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9 Things "Pro" DMs Do That You shouldn't
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<blockquote data-quote="EzekielRaiden" data-source="post: 8648783" data-attributes="member: 6790260"><p>The major problem with most of them is "what counts as 'too much'?"</p><p></p><p>I occasionally go on somewhat longer "monologues" explaining something, or have an NPC that needs to say several things. Sometimes this is prompted by players travelling to a new location, where they need a lot of information presented to them quickly in order to know what they're looking at. I do what I can to make maps and other things to help ease this process, but ultimately I cannot prepare for all possible things they might ask about, so I must rely on being able to answer them. I am very self-conscious about these moments, but my players have never once complained about it, so I can only assume it isn't "too much" DM talking, whether it be in Narrator Voice or in NPC voice.</p><p></p><p>I have, personally, waited to (in this case re-)introduce a character to the party. There were very important reasons why he had left, and his return was simultaneously meant to be understated and important, so an opportune moment was needed. I didn't <em>intend</em> for it to take a while for it to happen, but player actions resulted in it doing so. The player in question wasn't upset, he enjoyed getting to see what the other characters had become while he was away. But that sort of thing is going to happen some of the time.</p><p></p><p>Some of our fights have ended up in the multiple-hour range. One in particular, I made complex and multi-layered fight with two phases and a bunch of different possible consequences depending on exactly how it turned out. I did this because it was a <em>really big, important</em> fight, one the players had actively done a ton of work to prepare for and which they were deeply committed to seeing through, even if it might end up costly. (Their preparation paid off, and their digital dice were <em>hot</em> that night, so they succeeded with flying colors.) I try not to plan too many fights of this kind, because I want them to feel special....but I absolutely do still <em>include</em> such fights, every now and then. (I also include such fights...and allow the players to short-circuit them if they can find a way. That happens <em>pretty</em> rarely, but it's happened at least once.)</p><p></p><p>Many of the others I either don't entirely get what's being said. E.g., what are "truly high-tension moments"? I've had moments <em>I</em> would classify as "truly high-tension," but they were some of the most memorable and <em>important</em> moments of the game, where the players made lasting, campaign-altering decisions. What does "letting the characters talk endlessly" mean? I don't just <em>allow</em> my players to chatter in-character, I actively <em>support</em> them doing so. And I have <em>no idea</em> what "putting the story before the game" <em>means</em>, because....I'm working with my players to make <em>their</em> story happen, that IS the fun they're looking for.</p><p></p><p>So....yeah. I find that a lot of these warnings are more "don't let things get out of hand" rather than "don't do this AT ALL," and most of the remainder are too vague to really obey.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="EzekielRaiden, post: 8648783, member: 6790260"] The major problem with most of them is "what counts as 'too much'?" I occasionally go on somewhat longer "monologues" explaining something, or have an NPC that needs to say several things. Sometimes this is prompted by players travelling to a new location, where they need a lot of information presented to them quickly in order to know what they're looking at. I do what I can to make maps and other things to help ease this process, but ultimately I cannot prepare for all possible things they might ask about, so I must rely on being able to answer them. I am very self-conscious about these moments, but my players have never once complained about it, so I can only assume it isn't "too much" DM talking, whether it be in Narrator Voice or in NPC voice. I have, personally, waited to (in this case re-)introduce a character to the party. There were very important reasons why he had left, and his return was simultaneously meant to be understated and important, so an opportune moment was needed. I didn't [I]intend[/I] for it to take a while for it to happen, but player actions resulted in it doing so. The player in question wasn't upset, he enjoyed getting to see what the other characters had become while he was away. But that sort of thing is going to happen some of the time. Some of our fights have ended up in the multiple-hour range. One in particular, I made complex and multi-layered fight with two phases and a bunch of different possible consequences depending on exactly how it turned out. I did this because it was a [I]really big, important[/I] fight, one the players had actively done a ton of work to prepare for and which they were deeply committed to seeing through, even if it might end up costly. (Their preparation paid off, and their digital dice were [I]hot[/I] that night, so they succeeded with flying colors.) I try not to plan too many fights of this kind, because I want them to feel special....but I absolutely do still [I]include[/I] such fights, every now and then. (I also include such fights...and allow the players to short-circuit them if they can find a way. That happens [I]pretty[/I] rarely, but it's happened at least once.) Many of the others I either don't entirely get what's being said. E.g., what are "truly high-tension moments"? I've had moments [I]I[/I] would classify as "truly high-tension," but they were some of the most memorable and [I]important[/I] moments of the game, where the players made lasting, campaign-altering decisions. What does "letting the characters talk endlessly" mean? I don't just [I]allow[/I] my players to chatter in-character, I actively [I]support[/I] them doing so. And I have [I]no idea[/I] what "putting the story before the game" [I]means[/I], because....I'm working with my players to make [I]their[/I] story happen, that IS the fun they're looking for. So....yeah. I find that a lot of these warnings are more "don't let things get out of hand" rather than "don't do this AT ALL," and most of the remainder are too vague to really obey. [/QUOTE]
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