D&D General Letting a Game feel like a Game ~ Mechanics and Simulationism

werecorpse · Jan 3, 2021

Brotton Goodfellow said:
I give the AC of the monsters only because I got really tired of answering the question of, "Does a 15 hit?" EVERY. SINGLE. TURN. Even though they rolled a 15 last turn and I gave them the same answer. All that's changed is it's sped the combat up ever so slightly. I find something akin to a monsters health bar a little too much, but honestly am intrigued to see how the table would react to it. Especially if it was a hulking, armoured bad guy.

surely then you are sick of the “I do 11 damage, is it dead?” Followed closely by the the “I did 7 damage is it dead now?” and “ how badly wounded does it look?” and the “Which one looks most injured?” questions?

Brotton Goodfellow · Jan 3, 2021

werecorpse said:
surely then you are sick of the “I do 11 damage, is it dead?” Followed closely by the the “I did 7 damage is it dead now?” and “ how badly wounded does it look?” and the “Which one looks most injured?” questions?

Oddly enough, no. I'll get a player asking about how badly wounded a monster is every so often, to which I'll reply with a brief description of how it might be fairing. But that'd be far more annoying.

Brotton Goodfellow · Jan 3, 2021

6ENow! said:
You know, this is a good point. If you think about people gambling (close enough to dice rolling in D&D) they are always more excited if they know what they need to roll, or what card they need, or what "whatever" is needed.

This might just convince me to start letting players know the DC and AC they need... maybe... probably not, but maybe...

I'll say this about having DC's out in the open. It very clearly shows the players what kind of challenge their characters are up against and lets them make a far more informed decision about how to proceed. Yes, I do my best to give them as much info as possible about the environment or whatever, but sometimes that doesn't cut it. Saying, "Climbing the wall isn't going to be easy, there aren't a lot of hand holds and there's cave slime dripping down it. DC 15 Athletics to get to the top," lets the players know exactly what they're up against and plan accordingly.

nevin · Jan 3, 2021

zarionofarabel said:
Too much boardgame in my RPG means I'm playing a boardgame not a RPG.

Too much videogame in my RPG means I'm playing a videogame not a RPG.

Too much miniatures combat game in my RPG means I'm playing a miniatures combat game not a RPG.

Too much focus on mechanics absolutely destroys my ability to enjoy my RPG experience. I'm one of the weird ones that actually trusts the GM to play fair so I don't need to see behind the screen. I like it when mechanics take a back seat and the narrative and the shared imagination space takes precedence. The more I have to engage in mechanical thought the less I can focus on the narrative and the less I enjoy the RPG experience.

This is me. If I want a board game I'll play risk or axis and allies.

Michael Silverbane · Jan 3, 2021

I often go back and forth on things like this when I am running a game. Sometimes I will tell my players all the numbers, sometimes I don't tell them any of the numbers (including how many hit points their characters have left). Usually it is somewhere in between.

Argyle King · Jan 3, 2021

I'm not sure how to respond to the OP because I feel as though I reject the provided view of the subject.

I don't mind information being transparent: i.e. "you need to roll vs [number]."

However, how and what those numbers represent in the game might take me out of it. For example, it's difficult for me to take something like a hostage situation in D&D seriously because of how HP is represented in D&D.

That's not necessarily bad. But it does mean there are types of stories which are more difficult to buy into. Knowing the values of the numbers doesn't necessarily break my ability to buy in, but how the numbers are used might.

So what am I trying to say?

I don't believe that making a game feel like a game and simulation of a scenario need be mutually exclusive goals.

I would say that rpgs are unique because they include elements of both game and simulation (and narrative entertainment).