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Fighters vs. Spellcasters (a case for fighters.)
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<blockquote data-quote="Ahnehnois" data-source="post: 6205358" data-attributes="member: 17106"><p>Is that statement true? I guess so. But it's very difficult for a DM to run a game without predetermining anything. How many people are really running a 100% improv game? If not, you've predetermined something.</p><p></p><p>And it might not be a question of a DM knowing or dictating one particular outcome. I find that typically I enter a campaign with some thematic goals in mind, and that even my interpretation of basic task resolution can be affected by those themes in subtle but pervasive ways.</p><p></p><p>That's fine, and I can see the appeal of a certain emergent aspect of that approach.</p><p></p><p>But man, it's hard. I've tried that philosophy and I find it so much easier to DM when I plan some things and advance and then improvise around them, rather than trying to let everything run out of my control. It's very difficult to run a cohesive improvisation, and (unlike most people here, I would guess), I have actual training in improvisation.</p><p></p><p>Taking a fairly literal definition of both, I think metagaming is antithetical to roleplaying. Since this is a roleplaying game, I'd say that makes metagaming a bad thing, something I want to avoid. Is it possible to completely 100% eliminate a player's out of character knowledge? Perhaps not. But I think it's important to get as close as possible.</p><p></p><p>Let's say we're talking about the players trying to Diplo an NPC, and the NPC is secretly possessed by a demon. If the players know that their roll exceeded the normal DC and they didn't get the response they were expecting, they'll start to get suspicious of the NPC. That's bad. On the other hand, if the DM just tells them the NPC doesn't do what they want without rolling, or if he makes them roll but decides that the DC is so high they can't make it, then there's more ambiguity. And the more NPCs you do that with, the more ambiguity there is. Then, the player legitimately can't tell what's going on. Just like his character.</p><p></p><p>I get surprised pretty often.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ahnehnois, post: 6205358, member: 17106"] Is that statement true? I guess so. But it's very difficult for a DM to run a game without predetermining anything. How many people are really running a 100% improv game? If not, you've predetermined something. And it might not be a question of a DM knowing or dictating one particular outcome. I find that typically I enter a campaign with some thematic goals in mind, and that even my interpretation of basic task resolution can be affected by those themes in subtle but pervasive ways. That's fine, and I can see the appeal of a certain emergent aspect of that approach. But man, it's hard. I've tried that philosophy and I find it so much easier to DM when I plan some things and advance and then improvise around them, rather than trying to let everything run out of my control. It's very difficult to run a cohesive improvisation, and (unlike most people here, I would guess), I have actual training in improvisation. Taking a fairly literal definition of both, I think metagaming is antithetical to roleplaying. Since this is a roleplaying game, I'd say that makes metagaming a bad thing, something I want to avoid. Is it possible to completely 100% eliminate a player's out of character knowledge? Perhaps not. But I think it's important to get as close as possible. Let's say we're talking about the players trying to Diplo an NPC, and the NPC is secretly possessed by a demon. If the players know that their roll exceeded the normal DC and they didn't get the response they were expecting, they'll start to get suspicious of the NPC. That's bad. On the other hand, if the DM just tells them the NPC doesn't do what they want without rolling, or if he makes them roll but decides that the DC is so high they can't make it, then there's more ambiguity. And the more NPCs you do that with, the more ambiguity there is. Then, the player legitimately can't tell what's going on. Just like his character. I get surprised pretty often. [/QUOTE]
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