Okay...I think I see where you're coming from.
I was driving to work this morning and saw a few deer roaming around in the street. I took a different route to avoid the deer. I still made it to work and my story progressed. You would say that I still encountered the deer, because I did...
Would it make more sense to you if we took away the threat?
During my RPG upbringing, an encounter was anytime the PCs interacted with the world. Talking to the innkeeper is an encounter. Fighting the bandits is an encounter. Opening the door is an encounter. The PCs did something and...
I was going further along in the scenario as I was imagining it. In my head, the adventurers entered the castle, did their thing, and left without confronting those guards at all. Yes, of course, the encounter isn't resolved until those guards no longer pose an immediate threat.
I'm on your side here, I have no problem understanding what "bypass" means in these examples. I'm just thinking that an inexperienced GM may view "bypass" in a different sense.
I'm one of those DMs that refuses to "get with the times" and still uses XP for level advancement. It is an...
I can see how the word "bypass" could confuse someone, especially in this example with the castle. I have always used the term "overcome the obstacle" when referring to the various ways adventurers get from Point A to Point B, especially when it came to creative solutions.
In a couple other...
I am also one of those folks completely unfamiliar with Burning Wheel...it was being championed by someone I thought was absolutely annoying on YouTube.
I can see how this could ruffle some feathers. There are some in the D&D world who have their characters planned out 1-20 with a 10-page...
The Matrix. I saw it with my dorky college group of friends, and we always went to Perkins after any movie for coffee, pie, cigarettes, and discussion. We began working on the plans to make it happen. Then when the sun came up we were trying to break the laws of the matrix.
American History...
Not really. A question was asked by someone else asking for evidence of WotC working with bad actors. It was simply a reply to that question. I didn't raise the point out of the blue to pull attention away from any other point...just supplying evidence that was requested.
I imagine there are a number of us Gen X kids who share these experiences here. At least, in my experience, that's how I met other gamers in my community. There were more than a few at the counseling group my brother and I had to attend. While in college the majority of the gaming student...