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<blockquote data-quote="Umbran" data-source="post: 199789" data-attributes="member: 177">No, not wrong.&nbsp; You seem to be completely missing the point.&nbsp; The consistency I'm talking about isn't in what the character observes, but in how they interpret those observations. The characters may observe that, &quot;She seems to have a certain authority about her but she doesn't move with the grace normally associated with one in her position.&quot;&nbsp; But, without some consistency behind how NPCs are constructed, they cannot reliably interpret that to really mean anything.&nbsp; And if they don't know what data means, they cannot effectively plan.If you're following the rules, running into an NPC with one high skill probably means they will have other high skills, and may well be tough in battle, etc.&nbsp; If you are doing things ad hoc without considering the usual rules, then you can draw no real conclusions from the data.&nbsp; If they run into someone with a high Listen score, maybe the NPC is higher level, and maybe the DM just wanted to give the PCs a hard time sneaking around.Players should be able to make judgements based upon the data they can percieve.&nbsp; If there aren't some fairly consistent rules, you greatly weaken their ability to do so.&nbsp; Not being able to make reasonably reliable deductions tends to make players reactive, rather than pro-active, as they cannot make plans if they cannot make informed guesses about what they face.Following rules also enhances your ability to genuinely surprise players.&nbsp; If they detect that you don't follow the rules, they will stop making assumptions and having expectations, and the easiest way to avoid surprise is to expect nothing in particular.&nbsp; If, instead, you show definite patterns, they will generally see value in learning the patterns, and expecting them to be followed.&nbsp; Then, when you throw them the ringer, they will be genuinely off-guard.&nbsp; The rules you follow don't have to be the DMG's.&nbsp; They just have to follow a logic the players can learn and use - something more than &quot;the DM felt like it&quot;.&nbsp; This can give your world a verisimilitude you won't get using ad hoc characters that have skills and abilities just because it's how you think it should be at that moment.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Umbran, post: 199789, member: 177"] No, not wrong. You seem to be completely missing the point. The consistency I'm talking about isn't in what the character observes, but in how they interpret those observations. The characters may observe that, "She seems to have a certain authority about her but she doesn't move with the grace normally associated with one in her position." But, without some consistency behind how NPCs are constructed, they cannot reliably interpret that to really [i]mean[/i] anything. And if they don't know what data means, they cannot effectively plan. If you're following the rules, running into an NPC with one high skill probably means they will have other high skills, and may well be tough in battle, etc. If you are doing things ad hoc without considering the usual rules, then you can draw no real conclusions from the data. If they run into someone with a high Listen score, maybe the NPC is higher level, and maybe the DM just wanted to give the PCs a hard time sneaking around. Players should be able to make judgements based upon the data they can percieve. If there aren't some fairly consistent rules, you greatly weaken their ability to do so. Not being able to make reasonably reliable deductions tends to make players reactive, rather than pro-active, as they cannot make plans if they cannot make informed guesses about what they face. Following rules also [i]enhances[/i] your ability to genuinely surprise players. If they detect that you don't follow the rules, they will stop making assumptions and having expectations, and the easiest way to avoid surprise is to expect nothing in particular. If, instead, you show definite patterns, they will generally see value in learning the patterns, and expecting them to be followed. Then, when you throw them the ringer, they will be genuinely off-guard. The rules you follow don't have to be the DMG's. They just have to follow a logic the players can learn and use - something more than "the DM felt like it". This can give your world a verisimilitude you won't get using ad hoc characters that have skills and abilities just because it's how you think it should be at that moment. [/QUOTE]

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