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<blockquote data-quote="pdzoch" data-source="post: 6963911" data-attributes="member: 80982">This is an important point.&nbsp; The adventure is not only about achieving goals, but about the exploration and discovering that moves the story along in the game.&nbsp; Just as new fantastic sights are discovered and learned and just as new magic items are discovered and learned, so should new monsters be a discovery and learning experience.&nbsp; Unfolding the monster capabilities to the players is part of the story telling. Even simple clues that indicate their attacks appear more or less effective are important story telling items that the DM should always be prepared to provide the players. This is REALLY how the characters learn that the enemy is vulnerable to fire, or immune to sleep, etc.&nbsp; This is really how they learn the monster has spell casting ability, has blindsense, or can speak!I also make lots of changes to the monsters as necessary to the story.&nbsp; Many years ago I had a player or two who attempted to exploit their knowledge of the monsters during the game.&nbsp; They were horribly disappointed when they decided to slice open the roper (an act they never done before to any other monster) to NOT find some gem they expected to be inside.&nbsp; There was a frustrating moment when the monster they were fighting had class levels and a magic weapon, raising the threat of the monster higher than the monster manual and changing its attacks.&nbsp; One players stood up indignantly &quot;They are not supposed to have that!&quot; because of what he read in the monster manual.Players need to interact with the world as it is presented to them and play accordingly; not rely on other material to gain an advantage in the game the character would not have or game the DM's world.&nbsp; No good come from allowing players access to the monster manual during the game (or more specifically, during an encounter with a monster).</blockquote>

[QUOTE="pdzoch, post: 6963911, member: 80982"] This is an important point. The adventure is not only about achieving goals, but about the exploration and discovering that moves the story along in the game. Just as new fantastic sights are discovered and learned and just as new magic items are discovered and learned, so should new monsters be a discovery and learning experience. Unfolding the monster capabilities to the players is part of the story telling. Even simple clues that indicate their attacks appear more or less effective are important story telling items that the DM should always be prepared to provide the players. This is REALLY how the characters learn that the enemy is vulnerable to fire, or immune to sleep, etc. This is really how they learn the monster has spell casting ability, has blindsense, or can speak! I also make lots of changes to the monsters as necessary to the story. Many years ago I had a player or two who attempted to exploit their knowledge of the monsters during the game. They were horribly disappointed when they decided to slice open the roper (an act they never done before to any other monster) to NOT find some gem they expected to be inside. There was a frustrating moment when the monster they were fighting had class levels and a magic weapon, raising the threat of the monster higher than the monster manual and changing its attacks. One players stood up indignantly "They are not supposed to have that!" because of what he read in the monster manual. Players need to interact with the world as it is presented to them and play accordingly; not rely on other material to gain an advantage in the game the character would not have or game the DM's world. No good come from allowing players access to the monster manual during the game (or more specifically, during an encounter with a monster). [/QUOTE]

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