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<blockquote data-quote="howandwhy99" data-source="post: 3819386" data-attributes="member: 3192">I think these are getting close to the heart of the debate.&nbsp; Responding to the 2nd first, encounters are not predetermined by the DM.&nbsp; Four encounters per day may be the balancing mechanism in 3.5, but there is no implication that 4 &quot;EL = Party Level&quot; encounters will be met each day.&nbsp; Nor any such equivalent.&nbsp; The Players choose their battles, not the DM.&nbsp; At 20th level the PCs could seek out battle against single kobolds all day long, if they so choose.&nbsp; What they do is not the DMs' responsibility, it's there's.&nbsp; The Players choose their own fun.PCs/Players treat battles as their &quot;first encounter of the day&quot; only if they desire to do more battles that day.&nbsp; Of course, as things progress, they might change their minds.&nbsp; IME, most PCs/Players aren't always looking for battle.&nbsp; Typically they enter dangerous lands, dungeons, etc. to achieve other self chosen objects (even if it's just for gold and cool stuff).&nbsp; Engaging in combat isn't necessary for such objectives, but it's a possibility.&nbsp; Given that, most players will prepare for battle, but actually seek to find alternate means to achieve what they want.&nbsp; That's strategy.&nbsp; Why fight 100 lizardsmeng when you can poison their water supply and still get the XP?NPCs battling the PCs only face off if those characters choose to (though they might find running difficult depending).&nbsp; So DM Fiat is not forcing encounters on the PCs arbitrarily.&nbsp; That's poor DMing IMO.&nbsp; Foes the PCs do not encounter, but actually vice versa are the result of DMs roleplaying their NPCs.&nbsp; These then run, battle, negotiate, or whatever depending.&nbsp; That low level Wizard is very low Wis, if he is throwing his life away.&nbsp; ---Both those dependings based on personality, situation, goals/plans, etc.To Philip's 1st post, Intelligent players should want to rest and recover whenever it is safe to do so.&nbsp; It's the safety element that often keeps folks from doing so.&nbsp; &quot;Rest areas&quot; aren't built into dungeons so the players can sleep and face their next 4 battles.&nbsp; That's just as boggling to me as if I forced a time commitment on them every single day to get those battles in.&nbsp; It's frustrating and nonsensical to the world.My advice is DO NOT create any metagame understanding between you and the players about what they are supposed to do and what they can expect the Monsters to do.&nbsp; They can figure that out in character.&nbsp; Play the monsters as tough as their/your descriptions suggest and let the players win by their own ingenuity.&nbsp; They will seek out appropriate challenges based on their own judgments.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="howandwhy99, post: 3819386, member: 3192"] I think these are getting close to the heart of the debate. Responding to the 2nd first, encounters are not predetermined by the DM. Four encounters per day may be the balancing mechanism in 3.5, but there is no implication that 4 "EL = Party Level" encounters will be met each day. Nor any such equivalent. The Players choose their battles, not the DM. At 20th level the PCs could seek out battle against single kobolds all day long, if they so choose. What they do is not the DMs' responsibility, it's there's. The Players choose their own fun. PCs/Players treat battles as their "first encounter of the day" only if they desire to do more battles that day. Of course, as things progress, they might change their minds. IME, most PCs/Players aren't always looking for battle. Typically they enter dangerous lands, dungeons, etc. to achieve other self chosen objects (even if it's just for gold and cool stuff). Engaging in combat isn't necessary for such objectives, but it's a possibility. Given that, most players will prepare for battle, but actually seek to find alternate means to achieve what they want. That's strategy. Why fight 100 lizardsmeng when you can poison their water supply and still get the XP? NPCs battling the PCs only face off if those characters choose to (though they might find running difficult depending). So DM Fiat is not forcing encounters on the PCs arbitrarily. That's poor DMing IMO. Foes the PCs do not encounter, but actually vice versa are the result of DMs roleplaying their NPCs. These then run, battle, negotiate, or whatever depending. That low level Wizard is very low Wis, if he is throwing his life away. ---Both those dependings based on personality, situation, goals/plans, etc. To Philip's 1st post, Intelligent players should want to rest and recover whenever it is safe to do so. It's the safety element that often keeps folks from doing so. "Rest areas" aren't built into dungeons so the players can sleep and face their next 4 battles. That's just as boggling to me as if I forced a time commitment on them every single day to get those battles in. It's frustrating and nonsensical to the world. My advice is DO NOT create any metagame understanding between you and the players about what they are supposed to do and what they can expect the Monsters to do. They can figure that out in character. Play the monsters as tough as their/your descriptions suggest and let the players win by their own ingenuity. They will seek out appropriate challenges based on their own judgments. [/QUOTE]

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