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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ahnehnois" data-source="post: 5787436" data-attributes="member: 17106">I think that your characterization of D&D players as being socially limited is unfortunate but not entirely untrue. However, I think the idea of a larger than life hero is not a universal one. I certainly have no interest in playing that. I use gaming to explore a wide range of dramatic ideas and character archetypes.My players often want to play modestly successful, peaceful characters. Or conflicted, nonheroic, or downright evil characters. I had one whose goal in life was to open a magic shop (which his adventuring really screwed up). Another wanted to play a warlock and explore how dark magic tempted him to evil. Another was a cleric who just wanted to serve his god. Another was a ranger who was biding his time as a messanger while trying to find his way in life. Another just wanted to participate in the game in any capacity possible.Larger than life heroes are perfectly fine, but I wholly reject the idea that D&D requires you to play one or assumes that you do. I also don't see why beginners should be forced into that role. Many players have no interest in it. Even for those that are truly playing the game as a form of wish fulfilment because they are unsatisfied with other aspects of life, I prefer to let them struggle to earn success. They may even exorcise some personal demons in the process. D&D is very much the American Dream in this way; anyone can strive for anything, but not everyone succeeds.That's a perfectly reasonable thing to want. My perspective is that getting everything you want tends to make the game pretty unsatisfying. I also think that the general conception of a fantasy wizard is not someone who has magic at his fingertips at all times, but studies and works very hard to learn it and thinks carefully before using it. After all, MAGIC is no joking matter.One could argue that a beginning adventurer being killed is perfectly just at not at all cruel. I don't think the idea of someone being stabbed by a seemingly inferior opponent and dying is absurd at all.That's a very draconian way of putting it. I'm not advocating teaching beginners that they are inferiors. I'm advocating teaching them that they are part of a dynamic story and that anything can happen, including but not limited to failure and death. I suggesting that they need to be taught that they cannot rampage around killing everything in sight without consequences. I am suggesting that they should learn to value their achievements and not take anything for granted. A lot of beginners don't take this game seriously.That said, I would categorize the life of the typical adventurer as short and brutal. This is generally true of any group of people whose lives revolve around violence; gangsters, soldiers, and so on. I do not, even in a game, advocate that killing other living things is a risk-free, carefree endeavor.D&D isn't most games. In any case, I think that's not true. Many games become easier the longer one participates in them. Many non-D&D rpgs-tabletop and otherwise-become easier in the late stages.I don't think the game assumes that. I definitely don't think it needs to assume that.That's not a bad idea, but I doubt it'll happen just because the traditional D&D level structure is so...traditional.</blockquote>

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