thread: 2009-06-22 : Secrets: the Smelly Chamberlain
On 2009-06-22, TomR wrote:
> (a) When did it become true in real life that the
> Chamberlain NPC smells bad, if ever?
I suppose if the chamberlain's smell causes some mechanical change (-2 for stinky feet!) that's how his fact becomes true "in real life".
> (b) When did it become true inside the game's fiction that
> the Chamberlain NPC smells bad, if ever?
As soon as the GM is aware that the PCs consider him smelly and agrees it's so. If he doesn't agree that it's so, it becomes true in the game fiction that the PCs believe him to be smelly, but that's the extent of it. If he never catches on, the PCs behave oddly around the Chamberlain for some reason and the GM is like "whatever" or worse "why are they so skeeved around him? maybe I'll give them a *reason* to be skeeved!".
Why is the GM's agreement required? Because the Chamberlain is part of the GM's job. He presents NPCs to challenge and entertain the PCs. He might have a good reason for an NPC to be not smelly. If PCs just declare facts about an NPC and the GM can't veto those declarations (or even know about them) then there's nothing to stop the PCs from declaring anything to be true at any time. The PCs have a GM to help create/manage their shared fiction and if they don't want to let him do his job, then they don't need a GM.
