Context
Rules are important. They tell us how the world behaves, and allow our collective make-believening to remain internally consistent. In a hobby predicated on the suspension of disbelief, that mess is important. After all, you want to know that a 20 on the die means a hole in the monster. The metaphor of dice = chance is the cornerstone of (most) RPG experiences, and you don’t want to mess with that. Some rules, however, require a bit of context.
In the present example, this business with “willing creatures” is found in the chapter on magic, and exists because of spells like teleport. Notice how the target section says “touched willing creatures.” You can’t just target the baddies with teleport and poof them half way across the world (and preferable over an active volcano). That’s why the “willing” bit exists. If you want to teleport your unconscious buddy away from danger, however, the rules definitely allow for it.
Now that’s simple enough for you and me, but Fighter has a literal sort of mind. He also has an unfortunate degree of access to the Handbook of Heroes, and in the wrong hands that nighted tome is more dangerous than the Necronomicon.
You’ve got to learn to appreciate context, Fighter!
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Reminds me of Exalted 2nd Edition Sidereal Medicine charms.
‘If the target truly wants to die, the Sidereal can kill them with a touch, immediately sending their soul to Lethe to reincarnate.’
Permanent-type upgrage: ‘with the purchase of this upgrade, sleeping or unconscious targets now count as “willing” for the preceeding charm.’
Our party Sidereal kept threating to buy those charms so she could serve as party ‘Medic’, in-spite of our perfectly serviceable and skilled Solar Twilight-Caste Doctor.
Ha-ha! I counter your combo with my custom “Focus of the Caffeinated Owl” knack!
Maybe I missed the description of “willing”, but I always ruled that if a player wanted to teleport an unconscious party member, they had to be literally carrying them. Not very easy for a lot of primary casters who actually have teleporting spells!
Unfair, perhaps, but I have long tired of players all dimension door-ing to safety whenever trouble befalls them.
I feel like the teleporting party does tend to lower the tension. But by the same token, when the tactic does fail to work, the consequences can be spectacular.
“What do you mean it teleports after us?”
“What do you mean the caster is unconscious?”
“What do you mean there’s a teleport trap and now we’re shunted off into this room filled with the animated corpses of the last several dozen adventurers to try and teleport back to safety?”