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Originally Posted by Mark Skarr
I mandate effects all the time. I don't know how many times I'll write down something like "Attack does 3d pi at 150 yards. Anyone hit makes HT-2 or be stunned for MoF rounds." Sure, I could sit down and create said power, but it's just not relevant most of the time.
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That's something that needs to be shouted from the rooftops – and maybe it's
not made clear enough in the rulebooks, I don't know.
Forum folks spend a lot of time and energy discussing how precisely to build some power or trait. That's perfectly normal for building PCs, or just for the fun of putting the character-building system through its paces. But lots of times, it seems someone is knocking his brains out to micro-detail some unimportant NPC's traits, or a throwaway monster's powers. That's great for those who really enjoy it; for everyone else, why not just wing it? I've always been happy to make up NPC/monster abilities etc. on the spot; and if the vulnerability that'll kill the dragon doesn't fit any official rulebook trait descriptions, so what?
Experienced gamers don't need to be told that. But if 4e doesn't already shout it somewhere, doing so might relieve the anxiety of newbie GMs, staring at those trait lists with glazed eyes.
Another item that needs to be yelled out loud and strong: Dr K made a comment along the lines of "no one expects a GM to flip all the switches". I'm sure 4e does give GMs advice to choose only the parts they want to use, but the point can't be stressed enough for the new GM feeling the crushing heft of those books. I think new GMs could use a little help, though, in piecing together appropriate parts, which is where mini-guides (by genre, or gritty, or cinematic, etc.) could be useful.
A word of praise on 4e overall:
"Here's a ton of rules and options to cover just about anything. Pick what you want, ignore the rest. Season with whatever house rule additions and mods you like. And feel free to wing things whenever you please."
I think that's the perfect RPG recipe, and 4e does it well. Kudos again to the 4e team.
It may be, though, that the above recipe isn't perfect for everyone, as the thread suggests. Or that some may not like the way it's written up. It'd be interesting to hear new GURPS GMs' thoughts in particular.