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The problem is that Intimidate isn't the single-path action that many people consider it to be.

Walking up to someone and threatening them with bodily harm is merely one form of intimidation.

Threatening to expose a king's deep dark secret is another.

Intimidation, at it's core, is getting someone to do something by threatening something they do NOT want.

As opposed to Diplomacy, which is really just getting someone to do something by offering something they DO want.

There are many many forms of intimidation, far too many to be simply dismissed with "all attempts to Intimidate automatically fail".

To paraphrase a nice applicable quote: "Everyone has their pressure points. Everyone. You find what's personally valuble to them and you squeeze."

Negotiations of any serious sort nearly always feature diplomacy, intimidation, AND bluff, in varying amounts.


-karma

In response to the question is the party scout getting put in the 3x3 box at the start of the encounter. Answer yes and sometimes he alone is put in the box and the DM runs the mod as written.

Sometimes the entire group is put in the box. Some DM's ask how far ahead I am and put the party that many spaces away from the 3x3 box.

It has happened enough times that mods not accounting for stealth have made me stop scouting ahead on my ranger.

Too many are written "the pc's are surprised or as soon as the pc's enter flying things come from the cracks in the ceiling. etc.

Every "surprise" mechanic should have a perception vs stealth expressly stated in the module or it should appear in the begining module text on how to run the mod.

Common sense isn't all that common.

Here's the problem.

We've gone through literally accumulated DECADES of campaigns in the RPGA that have repeatedly told us, run the adventure exactly as written. No deviations or you may get the round disqualified. No exceptions.

Now, suddenly, that's changed. With very little discussion about it.

Whenever a major change in policy occurs in my company, they make damn sure everyone knows about it. They issue special notices, they schedule company meetings to discuss the changes, they stick brightly colored signs in key locations with reminders. I get e-mail alerts asking if I know about the changes.

With the 'new' RPGA? There's been very little 'official' direction or discussion like that. The Character Creation Guide makes no mention of the new DMing style. The General Rules haven't been updated in six years. There's a brief mention at the beginning of the written adventures, yes, which I suppose is something.

There has not been any 'official' effort to get out there and make sure people realize that things have been changed.

It's just been assumed that people will immediately pick up on this major paradigm shift, without really bothering to ensure that this is actually happening.

Word is getting out there, gradually, but for many folks it's by hearsay and word of mouth from other DMs, players, and convention coordinators, not because they heard anything from RPGA HQ.


-karma

KarmaInferno wrote:

We've gone through literally accumulated DECADES of campaigns in the RPGA that have repeatedly told us, run the adventure exactly as written. No deviations or you may get the round disqualified. No exceptions.

While I do not doubt that, I am wondering how large a percentage of 4E RPGA DMs have had experience DMing 3E (or even earlier) RPGA. I suspect this percentage to be rather small, actually.