Sharing Information

[Dannyalcatraz]

Dannyalctraz what type of info are you talking about.

As you surmise, I’m not talking about withholding info that could get the PC killed in the foreseeable future. That wouldn’t make sense unless the PC had a death wish.

If, OTOH, a guard in situation B let slip a master/SysAdmin password, I could easily see certain PCs withholding that info because they think it will make them look like master hackers when they start delving into the enemy’s computers.

For that PC, the potential for accolades may well outweigh the utility of letting everyone know the password.

In a fantasy setting, I’ve commonly seen spellcasters refuse to share a spell found amongst the treasure, even if sharing would grea improve the party’s odds of future success.

 

[aco175]

I sometimes play with a DM-NPC to round out the party. This allows information to get out if needed. The PCs come into town after an adventure and 5 minutes later people in the bar are all saying great job with the orcs or I heard you just got back from Secret Dungeon of Death.

I also assume that the PCs would talk about things during the day and most of this gets out and the times the players act on information that they should not be privy to counters the opposite.

 

[Lanefan]

If a single PC would be the only one to know something then only that player gets the relevant info, and it's then up to that player-as-PC to decide when, how, and how much of that info to pass on.

Usually it's immediate, and if the player tells me so then once that PC gets in a position to report what it has learned I-as-DM will just tell everyone out loud what I was about to tell the one player in a note.

But if for whatever reason the PC doesn't want to pass on the info; or only wants to pass it on to certain specific other PCs; or intentionally wants to insert inaccuracies or omissions, it's not my place as DM to do anything other than let it happen.

EDIT to add: passing on info by note is also useful in case the PC with that info doesn't make it back to the party at all.