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<blockquote data-quote="Umbran" data-source="post: 1106999" data-attributes="member: 177">Well, here's the thing - you use the LotR quote, but that rarely fits what happens in a gaming session.&nbsp; Gandalf said run.&nbsp; Gandalf was accepted as the leader of the Fellowship, and everyone recognized his knowledge. Does every party have a Gandalf?&nbsp; No.Frequently, in a gaming session characters fail to run because they don't have that knowledge.&nbsp; They aren't going to run if they've no particular reason to do so.&nbsp; And &quot;hints&quot; generally don't but it.&nbsp; Everyone in the adventuring biz knows about posturing.&nbsp; The fact that he makes himself look tough doesn't mean he is tough.&nbsp; The only way to (legally) know a critter's power is to either make the appropriate Knowledge check, or engage in combat.&nbsp; And once you've done the latter, it's often too late.For #2 - it varies among the GMs I know.&nbsp; Some will throw things the party cannot handle, others won't.For #3 - whether or not one can withdraw from combat depends entirely on the particular situation.&nbsp; If the critter is a zombie that moves slowly, sure.&nbsp; If, however, the critter is a flying dragon and your poor dwarf has a move of 20', you've got problems that the better part of valor won't solve.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Umbran, post: 1106999, member: 177"] Well, here's the thing - you use the LotR quote, but that rarely fits what happens in a gaming session. [i]Gandalf[/i] said run. Gandalf was accepted as the leader of the Fellowship, and everyone recognized his knowledge. Does every party have a Gandalf? No. Frequently, in a gaming session characters fail to run because they don't have that knowledge. They aren't going to run if they've no particular reason to do so. And "hints" generally don't but it. Everyone in the adventuring biz knows about posturing. The fact that he makes himself look tough doesn't mean he is tough. The only way to (legally) know a critter's power is to either make the appropriate Knowledge check, or engage in combat. And once you've done the latter, it's often too late. For #2 - it varies among the GMs I know. Some will throw things the party cannot handle, others won't. For #3 - whether or not one can withdraw from combat depends entirely on the particular situation. If the critter is a zombie that moves slowly, sure. If, however, the critter is a flying dragon and your poor dwarf has a move of 20', you've got problems that the better part of valor won't solve. [/QUOTE]

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