Recent content by Hriston

I don't know what the GM's reason is for violating table expectations to control my character's choices. Why do you assume it's aesthetic, and why would it matter? And yes, it's the very definition of railroading.

I have a hard time imagining the sort of play that would make it desirable for any participant to violate table expectations to control the choices of another player's character. What do you have in mind?

My post wasn't about the OP.

I have no problem with non-physical stats mattering, and, the way I play, they do, but I think enforcing certain decisions by the character by force is a terrible way to make them matter (if you feel like they don't for some reason).

Up-thread I posted this:

That could prevent the railroading, yes, but my assumption, because it's a game I've agreed to play in, is that expectations have been communicated and agreed upon, and then the GM pulls this. Railroading, yes or no?

It's railroading because somebody not playing my character (the GM in this case) is controlling my character's choices in a way that violates expectations that have been set at the table. If the expectation was the GM could control my character like this, I wouldn't have joined.

You mean like calling for an Intelligence check to see if it [the action I declared] was a good idea? I'd be fine with that. (Eta: provided other characters are subject to the same types of checks.) Edit to clarify what "it" was.

I never would've put that together with portraying ability scores, but it makes sense.

That would be the wrong solution to that problem for anyone I would game with.

In another thread, I identified something I would consider railroading if it happened in any game in which I agreed to play. I.e. if I declared an action for my character, and the GM said my character wouldn't have thought to attempt such an action because my character's Intelligence score is...

I would venture to guess this is because you elevate setting exploration (i.e. imagining and "interacting with" the setting) above other priorities and interests people might have when playing RPGs. For example and to get back to the OP's topic, ability scores are a venue for engaging with the...

Ah, okay. Yes, dividing RPGing into "roleplaying" and "gaming" seems, to me, to be setting up a dichotomy. When I pointed out how roleplaying is fully integrated into the game and, thus, not really dichotomous in that they can't be separated within the context of an RPG (i.e. when you are...

My dictionary says a binary is "something having two parts". What definition were you using?