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<blockquote data-quote="ECMO3" data-source="post: 9364592" data-attributes="member: 7030563">The reason people are attacking your analogy is because the analogy does have merit.People regularly make choices that are strictly worse than other available choices IRL.In game players make strictly poor choices in mechanical builds, in role play and in tactical decisions and they often do it knowing it is a bad choice.&nbsp; As a matter of fact, I think the number of actual &quot;optimal&quot; choices made in game is relatively low compared to the number of &quot;bad&quot; choices.It is part of freedom and in game it is part of player agency.&nbsp; Anyone who plays a weak character, chooses a weak spell or feat does not optimize or uses/attacks with a weaker weapon is choosing not to exercise a strictly better choice and that kind of stuff happens all the time in game.There are some (I would say a small minority) who do not do this and for them it does not present a &quot;real choice&quot; for those players.&nbsp; Those players want the best class, best weapon, most powerful spells.&nbsp; For them it is not a choice with merit, just like the gas-guzzler 4x4 is not a real choice for someone focused on more practical concerns like efficiency or size.&nbsp; But that is specific to that player.But even if it is a bad choice. it is still a choice, and it is a choice that has merit.&nbsp; I have played many PCs who used a whip often.&nbsp; One of the PCs I played got a whip with their background and was not even proficient in it and he still used it.Using a Whip is not wrong or bad play and there is no reason to take that choice away even though it is an objectively bad choice for many builds.Also as an aside a whip is an ideal weapon on a Paladin.&nbsp; In terms of building a powerful Paladin character it is the best and most powerful weapon to build around because of the interplay mechanics of Wrathful Smite.&nbsp; I believe the only time this is not the case is if you are playing a Bugbear Paladin.And this begets a point here; those people who play Paladins and are NOT choosing a whip (which is most) - are they making a choice without merit?</blockquote>

[QUOTE="ECMO3, post: 9364592, member: 7030563"] The reason people are attacking your analogy is because the analogy does have merit. People regularly make choices that are strictly worse than other available choices IRL. In game players make strictly poor choices in mechanical builds, in role play and in tactical decisions and they often do it knowing it is a bad choice. As a matter of fact, I think the number of actual "optimal" choices made in game is relatively low compared to the number of "bad" choices. It is part of freedom and in game it is part of player agency. Anyone who plays a weak character, chooses a weak spell or feat does not optimize or uses/attacks with a weaker weapon is choosing not to exercise a strictly better choice and that kind of stuff happens all the time in game. There are some (I would say a small minority) who do not do this and for them it does not present a "real choice" for those players. Those players want the best class, best weapon, most powerful spells. For them it is not a choice with merit, just like the gas-guzzler 4x4 is not a real choice for someone focused on more practical concerns like efficiency or size. But that is specific to that player. But even if it is a bad choice. it is still a choice, and it is a choice that has merit. I have played many PCs who used a whip often. One of the PCs I played got a whip with their background and was not even proficient in it and he still used it. Using a Whip is not wrong or bad play and there is no reason to take that choice away even though it is an objectively bad choice for many builds. Also as an aside a whip is an ideal weapon on a Paladin. In terms of building a powerful Paladin character it is the best and most powerful weapon to build around because of the interplay mechanics of Wrathful Smite. I believe the only time this is not the case is if you are playing a Bugbear Paladin. And this begets a point here; those people who play Paladins and are NOT choosing a whip (which is most) - are they making a choice without merit? [/QUOTE]

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