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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Oofta" data-source="post: 9048734" data-attributes="member: 6801845">Short version: I discuss potential issues (i.e. metagaming) with my players and ask them not to engage in those behaviors.  I expect mutual trust between players and DM.Long version: I think everyone plays for different reasons and there's always going to be a social contract at the table.  That social contract may include unspoken things like being civil and respectful of other player or explicitly discussed.  Some of the things I discuss are that I don't want to run a game for evil PCs because it's just not my gig, but also that you don't play a disruptive anti-social loner because it's a team game.But another one?  I simply ask people not to metagame when possible.  I'm pretty generous with what players know, trolls are common enough people know they need fire, people have heard the legends of lycanthropes.So I have no reason to expect people to declare actions using a required level of specificity to "prevent" any issues or behavior I don't want.  I don't worry about creating opportunities for people to do something I don't want to have happen.  If there's an issue or behavior that makes the game less enjoyable I'll simply have a discussion about it and ask people not to do that.As far as people not doing something that they would normally do if using metagame knowledge, I don't challenge the player sitting at the table.  I challenge the PC.  If Joe is a fellow DM who has an encyclopedic knowledge of monsters, I don't want their PC to have a leg up.  Of course you're always going to get an issue where Sue is going to be better at solving problems than Bob because she's more creative, but I don't want it to be because Sue's been playing D&D longer than Bob.  I especially don't want it to be because Sue knows my "tells" and has more experience with me as a DM.So when it comes to smashing a vase, part of that social construct is that I limit the result of PC actions to what I think is reasonable.  No, you can't punch a hole in a battleship that is constructed of oak planks several inches thick unless you're a monk with some special ability I've never heard of.  If you smash a vase and for some reason it makes a difference whether you use your fist or a weapon, I'll just ask for clarification and I'm not going to worry about the player changing behavior because I asked for that clarification because I asked them not to do that.I don't have to control player's behavior or prevent issues with techniques because we have mutual trust and honesty at the table.</blockquote>

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