D&D General Alignment experiment

[Vaalingrade]

Judging the PC, not you. And not for how you play, but how the PC acts within the game world. There's a significant difference.

How on Earth is how your PC acts not how you're playing the PC?

 

[Maxperson]

How on Earth is how your PC acts not how you're playing the PC?

If the PC goes into a convent and cuts the throats of a dozen nuns, I'm going to judge that PC a right evil bastard. My buddy playing that PC, though, will remain a good guy and I won't judge him for that roleplay in the slightest.

Judging a PC is NOT judging the player or the player's gameplay. It's apples and oranges.

 

[MarkB]

My usual option for alignment is that the player can write one down on their character sheet if they want to, but I have no interest in knowing what it is, and am never going to check whether they're sticking with it.

 

[Vaalingrade]

If the PC goes into a convent and cuts the throats of a dozen nuns, I'm going to judge that PC a right evil bastard. My buddy playing that PC, though, will remain a good guy and I won't judge him for that roleplay in the slightest.

Judging a PC is NOT judging the player or the player's gameplay. It's apples and oranges.

All the PC is is the player's gameplay. They're not some independent creature.

 

[Maxperson]

All the PC is is the player's gameplay. They're not some independent creature.

You're just plain wrong about this. Judging the PC is NOT judging the player's gameplay. It might be evil to slit the throats of the kids who saw you commit the crime(judgement PC evil!), but it's also smart gameplay(judgement good player!). It's literally apples and oranges.

 

[Vaalingrade]

You're just plain wrong about this. Judging the PC is NOT judging the player's gameplay. It might be evil to slit the throats of the kids who saw you commit the crime(judgement PC evil!), but it's also smart gameplay(judgement good player!). It's literally apples and oranges.

So...

The roleplaying part of a roleplaying game is not gameplay?

Is this what you're saying?

Don't change he subject, don't try to claim this question of intent is a strawman, just explain your position: Do you or do you not consider how the player PLAYS their character to be part of their gameplay?

 

[Steampunkette]

@Vaalingrade

It's not a value judgement on how good or bad you're playing the game. It's a moral judgement of the character you're portraying.

 

[Vaalingrade]

@Vaalingrade

It's not a value judgement on how good or bad you're playing the game. It's a moral judgement of the character you're portraying.

But players aren't actors performing other people's stories.

They're the ones making the decisions for their characters, which the DM is sitting in moral judgement of.

So if I, to pick an example far enough removed to not cause its own debate, have my character eat smooth peanut butter because I think it is right and good to eat smooth peanut butter and the DM feels it's clearly evil to eat non-crunchy and thus deems my character evil... then I don't think that's a fun situation at all.

Edit: also, I NEVER said anything about a value judgement on the technical skills of playing the game. It's always been about the DM sitting in moral judgement.

 

[the Jester]

Inspiration is something I do not yet use in any of my games. It's a concept in 5E that has just never grabbed me. Clever play is its own reward- it should be one of the primary motivations for playing.

I like to use it as a reward for challenges that don't award xp (I reserve xp for challenges that pose a risk to the characters in some way). But mostly, I love using inspiration to reward a pc who roleplays in a way that is true to their character, but is against their own interests. The classic "I know we're trying to infiltrate this place, but darn it, I just can't lie when the guard asks me who I really am" thing. It helps to encourage pcs to not only play up their flaws, but also to seize the opportunity to play along with things that are fun but bad for them at the same time.

 

[Maxperson]

So...

The roleplaying part of a roleplaying game is not gameplay?

Is this what you're saying?

I'm very clear with what I'm saying. Judging the PC's actions is NOT judging the gameplay. The player has his PC do something and I may not judge the player at all on that piece of gameplay, while still judging the PC on what it did in the game.