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Message: <blockquote data-quote="The Shaman" data-source="post: 4978580" data-attributes="member: 26473">But they can try if they want to, and it's the mechanical results that determine in they're effective or not. They might even get lucky and succeed, though the odds are certainly against them.Again, thatis a mechanical effect.In the last three or four years my view on abilities has moved toward the idea that they need only influence the character's merchanics, not roleplay, as Voadam, Mallus, and Dausuul suggest. There are a couple of reasons for this.First, one of the problems I've found with trying to roleplay the "mental" stats or "soft" stats is that it breaks my suspension of belief after awhile. An INT 5 fighter at level one could very well be a rube, but what about that same fighter at level nine, or level twelve? He's seen a lot, done a lot, and yet some would have him continue to be that same rube because the stat didn't change despite the very obvious experience the character gained. That strains my credulity.And no, I don't think sinking points into INT is the answer, if for no other reason than there are a number of systems where stats don't increase with experience.For example, a 1e AD&D Fighter Lord (9th level) will know a thing or two about the threat presented by different monsters and how to fight them. He'll be skilled with a variety of different weapons. But he may not come across as cultured or cosmopolitan because he doesn't speak anything but common and his alignment language - never picked up languages very easily - and no matter how interested he may be in magic, he lacks the capacity to ever become a magic-user - he just doesn't have the smarts for that.Second, for me it's preferable that the character's stats are reflected not in what the character does, but in how well she does it. For example, Boot Hill includes a Bravery stat. The character's Bravery score is reflected both in the character's Speed and Accuracy with various weapons, so a character with a low Bravery score will be slower and less likely to hit a target than a character with a high Bravery score. Some gamers might suggest that a character with a low Bravery score should be less likely to get into gunfights, but to me that's imposing a limitation on the player's decision-making about the character. The Bravery score will affect how well the character peforms in a fight, and that's sufficient: the character stands up to the rustlers (roleplaying choice) with sweaty palms, knocking knees, and shaking hands (ability effect). The Willpower score in Top Secret works similarly.So I'm fine with the "mental" stats represented more-or-less exclusively by mechanical effects and I don't see the necessity of roleplaying them explicitly.</blockquote>

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