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<blockquote data-quote="Iosue" data-source="post: 6094444" data-attributes="member: 6680772">Sure.&nbsp; The example is not to say, &quot;If you do this, you'll have perfect PC-NPC relations.&quot;&nbsp; It merely demonstrates how a DM can present his world without being overly nice or overly antagonistic to the PCs.&nbsp; How you can have conflict and tension inside of a situation where PCs and NPCs are essentially on the same side.There's the saying, &quot;An armed society is a polite society.&quot;&nbsp; And just looking at it historically you can see this in Beowulf, you can see it in samurai culture, where everyone is carrying a weapon and interactions are highly ritualized, you can even see it in, say, Deadwood.&nbsp; Perhaps I wasn't able to get it across in my example, but one of the interesting things about Beowulf is that the widespread image of the poem is real earthy -- blood, guts, and Dark Ages.&nbsp; One can see that image play out in Gerard Butler's &quot;Beowulf &amp; Grendel&quot;, in the Zemeckis Beowulf film, even &quot;the 13th Warrior&quot;.&nbsp; But in the actual poem a great deal is spent on highly mannered, semantically loaded speeches.&nbsp; It's glory-seeking Vikings downing mead in a dark hall, but the interactions are pure Shakespeare.So the idea here is that you give that option to your players.&nbsp; You let the inhabitants of the world react honestly to their actions.&nbsp; If you are friendly to the innkeep, he is friendly to you.&nbsp; You may even have a conflict with someone, but that doesn't mean they are your lifelong enemy.&nbsp; You can meet town guards who are wary and on guard, yet courteous and helpful, if the PCs present themselves that way.&nbsp; In doing so, you give the PCs a place to go.&nbsp; If they want to get boorish, it has a relatively predictable effect on their environment.&nbsp; Likewise, if they treat NPCs with respect, they got positive benefits from that.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Iosue, post: 6094444, member: 6680772"] Sure. The example is not to say, "If you do this, you'll have perfect PC-NPC relations." It merely demonstrates how a DM can present his world without being overly nice or overly antagonistic to the PCs. How you can have conflict and tension inside of a situation where PCs and NPCs are essentially on the same side. There's the saying, "An armed society is a polite society." And just looking at it historically you can see this in Beowulf, you can see it in samurai culture, where everyone is carrying a weapon and interactions are highly ritualized, you can even see it in, say, Deadwood. Perhaps I wasn't able to get it across in my example, but one of the interesting things about Beowulf is that the widespread image of the poem is real earthy -- blood, guts, and Dark Ages. One can see that image play out in Gerard Butler's "Beowulf & Grendel", in the Zemeckis Beowulf film, even "the 13th Warrior". But in the actual poem a great deal is spent on highly mannered, semantically loaded speeches. It's glory-seeking Vikings downing mead in a dark hall, but the interactions are pure Shakespeare. So the idea here is that you give that option to your players. You let the inhabitants of the world react honestly to their actions. If you are friendly to the innkeep, he is friendly to you. You may even have a conflict with someone, but that doesn't mean they are your lifelong enemy. You can meet town guards who are wary and on guard, yet courteous and helpful, if the PCs present themselves that way. In doing so, you give the PCs a place to go. If they want to get boorish, it has a relatively predictable effect on their environment. Likewise, if they treat NPCs with respect, they got positive benefits from that. [/QUOTE]

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