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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Cyronax" data-source="post: 4112802" data-attributes="member: 822">That might boil down to a style of DMing and gaming in that case. All but one player (out of six) in my gaming group enjoys a more objective setting, in which many of the details are presented as fact (and yes I have a fair bit of prep time per each combat encounter). In many instances they will probe for more information in case I hadn't described something to its fullest extent, but in most cases I serve as the world and its inhabitants, and the players travel through it. That's sounds like railroading, but it never feels that way to any of the players (and I have asked). Now ... let me say, I do have one player who often comes of with 'crazy' ideas (a term he's probably used before) that try to bypass much of the logic laid down in the rules (not my campaign). The player often tries to use rushed Diplomacy checks against an extremely sleighted/pissed off foe in order to head off combat. He complains whenever the party faces monsters with level drain or effects that last more than an encounter. He's the poster child for much of what 4e touts. YET, he is also the same player (of an aristocrat with add on marshal levels --- equivalent to a 4e warlord) who has talked his way into the courts of every noble of every land the PCs have traveled through (and gained their respect in most cases). He's 6th level and he regularly rolls into the mid-30's for Diplomacy.  All I will say is that from his perspective I am sure he will enjoy a more freeform ad hoc system for D&D. I don't yet know if I will or many of the gamers I know, both in my group and outside it. Rodney Thompson spoke in extreme terms that made it sound like a DM would be lambasted if he tried to check some wildly implausible uses of skills. I don't know. I'm optimistic that we're making much ado about nothing. I personally think the designers do themselves a disservice in some of their pro-4e writings .... but I'm definitely not the first to say that. BTW, I pre-ordered 4e already. I look forward to less prep time, but I want to read the skills challenges first. If they're like Uneartherd Arcana's variant rules ... then I have no problem. Likewise, I played through Escape from Sembia at the D&D XP (an eladrin ranger ... so much fun!!!) I actually tried to use History in order to get around the oncoming Guard Horde as a joke. I used a more glib example than a sewer grate, but the DM actually said no to my idea. I ended up using Athletics or Acrobatics (can't remember which) to finally kip up on to a roof and get out of their field of vision. C.I.D.</blockquote>

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