D&D General Ginni D Yes, And

[Reynard]

Always kind of bugged me about some of her content as well. Repackaged advice (that people give her money for).

Then i realized: It’s not for me.

It’s for newer gamers who haven’t heard it before or haven’t come to a similar conclusion on their own.


As for the subject “yes and” fails when you have a player who’s like “I’ll stab the King” which in the end will just screw up everyone else’s fun time. The DM must consider EVERYONE and sometimes a “no” has to come out.

I have never really gotten the vibe from Ginni D that she is trying to sell her advice as original to her.

That is the Alexandrian's schtick, though.

 

[DarkCrisis]

I have never really gotten the vibe from Ginni D that she is trying to sell her advice as original to her.

That is the Alexandrian's schtick, though.

Oh, im not saying she’s claiming originality just a lot of what she says is nothing new.

As far as I know she could be going down a “good rpg advice” list she found on the internet and making a video about each entry).

And she does do original content (I’m fairly sure) so it’s not like all she does is regurgitate old ideas.

Good for her. Atleast she doesn’t do reaction videos as far as I know. That’s like bottom of the barrel content IMO.

 

[Reynard]

Oh, im not saying she’s claiming originality just a lot of what she says is nothing new.

As far as I know she could be going down a “good rpg advice” list she found on the internet and making a video about each entry).

That is all of them, I think. Even Coville. The good ones (Like Ginni and Matt) don't try and convince you that they invented the ideas, though.

And she does do original content (I’m fairly sure) so it’s not like all she does is regurgitate old ideas.

In particular, her cosplay and songs are great.

Good for her. Atleast she doesn’t do reaction videos as far as I know. That’s like bottom of the barrel content IMO.

Yeah. Ewww.

 

[Steampunkette]

I also have some other specific uses off a given -roll- rather than before the attempt has been made.

"Yes, but" is -amazing- for a failed skill check/attack roll/etc in a high stakes situation or a moment where the player is doing something importantly dramatic and rolls poorly. I let them succeed in the moment but it results in additional complications. "Yes you stabbed the doppelganger pretending to be the king. But the Princess opened the door at just the right moment to see you doing it and calls the guard in a blind panic!"

"No, but" is also good in that kind of situation where the player -nearly- succeeds but misses by a few points. I've had BBEGs survive encounters but allowed the players to inflict disfiguring injuries to the face with the intent of both reinforcing the drama and making them feel like they accomplished something even if it wasn't the goal since by doing it they've created a recurring trait and made the BBEG even more recognizable.

And finally "No, and" is a -fantastic- learning tool. Because it's "No, you didn't succeed at the ridiculous thing you tried, but you've also put yourself into an even worse position than before." I have used "No, and" to incredible success with "Rule of Cool" players who climb to the top of a 60ft tower while the rest of the party is struggling to survive an encounter, then dive off to attack the BBEG with a Sephiroth-style strike. Not only did you roll badly enough to not hit, you also take falling damage, and you're prone in front of the BBEG. "But the rule of cool!" doesn't mean you get to do whatever you want with no consequences, Kyle, pick yourself up and work with your party rather than trying to find a cheeky one-shot with no risks.

 

[GMMichael]

1) This isn't a D&D-only video. Let all enjoy!
2) Hollywood-level use of sword-drawing sound effects. Not that Hollywood is typically good at that sort of thing.
3) I think she colors her eyebrows.
4) Her videographer is good.

and most glowingly,

5) Her videos don't give me the anxiety that watching Colville does. Thank you, Ginni D!

 

[DarkCrisis]

I also have some other specific uses off a given -roll- rather than before the attempt has been made.

"Yes, but" is -amazing- for a failed skill check/attack roll/etc in a high stakes situation or a moment where the player is doing something importantly dramatic and rolls poorly. I let them succeed in the moment but it results in additional complications. "Yes you stabbed the doppelganger pretending to be the king. But the Princess opened the door at just the right moment to see you doing it and calls the guard in a blind panic!"

"No, but" is also good in that kind of situation where the player -nearly- succeeds but misses by a few points. I've had BBEGs survive encounters but allowed the players to inflict disfiguring injuries to the face with the intent of both reinforcing the drama and making them feel like they accomplished something even if it wasn't the goal since by doing it they've created a recurring trait and made the BBEG even more recognizable.

And finally "No, and" is a -fantastic- learning tool. Because it's "No, you didn't succeed at the ridiculous thing you tried, but you've also put yourself into an even worse position than before." I have used "No, and" to incredible success with "Rule of Cool" players who climb to the top of a 60ft tower while the rest of the party is struggling to survive an encounter, then dive off to attack the BBEG with a Sephiroth-style strike. Not only did you roll badly enough to not hit, you also take falling damage, and you're prone in front of the BBEG. "But the rule of cool!" doesn't mean you get to do whatever you want with no consequences, Kyle, pick yourself up and work with your party rather than trying to find a cheeky one-shot with no risks.

Watched a YouTube game the other day and one of the PCs stole from a shop while the keeper watched and the DM allowed it “because it was funny”.

And I’m like, so in this world you can get away with a crime as long as it’s funny?

Annoyed the hell out of me as a DM.

 

[Vaalingrade]

I was worried when it came to the title and the fact that it was being enthusiastically praised on Enworld, expecting it to be some kind of screed against another form of cooperative storytelling. Which was confusing to me as this is Ginni and I know she doens't play like that.

But it's the kind of thing I've been saying in the writing space for years in particular when dealing with newbies who read On Writing and think it's the Writer Bible: hollow pithy advice isn't actually good; you've got to dig in and put some thought into these things to make it work.

 

[Vaalingrade]

And I’m like, so in this world you can get away with a crime as long as it’s funny?

So... our world?

Funny, or content, or you're someone important or rich... yeah, crime is legal with context--usually bad context.

Also, like... they're playing a game. For fun.

 

[Reynard]

1) This isn't a D&D-only video. Let all enjoy!
2) Hollywood-level use of sword-drawing sound effects. Not that Hollywood is typically good at that sort of thing.
3) I think she colors her eyebrows.
4) Her videographer is good.

and most glowingly,

5) Her videos don't give me the anxiety that watching Colville does. Thank you, Ginni D!

The one that ramps up my anxiety is Mr. Tarrasque.

Inhale, my man.

 

[EzekielRaiden]

As for the subject “yes and” fails when you have a player who’s like “I’ll stab the King” which in the end will just screw up everyone else’s fun time. The DM must consider EVERYONE and sometimes a “no” has to come out.

My main problem with this criticism is that it presupposes bad faith players. If the only way to criticize "yes, and" is to presume bad faith, then as Ginny D herself said, you don't need new tools, you need new players.

And finally "No, and" is a -fantastic- learning tool. Because it's "No, you didn't succeed at the ridiculous thing you tried, but you've also put yourself into an even worse position than before." I have used "No, and" to incredible success with "Rule of Cool" players who climb to the top of a 60ft tower while the rest of the party is struggling to survive an encounter, then dive off to attack the BBEG with a Sephiroth-style strike. Not only did you roll badly enough to not hit, you also take falling damage, and you're prone in front of the BBEG. "But the rule of cool!" doesn't mean you get to do whatever you want with no consequences, Kyle, pick yourself up and work with your party rather than trying to find a cheeky one-shot with no risks.

Again though, this is presuming bad-faith players. A tool for dealing with bad-faith behavior is only fantastic up until your players stop being little poops and start being reasonable adults. It becomes a lot less fantastic after that...and no tool can truly make a player choose to engage in good faith.

Watched a YouTube game the other day and one of the PCs stole from a shop while the keeper watched and the DM allowed it “because it was funny”.

And I’m like, so in this world you can get away with a crime as long as it’s funny?

Annoyed the hell out of me as a DM.

Not really sure I understand your annoyance here. If the people at the table are having fun, and the DM and players were cooperative, what exactly is the problem? This frankly comes across as grumbling about someone else's badwrongfun.