D&D 5E Any good alternatives to "How do you want to do this"?

[rgoodbb]

When a member of Critical Role kills the main big bad in a combat, the DM Mat Mercer always says "How do you want to do this" ala describe how you land the killing blow.

Just curious, what quick alternatives do folks use, if any?

 

[Baldurs_Underdark]

Once the final kill is there, I never rush things... so I do not connect to the choice of words: "quick alternatives" in the OP.

I try to get a feel for the table. Sometimes I describe it myself, sometimes I allow the players to describe the kill.

• Some of my players describe every attack as if it is the killing blow, so that makes life easy when it finally does happen.
• I use some variations to "how do you want to do it?" to encourage players to roleplay
• If there are funny coincidences that the players did not notice, I may describe it myself to give a kill more flavor.

 

[Maialideth]

I use "Please go ahead and describe it" when my players get a killing blow. I actually started doing it before I had watched Critical Role, just not very consistently, and not with the same phrase every time. Matt's "How do you want to do this?" inspired me to do it more consistently and generally to ask the players for more of their own descriptions of what happens in the game.

 

[aco175]

I might give the 6-Million Dollar Man sound effect and say "Na Na Na Na Na", as I slash across the air or figure gesture a spell or such. Typically, I just reach over and topple the miniature.

 

[Steampunkette]

I describe the newly dead character's expression and inability to defend themselves and that prompts my players to describe how they're striking... and then I describe the death based on that strike description.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

My go-to for many years has been "tell us what happens to _____."

 

[CleverNickName]

I've always used, "...describe the final blow."

 

[iserith]

I prefer to stick to the play loop which has the DM narrating the result of the adventurers' actions. Asking the player to do this always seems rather clunky in practice to me since they're used to the conversation of the game flowing a certain way and then it's suddenly subverted.

 

[Urriak Uruk]

I usually say "How does it die."

 

[Quickleaf]

Often it's a matter of body language and eye contact to suss out whether I'll be narrating the death as DM or if the player wants to. So no words really are spoken about it – we're just in the narrative flow, and depending on the situation I might do it, they might do it, or it might simply go un-described. If I'm unsure of the player's intent (which I notice happens a lot more playing over Zoom), I'll ask them, "Did you have something in mind?" or "What does Grolandor do?"