have any opinion about what I say on this site as they like… but yeah, expect a response.

I might also - the first time.

But I'd punt on the challenge after a few more times and just say "screw it - you don't have contacts everywhere".

Why? What does it harm to have a well-connected PC?

I tend to find such things help to facilitate play in a very verisimilitudinous manner. As opposed to the PCs always wandering from place to place as if disconnected from everything.

 

[Xetheral]

I don't know what you have in mind.

I'm making a fairly simple point, that playing classic D&D by its rules will not produce a sequence of events, stakes, realisations etc that is anything like (say) Ged's growth from child to wizard in A Wizard of Earthsea.

I entirely agree with that point. What I found interesting is that we seem to wildly diverge on what one can infer from that point regarding what elements of fiction D&D players care about. You said you inferred that a lot of players care only about the trappings of fiction, whereas I would infer they care about the core essence of fiction. I found that difference fascinating, since it suggests we view fiction quite differently.