D&D 5E Whimsy in your game?

[Ralif Redhammer]

For me, whimsy incorporates fun and bizarre elements that have long been with the game. Stuff like the "+2 Backscratcher" illustration in the DMG and the April issues of Dragon magazine.

One of the things that has helped Marvel succeed with its movies is that there's that element of fun present. Just look at Guardians of the Galaxy, which combines both giant stakes and humor perfectly.

I'm trying to include more of this in my games. Not to the point of blatant silliness, but adding little touches. Like in the last adventure I ran, where a sentient undead boy wanted to play riddle games and hide and seek with the adventurers.

I find I can get caught up in worrying about making the adventures challenging, about coming up with inventive scenarios. But getting back to whimsy helps remind me that adventures, above all, are supposed to be fun.

 

[Hussar]

Heh, one of the players in my group alternates between straight characters and silly ones. His current is a Warforged named Stove that keeps trying to keep people warm. LOL.

It's actually played off fairly well with my Land Druid who is frankly baffled as to what exactly this thing is. Is it alive? It's not a golem, it actually bleeds and isn't a trapped elemental. What is it? Lots of RP opportunities here.

 

[AaronOfBarbaria]

To me, D&D is impossible without some measure of whimsy. I simply embrace the whimsy, where others might try to draw some line between the whimsy that is giant flying lizards, floating orbs with magic eyes, and squid-headed mind-bending aliens from another dimension and other forms of whimsy they've chosen to consider "silly."

 

[DMCF]

The point of the Underdark is that it is dreary and dangerous. Enter (for 1 season only) MADNESS AND INSANITY!

Insanity is not an alignment. In play it brings everything somewhat more towards neutral. Therefore I like it a lot!

 

[sleypy]

I like whimsy.

It is great even in a grim setting because the transitions to deadly serious can be extremely interesting.

I enjoy when something seems silly and nonsensically bizarre until the layers are peeled away. It can be very disturbing when things start to click into place; then it starts to make sense and stops being (as) amusing.

 

[Guest 6801328]

I know what the anti-metagaming answer is: "Your character would not have read Alice in Wonderland, and therefore would not see it as whimsy. Stay in character, you dirty powergamer!"

 

[Greg K]

To me, D&D is impossible without some measure of whimsy. I simply embrace the whimsy, where others might try to draw some line between the whimsy that is giant flying lizards, floating orbs with magic eyes, and squid-headed mind-bending aliens from another dimension and other forms of whimsy they've chosen to consider "silly."

Personally, with regards to "floating orbs with magic eyes, and squid-headed mind-bending aliens from another dimension", I have never used either in my time as a DM going back to AD&D 1e (I would say Holmes basic, but I don't recall either having been included in that version). Also, during that time, I have never, personally, encountered the latter as a player and only encountered the former in one instance- a horrible con game in which the PCs started off at a fair and were required to play game in which they threw a knife to "hit the beholder in the eye and win yourself a prize".

 

[Gnashtooth]

For once, we can remember the names of the characters in the module. When WotC tries to be serious, it just comes off terrible, and their attempts at uber-sounding names just get mocked. I can remember names like Topsy, Turvy, and Stool. In other recent WoTC modules, we are always chasing a macguffin for an NPC named Alsgkjhf Gwwopiasdklfjkjogh which is of course overseen by <Ebon-something of Insert Your darky-darkness-I'm-evil-wannabe-edgy-highschool-PC-trope name here>.

 

[This Effin’ GM]

On that same vein, we just fought three dire bears in a game: Snap, Crackle, and Maul.

Much more memorable than "Uh, dire...bear...#2?"

 

[Gnashtooth]

If only it could have Drizzt with one of his anklets removed and the other cursed, so he is always tripping and falling over things because one leg is moving faster than the other.