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Message: <blockquote data-quote="iserith" data-source="post: 6738542" data-attributes="member: 97077">"Reasonable expectations of what outcomes are possible" is achievable through understanding the context of the fictional situation without any knowledge of the rules. Someone who doesn't know the rules at all can certainly play by listening to the DM describe the environment and then saying what they want to do, knowing at a minimum that sometimes what they say they want to do will have an uncertain outcome which brings rules and dice into play at the DM's discretion.It depends on what you mean by "Rule Zero." If you say that means that the DM can change any rule at will, I'm definitely not referring to that. As I mentioned before when it was suggested I "ignore" rules, I am not changing them, only using them as needed which is in my view how rules are treated in an RPG - largely descriptively, not prescriptively.Again, players can make decisions based on what they understand of the fictional context of the situation. And I'm not suggesting changing rules "willy-nilly or on a whim" or indeed at all, nor am I saying to ignore them. In my view, they are tools to bring into play as needed. If they are not needed, they don't need to be brought into play. When they are needed is when there is uncertainty as to the outcome of a fictional action."Sometimes, resolving a task is easy. If an adventurer wants to walk across a room and open a door, the DM might just say that the door opens and describe what lies beyond. But the door might be locked, the floor might hide a deadly trap, or some other circumstance might make it challenging for an adventurer to complete a task. In those cases, the DM decides what happens, often relying on the roll of a die to determine the results of an action."- Basic Rules, page 3So for example if the barbarian tries to frighten an enemy with his or her menacing presence, I can decide that this was so easy that no saving throw is necessary - it just succeeds. If there is some circumstance that might make it challenging, such as that enemy girding its will against the attempt at intimidation, then a roll of a die is called for, in this case, a saving throw.Please note I will no longer be responding to any statements that suggest I'm saying or inferring things that I've already stated are untrue, specifically, that I believe my way is "right," that others are having "badwrongfun," that anyone is a terrible person for not playing as I play, that they'd have more fun if only they saw the light, and so on. I've addressed these assertions repeatedly already and I refer anyone who wants to continue with such assertions to my previous posts on the matter. It is an unproductive line of discussion. In my view, it's focusing on tone to avoid hearing the content which I find regrettable.At the same time, I will endeavor to double check my posts for any language that could be taken as inflammatory in the above regard. If despite my efforts, something doesn't look right, please see my comment above.If the DM decides on success, failure, or uncertainty (and ask for a roll), why would you want to ask to roll? Wouldn't you rather see if you can achieve outright success? I would never ask the DM to roll. I'd prefer not to leave my fate to the dice, if it can be avoided. It can't always be avoided, of course, due to the fictional circumstances, but I'm certainly not going to suggest there is uncertainty by asking to roll.Now, if the DM asks for rolls for pretty much everything, then the smart play as I see it is to get really good at building characters so that I can maximize my chance of success at rolling dice, then try to limit what I do to only those things I'm good at doing. Of course, the DMG does suggest there are drawbacks to the DM asking for rolls for pretty much everything.Not at all. Players are free to tap into their characters' abilities and awareness. They establish the fiction to do it and then I narrate the results of their actions, sometimes calling on dice to resolve uncertainty.</blockquote>

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