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What is the essence of D&D
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<blockquote data-quote="Lanefan" data-source="post: 7808700" data-attributes="member: 29398"><p>Silly? Or essential.</p><p></p><p>I'm big on in-fiction consistency (without it, the game becomes a waste of time), and part of that consistency resides in the PCs being, first and foremost, residents of the game world* just like anyone else there (i.e. all the NPCs). They were born here, they grew up here, they have friends here who were born and grew up just the same as they did.</p><p></p><p>Sure, the PCs maybe ended up being a cut above in one way or another, much like having a school chum who went on to become a Rhodes scholar - but underneath, that Rhodes scholar is still the same as you; and the PCs are, underneath, much the same as their non-adventuring contemporaries.</p><p></p><p>Which means, either the PCs are 'built' (a term I've come to despise) like non-adventurers, or non-adventurers are built like PCs. 3e went hard to the latter option; harder than I'd ever go, but then in my game there's very little difference between a commoner and a 1st-level character anyway and so I can leave it a bit fuzzier.</p><p></p><p>Giving logical abilities to generic monsters that they should have had all along (in 1e, for example, by RAW Giants don't get strength bonuses to hit and damage!) is an absolute no-brainer.</p><p></p><p>* - you can get around this by having the PCs be aliens from another world, but as soon as someone tries to bring in a PC native to the game world being played you're right back to square one.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lanefan, post: 7808700, member: 29398"] Silly? Or essential. I'm big on in-fiction consistency (without it, the game becomes a waste of time), and part of that consistency resides in the PCs being, first and foremost, residents of the game world* just like anyone else there (i.e. all the NPCs). They were born here, they grew up here, they have friends here who were born and grew up just the same as they did. Sure, the PCs maybe ended up being a cut above in one way or another, much like having a school chum who went on to become a Rhodes scholar - but underneath, that Rhodes scholar is still the same as you; and the PCs are, underneath, much the same as their non-adventuring contemporaries. Which means, either the PCs are 'built' (a term I've come to despise) like non-adventurers, or non-adventurers are built like PCs. 3e went hard to the latter option; harder than I'd ever go, but then in my game there's very little difference between a commoner and a 1st-level character anyway and so I can leave it a bit fuzzier. Giving logical abilities to generic monsters that they should have had all along (in 1e, for example, by RAW Giants don't get strength bonuses to hit and damage!) is an absolute no-brainer. * - you can get around this by having the PCs be aliens from another world, but as soon as someone tries to bring in a PC native to the game world being played you're right back to square one. [/QUOTE]
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