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<blockquote data-quote="Henry" data-source="post: 2246527" data-attributes="member: 158">A lot of people use this analogy (that of comparing D&amp;D to conventional games), but the analogy isn't accepted by everyone, myself included, because D&amp;D is not a conventional game. The DM by the nature of the role holds more power than anyone else at the table; it's the way it's been since the inception of the game; if it were not true, then DMing could be done by a computer that furnished the exact proper challenge level every time - you'd even take the human error out of the equation by pre-furnishing random charts that generated the adventure for you; that's just what it implies to me.Instead, a DM needs to be able to make an entertaining story, to challenge their players, and keep people getting what they want from the game, and to do this the rules as written may not always be the best way. For players who are solely &quot;tacticians&quot;, &quot;power gamers&quot; and &quot;butt-kickers&quot; (using Robin Laws' definitions of the &quot;emotional kick,&quot; or for players who prefer the &quot;simulationist&quot; style of game, as defined in GNS theory), this may work; for players who are &quot;method actors&quot; and &quot;story tellers&quot; and even for &quot;specialists&quot; (Robin Laws), and especially for those who like &quot;narrativist&quot; games (a la GNS theory) this will not be the best way to go about it.I'm more of a &quot;storyteller&quot; type, as is I suspect Celebrim is, also - if a DM has the status of any other player in what he can contribute to the game, and is MANDATED to put in the challenges as listed in the DMG, no more, no less, then the game holds no more appeal to me than D&amp;D minis, or a pre-scripted Neverwinter Nights module, or any other computer game - a fun diversion once in a while, but not why I play RPGs. I take this attitude whether I'm running a game or being a player - I like to know what the rules are ahead of time, but I also accept that what a DM says during a game, goes. The show, to recall a phrase, must go on.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Henry, post: 2246527, member: 158"] A lot of people use this analogy (that of comparing D&D to conventional games), but the analogy isn't accepted by everyone, myself included, because D&D is not a conventional game. The DM by the nature of the role holds more power than anyone else at the table; it's the way it's been since the inception of the game; if it were not true, then DMing could be done by a computer that furnished the exact proper challenge level every time - you'd even take the human error out of the equation by pre-furnishing random charts that generated the adventure for you; that's just what it implies to me. Instead, a DM needs to be able to make an entertaining story, to challenge their players, and keep people getting what they want from the game, and to do this the rules as written may not always be the best way. For players who are solely "tacticians", "power gamers" and "butt-kickers" (using Robin Laws' definitions of the "emotional kick," or for players who prefer the "simulationist" style of game, as defined in GNS theory), this may work; for players who are "method actors" and "story tellers" and even for "specialists" (Robin Laws), and especially for those who like "narrativist" games (a la GNS theory) this will not be the best way to go about it. I'm more of a "storyteller" type, as is I suspect Celebrim is, also - if a DM has the status of any other player in what he can contribute to the game, and is MANDATED to put in the challenges as listed in the DMG, no more, no less, then the game holds no more appeal to me than D&D minis, or a pre-scripted Neverwinter Nights module, or any other computer game - a fun diversion once in a while, but not why I play RPGs. I take this attitude whether I'm running a game or being a player - I like to know what the rules are ahead of time, but I also accept that what a DM says during a game, goes. The show, to recall a phrase, must go on. [/QUOTE]

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