Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="pming" data-source="post: 7404710" data-attributes="member: 45197">Hiya!  Whoever figured that writing "X number of encounters per day" in the game rules should be flogged with a wet noodle. You know what is probably making your game boring/unchallenging or otherwise making your players feel like they are "fully charged and ready to go"? It's not the number of encounters per day... it's the fact that you and they know that there even is an assumed number of encounters per day. That's the problem.What is more dangerous to hear from a DM:(1) "You have to survive the Trials of Doom! You enter the dungeon, and, somewhere inside it's labyrinthine corridors lies the Gong of Enlightenment. Reach that goal, ring the gong, and you will all be champions!"-OR-(2) "You have to survive the Trials of Doom! You enter the dungeon, and after two encounters, reach the Gong of Enlightenment! Reach that goal, ring the gong, and you will all be champions!"See the problem with having a set, or even a range of 'encounters per day'? THAT's the problem. THAT is why your players will, no matter what you decide, learn that "Ok. That was encounter one back there. This is encounter two. Lets take it easy because when we get to encounter three we want to be able to nova. Then we can rest". (or whatever number per day you've generally decided). By having a "set number of encounters per day", even if it's a range, you are basically telling your players how many resources to use. Kinda like playing a MMORPG where you enter some dungeon, die repeatedly, but eventually you win simply because you know the number of encounters and when to rest to get all your juice back for the end fight.My suggestion would be to stop designing your adventures/encounters around the PC's capabilities (I've said this MANY times before on these boards). If you are writing up an adventure for the PC's, you should keep in mind only two things, really. One is the PC's average levels, and two is the number of PC's. That's about it. The focus should be on designing a "logical setting for the adventure/story/plot/whatever". You can always toss in a PC-specific thing, to be sure, but that shouldn't be the order of the day (e.g., if you know a PC Thief is really good at climbing walls, feel free to make a room where climbing walls would make it REALLY useful). If the Players, and you, actually don't know how many encounters the PC's will face in any given day, it makes the game far, Far, FAR more exciting, suspenseful, and unpredictable. It multiplies the Players sense of accomplishment ten-fold when they overcome something or succeed at their task.When your Players don't "know" when it's time to rest, they will play better and more conservatively. This will have the effect I think you are looking for; that the PC's don't just walk all over everything...because they will be holding back, trying to use their abilities and spells when they feel they have to in order to not die a horrible, horrible death. But if they "know" that they've had three encounters, they know it's safe to rest after nova'ing on the fourth (or whatever number you tend to use).The world shouldn't care about if the PC's live or die. The campaign world does NOT (or shouldn't, imho) revolve around the PC's themselves. By trying to stick to a set number of encounters per day, you are, imho, denying your Players the thrill of defying death. More importantly, you are making your games predictable. And in an RPG, predictability is the death knell of any game.^_^Paul L. Ming</blockquote>

Verification