D&D General When Players Refuse to learn The Rules

[MGibster]

I don't think the OP's problem is with players who occasionally have to look a rule up. It's with players who, for whatever reason, refuse to learn the basics even after extended game play. My group has been using Savage Worlds off an on for more than ten years now and I have a player who still asks questions about very, very basic rules. The message being sent is, "I don't care about this game."

 

[Thunder Brother]

I've had this frustration as well, especially since my DnD group is all new to the hobby (myself included). I'm way more invested in the rules than others, so it's annoying when basic mistakes crop up again and again, even after multiple campaigns and one-shots. Not knowing a niche rule? Completely understandable. Confusing Attack and Damage rolls after a few years of playing on and off? C'mon buddy.

This issue is especially prevalent with players who seem to be more interested in being part of the social circle than playing the game, which I'm sympathetic to, but hey, we can hang out for other reasons.

I sometimes wonder if services like DnDBeyond aggravate this problem, since it offloads a lot of knowledge and information the player in the past would have had to write down themselves.

 

[Stormonu]

Yeah, I don’t have a problem with people just learning the rules or playing casually. It’s when they put up a wall that says, “I DON’T want to learn this stuff, you figure it out for me.”

 

[Thomas Shey]

Can't say about VTT as I only ever used one and it was super simple.

Also the core 5e rules aren't that difficult to learn for players.

However I would defend players of spellcasters who have troubles, particularly in games with fast advancement. You can't expect people to remember spells details by memory. Therefore the problem is not about knowing your spells but about having quick access to them, and the PHB is NOT a good enough gaming aid at the table, and neither are character sheets!

I kind of don't buy that. If you're making even a half attempt to look-ahead (and you should be) you can be looking up the spell you plan to use while its not your turn. Its also not impossible these days to get a list of just your own spells and have them at hand so you don't have to go through the whole book.

If that's still too much for you--well, don't play a damn spellcaster. If I can manage and I'm 64 years old and have had a crap memory my whole life, my sympathy for others is, lets say, limited.

 

[Thomas Shey]

I don't think the OP's problem is with players who occasionally have to look a rule up. It's with players who, for whatever reason, refuse to learn the basics even after extended game play. My group has been using Savage Worlds off an on for more than ten years now and I have a player who still asks questions about very, very basic rules. The message being sent is, "I don't care about this game."

Yeah. I mean, even with the spell example, if you're playing a character who uses a given spell at least once a session, and probably more (lightning bolt, say) and you still don't know it many sessions in, I have to assume you just can't be bothered or figure all the lifting in the game is supposed to be on the GM's side.

 

[Thomas Shey]

To make it clear, I get that some VTT interfaces can be opaque. But you know, there are other ways to access the rules for your character than the VTT. When I find HLO for PF2e is making it too hard to find something, I just pull out the damn book whether in PDF or physical.

 

[Lanefan]

Yeah, I don’t have a problem with people just learning the rules or playing casually. It’s when they put up a wall that says, “I DON’T want to learn this stuff, you figure it out for me.”

Which, if someone's coming from an old-school system where much more game-mechanical work was kept DM-side, is in my view a perfectly reasonable attitude: "I don't want to learn this stuff, because I shouldn't have to learn this stuff, because this stuff is and should remain the DM's job rather than the players'."

As for VTTs, we don't bother with the online character sheets; we have our paper sheets to run from, and mostly just use the VTT (and Discord, for audio) for maps, dice-rolling, and handouts. Even with that, the moment we get back to in-person play Discord is coming out of my computer, hopefully never to return, as I'm bloody tired of it constantly messing with my audio settings.

 

[guachi]

I now tell players my expectations in Session Zero. Players are required to know what their characters can do. In combat, they have 10 seconds to start talking and telling me what their PC does or the PC takes the Dodge Action.

Also, Just Roll the Damn Dice.

Set higher expectations and stick to them. Combat got much faster and more cinematic and players were far more involved.

 

[Reynard]

Which, if someone's coming from an old-school system where much more game-mechanical work was kept DM-side, is in my view a perfectly reasonable attitude: "I don't want to learn this stuff, because I shouldn't have to learn this stuff, because this stuff is and should remain the DM's job rather than the players'."

As with all things in RPG gaming, this is a matter of communication. My players aren't looking to immerse themselves by not having to engage the rules and focus on roleplay. I hesitate to say it is because they are lazy. Rather I think it is because the game isn't that important to them at the end of the day so they don't put any effort into it.

Which is why I am trying to get as quickly as possible to a satisfying conclusion of the current arc, rather than just TPKing the party and calling it a day.

 

[Marc_C]

I had a player who hadn't played since 2e. He forgot all the 5e rules between games but remembered the 2e rules and was constantly confused trying to do things the wrong way. After several games I told him to prepare before each game because it wasn't my job to remind him the rules every session. He decided to leave the game. I hope he found a 2e game.