In light of this thread, I'm asking what's the policy on fights that escalate to a NPC inhabited area. That is, ones that did not start in such an area.

As an escapee, do you have to deny yourself a potential escape route (which may well be the only one) just because a DM isn't present? This may result in a very OOC-flavored PvP death.

As a pursuer, do you have to allow the escapee to run away just because a DM isn't present? This may result in a well-prepared ambush amounting to nothing; and in situations where the escapee's capture/death would otherwise have been inevitable, the long-term consequences of them being alive and free could be enormous.

Neither of these options seems satisfactory. How should these situations be handled?

If somebody flees to where a watchman/Tigereye/fellow faction member of theirs/Lawful Good NPC/Somebody who would definitely help them is, it would sure make life easier for us DMs if the pursuer could have a sudden bout of common sense and not continue the combat there. It's -always- messy to retroactively fix things, and it's very difficult for us to do. Somebody's feelings seem to always get hurt, somebody seems to feel that the DMs "screwed" them, and that's not the kind of thing we really like happening.

Certainly, if you're being attacked, it makes sense to run towards whoever is going to help you.

While I haven't given a hard and fast answer, which I know will annoy folks, the best I can say is that it would certainly be helpful if assaultants assaulted folks far enough away from the law that it didn't become an issue, and if folks managed to escape to NPCs, that they'd let them go. =)

-Cross

I've known myself in certain situations to hold back in PvP because of NPC presence. The situations i'm referring to in that post were certainly NOT escapee-situ's. They were conducted with malice aforethought and the characters knew full well the NPC's were watching a one-sided no escape battle and they still carried ahead with it, without so much as sending a DM prompt.

As far as escapee's go - why would someone 'escape' to a crowded area? I wouldn't 'escape' from the guards by running into the watch house. I wouldn't 'escape' from the Tigereyes by running into Lower Santuary. The situation shouldn't ~really~ come up all that often in a full blown pursuit, and there are a few neutral areas where the pursuers would have to stop before entry anyway, you know the ones.

If you initiate PvP, always send a DM tell.

If you want to initiate PvP in a populated area, make sure you have DM confirmation before doing so.

If you're a member of a faction and you're on your own "turf" you do have some lee-way. PC Watch, as an example, don't need DM permission to arrest someone in the Rock Bottom or on the streets of Upper. Crone Bouncers can kick people out of the Crone without DM permission.

The exception to that would be if your character is doing something you'd suspect the NPCs would react to -- as an example, if a corrupt-PC watchman planned to arrest someone and then murder them in their cell, a DM would need to be around to witness that.

I hope that clarifies the policy a little bit. Now as to your more specific questions --

(1) If you're escaping, you can go anywhere where you want, unless I'm misunderstanding this part of the question. (2) If you're pursuing someone, and they get to a crowded area -- you should probably stop, yes. Ideally a DM would be around to possess those NPcs, but if none is there it'd be pretty sucky to kill someone right in front of a non-possessed Watch NPC.

If you absolutely must, must, must IC continue the fight, one thing to consider is just attacking the NPCs too.

It seems to me that in all three responses, the assumption was that the NPCs in question would certainly intervene with the situation. Yes, it seems clear to me that if a criminal's target escapes to a Watch-populated area, the pursuit should stop there and then unless a DM is around. However, I'm more interested about NPC areas where the NPCs' reaction is not so clear.

How would Sewer Town residents react to a fight where neither side can be identified as a resident or a scab? (Or where both are residents?) How would the duergars of Clan Grunstubhle react to a fight in their mines? Hrunpar? Grizabella? The Lost Shop? Ranger/druid shop? Lord Bunge & Co.?

I don't think it would be fair in these instances to tell the attacker to attack the NPCs as well, since they wouldn't necessarily target the attacker otherwise -- or at least, not only the attacker.

How would Sewer Town residents react to a fight where neither side can be identified as a resident or a scab? (Or where both are residents?) How would the duergars of Clan Grunstubhle react to a fight in their mines? Hrunpar? Grizabella? The Lost Shop? Ranger/druid shop? Lord Bunge & Co.?

With every example you'd made, I'd prefer it if the PvP ended when it was right at the feet of those NPCs, since they would indeed likely get involved in one way or another (whether by demanding a pay-off, or saving the person, or kicking both out, etc.)

Ideally Dms will be around as much as possible, and we do put a preference for being available for PvP. However, in those situations where we can not be there it's best to just take the fight elsewhere or go away.

So in the end, it's the escapee who is favored by DM absence. Very well.

I can't say it's a satisfactory solution, but then again, I don't think a satisfactory solution exists if a hard and fast rule is to be given for situations where the players can't come to an OOC agreement on how to proceed.

Well, you shouldn't let them escape anyway. Them getting to somewhere safe will happen eventually, so it's all good.