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<blockquote data-quote="Water Bob" data-source="post: 5825430" data-attributes="member: 92305">I started this thread here because I'm going to discuss a problem I've been having with a player due to tastes in gaming styles.&nbsp; Moddies, please more this to the Legacy forum if you think it more appropriate.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;I've been having several problems with a player stemming from his dislike of how the game is being run.&nbsp; He finds a lot of things &quot;unrealistic&quot;, and it wasn't until today, after several gaming sessions, that I figured out his point of view and the cause of these problems.&nbsp;We're currently playing the Conan RPG, which is a 3.5 clone, pretty much, with some changes (magic system completely differernt than D&amp;D;&nbsp; Armor absorbs damage and doesn't make you harder to hit;&nbsp; etc).&nbsp;My player is a long-time AD&amp;D 1E and 2E player.&nbsp;These are two very different games.&nbsp; AD&amp;D 1E and 2E, depsite their wargaming roots, are very much free-form roleplaying games.&nbsp; D&amp;D 3E/3.5E is a tactical combat system.&nbsp;I can better explain the different in the two with an example.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;- Free-Form Gaming (1E and 2E AD&amp;D)-&nbsp;You have a spear in your hand, and you're traveling down a corridor.&nbsp; &nbsp;GM:&nbsp; You round a corner and you see a guard about 60 feet from you.&nbsp;You:&nbsp; What's he doing?&nbsp;GM:&nbsp; He sees you, draws his sword, and is running at you as fast as he can, yelling at the top of his lungs to raise the alarm.&nbsp;You:&nbsp; Great.&nbsp; I'll throw my spear!&nbsp;GM:&nbsp; Make your attack.&nbsp; You miss?&nbsp; OK, he closes the distance and swings at you.&nbsp; I'll roll his attack....he hits.&nbsp; Remove 7 hit points.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;- Tactical Gaming (3E and 3.5E D&amp;D) -&nbsp;&nbsp;You have a spear in your hand, and you're traveling down a corridor.&nbsp; &nbsp;GM:&nbsp; You round a corner and you see a guard 60 feet from you.&nbsp; Roll initiative.&nbsp; OK, it looks like the guard has initiative.&nbsp;As you rounded the corner, and you see this big, yelling guard charging you, he closes distance and swings.&nbsp; You're flat-footed.&nbsp; He hit.&nbsp; Take off 7 hit points.&nbsp;You:&nbsp; Wait...You mean I see a guard 60 feet away, and he can run that entire distance and attack me, and an AC 10, no less, and I never get a chance to throw my spear before he gets there?&nbsp;GM:&nbsp; You could have thrown your spear and/or done anything you wanted to had you won initiative.&nbsp; But, you lost, so your character is a bit sluggish with his reactions, giving the charging guard&nbsp; the time he needed to get to you.&nbsp;You:&nbsp; Hmmm....&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Those two scenarios are pretty much the root of the evils that have been sprouting up in my game with this player because my player can't seem to find the tactical combat method &quot;realistic&quot;.&nbsp; He doesn't &quot;get&quot; how every character is allowed to move and act for a full six seconds before, in initiative order, the next character's turn.&nbsp;He's more used to the give-n-take of freeform gaming where you work out, in narrative format, what you're doing, reacting to what your NPCs are doing.&nbsp; &nbsp;With freeform gaming, it's almost a gentlemen's agreement as to what is happening in the game, and partial moves are made all the time.&nbsp;With tactical game, there are regimented rules describing all possible moves, and a character's turn is rarely interrupted by another.&nbsp;Two different styles of play.&nbsp;I like both of them.&nbsp; I probably prefer the Free-Form, but that's not the game we're playing.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Do you know of any websites that would give advice on playing a 3E based game in a more Free-Form manner?</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Water Bob, post: 5825430, member: 92305"] I started this thread here because I'm going to discuss a problem I've been having with a player due to tastes in gaming styles. Moddies, please more this to the Legacy forum if you think it more appropriate. I've been having several problems with a player stemming from his dislike of how the game is being run. He finds a lot of things "unrealistic", and it wasn't until today, after several gaming sessions, that I figured out his point of view and the cause of these problems. We're currently playing the Conan RPG, which is a 3.5 clone, pretty much, with some changes (magic system completely differernt than D&D; Armor absorbs damage and doesn't make you harder to hit; etc). My player is a long-time AD&D 1E and 2E player. These are two very different games. AD&D 1E and 2E, depsite their wargaming roots, are very much free-form roleplaying games. D&D 3E/3.5E is a tactical combat system. I can better explain the different in the two with an example. - Free-Form Gaming (1E and 2E AD&D)- You have a spear in your hand, and you're traveling down a corridor. GM: You round a corner and you see a guard about 60 feet from you. You: What's he doing? GM: He sees you, draws his sword, and is running at you as fast as he can, yelling at the top of his lungs to raise the alarm. You: Great. I'll throw my spear! GM: Make your attack. You miss? OK, he closes the distance and swings at you. I'll roll his attack....he hits. Remove 7 hit points. - Tactical Gaming (3E and 3.5E D&D) - You have a spear in your hand, and you're traveling down a corridor. GM: You round a corner and you see a guard 60 feet from you. Roll initiative. OK, it looks like the guard has initiative. As you rounded the corner, and you see this big, yelling guard charging you, he closes distance and swings. You're flat-footed. He hit. Take off 7 hit points. You: Wait...You mean I see a guard 60 feet away, and he can run that entire distance and attack me, and an AC 10, no less, and I never get a chance to throw my spear before he gets there? GM: You could have thrown your spear and/or done anything you wanted to had you won initiative. But, you lost, so your character is a bit sluggish with his reactions, giving the charging guard the time he needed to get to you. You: Hmmm.... Those two scenarios are pretty much the root of the evils that have been sprouting up in my game with this player because my player can't seem to find the tactical combat method "realistic". He doesn't "get" how every character is allowed to move and act for a full six seconds before, in initiative order, the next character's turn. He's more used to the give-n-take of freeform gaming where you work out, in narrative format, what you're doing, reacting to what your NPCs are doing. With freeform gaming, it's almost a gentlemen's agreement as to what is happening in the game, and partial moves are made all the time. With tactical game, there are regimented rules describing all possible moves, and a character's turn is rarely interrupted by another. Two different styles of play. I like both of them. I probably prefer the Free-Form, but that's not the game we're playing. Do you know of any websites that would give advice on playing a 3E based game in a more Free-Form manner? [/QUOTE]

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