Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Xetheral" data-source="post: 6957076" data-attributes="member: 6802765">Can you please elaborate on how protecting unfilled niches increases player agency? If the niche in question isn't present in the party, I don't understand whose agency you think you're increasing by including, e.g., an arcana check in a party without anyone trained in arcana (or intelligent enough to make up for the lack of proficiency). From my perspective, an option that cannot be explored isn't really an option at all.I also don't understand what you mean by the second sentence in the quote above. If one has the tools capable of completing a certain task (whether DM-imposed or PC-initiated), one is able to complete that task, and now has to chose how to and whether to complete that task. That's the opposite of not "need[ing] to do anything". By contrast, if one doesn't have the tools capable of completing a certain task, then, by definition, one don't have any choices to make at all with regards to that task. I run custom campaigns in a custom campaign world, usually in a semi-sandbox format. The players have agency because they can interact with the world in whatever way they choose, and the world reacts to those actions. If my players enjoy politics, I'll include more politics. If my players like to interact with potential hostiles, I'll reduce the number of mindless opponents. If my players love AoE spells, I'll include more minions suitable for roasting with Fireball.None of that customization in any way precludes failure. Customization of content is separate from selecting the difficulty level. The difficulty in my games is largely set organically by what follows naturally from the description of the game world and the choices of the PCs. Thus, the PC's often have a good notion of how difficult a given option will be, and can make their decisions accordingly. If they choose to take the dangerous/risky path, it's suitably dangerous/risky, but I'll still do my utmost to design that path so that it's fun, taking into account the players' interests and the characters' abilities.Perhaps I misinterpreted the bolded portion of the quote below. What do you mean by "you don't get to explore that option" if not closing off a possible campaign path?</blockquote>

Verification