Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*TTRPGs General
What is the most inspirational Gary Gygax quote?
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="pming" data-source="post: 7505666" data-attributes="member: 45197"><p>Hiya!</p><p></p><p><em>"When they [a Player] have done something stupid, or not taken precautions, then let the dice fall where they may!"</em></p><p><em></em></p><p><em> --<strong>Gary Gygax, 1e AD&D DMG, pg 110</strong> under "Rolling the Dice and Controlling the Game"</em></p><p></p><p>That is one of the things I remember reading back when I was...what, about 12 years old or so I think, maybe 11. It stuck with me I think because it gave me "permission" to say no to players pleading to keep their PC alive. It was usually a plead revolving around them failing to do one, or both, of those things...and then the Player trying to convince me that it was my fault because of X, Y or Z. You know the pleading of younglings (we were all around 10 to 12 years old...I think I was the eldest of the group). Things like <em>"But I didn't hear you say it was glistening with something wet!"</em>, or <em>"No way would I have kicked the door in if I knew I couldn't close it! I wouldn't have broken it down! C'mon! I *meant* to just break the door latch...not the whole thing!"</em> and that kind of thing. </p><p></p><p>Anyway, that little line gave me the confidence to say to myself, "Self? You're the DM. You provided clues, you described everything appropriately, and you gave them time to think and decide. If they weren't paying attention, or didn't think of what 'it' could be...not your problem. If you keep allowing take-backsies, then there's no point in even having dice or rules. So...let the dice fall where they may!". <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /></p><p></p><p>I think that whole section of the DMG is super-important in my development as a DM. That, and the one line in the Mentzer Basic Set 1 (DM's book) that says: <em>"It is the most important rule of ALL the rules. It is simply this: BE FAIR! A Dungeon Master must not take sides. -- Frank Mentzer"</em> Those two quotes (Gygax and Mentzer) probably have had the most significant impact on my career as a Dungeon Master.</p><p></p><p>Best two quotes in gaming! <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /></p><p></p><p>^_^</p><p></p><p>Paul L. Ming</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="pming, post: 7505666, member: 45197"] Hiya! [I]"When they [a Player] have done something stupid, or not taken precautions, then let the dice fall where they may!" --[B]Gary Gygax, 1e AD&D DMG, pg 110[/B] under "Rolling the Dice and Controlling the Game"[/I] That is one of the things I remember reading back when I was...what, about 12 years old or so I think, maybe 11. It stuck with me I think because it gave me "permission" to say no to players pleading to keep their PC alive. It was usually a plead revolving around them failing to do one, or both, of those things...and then the Player trying to convince me that it was my fault because of X, Y or Z. You know the pleading of younglings (we were all around 10 to 12 years old...I think I was the eldest of the group). Things like [I]"But I didn't hear you say it was glistening with something wet!"[/I], or [I]"No way would I have kicked the door in if I knew I couldn't close it! I wouldn't have broken it down! C'mon! I *meant* to just break the door latch...not the whole thing!"[/I] and that kind of thing. Anyway, that little line gave me the confidence to say to myself, "Self? You're the DM. You provided clues, you described everything appropriately, and you gave them time to think and decide. If they weren't paying attention, or didn't think of what 'it' could be...not your problem. If you keep allowing take-backsies, then there's no point in even having dice or rules. So...let the dice fall where they may!". :) I think that whole section of the DMG is super-important in my development as a DM. That, and the one line in the Mentzer Basic Set 1 (DM's book) that says: [I]"It is the most important rule of ALL the rules. It is simply this: BE FAIR! A Dungeon Master must not take sides. -- Frank Mentzer"[/I] Those two quotes (Gygax and Mentzer) probably have had the most significant impact on my career as a Dungeon Master. Best two quotes in gaming! :) ^_^ Paul L. Ming [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*TTRPGs General
What is the most inspirational Gary Gygax quote?
Top