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<blockquote data-quote="ExploderWizard" data-source="post: 7377358" data-attributes="member: 66434">The paradigm of play in the original game was: &quot; If the system doesn't specifically forbid something, then it is possible.&quot;&nbsp; If this were not the case then OD&amp;D play would be practically impossible. As rules were added to the game and more codification took place, there was a paradigm shift to the opposite spectrum: &quot; If the system doesn't specifically cover something then it is forbidden&quot;. That shift in the approach, especially by newer gamers who never knew any other way, did more to kill creativity than anything else. Before there was a thief class, being sneaky was still a part of the game. OD&amp;D combat is very brutal and unforgiving and avoiding unwanted combat encounters is important to the survival of fledgling adventurers. If being stealthy were &quot;impossible&quot; due to there being no rules for it, no adventurer would have ever seen 2nd level. Therefore, regardless of the absence of formal rules, the game allowed something that, while not defined, was not forbidden. Perhaps your players were not that creative? The game was written as a way to unlock YOUR (the player's) imagination. D&amp;D isn't much good at doing that if your imagination is limited to that which the authors have already imagined. The system being silent on some matters isn't stifling creativity, it is encouraging it. If the system isn't saying no, then it is saying possibly yes. Not my experience at all. The silence on certain matters is what opens up creativity. One has little need to be creative when detailed procedures for everything are all laid out and ready to follow. Necessity is the mother of invention. I disagree that Moldvay basic is silent on how to explore the game world. Reading the example of play included gives a fair bit of insight into how play takes place. The DM describes the environment and the players interact with it. As exploration takes place, the DM answers queries, and based on that feedback the players make decisions or ask further questions. Not exactly something that takes hundreds of pages to explain.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="ExploderWizard, post: 7377358, member: 66434"] The paradigm of play in the original game was: " If the system doesn't specifically forbid something, then it is possible." If this were not the case then OD&D play would be practically impossible. As rules were added to the game and more codification took place, there was a paradigm shift to the opposite spectrum: " If the system doesn't specifically cover something then it is forbidden". That shift in the approach, especially by newer gamers who never knew any other way, did more to kill creativity than anything else. Before there was a thief class, being sneaky was still a part of the game. OD&D combat is very brutal and unforgiving and avoiding unwanted combat encounters is important to the survival of fledgling adventurers. If being stealthy were "impossible" due to there being no rules for it, no adventurer would have ever seen 2nd level. Therefore, regardless of the absence of formal rules, the game allowed something that, while not defined, was not forbidden. Perhaps your players were not that creative? The game was written as a way to unlock YOUR (the player's) imagination. D&D isn't much good at doing that if your imagination is limited to that which the authors have already imagined. The system being silent on some matters isn't stifling creativity, it is encouraging it. If the system isn't saying no, then it is saying possibly yes. Not my experience at all. The silence on certain matters is what opens up creativity. One has little need to be creative when detailed procedures for everything are all laid out and ready to follow. Necessity is the mother of invention. I disagree that Moldvay basic is silent on how to explore the game world. Reading the example of play included gives a fair bit of insight into how play takes place. The DM describes the environment and the players interact with it. As exploration takes place, the DM answers queries, and based on that feedback the players make decisions or ask further questions. Not exactly something that takes hundreds of pages to explain. [/QUOTE]

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