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General Tabletop Discussion
*TTRPGs General
Should NPCs Have to Follow the Same Rules as PCs?
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<blockquote data-quote="Umbran" data-source="post: 6569353" data-attributes="member: 177"><p>Yes, but if a GM is going to abuse things, the rules aren't going to stop them. Unless the GM posts all NPC stats and scenario information for the players beforehand for audit, the GM has way too many possible options for abuse that, "make the PCs and NPCs work by the same rules," isn't going to be a notable help. </p><p></p><p>"Let us take the really bad behaviors of users, and design our product to stop them," doesn't sound like a good design strategy. It will yield a product burdened with protections that get in the way of the users who are not engaged in those behaviors. Unless you have a really dim view of your customers, you are giving most of them reason to have to subvert your system to get what they want done. </p><p></p><p>Good users will look at the system, and likely avoid it as being difficult to use (see the many, many comments of how 3e was difficult for high-level play, and how GMs avoided that range). Bad users may do likewise, or will simply go ahead and subvert the system (see the many discussions of house rules, and how to do quick NPC design without bothering with the full detail of PCs). So, using this as a design consideration seems futile.</p><p></p><p>Designing some training for the user in why they shouldn't abuse the players, and how to avoid accidentally doing so, seems a far better approach than baking it into the rules.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Umbran, post: 6569353, member: 177"] Yes, but if a GM is going to abuse things, the rules aren't going to stop them. Unless the GM posts all NPC stats and scenario information for the players beforehand for audit, the GM has way too many possible options for abuse that, "make the PCs and NPCs work by the same rules," isn't going to be a notable help. "Let us take the really bad behaviors of users, and design our product to stop them," doesn't sound like a good design strategy. It will yield a product burdened with protections that get in the way of the users who are not engaged in those behaviors. Unless you have a really dim view of your customers, you are giving most of them reason to have to subvert your system to get what they want done. Good users will look at the system, and likely avoid it as being difficult to use (see the many, many comments of how 3e was difficult for high-level play, and how GMs avoided that range). Bad users may do likewise, or will simply go ahead and subvert the system (see the many discussions of house rules, and how to do quick NPC design without bothering with the full detail of PCs). So, using this as a design consideration seems futile. Designing some training for the user in why they shouldn't abuse the players, and how to avoid accidentally doing so, seems a far better approach than baking it into the rules. [/QUOTE]
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