Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Low Magic Setting, High Magic Characters
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Ovarwa" data-source="post: 7612898" data-attributes="member: 75153"><p>Hi,</p><p></p><p>There is a lot of advice here about how to stop characters from running roughshod over local authority or how to reach into the GM's endless arsenal of potentially infinitely powerful NPCs to teach those players a lesson.</p><p></p><p>It isn't even necessarily wrong advice.</p><p></p><p>Another approach is to simply not worry about it if you are willing to embrace your players' evil characters and encourage them. The stories will be different, of course. Your PCs are not Xena and Gabrielle dealing with the evil warlord of the week terrorizing the innocent village of the week. Your PCs are doing the terrorizing, and D&D is all about challenging the players, so your players get set pieces in which they kill heroes, sell unicorns for parts, and deal with villagers who make up for their weakness with numbers and tactics, kind of like kobolds.</p><p></p><p>Maybe the king has limited power more than 10 miles from his capital because the land is ravaged by bands just like yours, and of course there are opportunities for your PCs to band together with some of those other bands in pursuit of some greater enterprise, and opportunities to fight or betray them.</p><p></p><p>No need to rub their noses in it either. Just quietly and simply have them start fighting clerics of Pelor or whatever, always CR appropriate. Roleplaying has a part in it too, as NPCs react according to their nature, with decent folk manifesting fear, hatred or revulsion as appropriate.</p><p></p><p>Then things can get more complicated. If the PCs demonstrate that local authorities are impotent, what do they do when the weak villagers turn to them for help instead of the authorities to arbitrate disputes, dispense justice, defend their turf, effectively making them the authorities? (In a sense, isn't real feudalism pretty much about armored thugs on horses sometimes having to do a little more than despoil the people they have enslaved, pretending even to themselves that they are something better?)</p><p></p><p>So, there's a game to be had here.</p><p></p><p>But if you don't want that kind of game, if you want heroic PCs, it is best to be clear about that, and to handle players who don't or won't get it out of character rather IC.</p><p></p><p>Anyway,</p><p></p><p>Ken</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ovarwa, post: 7612898, member: 75153"] Hi, There is a lot of advice here about how to stop characters from running roughshod over local authority or how to reach into the GM's endless arsenal of potentially infinitely powerful NPCs to teach those players a lesson. It isn't even necessarily wrong advice. Another approach is to simply not worry about it if you are willing to embrace your players' evil characters and encourage them. The stories will be different, of course. Your PCs are not Xena and Gabrielle dealing with the evil warlord of the week terrorizing the innocent village of the week. Your PCs are doing the terrorizing, and D&D is all about challenging the players, so your players get set pieces in which they kill heroes, sell unicorns for parts, and deal with villagers who make up for their weakness with numbers and tactics, kind of like kobolds. Maybe the king has limited power more than 10 miles from his capital because the land is ravaged by bands just like yours, and of course there are opportunities for your PCs to band together with some of those other bands in pursuit of some greater enterprise, and opportunities to fight or betray them. No need to rub their noses in it either. Just quietly and simply have them start fighting clerics of Pelor or whatever, always CR appropriate. Roleplaying has a part in it too, as NPCs react according to their nature, with decent folk manifesting fear, hatred or revulsion as appropriate. Then things can get more complicated. If the PCs demonstrate that local authorities are impotent, what do they do when the weak villagers turn to them for help instead of the authorities to arbitrate disputes, dispense justice, defend their turf, effectively making them the authorities? (In a sense, isn't real feudalism pretty much about armored thugs on horses sometimes having to do a little more than despoil the people they have enslaved, pretending even to themselves that they are something better?) So, there's a game to be had here. But if you don't want that kind of game, if you want heroic PCs, it is best to be clear about that, and to handle players who don't or won't get it out of character rather IC. Anyway, Ken [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Low Magic Setting, High Magic Characters
Top