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<blockquote data-quote="rmcoen" data-source="post: 9716868" data-attributes="member: 6692404">I have to agree a bit with you on the &quot;sheaf of dead characters&quot; [also, remember &quot;sheaf arrows&quot;???].&nbsp; I have a folder in a box somewhere downstairs with the mirror of that - the waiting list of characters (with backgrounds) ready to go for when the next PC dies... and that one dies... and then that one dies...But yes, &quot;realism&quot; to me means there should be failures.&nbsp; There should be skill checks that fail, encounters that need to be retreated from, plots that go sideways.For this thread, though, &quot;failure&quot; can range from &quot;damn, I got hit&quot; to &quot;oops, TPK&quot;.&nbsp; I watched my kids playing Call of Duty this past weekend - I forget which mode - but it was &quot;hit&gt;dead&gt;respawn&quot; in moments.&nbsp; (rarely, &quot;hit, hit, hit&gt;dead&gt;respawn&quot;).&nbsp; The point being these supposedly trained counterinsurgents and agents take a hit and die.&nbsp; Even that damn purple neon ninja guy, who dropped 14 people before taking a hit... one hit, he was dead like everyone else.&nbsp; When that's followed by &quot;&gt;respawn&quot;, it's fine.&nbsp; When it's followed by &quot;&gt;sit out the rest of the evening making a new character, until the DM can insert the new guy&quot;, it's not as much fun.&nbsp; I don't want to spend my gaming time that way, and when I'm the DM I feel bad for the player who is in that situation.&nbsp; (Not that I pull my punches... I just feel bad.)So do I want a &quot;realism&quot; level that means a single bad roll of the dice eliminates a player from the evening's fun? [ignoring impacts to storylines and whatnot]&nbsp; Not really.&nbsp; I might accept &quot;bad roll = elimination from that combat&quot;, with some kind of patch up afterwards.&nbsp; Depending on the game system, that's still potentially sitting out a few hours.&nbsp; [I'll have the player take control of some baddies in that instance.]&nbsp; In my head, a &quot;real&quot; combat looks like - simple example - the swordfight in Princess Bride.&nbsp; many attacks, all parried or dodged; more attacks, all parried or dodged; a disarm, a scramble recovery; aha! got past the defenses, battle over.&nbsp;&nbsp; Or the battle with the torturer noble guy... PC fails the parry, spends a Hero Point to reduce the killshot to a wound; PC fails the parry, spends a Hero Point to reduce the killshot to a wound; PC fails the parry, spends a Hero Point to reduce the killshot to a wound; Dice finally go the PC's way, attack&gt;parry, attack&gt;parry, attack&gt;failedparry&gt;villain hit.&nbsp; Villain has no Hero Points, PC wins!</blockquote>

[QUOTE="rmcoen, post: 9716868, member: 6692404"] I have to agree a bit with you on the "sheaf of dead characters" [also, remember "sheaf arrows"???]. I have a folder in a box somewhere downstairs with the mirror of that - the waiting list of characters (with backgrounds) ready to go for when the next PC dies... and that one dies... and then [I]that[/I] one dies... But yes, "realism" to me means there should be failures. There should be skill checks that fail, encounters that need to be retreated from, plots that go sideways. For this thread, though, "failure" can range from "damn, I got hit" to "oops, TPK". I watched my kids playing Call of Duty this past weekend - I forget which mode - but it was "hit>dead>respawn" in moments. (rarely, "hit, hit, hit>dead>respawn"). The point being these supposedly trained counterinsurgents and agents take a hit and die. Even that damn purple neon ninja guy, who dropped 14 people before taking a hit... one hit, he was dead like everyone else. When that's followed by ">respawn", it's fine. When it's followed by ">sit out the rest of the evening making a new character, until the DM can insert the new guy", it's not as much fun. [I]I[/I] don't want to spend my gaming time that way, and when I'm the DM I feel bad for the player who is in that situation. (Not that I pull my punches... I just feel bad.) So do I want a "realism" level that means a single bad roll of the dice eliminates a player from the evening's fun? [ignoring impacts to storylines and whatnot] Not really. I might accept "bad roll = elimination from that combat", with some kind of patch up afterwards. Depending on the game system, that's still potentially sitting out a few hours. [I'll have the player take control of some baddies in that instance.] In my head, a "real" combat looks like - simple example - the swordfight in Princess Bride. many attacks, all parried or dodged; more attacks, all parried or dodged; a disarm, a scramble recovery; aha! got past the defenses, battle over. Or the battle with the torturer noble guy... PC fails the parry, spends a Hero Point to reduce the killshot to a wound; PC fails the parry, spends a Hero Point to reduce the killshot to a wound; PC fails the parry, spends a Hero Point to reduce the killshot to a wound; Dice finally go the PC's way, attack>parry, attack>parry, attack>failedparry>villain hit. Villain has no Hero Points, PC wins! [/QUOTE]

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