D&D 5E DMs: How Do You Handle Metagaming?

[Haval]

3. Casters can count squares and line up enemies all they like, in my game they still have to roll to hit the spot they're aiming at.* It's usually pretty easy to get it close enough, but trick shots or blind shots aren't always easy at all; and anything requiring a roll to aim can always cause a fumble if the rolls are bad enough.

* - I can't recommend this highly enough as a way of reining in casters a bit

I hope you don't let enemies roll their saving throw against such aimed fireball. 'Cause that effectively gives them two layers of protection against casters which doesn't look fair. Imagine if every time a fighter hit an opponent the later would roll for dodge.

Advantage/disadvantage mechanic covers cases like ths quite nicely in my opinion. Enemies in question would get an advantage on ST and that's it.

 

[LostSoul]

I explicitly allow metagaming.

I believe that tactical planning mid-combat is a feature (or bug, depending on your point of view) of stop-motion initiative.

 

[Lanefan]

I hope you don't let enemies roll their saving throw against such aimed fireball. 'Cause that effectively gives them two layers of protection against casters which doesn't look fair.

Anyone - friend or enemy - caught in the fireball gets a save for half damage; that's how fireball works. The aiming roll often determines, in part, whether any friends have to worry about saving.

Even when there's nothing but enemies to aim at, the aim roll tells me whether you successfully maximized the number of enemies in your blast radius.

Advantage/disadvantage mechanic covers cases like ths quite nicely in my opinion. Enemies in question would get an advantage on ST and that's it.

Perhaps, but I'm not running 5e and haven't yet introduced adv-disadv to my game in any form (though at some point I almost certainly will, it's a good mechanic in the right places).

Lan-"aim is even more critical with lightning bolt in a confined space, as in true 1e style they rebound off hard surfaces"-efan

 

[pemerton]

I explicitly allow metagaming.

I believe that tactical planning mid-combat is a feature (or bug, depending on your point of view) of stop-motion initiative.

Likewise on both points.

If the players don't know about the abilities of a person or creature, they can always make an appropriate skill check (per the 4e monster knowledge rules, in my case).

With the troll example, I don't want the players to be ignorant of their need for fire damage. I want them to be worried that they don't have enough fire available to do the job!

 

[Psikerlord#]

I'm completely fine with metagaming monster knowledge. It's easy to roleplay (legends, rumours etc when a child or whatever), and frankly if you have players experienced enough, or interested enough, to read and remember monster lore - wow - you should thank your lucky stars! You've got yourself some keen players. And if you really want to surprise them from time to time, make up a unique monster, that's fun too.

 

[Nebulous]

Fun memory from 1e, roughly 1989: our one sort of irritating player is counting fireball squares. "Are you sure you can do that so accurately?" I ask him. "Of COURSE!" he answers snottily. "I'm a master wizard!" He picks the exact square to center the spell on, the square that hits almost every enemy on the map. "You sure?" I ask. "YES!" he answers with a gloat. "THAT ONE. Of course I'm sure. Watch and learn," and he rolls huge damage.

He was off by one square.

Turns out, his wizard was jusssssst inside the blast radius by one square. It dropped him unconscious from full hp! And then we took a break until we could stop laughing. Oh, the look on his face.

So yeah. I'm fine with counting squares.

His preemptive gloating was the icing on the cake.

 

[Nebulous]

I explicitly allow metagaming.

I believe that tactical planning mid-combat is a feature (or bug, depending on your point of view) of stop-motion initiative.

Yes, it is just a simulation game. The best parts of Icewind Dale (always my go-to tactical D&D combat example) were when you paused the spacebar to puzzle out your next move.

 

[Nebulous]

Lan-"aim is even more critical with lightning bolt in a confined space, as in true 1e style they rebound off hard surfaces"-efan

God, i hope someone, somewhere, officially writes a spell description where magical lightning rebounds off stone in a confined space for continued 1e shenanigans....

 

[Lerysh]

I hope you don't let enemies roll their saving throw against such aimed fireball. 'Cause that effectively gives them two layers of protection against casters which doesn't look fair. Imagine if every time a fighter hit an opponent the later would roll for dodge.

Advantage/disadvantage mechanic covers cases like ths quite nicely in my opinion. Enemies in question would get an advantage on ST and that's it.

The roll isn't to miss any of the enemies with a fireball, it's to miss allies. Every enemy will (or should, for reasons you mention) still be hit. It's a matter of if he judged his aim properly enough that the fireball ends just passed the fighter's nose, rather than enveloping his head.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

Yes, it is just a simulation game. The best parts of Icewind Dale (always my go-to tactical D&D combat example) were when you paused the spacebar to puzzle out your next move.

True, and I don't mind when a player takes a second to think about something on his move, but I just dislike it when another player tells him the "optimal solution" despite his PC not being anywhere near. The game should challenge the players too and I'd rather a player in a more solo situation make his own decisions. For the most part they tend to not go overboard and usually all I have to say is "how are you two talking?" and they are like "yeah we can't".