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<blockquote data-quote="eyebeams" data-source="post: 4260215" data-attributes="member: 9225"><p>This is really rephrasing my point as a feature, not a bug. There's nothing wrong with this, but you can't very well complain about "railroading" and support this, except to say that you like one version of railroading and don't like the others. This is valid for you, but it's not a broadly applicable critique.</p><p></p><p>D&D is chock full of elements that enforce a certain feel, from caster restrictions to more subtle elements like the ways some spells and powers plug into the assumed elements of the setting. A "physical" restriction is no different from personality mechanics or unkillable NPCs. They are all systemic restrictions on what players can do. Since there is in fact no real physical space in RPGs, the fact that something is described as being because of a stone wall or your current SAN is immaterial. They both restrict actions. The narrative significance of these may give these different values *for you* but this is only a matter of personal preference.</p><p></p><p>The fact that the game's been around for a long time means that its "genre" is now self-referential, but this is not that different from Vampire or Shadowrun, which have both existed long enough that they're about what Vampire and Shadowrun should feel like, and not their inspirations per se.</p><p></p><p>Now if you're talking about railroading as something that should be possible even after all of this, but is still barred by the GM (or the play group in GMless games), then you're talking about something outside of the scope of the system. No version of D&D can keep the DM from imposing this sort of thing. It can formalize expectations about what will and won't be allowed, but these are fairly meaningless.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="eyebeams, post: 4260215, member: 9225"] This is really rephrasing my point as a feature, not a bug. There's nothing wrong with this, but you can't very well complain about "railroading" and support this, except to say that you like one version of railroading and don't like the others. This is valid for you, but it's not a broadly applicable critique. D&D is chock full of elements that enforce a certain feel, from caster restrictions to more subtle elements like the ways some spells and powers plug into the assumed elements of the setting. A "physical" restriction is no different from personality mechanics or unkillable NPCs. They are all systemic restrictions on what players can do. Since there is in fact no real physical space in RPGs, the fact that something is described as being because of a stone wall or your current SAN is immaterial. They both restrict actions. The narrative significance of these may give these different values *for you* but this is only a matter of personal preference. The fact that the game's been around for a long time means that its "genre" is now self-referential, but this is not that different from Vampire or Shadowrun, which have both existed long enough that they're about what Vampire and Shadowrun should feel like, and not their inspirations per se. Now if you're talking about railroading as something that should be possible even after all of this, but is still barred by the GM (or the play group in GMless games), then you're talking about something outside of the scope of the system. No version of D&D can keep the DM from imposing this sort of thing. It can formalize expectations about what will and won't be allowed, but these are fairly meaningless. [/QUOTE]
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