Can a DM be called on to rule on past event's factuality?
Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 4:59 pm
For events where there is no good primary source from RP past, can a DM be asked to make a reasonable ruling on what could be known as a fact IC?
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I'm... mostly on board with this. There are perhaps a few cases, with very braud, obvious facts where I feel we could provide static answers, but even these might depend a bit on who was asked and if these situations have effects on rp of the situation in general. But as I said- these are outlayers and on the whole the above is true.Scurvy Cur wrote: ↑Mon Dec 06, 2021 6:07 pmI kinda feel like you've answered your own question.
In circumstances where there is no good primary source, then the issue in question should be somewhere between insanely difficult to impossible to define what is "known as fact IC".
Historians deal with this exact problem all the time. Historical data is often conflicting, confused, incomplete, or sometimes simply absent. In such cases, the historian takes what can be found, and makes their best guess. A good historian informs the reader that what they are writing is a best guess based on the available data. A shitty historian presents their theories as fact. Arelith has many shitty historians.
And that's great.
I disagree.
Theonly time I consider that it might matter is if you're setting up a character whos background is linked intrinsically with these events. So if you're wanting to play say, an orphan of Wharftown. Or the child of one of the sky totem druids. Or a baby of the Benwick refugees. Even then the accuracy of the knowledge would depend on how far removed you were from the event.Wethrinea wrote: ↑Tue Dec 07, 2021 7:30 amThe question I'd like to pose when it comes to the factuality of events is: Does it matter?
Arelith, to my knowledge, has no official history, and the past is whatever characters remember it to be. As a new player, this frustrated me to no end, and I still don't know what really happened to Benwick, or that war between Guldorand and the Sky-Talkers, and a host of other events. But I came to realize that this does not really matter, for the simple reason that the characters we play do not, and should not, posses perfect information about the world they live in.
This means that the characters I play likely hold many beliefs about the past that are wrong, to varying degrees. And that is fine. Even desirable.
Yes, it does, in the sense of character/player agency if that is of value to a player.
Scurvy Cur wrote: ↑Mon Dec 06, 2021 6:07 pmI kinda feel like you've answered your own question.
In circumstances where there is no good primary source, then the issue in question should be somewhere between insanely difficult to impossible to define what is "known as fact IC".
Historians deal with this exact problem all the time. Historical data is often conflicting, confused, incomplete, or sometimes simply absent. In such cases, the historian takes what can be found, and makes their best guess. A good historian informs the reader that what they are writing is a best guess based on the available data. A shitty historian presents their theories as fact. Arelith has many shitty historians.
And that's great.
This does touch on an interesting question. A great example is the fall of Wharftown.UilliamNebel wrote: ↑Tue Dec 07, 2021 1:57 pmYes, it does, in the sense of character/player agency if that is of value to a player.
Some players, even some characters, were about for these events. The players made choices that they believed would have lasting effect, even if just some manner of historical record in game. On an immersion side, this matters to many people. It is fine for people to recall details wrong in character, but to wholesale retcon or write out contributions made to the game world is another issue entirely. So, in that sense, I'd look to get it reasonably right.
One for me I was directly involved in as a player was some of the Sky Talker issues.
Which is 100% okay. That's how we move on from old arcs or stories or characters. No one is talking about old things because a lot of people are interested in new stories and new ideas. Getting stuck on old history leads to stagnation.Edens_Fall wrote: ↑Tue Dec 07, 2021 4:38 pmI didn't even know about the later efforts to aid the refugees or the consorts role with them . . . Seems much is lost to history.
Can confirm the majority of Grumpy's recounting. A few additions/alterations regarding the lead-up.Edens_Fall wrote: ↑Tue Dec 07, 2021 4:38 pmI didn't even know about the later efforts to aid the refugees or the consorts role with them . . . Seems much is lost to history.
I think this is really only experienced for players that continuously play the same character over a year+UilliamNebel wrote: ↑Tue Dec 07, 2021 5:08 pmSure. But forever casting to the aside leads to MCU levels of 'who blows up the Death Star this week' and utter lack of continuity over time, a feature, not bug, of a PW.
Whether you play your characters for two months or two years, it shouldn't change the answer to a question like "Who controlled the fleet that bombarded Wharftown to smithereens?" This is not a problem of people playing their characters for too long, it's a problem of people wanting to isolate/forget knowledge so they can ignore or alter it later.Ork wrote: ↑Tue Dec 07, 2021 8:54 pmI think this is really only experienced for players that continuously play the same character over a year+UilliamNebel wrote: ↑Tue Dec 07, 2021 5:08 pmSure. But forever casting to the aside leads to MCU levels of 'who blows up the Death Star this week' and utter lack of continuity over time, a feature, not bug, of a PW.