33
votes
Accepted
How do we save designer reasoning questions? [2018]
Designer reasoning questions should be banned.
I've come to the conclusion that we should consider designer reasoning questions off-topic for the site. In brief, such questions do not have much value ...
- 63.4k
32
votes
How do we save designer reasoning questions? [2018]
Instead focus on: What problem are you trying to solve at the table?
When a rule looks weird or feels out of whack, a lot of different questions arise, one of which is "what were they thinking?"
"...
- 142k
23
votes
Are questions about rule intent on-topic? [2022]
Designer Reasons questions are on-topic
Four years on from the initial ban, we’re somewhat tentatively opening the gates again. That means asking designer-reasons questions is allowed. The community ...
Someone_EvilMod
- 48k
19
votes
Are questions about rule intent on topic? [2018]
Yes, they are on topic and should be left open.
Designer intent can be found on blogs, interviews, lectures, conference presentations, and more.
This logic of restricting designer questions is flawed. ...
- 11.9k
18
votes
Accepted
How should we handle this "fireproof worn items" question?
My opinion is that we should purge the answers.
Designers are the only appropriate source for designer questions
If OP wants designer reasons, the only authoritative answer we can give them is going ...
- 93.9k
17
votes
Accepted
Should we add 'designers intent' questions to the "don't ask" questions list on the tour?
I don't think we should. There's a few reasons.
We're still in a mess with designer reasons: lots of people are over-sensitive to determining a question is designer reasons, but really the only thing ...
- 36.3k
17
votes
Is a question that ends up only having 'designer reason' answers off-topic even if designer reasons aren't specifically what the asker is seeking out?
Users are not required to know the answer to their question in order to ask it.
This is a fundamental, doesn’t-even-need-to-be-stated, tenet of a Q&A site—any Q&A site. Questions cannot be ...
- 345k
16
votes
Accepted
"Designer intent" vs asking specifically about the existence of statements from the designers
It's kind of the same thing really. Think about it, if you ask this...
Q: Did the designers make a statement about why they did X?
... then is this really an answer you'd be satisfied with?
A: ...
- 36.3k
15
votes
Accepted
Should I opt not to create a signpost duplicate for a question that would be opinion-based if asked today?
Ask a new question using the DMG terminology, and make sure it follows current policies by requesting designer citations.
Then flag the old one for closure (either as opinion-based or as a duplicate ...
- 53.2k
15
votes
Accepted
Are rules questions that require a developer (official OR non-official) response ONLY valid for our stack?
Yes they are.
It's OK for a question to be unanswerable at the time it is posted as long as it meets all of the general requirements the site has for question quality. This happens most often for ...
- 17.8k
15
votes
Accepted
Are questions about rule intent on topic? [2018]
No - but...
Questions about rule intent (RAI) are generally off topic.
Just asking "why is this rule here/why is it this way" is asking everyone to air their opinion, which is fine on a forum, but ...
- 175k
15
votes
Are these "history-of-gaming" questions designer-reasons?
This is awkward, because the policy exists solely because designer-intent questions so regularly got poor answers. There isn’t any problem with the query per se, nor is it impossible or even ...
- 345k
15
votes
Accepted
Are answers that include designer reasons on-topic and allowed on this site?
Here's how this breaks down:
We do not, in point of fact, have a problem with answers talking about designer reasons.
We do have a problem with answers making big claims without proportionate ...
- 36.3k
14
votes
How do we save designer reasoning questions? [2018]
Speaking as someone who asked one of them, I think the best way forward is to let 'em burn.
They're a hassle for the mods, they end up being a hassle for the people who ask them, and I presume it's ...
- 144k
13
votes
How do we save designer reasoning questions? [2018]
Designer-reasons questions should be off-topic.
An RPG expert isn't substantially more capable of answering a designer-reasons question than a non-RPG expert, because all either of them is going to ...
- 30k
13
votes
Accepted
What made my answer invalid?
Your logic was excellent, but according to the title and body of the question (in its latest iteration) the asker wanted to know what the designers themselves have said is the justification for the ...
- 30k
12
votes
Accepted
Is 'what is the rationale behind the design of X' a proper question for rpg.se?
This type of question is OK, but will not be allowed to receive speculation, so you should consider strongly whether asking “what's the rationale for why it is this way?” will actually give you the ...
- 36.3k
12
votes
Are rules questions that require a developer (official OR non-official) response ONLY valid for our stack?
Yes
The more general question, about whether we allow asking about developer statements which may or may not exist, appears to be yes. That's based on precedents and on it not transgressing any rules....
- 243k
12
votes
Accepted
Asking a more concise revision of a previously asked question
Ask away. If the answers provided to your general question have allowed you to formulate a more specific question then that is a different question.
- 206k
12
votes
Why is there a blanket ban on designer intent questions when the issue is only with a subset of rpg systems?
The ban should stand for all games.
First of all, we don't need to make the rules more complex around here. "You can't talk about X only for D&D" is both complex and will be (rightly) seen as ...
- 175k
11
votes
Is this question about experience points in earlier versions of D&D off topic as a "rule intent" or "designer reasons" question?
No, it's not off topic- it seems to fit "history of gaming"
I'll borrow from a comment that @doppelgreener made under the question.
This question is first and foremost trying to understand ...
- 142k
11
votes
Is it time to revisit rule intent questions?
Yeah, I think we're due a discussion about the state of rule intent and designer reasons questions
I'll start with a minor disclaimer that this my personal opinion, not a formed stance by the mod team....
Someone_EvilMod
- 48k
10
votes
Are questions about rule intent on topic? [2018]
Yes, they are on topic, but they should be closed anyways
They are (mostly) on-topic but the problem is that they unclear, because 'why' is ambiguous when used this way in English. When asking why, a ...
- 67.1k
9
votes
Can this question on real-world corollaries to Forgotten Realms civilizations be salvaged?
It's salvageable, because it does express an actual concrete problem the author is actually facing:
I'm looking at building a new character for an upcoming campaign and I think it would help me to ...
- 36.3k
8
votes
How do we save designer reasoning questions? [2018]
Treat these questions similarly to Charop questions
The meta brain trust was able to arrive at a nicely organized "how to write a charop question" meta that helps a lot in getting the charop style of ...
- 142k
8
votes
Is a question that ends up only having 'designer reason' answers off-topic even if designer reasons aren't specifically what the asker is seeking out?
don't ask why
It's a simple change, but simply asking for how the alignment of orcs have changed over the editions is probably fine.
Asking why it's changed seems pretty clearly to be a designer ...
- 124k
8
votes
Is it time to revisit rule intent questions?
If nothing else, we need to clarify the rule to stop misuse
There are users who seem to want to over-use the ban on designer-intent questions to close an enormous swath of questions that we can, have, ...
- 345k
7
votes
What made my answer invalid?
From what I understand, there is actually a mechanical difference to unarmed attacks being considered light vs not. Right? You're describing the nature and intricacies of the mechanical difference to ...
- 36.3k
7
votes
How should we handle this "fireproof worn items" question?
When it comes down to it, there's two things we can do with questions like this.
Close them as opinion-based, because they just get everyone's own pet logic-train as an answer. @korvinstarmast ...
- 175k
7
votes
How should we handle this "fireproof worn items" question?
The argument that adding the tag makes it hard/impossible to give an answer to the question should not be allowed as a reason to ignore the tag's existence on a question.
Equally, allowing answers ...
- 17.8k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible