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Message: <blockquote data-quote="pemerton" data-source="post: 9642665" data-attributes="member: 42582">A poster asked about GM-ed, D&D-esque games that permit a high degree of player agency - that are less "linear" and more "sandbox-y" than the sort of game that [USER=22779]@Hussar[/USER] was critiquing. I offered some examples.If you play D&D in a way that is similar to one or more of those examples, then your game is probably not of the sort that Hussar was critiquing.That said, one obstacle to playing 5e D&D in that sort of way is the lack of clear rules and principles for framing and resolving non-combat challenges. This is not an insuperable obstacle, but it's one that a group that wants to run a game with a high degree of player agency will need to tackle.And that obstacle is actually, probably, two slightly different obstacles: the rules for ability/skill checks (as presented in the rulebooks, these are not very tight; they will need tightening to play in a way similar to the games I mentioned); and the fact that the use of non-combat spells doesn't normally involve any risk of failure, making it hard to incorporate their use into the overall dynamic of play other than by way of GM fiat. (4e D&D deals with this issue by having ritual use just be one move within the context of a skill challenge.)Burning Wheel lists AD&D as one of its inspirations. It is a FRPG with Humans, Elves, Dwarves and Orcs, and one in which humans can be wizards who learn discrete spells, or faithful priest who call down miracles from their deities.Dungeon World, in its Influences appendix, states thatVincent Baker’s Apocalypse World, as well as Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson’s Dungeons and Dragons are the reason we made this game. The Dungeons and Dragons Basic Set, edited by Tom Moldvay, and Advanced Dungeons and Dragons were our references of choice.Characters in DW are Bards, Clerics, Druids, Fighters, Paladins, Rangers, Thieves and Wizards. They are Halflings, Elves, Dwarves and Humans. They are statted up with STR, INT, WIS, DEX, CON and CHA (rated from 3 to 18, with adjustments from -3 to +3). They deliver, and suffer, hit points of damage.Now of course if you define D&D's playstyle as GM decides and is never bound by rules, then these games are not D&D-like. But in that case, why did you ask a question to which you already knew the answer?</blockquote>

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