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What to do in this situation
- Thread starter Sam_Konkin
- Start date
Man in the Funny Hat
Hero
Superficially, I beat the DM because this is nothing more than a blind-choice alignment trap. I could pick either side to support for whatever reasons and still be dead wrong. I pick the villagers and ha ha now I'm an evil, murdering outlaw too. I pick the soldiers and fool that I am have joined the ranks of the evil oppressor and his willing lackeys. Take no side and I have no heart, no sympathy, no honor. The situation reeks of the DM trying to play Whack-a-mole with the PC's.
On another level there is insufficient data for a meaningful response. What do I already know about the town and its history? What rumors have I heard lately, if any? What class and alignment is my character and fellow party members? Is this in a dark alley or the steps of Town Hall? Are there any bystanders and are they watching, fleeing, or joining with/against one side or the other? Is anyone carrying holy symbols of deities? What are they saying to each other? What are the villagers armed WITH?
Of course, if I do nothing at all and simply wait for the situation to play out the DM will realize that I'm not biting and unless he intended for me to just watch while he played the game by himself he will HAVE to start providing me with more information to provide me with motivation to get involved - which he should have done in the first place instead of me having to PRY something resembling motivation out of him.
On another level there is insufficient data for a meaningful response. What do I already know about the town and its history? What rumors have I heard lately, if any? What class and alignment is my character and fellow party members? Is this in a dark alley or the steps of Town Hall? Are there any bystanders and are they watching, fleeing, or joining with/against one side or the other? Is anyone carrying holy symbols of deities? What are they saying to each other? What are the villagers armed WITH?
Of course, if I do nothing at all and simply wait for the situation to play out the DM will realize that I'm not biting and unless he intended for me to just watch while he played the game by himself he will HAVE to start providing me with more information to provide me with motivation to get involved - which he should have done in the first place instead of me having to PRY something resembling motivation out of him.
Alexander123
First Post
Yes, it's also possible that the guards are not who they say they are so you might want to interrogate them too. I wouldn't say the DM has given you insuffient information, in fact he has given you just the right amount and the any other information you may want is up to you to obtain. Also make sure you ask around to see if these townspeople have spent their whole lives in the area and are established or are newly arrived. If they are newly arrived it is more likely that they are bandits as opposed to the baker who has spent his whole life here and whom everybody knows.
frankthedm
First Post
How the hell is the choice blind? Its quite clear it is Order Vs Individual.
Alexander123
First Post
Actually not necessarily because if the civilians are bandits then it would not be order vs. individual since individuality does not mean being allowed to loot people and violate their individual rights. (property in this case.)
Well you've already made your first mistake getting involved without any reason more than curiosity. In future always remember to PLAN
Payment in advance.
Learn as much as possible about what your getting into.
Arrange escape routes and support in case of a double cross yours or theirs.
Never oppose the established order without a good reason e.g. a direct threat to yourself, your friends or your family or instructions from higher ups e.g as part of an invasion plan or putting down a corrupt noble on behalf of the Emperess.
Now you've already made a number of mistakes as mentioned . . .
1) You should have turned around and walked away from the sounds of combat unless you had a reason to investigate such as being hired by the town to keep order in which case you know which side you need to way in on. Armed peasants assaulting the duly appointed guards sounds like a breach of order to me.
2) If you felt that you did need to know more say in order to determine whether to leave town or merely move further away you should have sent the rogue/theif/ninja/assasin/sneaky sod in to quietly observe what's occuring and then report back hopefully without being seen.
You want to avoid making things worse so recommended actions (several have already been pointed out but I'll restate them here) are . . .
1) History/Local checks to determine what kind of culture/situation the local town has going on.
2) Spot checks to determine are the guards and peasants armed and equipped as you'd expect or does it not match up. If there's a local uniform are all the guards wearing it, if this isn't a warrior society are all the peasants carrying swords/spears/maces/etc.
3) Sense motive checks to determine if either of the pleas for help ring false.
4) Memory checks are any of the people involved familiar to party members e.g. the town farrier or a guard who was on the gate when you came in.
Further advice would depend on your party composition. If you don't mind what does your party consist of, why are you in town and is there any particular reason why you stuck your noses in when you weren't being paid to do so?
Payment in advance.
Learn as much as possible about what your getting into.
Arrange escape routes and support in case of a double cross yours or theirs.
Never oppose the established order without a good reason e.g. a direct threat to yourself, your friends or your family or instructions from higher ups e.g as part of an invasion plan or putting down a corrupt noble on behalf of the Emperess.
Now you've already made a number of mistakes as mentioned . . .
1) You should have turned around and walked away from the sounds of combat unless you had a reason to investigate such as being hired by the town to keep order in which case you know which side you need to way in on. Armed peasants assaulting the duly appointed guards sounds like a breach of order to me.
2) If you felt that you did need to know more say in order to determine whether to leave town or merely move further away you should have sent the rogue/theif/ninja/assasin/sneaky sod in to quietly observe what's occuring and then report back hopefully without being seen.
You want to avoid making things worse so recommended actions (several have already been pointed out but I'll restate them here) are . . .
1) History/Local checks to determine what kind of culture/situation the local town has going on.
2) Spot checks to determine are the guards and peasants armed and equipped as you'd expect or does it not match up. If there's a local uniform are all the guards wearing it, if this isn't a warrior society are all the peasants carrying swords/spears/maces/etc.
3) Sense motive checks to determine if either of the pleas for help ring false.
4) Memory checks are any of the people involved familiar to party members e.g. the town farrier or a guard who was on the gate when you came in.
Further advice would depend on your party composition. If you don't mind what does your party consist of, why are you in town and is there any particular reason why you stuck your noses in when you weren't being paid to do so?
Sam_Konkin
First Post
A Factotum (me), a Cleric, a Druid, and a Sorcerer...can't remember the two others, but they're both full casters. Everyone's level 9.
We're in town because we're trying to get across an ocean and this is the only port for miles around.
Nah, just because we felt like it.
We want to either keep bandits from looting the town or (depending on how powerful the ruler is) soldiers from oppressing the town.
Last edited:
Alexander123
First Post
I would agree with Senko. Why are you getting involved since they are not paying you, although I would add that not getting involved may possibly have consequences since silence is taken to mean consent if the guards turn out to be oppressors which is highly unlikly. (unless you Dm has decided that the good guys are the ones you don't side with to lead you into some adventure or some such thing.) Most likely the guards are just doing their job and these so-called civilians are troublemakers.
As far as taking over the town, I am not sure if Dandu was joking or not, but it might be possible depending on the town.
As far as taking over the town, I am not sure if Dandu was joking or not, but it might be possible depending on the town.
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