...
So although saying yes always is unlikely to promote fun in a traditional game,..
ohhh! I'll take the bait on this one
Trad games benefit even MORE from "always say yes" ... here is my idea as to why =
GM: "You are walking down the road on the way to town. It's been hours and you are a little tired but fine to carry one. DO you carry on or rest?"
PL: "I carry on and stay wary of dangers."
GM: Yes, ok. "Roll Perception."
PL: (Roll = Fail) "But I do my best to look out, i will see or hear danger as it approaches."
GM: Yes, ok. "You see an orc, but before you can hide, he roars and charges you, what do you do?" (Roll = init, player first)
PL: (Roll = hit) "I charge the orc, spin and when it goes to swing its giant axe, I feint to the side and thrust my sword up into it's chest, stabbing and twisting till its dead."
GM: Yes, ok. "Panting hard, you put your boot to the orc head chest and pull hard to get your sword out. As you do, you see five more orcs roar their hate and charge you."
PL: "Yeah, but they are a ways away, so I run for the side of the hill where rubble is and try to get them to thunder across the rubble, maybe it will landslide them down to death or at least slow them down." (Roll = init, player first)
GM: Yes, ok. "You run across the rubble, and the bigger, heavier orcs stumble and slip across." (orc fail Dex) "They are greatly slowed. You can run on and leave them in the behind or something else. What do you do?"
PL: "I start throwing bigger rocks up the hill, and make a full on landslide to carry them away." (Roll = STR = success)
GM: Yes, ok. .....
.......................
At no point did the GM ever say "No". And even on a failed roll, the GM still respected the player's intentions and said "ok, you are still vigilant."
- And I obey all Rules of D&D
I feel this manner of GM'ing elevates D&D and Pathfinder very very much.
#NeverSayNo