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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Psychotic Jim" data-source="post: 5227037" data-attributes="member: 547">There is a very good point here about a potential "arms race" between the players and dm that can make prepping a fun game more difficult (familiarity can breed complacency or boredom).  However, there are a few potential complications here about player knowledge ruining the "magic" of the game.A) It's assuming that all monsters/spellcasters/baddies/etc of the same race or class are all alike, both in stats and behavior.  Monsters can be individuals just as pcs, and can think and act differently.  If you as a dm know how your players think, then sometimes using the same monsters/spell/situations in unusual and unpredictable ways can throw off your players. For example, in editions prior to D&D, the Detect Alignment spell was a known mystery killer.  If the spell failed upon a target of their suspicion, it's likely that their suspicions are right on.  But if you have the villain cast undetectable alignment on a hapless bystander, then you've subverted the detect alignment and potentially created a red herring.  B) Player knowledge (or rather, presumptions) can be used against them.  Throw in an encounter with some “standard” zombies and skeletons to get them comfortable and complacent.  Then, in later encounters, sprinkle in some undead with some more... creative abilities.  One zombie explodes letting out spores or poison.  Another is a host to swarms of vermin that spills out when the undead’s cut open.  A skeleton's missed bone arrows spawn more skeletons. Sometimes these minor twists and surprises can throw you more off guard than creating brand new stuff out of whole cloth- because it combines the familiar with the unfamiliar and hits you when you're off guard.</blockquote>

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