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Message: <blockquote data-quote="KarinsDad" data-source="post: 5089666" data-attributes="member: 2011">Some of the monster knowledge check rules are spoon feeding players.How exactly do you know that a Goblin is a Goblin Cutter, or a Goblin Blackblade, or a Goblin Warrior? It's a fricking Goblin dude.There are 141 Goblins in the Compendium and yet with a simple die roll, the game system suggests that the players know all kind of stuff about each one.What the PCs should know are: a) obvious visible items like weapons and armor, b) an idea about powers after they are used, not before (only the most general of knowledge beforehand), c) monster type (i.e. humanoid), d) keywords, and e) the cool knowledge in the monster DC sidebars. Even things like vulnerabilities is kind of lame. For example, a lich is not vulnerable to radiant damage, but it does stop it from regenerating for a round. If you tell the player of the Cleric that the Lich is not vulnerable to radiant, then the Cleric might rarely use radiant damage and miss out on a combat option to minimize the regeneration. If you tell the player of the Cleric that radiant damage minimizes the lich's regeneration, then you are practically forcing the player of the Cleric to only pick one of a few powers to use on the Lich and forcing PC tactics.The entire "everyone is entitled to know all kinds of strange and esoteric information about creatures and their abilities" is spoon feeding.What part of the game is mysterious and exciting and unexpected if a single die roll can tell the players all about their foes?I just find that it takes away from the fun of the game if there is next to zero mystery or suspense.It's like playing WoW where monster info is stamped above the creature's head. Tattooed there for all to see.So yes, everyone who in this thread has stated that they give hints like "all 6 of these goblins are identical" and "these goblins have inferior weapons or seem like they want to run away" (even without a die roll) are spoon feeding their players. IMO, YMMV.Knowing that the Lich has a phylactery and can probably cast spells? Cool. Knowing that the Lich can cast a Frostburn spell? Bogus. There are more than a dozen types of Liches that cannot cast that spell, but the PCs are supposed to know by looking at the foe whether he can or cannot. I just find that to be lame and not fun.In the MM, the spoon feeding even starts with some Monsters having the word Minion in their name. Now, what self respecting monster would have Minion in their name? "Ha ha, you're Fred the Minion.". <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f600.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":D" title="Big grin    :D"  data-smilie="8"data-shortname=":D" /></blockquote>

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