I had my party encoutner some enemies, but the party intimidated them and they fled. According to my notes, they are cowardly bunch, likely leave this place altogether.However, the party intends to go find those foes next session.Would it be faggotry to change the world, to provide accomodate my players? It feels like cheating.Woul it be retarded to NOT do that? It also feels like shooting myself in the foot for some abstract principle.
>>98140088Basic questions first. >what are you playing? >is the game and play style suited to more narrative improvisation and scenes with arcs?>is it more suited to premade world exploration and open ended? >how much effort do you need to put in to adjust?>how much effort do players put in? Are they going to actually follow up or forget by next week anyway?
>>98140088If they’re so cowardly as to flee the area in its entirety so quickly, they could well be in such a rush that they leave obvious clues to where they’ve gone. You need neither change the world to accommodate your players nor cling so tightly to your notes that they feel spited.
>>98140119>what are you playing? DnD 5.5e. The party is very fresh.>>is the game and play style suited to more narrative improvisation and scenes with arcs?I don't know how to answer this. I aim to play mostly episodic format, so that each session has a beginning and an and.>is it more suited to premade world exploration and open ended?I am honestly not sure how to judge that for my particular game.I think exploration of premade world is more common approach for this kind of games.>how much effort do you need to put in to adjust?Well, I need to prepare the adventure either way. It's just a matter of finding different plot hook to lure the players in.>how much effort do players put in? Are they going to actually follow up or forget by next week anyway?I am sure at least one of them will remember.
>>98140130>they could well be in such a rush that they leave obvious clues to where they’ve goneThat's actually awesome idea, that could lead them to explore that other location I had in mind either way.Thanks!
>>98140154That's okay, you answered the questions enough. Just change it to suit the episodic format, its not a big deal. You'll be able to stitch together something plausible enough for the player's interests and a nod to your idea of cowards, have them do a chase or something like that. There are fairly different styles of gameplay but its not what you're up to.
>>98140088I'm confused. The enemies fled. Players want to pursue. Why would you have to "change the world" to make pursuit possible?
>>98140328Enemies fled. Players went to take care of other business, giving the cowardly enemies enough time to leave the county. Now the party wants to return and hunt them.
>>98140088Without any further context, I'd do as >>98140130said and have them leave obvious clues to direct the players. That way, you can have your cake of sticking to the initial characterization, and the players can eat the cake of their plans succeeding when they reasonably should.>>98140182Maybe even plan a little adventure to string them along. Assuming these guys are enemies, they could've fled through territory that harbors hazards to the PCs (near a nest of some monsters, bandit hideout, dangerous wildlife, et cetera). Its an excuse for a dungeon session, followed by catching these enemies as they are trying to catch their breath after fleeing without the bulk of their supplies.
>>98140088Quantum ogre is the hallmark of a shitty DM, strongly urge you never ever leverage one. Actually put in the leg work to make a consistent world space.
>>98140088ask yourself, what's the POINT? is it to challenge your players with a hard and unyielding simulation?if not, is it to enable an enriching narrative and make your players feel connected to the world?
>>98140088I don't understand. How does them leaving prevent the party from tracking them down? Why do you think you need to accomodate them? Why shouldn't they be able to fail?
>>98140088Depends on how fast they can run. Can a bunch of glup shittos outrun the player characters?
>>98144529>is it to enable an enriching narrative and make your players feel connected to the world?I belive you should also provide sense of _consistent_ world. How else could you make world that feels realistic enough to care about?And thinking about it consitently (and not shuffling parts behind the curtain) is one possible way to achieve that.Theoretically.
>>98145534Hello?
>>98140088if the players are deliberately looking for a specific enemy, then just build the encounter around that>tell the players that they need to track down where they fled, so nature check to track them, social interaction to ask people where they went,>players need to ensure they dont run a second time, so players use stealth to get close to them and force a fight or you introduce an element that prevents them from running away >if the players cant prevent them from running but insist on chasing them, they you have enough material for 2-3 more sessions, with your players playing cat and mouse with them>or the enemies conveniently fled to wherever you wanted your party to go, and now it seems like you totally intended for the players to chase these guys downor, if for some reason you really dont want to re-use coward enemies but cant for the life of you come up with a way to discourage your players from chasing themjust have their bodies caught up in some traps, killed offscreenthis removes them from your world entirely while also serving to announce the existence of booby traps in another location
>>98140088My view is that things become real and set in stone in the context of a campaign only when they're established at the table. Retconning what's actually happened is shitty, revising your plans obviously isn't. Obviously you should strive to keep things consistent, and the world being too accommodating to the PCs can actually be pretty unsatisfying. I think the suggestion made ITT that the foes should flee but there should some hints to where they went is a good one.
>>98140088I believe that some times you should show behind the curtain. Your players don't actually think you're a mastermind that has considered every single aspect of the world forever, and if they did you'll eventually dissapoint them. It's okay to explain meta aspects if they are getting too in the way or if your players are making choices you can't keep up with or follow through.In this case, let them. Add plot around it. Do they work with someone? Are they messing with mobsters? Are they gonna have to search for them and interact with underworld factions?They're giving you thread, pull it.
>>98140088Why do you think we use dice for? It's to prevent too much DM interfering on Players' agenda as much as to put a lid on Players' faggotry.So take a D10, pit together stuff to abstract like your foes' resources and stealth level and compare it to your players' might and investigate level Determine fair odds, like let's 70% of finding them and roll 7 or under to see if it's happening. If it's a thing make logical steps for it to become an adventure (track path, find witness, find suspicious stuff, roll for ambush). If it's not a thing roll to see what happened to your foes (relocated, disbanded, hunted down) and leave obvious clue for your players to find out what happened.This way your players can feel like they actually have an agency instead of being railroaded and you don't have to feel guilty because it was the dice deciding for you on a logical and rational base.
>>98149517This. It's okay to shift things around in the background where players have never seen nor heard of them. But the moment something is established in the world in some way, it is now a fixed element whose placement needs to be respected.The band of thieves can be anywhere until the players are given evidence of a location they might be. Then the thieves will be there, or in an area adjacent, so long as it's feasible.
