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DM advice: How do you NOT kill your party?
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<blockquote data-quote="TheSword" data-source="post: 7397760" data-attributes="member: 6879661"><p>This is an approach I’ve seen across the ENWorld boards. Funnily enough I’ve almost never seen it on the Pathfinder Boards where I’ve been posting until I switched to 5e a few years ago. I think there is a newer style of campaign that is more character and plot driven that has been championed by the adventure path system and been followed somewhat by D&D’s campaigns. These have been extremely successful - cementing Pathfinders success as the second biggest ttrpg and are one of the major components of the 5e release schedule. They all use a concept of appropriate threats (with occasional extremely hard or extremely easy encounters). </p><p></p><p>My players have given their precious time. I prefer for them to be the center of attention not my own creation. I can still have internal consistency even if the players are the cente of that particular world at that particular time. The example of the half giant having to struggle through doors is a good one. Having one or two doors is sufficient to make the Half Giant feel large and burdonsome maintaining a sense of verisimilitude. However if the Half Giant has to sit and wait in multiple sessions because ‘your’ adventure takes place in a smaller areas than they can reach then it is just bad planning. You’re the DM, you have total control. So don’t put them in situations that the have failed before they have even started. Have the temple they are exploring be two foot taller. I have to review a lot of annual appraisals and there is nothing more frustrating for me than when managers have set their employees clearly unachievable goals. Adventures design should share some similarities to goal setting... relevant, stretching and achievable.</p><p></p><p>You’ve made a few artificial distinctions between fun and enjoyment. I consider the two to be synonymous. You’re suggesting that fun has to be about getting your own way all the time which isn’t the case at all. Our Curse of Strahd game was a lot of fun, but it was also scary, fraught, twisted, tormenting and difficult. Make make no mistake though, it was all about the PCs and how their legend interweaved with Strahd’s. </p><p></p><p>I think the term ‘special snowflake’ has a particular derogatory term where a character refuses to let other players be the center of attention or is unreasonable in their expectations ahead of the rest of the party. When the DM and the players have the same expectations then that term is probably unhelpful and unnecessarily pejorative. It could easily be said that your style of DMing which refuses to change your world to the PCs despite the fact that you have the prior knowledge, and the ability to do anything you want, makes your campaign the special snowflake. It’s a term that probably isn’t helpful.</p><p></p><p>It sounds like you really know your stuff and I’m sure your players are begging for more of it. It’s certainly old school and if a DM has a style of play that works for them then that’s better than having no style. That ethos just isn’t for me though, and I don’t think my players (among which I occasional rotate) would enjoy it either.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="TheSword, post: 7397760, member: 6879661"] This is an approach I’ve seen across the ENWorld boards. Funnily enough I’ve almost never seen it on the Pathfinder Boards where I’ve been posting until I switched to 5e a few years ago. I think there is a newer style of campaign that is more character and plot driven that has been championed by the adventure path system and been followed somewhat by D&D’s campaigns. These have been extremely successful - cementing Pathfinders success as the second biggest ttrpg and are one of the major components of the 5e release schedule. They all use a concept of appropriate threats (with occasional extremely hard or extremely easy encounters). My players have given their precious time. I prefer for them to be the center of attention not my own creation. I can still have internal consistency even if the players are the cente of that particular world at that particular time. The example of the half giant having to struggle through doors is a good one. Having one or two doors is sufficient to make the Half Giant feel large and burdonsome maintaining a sense of verisimilitude. However if the Half Giant has to sit and wait in multiple sessions because ‘your’ adventure takes place in a smaller areas than they can reach then it is just bad planning. You’re the DM, you have total control. So don’t put them in situations that the have failed before they have even started. Have the temple they are exploring be two foot taller. I have to review a lot of annual appraisals and there is nothing more frustrating for me than when managers have set their employees clearly unachievable goals. Adventures design should share some similarities to goal setting... relevant, stretching and achievable. You’ve made a few artificial distinctions between fun and enjoyment. I consider the two to be synonymous. You’re suggesting that fun has to be about getting your own way all the time which isn’t the case at all. Our Curse of Strahd game was a lot of fun, but it was also scary, fraught, twisted, tormenting and difficult. Make make no mistake though, it was all about the PCs and how their legend interweaved with Strahd’s. I think the term ‘special snowflake’ has a particular derogatory term where a character refuses to let other players be the center of attention or is unreasonable in their expectations ahead of the rest of the party. When the DM and the players have the same expectations then that term is probably unhelpful and unnecessarily pejorative. It could easily be said that your style of DMing which refuses to change your world to the PCs despite the fact that you have the prior knowledge, and the ability to do anything you want, makes your campaign the special snowflake. It’s a term that probably isn’t helpful. It sounds like you really know your stuff and I’m sure your players are begging for more of it. It’s certainly old school and if a DM has a style of play that works for them then that’s better than having no style. That ethos just isn’t for me though, and I don’t think my players (among which I occasional rotate) would enjoy it either. [/QUOTE]
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