Poll: Is there a "Right Way" to play D&D

[greenflash]

Me and a friend of mine have been having an argument that goes a bit like this:
Friend:Your character is stupid.
Me: Why is it stupid?
Friend: Because you only have noncombat spells and used all your skill points on Diplomacy and other synergy skills that effect it.
Me: You can play the game with out combat, you know.
Friend: But that's the entire point.
Me: Well it's a role-playing game and my character douse not like combat.
Friend: But you can't get an Exp if you don't fight anything.
Me: You can get role-playing Exp.
Friend: But you can't just live off Exp that would be stupid.

So what do you think?

Edit: It was D&D 3.5 with a few minor alterations.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Golden Rule: All Rules are just Guidelines. Fun is the most important thing to have.

That's even stated in the DMG.

 

[Don Savik]

You could play the game with the book upside down and pants on your head.

It's just a game, you play it and have fun with friends in a crazy fantasy world. 90% of my DnD sessions get off topic and we usually end up breaking space/time as we know it. Something the DnD haters don't understand is the imaginative aspect of it. Its not larping. And larping isn't bad anyways.

 

[pspman45]

Um
correct me if I'm wrong
but isn't the point of playing D&D that there is no right way?
By there being a "right way" you defeat the purpose of the game in the first place...

I build my character as a Narcoleptic and cowardly healing druid with two Tower shields so I could hide.
and It seems like I'm doing just fine

 

[Smertnik]

There's no right way for tabletop RPGs. In the end it all depends on the gamemaster and the players. That's the sweet thing about roleplaying games - you can do anything you want with them.

 

[dstryfe]

See, the thing is that D&D is a game. A passtime designed to amuse. If it's not amusing, you're doing it wrong. That's the only real way to tell. With that said, zero-combat rps are better served through other mediums. D&D is pretty much geared to combat, and even my latest "non-combattant" was incredibly effective in combat; maxed stealth skills, 6 BAB and 2d6 sneak attack on a finessed weapon (at 7th) helped me a good few times (against what could only really be described as a Shoggoth, no less).

 

[Fayathon]

Yeah, there is a right way to play DnD. If the group is having a good time and lots of fun you're playing it right, otherwise you aren't.

 

[SilentCom]

I said a combination of the two, because without combat and roleplaying, what will you do in a roleplaying game? The roleplaying allows character interaction and development while combat adds a greater sense of adventure and action.

 

[spartan231490]

A combination that is very rp heavy is the right way. You still need to be able to help the party and keep yourself alive in combat, but RP is more important than dealing the absolute most damage possible, or having the highest ac, or anything like that.

 

[VoidWanderer]

For me, I prefer a character that can (if my dice are in a good mood) hold its own in combat and one I can enjoy roleplaying.

For example a Dread Necromancer that DOES NOT raise the dead.

 

[SnakeoilSage]

It'll change from group to group, but when you're all having fun, you're playing it the right way.

 

[LarenzoAOG]

It all depends on how you want to play, sometime me and my buddies would go all super-nerd roleplay, throwing out "lo" "tis" "alas" and really getting into it, other time we would just screw around and fuck shit up, whatever you want to do you can do.

Hell, you don't even have to play by the rules if you don't want to.

 

[Macgyvercas]

Your friend is an idiot. The "right way" to play is the way that you have to most amount of fun.

 

[newwiseman]

Yes, there is a right way to play D&D. You know when your doing it right when your having fun.

The real question is: "Is there a wrong way to play D&D?" again you just have to ponder to yourself "Is this fun?" and you'll have your answer.

 

[plugav]

There's obviously no "right way" to play D&D, but if your DM likes it combat-heavy and your character is a pacifist, you're probably not going to have fun playing together.

 

[Malconvoker]

The right way is to have fun. If you like combat, find a group that focuses on that. Same can be said for role playing and also the same for serious vs. funny D&D.

Basically, it all depends on the group

 

[JesterRaiin]

...Well...
One can use combat knife in entirely non lethal ways, but that doesn't change its primal purpose.

I saw DnD adventures more darker than "Judas Grail", more scarier than "Curse of the Yellow sign", and more f*cked up than "Violence", or "KPfS" was ever supposed to be. I've read campaigns for DnD more epic than "Lord of the Rings", spanned over more places than Emperor himself can send his fleet to. It's all about personal creativity, not rules afterall.

Still, underneath of pure awesomenesses there were still dices, hit points, Flaming Swords of Fiery Magma, Turn Undead and familiars.

I guess that any way to play any tabletop game is good.
But also, there's always better way to do it. And i guess that DnD supports battle oriented adventures more than scenarios full of storytelling.