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Message: <blockquote data-quote="howandwhy99" data-source="post: 4331748" data-attributes="member: 3192">As I've already noted in this thread, what you are describing is widely considered bad DMing.  A DM cannot just decide the world functions in whatever manner he wishes it to.  Willy nilly. That's not what RPGs do.  That's a bastardization of the concept of DMing and RPGs in general.  Let's just leave it aside that GMs who do act in capricious ways are acting in bad faith towards everyone else sitting at the table.  How is this unclear?The DM determines, not decides, specifics in cases where the way the world functions is not yet fully known.  That means he has to follow everything that came before or fail in his duties as a GM.  Why even bother playing a game where the GM determines an 18 is needed to climb for Bobby, but a 14 for Susie because she has pretty blonde hair?  That is what makes no sense, and why RPGs were created in the first place.The agreed upon world is the ultimate authority on how the game world operates.  The thing itself is the definition.  That the GM has to determine what certain specifics are in corner cases not yet tested is not at issue here.  Just as a judge ruling from his bench is not issuing verdicts without basis upon the law, a GM is not deciding how the world functions based upon his or her own desires.  Their determinations must be derived from the higher authority of the world or be they are a bad GM.</blockquote>