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Message: <blockquote data-quote="JamesonCourage" data-source="post: 5585660" data-attributes="member: 6668292">Aberzanzorax made a great post that I can't XP right now. He brought up the reward-stick. I mean, if I have a duke announce that he is going to reward the players for defending the town from demons in two days during a festival in their honor, is that railroading? I mean, that choice is obviously better than their other choices. They have no pressing matters to attend to. They know the duke is wealthy and that they're in his favor.The PCs won't feel railroaded. However, it seems like (and I say seems because I don't know what you think for sure, so I leave room to be corrected) to you that if it were a negative consequence, it'd be railroading. That's what I take issue with.If the demons threaten the PCs family in retaliation for their defeat, it's a consequence, not a railroad (even if I don't use the "threaten family" thing often). If the duke rewards them for helping defeat the demons, it's a consequence, not a railroad.How the players feel in terms of railroad is important, but as long as everything is on the up-and-up, and they aren't being herded by the GM, then it's not a railroad.Yep. And as long as it follows the same rough guidelines I posted, then it's not a railroad:If any threat is legitimately motivated, and not twisted motivation or prodding by the GM, then it's still in a sandbox setting. If you aren't actually on rails, then there's no railroad. There's definitely a difference between the two. Opportunities are often more common, but they're basically actions the party can take when no consequences from past actions are affecting them.The players might feel railroaded in a scenario, but if they do have a choice, and a legitimate one at that, then it's not a railroad, especially in situations where past choices led to the current scenario. Sure, you can assassinate three or four kings in high level 3.X, but when you become a victim of a "scry and fry" while you're sleeping to the united forces of the remaining royalty for revenge (or to protect their own hide), don't complain about it.If you stand up to the same demonic army for years on end, helping hand them defeat after defeat wherever you are, don't expect them to not retaliate eventually. If that means simply distracting you by threatening your family, then it's part of the consequences for your past actions.As long as everything is handled by the above guidelines (the appropriate motivations), then it's fine. I mean, players sometimes feel railroaded when the only way to deal with the shopkeep is by buying his stuff (working with the draconians). Maybe he won't barter or lower his price, even on a Diplomacy check (draconians won't let outsiders work for them). You might be able to steal from him, but as a high-end magic shop, he's very well prepared (draconian army and heroes prepared for assaults on their leaders). You can threaten his life, and he might be willing to negotiate now (if you can threaten the leaders of the draconian army, you might be willing to get a negotiation process moving forward). You can dominate the shopkeep magically (you can dominate the leaders of the draconian armies magically).Some are easier than others. When it's the shopkeep, very rarely are there cries of railroading, unless it's very much like your scenario, where "only X works, you just have to figure it out." If the other options are legitimately easy, difficult, or non-existent do to appropriate motivations, then it's not a railroad.</blockquote>

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