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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ExploderWizard" data-source="post: 4678880" data-attributes="member: 66434">First of all, that was a nice detailed post. The soul of the game has always been in the hands of the participants. Modern games appear to be constructed to permit a wider range of mechanical options but the defining elements of the actual character were never in a D&D rulebook.  When two players of Original or Basic D&D decide to play fighters, the only differences between the characters (aside from ability score variables) must come from the player. The player defines the unique elements of the character during play. The two characters might have identical mechanical abilities but challenges can be overcome by these two mechanically similar characters very differently. Why is that? Its because the challenges are for the player to overcome, and not based exclusively on the abilities of the character.  Modern games provide loads of options for mechanical differences between characters. Characters can be mechanically different as well as personally different. More importantly, the challenges to be overcome in the adventure are constructed to make use of these mechanical options, such as feats, skills, and powers. The end result of these differences in play comes down to the manner in which the player approaches a challenge. Instead of a solution dreamed up by the player, the player has a menu of problem solving option chosen for the character to select from.  This is why so many "character concepts" are based specifically around certain mechanical options in the modern game. A player can certainly still develop traits and habits for modern edition characters but this is second to mechanical considerations which affect the success of the character during an adventure. Its true that in old school games you didn't have to give your character a personality or even a name to start playing but when action started happening a lot more of what the character was all about came from the player rather than pre-selected options on the character sheet.  In the end, it still really all comes from the player. The modern style of play simply allows the player to contribute less to the overall effectiveness of the character once the options have been selected.  While I think that the 4E DMG has some good advice for new DMs on how to handle things at the table it goes too far in defining what elements in a game are fun. What is fun and should be played out vs what to gloss over and skip is something I feel the individual DMs and players should decide. Rules and guidelines in a core product shouldn't be so heavy handed in influencing this decision.</blockquote>

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