Mechanical Savvyness

[lorddrake]

So, I've been thinking about this world where people knows things about how the workings of reality may be an influence to their lives, for instance knowing classes, mechanics' concepts (such as AC, HP, Attributes, etc).

Considering this, I ask you, playgrounders, which of these abstract concepts would be discoverable in a D&D world?

An example of what I'm talking about is alignment - it is an abstract concept but it can be observed and proved by the many ways to discover and manipulate alignment (Detect Chaos/Evil/Good/Law, Helm of Opposite Alignment, etc) - so it would be one thing that could become part of the public knowledge (science).

Are there more things that can be proven? Things that can be tested and become part of common knowledge? Maybe Classes or Types of bonuses?

[Afgncaap5]

Sadly, I don't think the existence of "free actions" would be easily discovered as there's likely some sort of deity/DM putting "reasonable restriction" on them. Though they *might* notice that it's always easier to transport things by passing them around than it is to just carry something outright. I don't know that you could *prove* that, per se.

[Xervous]

Off the top of my head I know that...


HP
Movement Speed
Attack bonus
Ability scores (Currently forget the specifics of how to determine CON without killing the subject)
BAB
Saves
Ranks in most skills
caster level
HD


are of varying levels of ease to determine. I'm sure there's countless things on top of those.

[Dondasch]

One level of Urban Savant from Cityscape explicitly allows your character to learn a creature's BAB, AC, and combat-related feats; against nonhumanoids, you also learn about any "special attacks or options".
Taking the class to 4th lets you learn about HD, DR, and saves; for nonhumanoids, you also learn any "special weaknesses".

[jiriku]

The know vulnerabilities spell provides exact values for damage reduction, spell resistance, and energy resistance.

It would not be overly difficult to deduce rates of fast healing and regeneration once values for damage are known. Or conversely, if you can establish a rate of healing, you can then back into the damage dealt from any source simply by seeing how long it takes to heal.

[BowStreetRunner]

Considering how scientists in our world are able to extrapolate and deduce things that are not outright observable, I would say it's believable that there might be a sage somewhere within a given D&D world who has some understanding of any of the given concepts you mentioned. On the other hand, I would not expect these to be generally understood by the bulk of the population.

[LudicSavant]

Considering this, I ask you, playgrounders, which of these abstract concepts would be discoverable in a D&D world? You could potentially reverse engineer all of the mechanics of the game. Heck, you could potentially even discover knowledge of the DM's psychology, etc.

[Jeff the Green]

The know vulnerabilities spell provides exact values for damage reduction, spell resistance, and energy resistance.

It would not be overly difficult to deduce rates of fast healing and regeneration once values for damage are known. Or conversely, if you can establish a rate of healing, you can then back into the damage dealt from any source simply by seeing how long it takes to heal.

From SR, CL can be calculated. Then from CL, HP (using inflict minor wounds).

[jiriku]

Good point. We can figure out how negative levels work by a similar method, although lives will be lost getting down the details. So we can determine ability scores and we can determine hit points. We can probably then deduce the existence of hit dice. Figuring out actual die sizes might be difficult -- D&D doesn't have calculus or advanced statistical analysis, nor any sort of demography.

[Jeff the Green]

Good point. We can figure out how negative levels work by a similar method, although lives will be lost getting down the details. So we can determine ability scores and we can determine hit points. We can probably then deduce the existence of hit dice. Figuring out actual die sizes might be difficult -- D&D doesn't have calculus or advanced statistical analysis, nor any sort of demography.

Thanks to carrying capacity we can figure out size categories from Strength.

We might be able to figure out CR via XP (which we can find via XP components--probably not exact XP, but relative to some standard spell). We could then distinguish between PC and NPC classes because the HD/CR ratio is different.

[Saintheart]

A level 3 Runecaster by default knows of the existence of classes, hit dice, and levels -- mainly because he can't construct a rune that triggers dependent on any of these qualities in the target.

[legomaster00156]

So... isn't this basically the world of OotS?

[martixy]

So... isn't this basically the world of OotS?

...the forest for the trees.

Just tack on some genre-savviness and trope awareness and voila!

[Jeff the Green]

A level 3 Runecaster by default knows of the existence of classes, hit dice, and levels -- mainly because he can't construct a rune that triggers dependent on any of these qualities in the target.

That doesn't follow. Toddlers can't quantum tunnel, but that doesn't mean they're aware of the phenomenon. Then, when they grow up, they can learn about quantum tunneling, and know that they can't do it.