tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post6682401635291005823..comments2023-10-14T03:58:59.333-06:00Comments on The Tao of D&D: Writing Rules in BlackmoorAlexis Smolenskhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10539170107563075967noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-7532235150889356352012-10-24T17:15:35.379-06:002012-10-24T17:15:35.379-06:00I was going to comment what Butch said, but he sai...I was going to comment what Butch said, but he said it first. Except that last paragraph: I have no idea what he's saying there. <br /><br />As for some kind of solution, I think playing in multiple RPGs and under multiple DMs helps in the way any variety in experience helps. Think of a woodcarver who has worked in balsa for 40 years and then encounters oak. Frustration ensues. <br /><br />From my perspective the problem is that the player coming in assumes "we are playing X game, so the rules will be pretty standard except where otherwise noted". As you said, many rules need to be houseruled and there may be two or three legitimate ways to interpret it. If incomplete, there may be a half dozen ways to complete it that follow the pattern of other rules in the game. <br /><br />The frustration of the experienced player under a new DM is that DMs always change everything. There's always a "better" way to do something, whether that means faster at the table, easier to understand, more compatible with other rules, similar to other rules, more complex, simpler, greater verisimilitude, closer to a fantasy trope. The DM rarely goes by the book for the entirety of the campaign, even in cases where the rule is clear and reasonable!<br /><br />Part of this is the fun of investigating another DM's campaign. But part of it can be frustrating when the rule changes seem frequent and meaningless. From the perspective of the DM, it seems reasonable to say the player isn't adjusting well and he's a "problem player" but it's equally true that the DM can't leave well enough alone and should just run the campaign using his own fantasy heartbreaker. Stop calling it 1E D&D if it isn't, basically. <br /><br />That said, it's a fine line and people don't communicate well about it. On one hand the player would really like to know that the 2d6-damage Oil in this campaign is just the 6 CP lamp oil instead of some 10 GP greek fire, and that's why the kobolds all use it. On the other hand, the player should really ask about that stuff. <br /><br />I personally think any changes to the material in the Player's Guide should be offered as a supplemental packet for the campaign. If it's a change to the Monster Manual, DMG, or whatever then you shouldn't take that for granted anyway! In 1E AD&D, for example, there are complex rules for Initiative. It's not in the PHB even though players use Initiative all the time. Using this scheme, the DM wouldn't have to tell the players anything about Init until it came time to roll. <br /><br />HOWEVER the PHB has Reaction Adjustment under DEX. Which means if the Reaction Adjustment doesn't do anything in this DM's game, he should mention that in his packet under DEX. <br /><br />Does this seem like a lot of trouble to the DM? Sure. But if he can handle keeping all these house rules straight in his head then it should be no problem at all to type them up and print out a copy. If the supplement is as long as the rule book, just rewrite the player guide to suit. <br /><br />If a DM has a lot of house rules and says "oh that's too much trouble, I don't want to do that effort" <br />and/or "players shouldn't know my house rules" <br />and/or "I don't want players pointing at my house rules and assuming that's how the rule works" <br />then he invites confusion and frustration. <br /><br />So in the end, players need to be more openminded, but both players and DMs need to communicate better.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-68938860817957677142012-08-23T08:34:17.363-06:002012-08-23T08:34:17.363-06:00You know how in Monopoly, some people play with Fr...You know how in Monopoly, some people play with Free Parking being what the rules say it is (nothing), and others play where you get $500, or $500 + taxes collected, or some other house rule? And then some people play where you get double the "Passing Go" $200 if you actually land on Go. Or you can't collect rent while you're in jail. And so on.<br /><br />All of us had the rules we grew up with and those were the "right" rules, yet when you went to another kid's house and played by HIS rules, there wasn't the consternation that sometimes accompanies house rules in AD&D. Why is that?<br /><br />One part, I think, is because people love AD&D and don't give a shit really about Monopoly. But I think there's more to it than that. <br /><br />With Monopoly house rules, there's a finite number of them; maybe you do one or two things differently. You can lay them out ahead of time so everyone knows what they're getting into. And let's face it, if there's some absolutely bizarre house rule, what have you really invested -- 5 minutes to set up the board and an hour or two of your time?<br /><br />But with AD&D, with hundreds of pages of rules, it's impossible to lay out ahead of time all the different modifications and interpretations. By the time you determine the DM has some rule that absolutely drives you bonkers, you've already created a character, one you may feel pretty attached to and have invested some time into. And then that character is killed or otherwise adversely affected by a rule change or interpretation that you a) didn't know about ahead of time and b) don't agree with... yeah, that's going to piss you off.<br /><br />I do think exposure to multiple DMs, and maybe even various RPGs, helps. But in the end, there's only one to handle it: My way or the highway.Butchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00470617214750867482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-87189553938944449572012-08-22T17:53:17.022-06:002012-08-22T17:53:17.022-06:00Blackmoor is an odd duck a lot of it isn't Bla...Blackmoor is an odd duck a lot of it isn't Blackmoor. Arneson wasn't responsible for the whole book. Most of the underwater stuff comes from elsewhere. The adventure itself is interesting as an example of what other folks dungeons could be like in the day. The hit location rules do not work with D&D scale hp. Monks and Assassins are neat but just don't fit in every campaign; they are part of the kitchen sink approach that will serve to make D&D "difficult" for many to tolerate. <br />JDJarvishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07691101939920824546noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-61718453646355088262012-08-20T17:11:18.094-06:002012-08-20T17:11:18.094-06:00This comment has been removed by the author.rainswepthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06165059567790555748noreply@blogger.com