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<blockquote data-quote="Mustrum_Ridcully" data-source="post: 4511725" data-attributes="member: 710">That might be true, but setting a graphic details or turning PvP status on is still something very different.What rules do forbid me from sending a balor against a 1st level party? What rules forbid me to create a series of save or die traps that the party can't figure out? The &quot;RAW&quot; doesn't constrict the DM here, he doesn't have to cheat.He has to follow the &quot;informal&quot; rules, the group contract to put up only challenges the party can beat (at least if they try hard enough - and if he doesn't overestimate the players abilities or their character abilities.)Even 3E or 4E encounter building systems doesn't tell the DM it's a &quot;rule&quot; to only allow certain level ranges. It just advises them to stay within certain borders for best effect.Referencing game elements is not telling the story. But linking the game elements to story elements is the story. If you're just dungeon crawling &quot;just because&quot;, yeah, there is little story to it. But if you're doing it to stop a cult of mind flayers that try to block out the sun, then you're telling a story. If you're convincing the mayor to send some of his best guardmen with you to fight the goblins, you're not just solving a problem, you're telling a story. And since you could have failed to convince the mayor, or decided not to ask the mayor, or decided to topple the mayor, the players decision change the story. That is what makes it collaborative storytelling. The DM might have put the mayor and the goblins in the game - but it was the players that decided how their characters would react to them.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Mustrum_Ridcully, post: 4511725, member: 710"] That might be true, but setting a graphic details or turning PvP status on is still something very different. What rules do forbid me from sending a balor against a 1st level party? What rules forbid me to create a series of save or die traps that the party can't figure out? The "RAW" doesn't constrict the DM here, he doesn't have to cheat. He has to follow the "informal" rules, the group contract to put up only challenges the party can beat (at least if they try hard enough - and if he doesn't overestimate the players abilities or their character abilities.) Even 3E or 4E encounter building systems doesn't tell the DM it's a "rule" to only allow certain level ranges. It just advises them to stay within certain borders for best effect. Referencing game elements is not telling the story. But linking the game elements to story elements is the story. If you're just dungeon crawling "just because", yeah, there is little story to it. But if you're doing it to stop a cult of mind flayers that try to block out the sun, then you're telling a story. If you're convincing the mayor to send some of his best guardmen with you to fight the goblins, you're not just solving a problem, you're telling a story. And since you could have failed to convince the mayor, or decided not to ask the mayor, or decided to topple the mayor, the players decision change the story. That is what makes it collaborative storytelling. The DM might have put the mayor and the goblins in the game - but it was the players that decided how their characters would react to them. [/QUOTE]

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