House Rules Suck

[Alzrius]

I agree in theory. In practice, that almost never works. I started out being much much more of a rules stickler than I am today, and I expect I'll continue to mellow out over time. It's not that way with D&D only either, since I find that pretty much everything works differently in practice than how it looks on paper.

That's the great thing about stated policy, it doesn't have to be actual policy.

 

[mistergone]

Bah, troll or no, I can actually see something to the initial statement. I'm a big fan of not being afraid to make house rules if they seem to make better sense than an original rule in a book, or they make the game more fun for everyone.

What I don't understand, but have seen happen, is these freaks who get a new game, and page through the rulebook like Rainman obsessively seeking out bits they don't like and immediately crying havoc over them, then madly noting down how they will change that rule. This before they have even played the rules. That boggles my mind.

 

[Joseph Elric Smith]

Nice troll
house exist because not every group is generic, and so you modify the rules to match the personality of the people playing . just as not every one can wear a suit off the rack, or a shirt out of the package but need customized. so too is it with games.
ken

 

[Psion]

I'm sick and tired of people with their "house rules". I mean, why do it? Change this and change that, what makes people so arrogant that they think they know better than experienced game designers, that they can change things in the rulebooks.

LOL!

It's funny that you reserve writing rules for "experienced game designers." There are quite a few published game designers who have quite a few less years of experience than me at game design. The difference is primarily that I don't have QUITE enough vanity to sell my services for so cheap, and by the fact that most game designers don't work on products of their chosing, but what the company wants/needs.

I realized a long time ago that the notion that game designers are somehow better than me is entirely illusory.

Now, on the other side of the coin, I will admit that their are some people who shouldn't be designing games. However, the correlation between that quality and being published is not as strong as you make it out to be. Not by a long shot.

 

[seasong]

What, no points off for me catching you?

Naw, someone always catches a troll (that's why I just pointed and laughed instead). What he gets, is EXTRA points for people continuing the discussion even after the joke was pointed out.

 

[Henry]

I'm sick and tired of people with their "house rules". I mean, why do it? Change this and change that, what makes people so arrogant that they think they know better than experienced game designers, that they can change things in the rulebooks.

Wasn't April Fools over with two days ago?

Seriously, "experienced game designers" started out by being "inexperienced game designers" - as you well know, my Malls and Morons afficionado. Every different d20 games in existance is really nothing more than a collection of house rules, based on a core mechanic released in the System Reference Document. Some rules are more playtested than others, but ALL of them were "house rules" at some point.

 

[Henry]

I didn't see Talath's last post - add one to the list.

 

[MarauderX]

I house rule things for two simple reasons:

1. Streamline the game to take out all of the things that slow adventures down. I do away with such things as maintaining spell components and detailed encumberance. Why? It eases things for me as a DM, and if players want to keep track of all of that I let them but don't expect it if I don't do it.

2. Variety. Some players have every manual, adventure and handbook there is and if you let them, they will bully you around with respect to abiding by the rules. "The skeleton gets back up? No, I did 16 points of damage to it with my flail +1. Skeletons only have 10 HP, y'know. It's dead again." Ever hear that? I let my players know up front that things are slightly different in my homebrew world, and anything they should know they will, but if they encounter something they should assume anything. It leads to even more paranoid players, but at least they don't ever second guess the way the DM is running a game.

 

[JacktheRabbit]

Not only have I not learned the 3E rules (Haven't played enough to learn them all, yet), but now I gotta memorize the house rules for one game? And of course, that game tanks after 2 games. Then I find another game, and I gotta learn ANOTHER set of house rules. That campaign, too, tanks in turns. So I jump to another game. Learn a wholly DIFFERENT set of house rules. Whoops! That game tanked as well.

Wow, I better not let you into my campaign. You have the gamer mafia kiss of death down pat.

 

[Darklone]

Woah. This is a halfred dragon/half troll. It comes back after we put it into the flames

Really nice troll, Talath! That should be worth some extra points!