D&D 5E Newbies reading the MM and DMG?

[doctorhook]

One of my players (new to tabletop gaming as of two months ago) has bought himself the Monster Manual and declared his intention to buy the DMG. Obviously I can't stop him from buying and reading anything he wants, but I'm a little concerned about his intentions: he has a bad (intentional) habit of metagaming already. Anybody got any advice or horror stories about similar situations?

 

[rollcrit]

I would say, just make sure the person doesn't use the DMG or the Monster Manual at the table. I would actually encourage him/her to get the monster manual. The monster manual is one of the best things about dungeons and dragons. Great artwork, great lore. Sometimes the DMG can make you a better palyer too, because you can get a feel of what is hard for a DM and how to really make games fun.

As long as they aren't using these tools at the table during game time.

 

[SilverfireSage]

One of my players (new to tabletop gaming as of two months ago) has bought himself the Monster Manual and declared his intention to buy the DMG. Obviously I can't stop him from buying and reading anything he wants, but I'm a little concerned about his intentions: he has a bad (intentional) habit of metagaming already. Anybody got any advice or horror stories about similar situations?

Play with his expectations. Change up monsters, give some different abilities that aren't in the book. When it comes to traps or magic items, he can't see what's coming anyway so that shouldn't be a problem. If he complains about anything, put down your foot. You're the DM, you have the last say. If you say a goblin now has illusion spells and 10 extra hit points, that's how it works. This is what I've done with people who have simply played for so long they know how all of the monsters work and what they can do. Switching it up makes it more fun for them and for me.

 

[GSHamster]

Encourage him.

Offer to let him write and run a one-shot adventure after he's read the books. Don't screw with him, but play honestly.

The hobby can always use more DMs. Plus, he'll have a better appreciation for your work after having been on the other side of the DM screen.

 

[rollcrit]

I DM almost exclusively rather than play PC's. My personal style is that I think the game is the players, not the DM's. I very rarely put my foot down as the DM, in fact I am very loose with rules most of the time. My goal is that everyone is having a good time. I play with people that have busy lives, so I want the 3 hours at the table to be nothing but fun and worth their time. As long as I remind myself every time, this is not my game to DM, its the players game to play. Things usually work out well.

 

[Elf Witch]

I don't allow players to have a MM or the DMG out on the table they are not allowed to look at while we are playing.

I also call out metagaming. I will flat out ask how their character knows this information.

I now tend to change up my monsters because most of my players have been playing a long time or also DM this helps give them something fresh and stops the inevitable metagaming that experience gamers often do.

 

[Sacrosanct]

Play with his expectations. Change up monsters, give some different abilities that aren't in the book. When it comes to traps or magic items, he can't see what's coming anyway so that shouldn't be a problem. If he complains about anything, put down your foot. You're the DM, you have the last say. If you say a goblin now has illusion spells and 10 extra hit points, that's how it works. This is what I've done with people who have simply played for so long they know how all of the monsters work and what they can do. Switching it up makes it more fun for them and for me.

Encourage him.

Offer to let him write and run a one-shot adventure after he's read the books. Don't screw with him, but play honestly.

The hobby can always use more DMs. Plus, he'll have a better appreciation for your work after having been on the other side of the DM screen.

I agree with these, and would like to add to clearly communicate with him what you're doing. Otherwise you're going to encounter the inevitable, "that's not how it works!" disagreement. Be clear with your expectations, and let them know ahead of time that metagaming knowledge used in game will have consequences.

 

[Doc_Klueless]

Encourage him.

Offer to let him write and run a one-shot adventure after he's read the books. Don't screw with him, but play honestly.

The hobby can always use more DMs. Plus, he'll have a better appreciation for your work after having been on the other side of the DM screen.

This. One hundred times this! Someday he may make it so that you can PLAY instead of having to DM all the time!

Play with his expectations. Change up monsters, give some different abilities that aren't in the book. When it comes to traps or magic items, he can't see what's coming anyway so that shouldn't be a problem. If he complains about anything, put down your foot. You're the DM, you have the last say. If you say a goblin now has illusion spells and 10 extra hit points, that's how it works. This is what I've done with people who have simply played for so long they know how all of the monsters work and what they can do. Switching it up makes it more fun for them and for me.

To be honest, I've been playing D&D for sooooo long that I love it when the DM does this. I *know* what the creatures basically do because I've encountered just about every single one of them in my 30+ years of running and playing D&D. Do this. Your players may love you for it.

 

[Li Shenron]

One of my players (new to tabletop gaming as of two months ago) has bought himself the Monster Manual and declared his intention to buy the DMG. Obviously I can't stop him from buying and reading anything he wants, but I'm a little concerned about his intentions: he has a bad (intentional) habit of metagaming already. Anybody got any advice or horror stories about similar situations?

I think you should just see what happens at the gaming table before worrying too much.

What is your own preference with relation to the fantasy setting where your adventures take place? Do you like using whole published settings such as Forgotten Realms as-is? Do you prefer to just pilfer some favorite monsters from published books, and let a homebrew fantasy setting emerge gradually from those choices? Or do you actually like creating your own material or at least stories about monsters, making them your own?

If it's the latter case, just tell the player that he's metagaming at his own risk because your Orcs aren't going to be the Monster Manual Orcs, so nothing is quite like the book says, end of the problem. Just make sure to tell him upfront he doesn't have any right to pretend otherwise.

But even if you like using the material as-is, I wouldn't overestimate what he can achieve from prior knowledge. Once in a while he might know you're up against monster X with special power/weakness Y, and decides to prepare the right spell for the job. That's not going to be a huge issue in the vast majority of cases (and note how "preparation" is somewhat devalued in 5e compared to pre-4e era D&D). It will be actually a reward to an interested player who spent time studying the books.

 

[Thank Dog]

If he actually ends up metagaming then I'd bring it up with him and tell him to either stop it or leave the game.