Most tabletop RPGs don't bother to have a rule like "characters can't walk through walls." It is either implicit or prescribed through having a special ability that specifically allows one to do. Now, an RPG that specifically had a character option that stated "this character cannot walk through walls" would instantly reframe every other character in the game. If only a specific type of character has some limitation that we humans would assume to be self-explanatory, what the hell is the baseline in this game?
Games have implicit or explicit assumptions about their characters. In D&D it is assumed that characters can see, hear, speak, walk unassisted, and so on. These capabilities can be taken away but only through very specific rules interactions. A character's ability to see isn't marked until a player says that they would like to play a blind character.
I don't even know where I was going with this. This started out with me thinking about how funny it would be to make like a supplement for a game that features these really strange and specific abilities that suddenly change the assumptions of the game. Like, a supplement that has a creature with an ability like "Floorwalker: this creature can walk on floors." Because none of the other creatures in the game have that ability, it's now implicit that they can't walk on floors.
Anyway if anyone would like to help me salvage this post by saying something insightful go right ahead, I'm gonna go make some pasta.
STOP POSTING ABOUT OMELAS STOP POSTING ABOUT OMELAS STOP POSTING ABOUT OMELAS YES PEOPLE WILL MISINTERPRET THINGS OR RESPOND TO THEM IN A WAY YOU DON'T LIKE GET FUCKING OVER IT IT'S BEEN 52 YEARS FIND SOMETHING ELSE TO TALK ABOUT AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
ALT