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<blockquote data-quote="CleverNickName" data-source="post: 4300297" data-attributes="member: 50987">I feel your pain, Wally.&nbsp; I'm having a hard time wrapping my left-brain around the right-brain stuff as well.In this forum, you are typically going to get two kinds of answers: you will get the realism vs. gamism argument, where people discuss how the game is not like real-life and how that is/is not a problem, and you will get the players vs. characters argument, where people discuss how the players do not have the same brain as the characters and how that is/is not possible.&nbsp; These arguments may or may not help you with your question, but wow, they sure are passionate.&nbsp; <img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/paranoid.png"&nbsp; class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":uhoh:" title="Paranoid&nbsp; &nbsp; :uhoh:" data-shortname=":uhoh:" />The best answer is to continue doing it the way that you did it in previous editions.&nbsp; Why can the cleric only Turn the undead a certain number of times per day...is it because she runs out of stamina, or is it because her god is testing her faith?&nbsp; Explainations of that restriction will vary greatly, depending on your campaign and game style.&nbsp; Well, it is pretty much the same situation in 4E, except that there are a lot more &quot;per day&quot; (or worse, &quot;per encounter&quot;) things to have to describe--everything from why a fighter can only do a certain maneuver once per day, to why a rogue can only use certain weapons under certain conditions to execute a sneak attack.&nbsp; No single answer is going to work for every player, power, and situation, but the rule still has to be enforced in order for the game to stay balanced.My advice: start with the rule, and then ask for feedback from the player to work that restriction backwards into the story.&nbsp; Maybe something like this:-----Player: &quot;Why can't I use my daily power again?&nbsp; It's not a magical ability, it is just me swinging my axe.&quot;You: &quot;The rules say that it can only be used once per day, but they don't say why.&nbsp; So...what could be different this time?&nbsp; What is stopping your character from being able to do it?&quot;Player:&nbsp; &quot;Absolutely nothing.&nbsp; So, can I use it again?&quot;You:&nbsp; &quot;Nice try, but no.&nbsp; Something has to be stopping you.&nbsp; Try to think of something.&nbsp; Maybe you pulled a muscle the last time you used it, and you don't feel up to it?&quot;Player: &quot;I'm not injured, though.&nbsp; And it sounds contrived, no offense.&quot;You: &quot;Well...you tell me, then.&quot;Player:&nbsp; &quot;Um...well, maybe this particular monster has seen this maneuver before?&nbsp; Maybe he knows how to hold his shield just right, to keep me from setting him up?&quot;You: &quot;Works for me.&quot;-----Yes, it is a lot of work and it will pull the player &quot;out of the moment.&quot;&nbsp; But it is still preferable to a heated rules argument at the table, when other people are waiting their turn to use an action.&nbsp; You won't have to do it every time; just the first few gaming sessions until you and your players get the hang of it.&nbsp; It's challenging, preserving the flavor of your game while keeping the rules balanced.&nbsp; But eventually, through a lot of patience and participation on both sides of the DM screen, you will be able to work it out.And best of luck with those square fireballs.&nbsp; I've got nothing.&nbsp; <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile&nbsp; &nbsp; :)"&nbsp; data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /></blockquote>

[QUOTE="CleverNickName, post: 4300297, member: 50987"] I feel your pain, Wally. I'm having a hard time wrapping my left-brain around the right-brain stuff as well. In this forum, you are typically going to get two kinds of answers: you will get the realism vs. gamism argument, where people discuss how the game is not like real-life and how that is/is not a problem, and you will get the players vs. characters argument, where people discuss how the players do not have the same brain as the characters and how that is/is not possible. These arguments may or may not help you with your question, but wow, they sure are passionate. :uhoh: The best answer is to continue doing it the way that you did it in previous editions. Why can the cleric only Turn the undead a certain number of times per day...is it because she runs out of stamina, or is it because her god is testing her faith? Explainations of that restriction will vary greatly, depending on your campaign and game style. Well, it is pretty much the same situation in 4E, except that there are a lot more "per day" (or worse, "per encounter") things to have to describe--everything from why a fighter can only do a certain maneuver once per day, to why a rogue can only use certain weapons under certain conditions to execute a sneak attack. No single answer is going to work for every player, power, and situation, but the rule still has to be enforced in order for the game to stay balanced. My advice: start with the rule, and then ask for feedback [I]from the player[/I] to work that restriction backwards into the story. Maybe something like this: ----- Player: "Why can't I use my daily power again? It's not a magical ability, it is just me swinging my axe." You: "The rules say that it can only be used once per day, but they don't say why. So...what could be different this time? What is stopping your character from being able to do it?" Player: "Absolutely nothing. So, can I use it again?" You: "Nice try, but no. Something has to be stopping you. Try to think of something. Maybe you pulled a muscle the last time you used it, and you don't feel up to it?" Player: "I'm not injured, though. And it sounds contrived, no offense." You: "Well...you tell me, then." Player: "Um...well, maybe this particular monster has seen this maneuver before? Maybe he knows how to hold his shield just right, to keep me from setting him up?" You: "Works for me." ----- Yes, it is a lot of work and it will pull the player "out of the moment." But it is still preferable to a heated rules argument at the table, when other people are waiting their turn to use an action. You won't have to do it every time; just the first few gaming sessions until you and your players get the hang of it. It's challenging, preserving the flavor of your game while keeping the rules balanced. But eventually, through a lot of patience and participation on both sides of the DM screen, you will be able to work it out. And best of luck with those square fireballs. I've got nothing. :) [/QUOTE]

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