Perhaps I could have used a better adjective than 'Trite', since the definition you point out wasn't exactly what I was trying to convey.
In an RPG my suspension of disbelief can only go so far. I find the idea that someone could make a History check or whatever to find a passage out of their prison cell just too hard to believe.
Also, you and I have a fundamental disagreement over whether it's a good thing for the PCs to take over the narrative. In my opinion, the game is most fun when the players assume control over their characters actions, and the GM keeps control of what the world is like.
The problem with players taking narrative control is that there aren't any good boundaries for how far that control should go. Can the player use his History check to find a sewer entrance? OK, if that works, how about finding a loaded crossbow in a barrel? Or a treasure chest? I just disagree with the whole approach to roleplaying; I rejected it in my games in the 80s and 90s when the Storyteller system came into vogue, and I reject it now. It isn't fun for me; nor is it for the friends I have grown up playing RPGs with over the years.
When the PCs get captured, having the game stay fun does demand that they find a way to escape, since it isn't fun to roleplay staying in a prison cell for years on end. But I think that there are lots of ways to have that happen that are a lot more believable than just finding a secret passage leading out of your cell because you're a great historian.
Bribing a guard, for example. You're right that I shouldn't have used the word 'trite', because the truth is, we do see this in media a lot. But we see it in films and TV shows precisely because it's believable; it's more believeable in '24', for example, for Jack Bauer to overpower his guard by feigning illness, or bribe him, or be rescued by his friends, than for Jack Bauer to find a secret passage leading out of his prison cell.
But let's take this example ; bribing the guard . In my opinion, it should require one of a few specific skills (Bluff, or Diplomacy, for example). It isn't a good idea for the DM to let someone use their 'History' skill to bribe the guard.
I suppose some player could say that he used his History skill to remember that a distinguishing characteristic of the guard's face meant that he was a member of a family/clan that had been ancient allies of the PC.
But that would be a poor thing for the DM to allow, because allowing a PC to become a 'one-trick skill pony' diminishes the role of the skill system, devaluing the choice that the rogue made, for example, when he took a class that offered less combat power and more skill choices, rather than just playing an 8 INT Fighter and putting all his skill points into History. When you're thrown into prison, it should be good time to be a Rogue.
Ken
Vyvyan Basterd said:
How are any of your examples less trite than asking if there is a ventilation shaft (sorry now it's a implausible laundry chute that 'magically appears')?
trite adj - "lacking in freshness or effectiveness because of constant use or excessive repetition; hackneyed; stale"
All of your examples are just as trite as the ventilation shaft as all four examples have been portrayed in various media.
The point of the article was to ne flexible and work with player's solutions to problems to make the game more interesting for the player. Some DMs here seem to take it personally when it is suggested that the players may actually have good story ideas too.
Edit: And if you let the players join in the creative process you are more likely to discover ideas that are not trite.
