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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Doug McCrae" data-source="post: 5929685" data-attributes="member: 21169">What do you make of 1e's approach to secret doors  - You may use either of two methods to allow discovery of the mechanism which operates the portal: 1. You may designate probability by a linear curve, typically with a d6. Thus, a secret door is discovered 1 in 6 by any non-elf, 2 in 6 by elven or half-elven characters, each character being allowed to roll each turn in checking a 10' X 10' area. This also allows you to have some secret doors more difficult to discover, the linear curve being a d8 or d10. 2. You may have the discovery of the existence of the secret door enable player characters to attempt to operate it by actual manipulation, i.e. the players concerned give instructions as to how they will have their characters attempt to make it function: "Turn the wall sconce.", "Slide it left.", "Press the small protrusion, and see if it pivots.", "Pull the chain." It is quite acceptable to have a mixture of methods of discovering the operation of secret door.- DMG, page 971e has a lot more rules than OD&D, so if it's true that rulings are less readily made by the DM when the rules cover more ground, then 1e should be significantly less amenable to rulings than OD&D.However 1e also has the idea of the DMG being off limits to the players, which helps preserve the DM's authority to make rulings, or even just get the rules wrong, and not be questioned. In addition 1e has a strong culture of DM authority generally, which also helps empower him to make a ruling in the face of a rule.I agree with you that there's something very wrong in presenting a set of rules to the players, as if they will be followed, and then not following them. It's, frankly, deceptive. But, 1e, as written actually doesn't present the rules to the players. Whether this is a good idea is another matter.Also, there seems to be a tremendous amount of variation between rpgers as regards attitudes towards the status of the rules. Some regard the rules as sacrosanct*, others as inconsequential save for implying a world or genre, and many are in between. For many groups, although the rules are known, there does seem to be an understanding that they won't necessarily be followed.*Then there are others for whom game-world is sacrosanct. Forgotten Realms canon-lawyers seem to be particularly common amongst this group.</blockquote>

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