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Message: <blockquote data-quote="iserith" data-source="post: 6672417" data-attributes="member: 97077">It depends though. Going back to the example I fleshed out of the cleric and rogue examining the religious icon, the players make some declarations. Specifically the cleric references time spent cloistered (kept away from the outside world; sheltered) at study while the rogue talks about having been around murderers. Both of these are offered up as part of the character's approach to the action they are taking - drawing upon experiences they've had at some point in their past and applying it to the situation they're in now. These offers are either establishing new information about the characters or reinforcing details that were already established. So we're learning a little bit more detail about the characters or being reminded of who they are.By making players aware that I'm not going to adjudicate their actions until I fully understand their characters' goal and approach to an action (which needn't be "flowery" or overlong, just clear), these are the kinds of offers I typically get. Little by little, action after action, adjudication after adjudication, these small details add up to characters with a lot of established detail and depth. This context allows for the players to more easily portray their characters and for other players to know how best to interact with characters that are not their own. From a storytelling perspective, we're also spending more time "in the fiction" than we are just making reference to game mechanics. This context also helps make it easier for me as DM to decide whether an action needs an ability check attached to it.This might not be for everyone, of course, but in my experience it serves to create compelling characters and stories with a lot of depth and detail.</blockquote>

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