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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Wombat" data-source="post: 4763547" data-attributes="member: 8447">The question of placing moral dilemmas is a tricky one.  In a lot of ways it is determined not only by the game group you have, but also the game system itself.  Different groups of players will have a greater or lesser interest in moral dilemmas in a game, but looking at the expectations in systems themselves is also instructive.Consider White Wolf's WoD -- this is a game that assumes such problems will arise, although not matters are moral.  The character has stats not only for physical prowess and manual dexterity, but also for mental well-being and social interaction.  Vampires in WoD try to balance their need for human blood with their need to retain a semblance of humanity; changelings try to give voice to their inhuman nature while still fitting into the larger community.  Still, not every act is going to produce such a dilemma.D&D, conversely, is based combat and, as such, moral dilemmas are not built into the system itself.  Killing is common, something that happens in every (or nearly every) session.  Character gain XP for defeating (which usually, but not always, means killing the opponent).  Now this does not mean that there are no moral questions in D&D adventures -- I have seen them many times.  Still, it is not the common trope of such adventures.  Unknown Armies (a comparatively little-known game from Atlas) is based almost entirely around moral dilemmas.  All the characters are obsessed individuals and determining one's mental & emotional health is in many ways more important than one's physical health.  Session play revolves around emotional break points -- combat may or may not take place, but emotional and moral points are constantly explored simply for characters to advance.D&D is the most commonly played rpg in the country; WoD is number 2; Unknown Armies is all but unknown.  It is possible that the placement of moral questions in the game systems themselves.</blockquote>

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