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

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="ProfessorCirno" data-source="post: 5095314" data-attributes="member: 65637">When I first started playing, I didn't even know what the rules were.  Then again, I was, like, 10, and the party was made of Link, Merlin, Aragorn, and some rogue who had a name with "Butts" in it.Chris probably isn't a bad DM.  Can't watch all those videos now, unfortunately.  He just made a bad call.  We all do it.  And it wasn't a bad call because he wouldn't let them use the power, he just gave a bad reason for it.  In of itself?  Not a big deal.The issue is what the bad call can become.  When the call is "no, look at how specific these mechanics work," the new player is being shut down due to mechanics, and that becomes the focus.I'm seeing an issue now in a SWSE game I'm in.  One player is a jedi consular, but can't think outside the box at all and is always upset that he feels he can't contribute to anything outside of combat, which has me scratching my head, since he probably has the most things he can do outside of combat other then the scoundrel.  But the issue is, he's not looking past his mechanics.  He doesn't go "Can I try Use the Force to _____?"  He says "Well I have Power X, Power Y, and Power Z, and I can't think of what to do with them :I"Being or feeling caged in by mechanics is terrible, because it limits the very reason tabletop games are awesome - you aren't limited to pre-programmed scenarios, you can jump around on your own thing.  In said SWSE game, we found ourselves aboard a ship run by a small time crime lord who used the Force to enslave others and then sell them.  When we came across a group of servants wearing collars who came down to check up on the engine room, we decided that they were under mind control and that we'd disarm them and then free them.  The GM later told us that planned for them to be just run of the mill enemies, but decided to go with our plan in spite of that.  There weren't any mechanics for us to break them free of the mind control other then one or two very specific powers that were "sortas," but he let us give it a try anyways.If all you're going to do is play strictly by the mechanics and never try doing your own thing, regardless of the edition?  Just play a video game.That's why this thread is such a big thing - the issue wasn't one of creativity, and it wasn't even an issue of them trying to use a power to do something they couldn't - the issue is the reason he gave, which was rule minutia to the goddamn max.  I don't think this is an X Edition Only thing, but getting caught in rule minutia and closing the box around is a problem.</blockquote>

Verification