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General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Attacking defenseless NPCs
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<blockquote data-quote="Bawylie" data-source="post: 7626128" data-attributes="member: 6776133"><p>Aren’t you kind of overlooking the one big thing in the D&D rules that DOES account for for off-book propositions? </p><p></p><p>This is why the game has an arbiter. The DM is the game’s rule system that handles these cases. A human being with a brain and judgment who isn’t mindlessly adhering to program but weighing stakes and potential outcomes in advance of asking for a check. </p><p></p><p>So, respectfully, you’re wrong on this claim: “D&D has zero ways to handle that proposition and zero tests of propositions that result in the fictional state 'I have a knife to non-helpless target X's throat'.”</p><p></p><p>Moreover, re: helplessness, under my “checkmate” houserule, helplessness isn’t a prerequisite. Helplessness certainly does qualify for checkmate, but it’s not the ONLY thing that qualifies. Circumstances may permit other conditions that permit automatic defeat. </p><p></p><p>Take a fight on a rope bridge, where some participants sever the ropes - that’s an automatic loss for anyone left on the bridge when the thing shakes loose. You know the rules of d&d don’t cover that scenario either. The creatures on the bridge aren’t helpless, can defend themselves, may have full HP. But the human brain of the DM can elect to apply some rules like figuring out how many HP a rope bridge has and calculating fall damage or not. They don’t have to - they could just as easily rule that anyone on the bridge falls and the combat is over. Or they could ask for a strength check to cut the ropes. Or offer a save to the creatures on the bridge. Or, or, or...</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Bawylie, post: 7626128, member: 6776133"] Aren’t you kind of overlooking the one big thing in the D&D rules that DOES account for for off-book propositions? This is why the game has an arbiter. The DM is the game’s rule system that handles these cases. A human being with a brain and judgment who isn’t mindlessly adhering to program but weighing stakes and potential outcomes in advance of asking for a check. So, respectfully, you’re wrong on this claim: “D&D has zero ways to handle that proposition and zero tests of propositions that result in the fictional state 'I have a knife to non-helpless target X's throat'.” Moreover, re: helplessness, under my “checkmate” houserule, helplessness isn’t a prerequisite. Helplessness certainly does qualify for checkmate, but it’s not the ONLY thing that qualifies. Circumstances may permit other conditions that permit automatic defeat. Take a fight on a rope bridge, where some participants sever the ropes - that’s an automatic loss for anyone left on the bridge when the thing shakes loose. You know the rules of d&d don’t cover that scenario either. The creatures on the bridge aren’t helpless, can defend themselves, may have full HP. But the human brain of the DM can elect to apply some rules like figuring out how many HP a rope bridge has and calculating fall damage or not. They don’t have to - they could just as easily rule that anyone on the bridge falls and the combat is over. Or they could ask for a strength check to cut the ropes. Or offer a save to the creatures on the bridge. Or, or, or... [/QUOTE]
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