Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is coming! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
The Next D&D Book is JOURNEYS THROUGH THE RADIANT CITADEL
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Levistus's_Leviathan" data-source="post: 8583637" data-attributes="member: 7023887"><p>Every single NPC in every single game of D&D is a "prop". Literally all of them are story devices used by the DM to propel the plot/story of the game. </p><p></p><p>I think that what you're complaining about is actually how this could potentially ruin the players' willing suspension of disbelief while playing the game. Every player already knows that the characters in the game aren't real, but their characters don't know that, which is what allows them to engage with the story and roleplay as their characters. Pulling back the curtain and revealing "actually, 90% of these characters don't have souls and are all doomed to terrible lives no matter what you do" can disillusion the players in the campaign to the setting. "What's the point" is a common question. It's similar to how a lot of people hate the "it was just a dream" twist ending when used in fictional stories. </p><p></p><p>I think this is a valid complaint, but I also think that the "90% of these characters don't have souls and are doomed to horrible lives no matter what you do" can actually be a good thing in aiding with the bleak theme of the setting. So long as you can pull it off without breaking your players' suspension of disbelief, it can really enhance the more horrific and grimdark elements of the setting and campaign. </p><p></p><p>And, as others have said, the question "but do they matter, even if they aren't real/don't have souls" is a compelling one. If Warforged didn't actually have souls, would it be okay to murder them? If a person in the real world had no chance of ever achieving anything great and were doomed to die in a horrible way, would you be right to kill them? If the world is doomed to end and take everyone with it due to the petty/selfish actions of just a handful of people, is fighting to try and save the world or ease the suffering of those that will die actually pointless? </p><p></p><p>To me, the answer to all of those questions is "no", but they're good dilemmas to bring up in-game and have your players (and their characters) ask.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Levistus's_Leviathan, post: 8583637, member: 7023887"] Every single NPC in every single game of D&D is a "prop". Literally all of them are story devices used by the DM to propel the plot/story of the game. I think that what you're complaining about is actually how this could potentially ruin the players' willing suspension of disbelief while playing the game. Every player already knows that the characters in the game aren't real, but their characters don't know that, which is what allows them to engage with the story and roleplay as their characters. Pulling back the curtain and revealing "actually, 90% of these characters don't have souls and are all doomed to terrible lives no matter what you do" can disillusion the players in the campaign to the setting. "What's the point" is a common question. It's similar to how a lot of people hate the "it was just a dream" twist ending when used in fictional stories. I think this is a valid complaint, but I also think that the "90% of these characters don't have souls and are doomed to horrible lives no matter what you do" can actually be a good thing in aiding with the bleak theme of the setting. So long as you can pull it off without breaking your players' suspension of disbelief, it can really enhance the more horrific and grimdark elements of the setting and campaign. And, as others have said, the question "but do they matter, even if they aren't real/don't have souls" is a compelling one. If Warforged didn't actually have souls, would it be okay to murder them? If a person in the real world had no chance of ever achieving anything great and were doomed to die in a horrible way, would you be right to kill them? If the world is doomed to end and take everyone with it due to the petty/selfish actions of just a handful of people, is fighting to try and save the world or ease the suffering of those that will die actually pointless? To me, the answer to all of those questions is "no", but they're good dilemmas to bring up in-game and have your players (and their characters) ask. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
The Next D&D Book is JOURNEYS THROUGH THE RADIANT CITADEL
Top