D&D General I've Been a DM for 30 Years and I have Zero Imagination.

[Jahydin]

Do you think it’s something you can get better at with time?

I've been wondering that myself? Like a muscle?

For a small time, I had to 3D model at my job, and we had an old program that required me to build objects much like stacking Legos. It took a lot of effort for me visualize the objects in my mind so I knew which way to rotate and how to build on them, but I eventually got better at it. So maybe?

Dungeon World is certainly a good workout, so we'll see.

Solid advice btw!

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

Oh, thanks! But I honestly don't. I mean, I didn't even realize I had an issue until recently. My players and I have always had a great time and I still love to DM (running PF2e atm). It's more of just a fun quirk I noticed. Thank goodness for flavor text!

One issue I do have is driving on busy streets though. My situational awareness SUCKS, haha. Best I can do in my mind is turn everything into simple vectors and check my mirrors constantly.

I guess the proof is in the pudding though, so to speak. I'm only a mediocre driver overall. So visualization may not be helping much!

This is true, and probably a separate issue from the imagination problem. Creating has never been a problem for me, it's actually pretty enjoyable, but not on the spot. Thanks for pointing that out.


I've only played with one group, but not my experience at all. Everyone is so hyperdetailed. Talking in character, describing how their actions look, making up scenery, NPCs, and cultures on the spot (since it encourages collaborative storytelling).

I think it heavily depends on the group. Some DW games I've been in where super tactical, others not quite so much.

 

[Ancalagon]

What do you mean? That sounds interesting.

A lot of thing one can imagine are ... ideas, concept, stories.

I have new character in a new campaign, a Goblin alchemist, Mr Butters. I've been giving a lot of thought about who Mr Butters is, how he became that way, what does he want etc - while knowing how mr butters looks like is helpful a bit, the visuals are far less important than the emotions, the motives, the flaws, the dreams...

Oh, that's a relief others feel the same way.

Had a great time, but the prep to make that adventure work was insane.

I should mention I own but never ran Out of the Abyss, I looked at the amount of prep it would require and just said no.

An adventure that does require a bit of prep but is much more... manageable is Dungeons of Drakenheim. I highly recommend it (it's a 3rd party 5e adventure).

The entire campaign is contained within a city devastated by a magical meteor. You have to read up on the city etc, but once you have the basics down, it's a series of small adventures, each of them with a series of hooks and possible consequences depending on the outcome. It's really fun to run.

 

[MNblockhead]

As others have said above, I don't think that you lack imagination. That is such a broad term anyway, that it isn't really useful to pinpoint what you feel is missing and what you would like to improve. To me, it seems like you are struggling more with visualization, description, and improvisation. All are distinct skills that most people can improve with practice.

For example, many people are highly visual and can picture things in their mind but have trouble describing what they picture.
Other people are great at writing, preparation, and world building, but struggle with coming up with things on the fly and reacting to the unexpected.

The first thing is to decide if you really want to improve. If you and your players are enjoying your playstyle and you don't really enjoy the other playstyles, you shouldn't feel you must improve in skills necessary to be good at another playstyle.

But also don't get into the trap of trying new things because you are not initially good at them. Many things in life require a bit of struggle and discomfort before you get good enough to really enjoy them. Music, writing, conversation, swimming, ... most things it seems.

 

[Ancalagon]

To continue in that vein, I once read a piece of GMing advice - "prep what you aren't good at". For me, preparing NPC names is important - not so much because I can't come up with a name on the spot, but rather because I won't remember it if it isn't written down (I'm bad with names).

 

[Jahydin]

To continue in that vein, I once read a piece of GMing advice - "prep what you aren't good at".

Good advice.

I think in my case that would be Googling pictures relevant to the adventure ahead of time.

 

[Jahydin]

A lot of thing one can imagine are ... ideas, concept, stories.

Oh, got ya. Very true. I think I'm pretty good at those other things.

An adventure that does require a bit of prep but is much more... manageable is Dungeons of Drakenheim.

Will check it out, thanks!

 

[Jahydin]

As others have said above, I don't think that you lack imagination. That is such a broad term anyway, that it isn't really useful to pinpoint what you feel is missing and what you would like to improve. To me, it seems like you are struggling more with visualization, description, and improvisation. All are distinct skills that most people can improve with practice.

Well said! I actually looked up the definition and creating images is just one aspect of imagination. I'm okay when it comes to ideas and concepts. So I do have imagination.

The thought of creating a picture in mind feels impossible, but will certainly work on it.

Thanks for the great feedback.

 

[Charlaquin]

Careful what you say about board games...you might accidentally summon an Edition War Lich!

I can't relate very easily, sorry. I'm ADHD, so my brain is always processing some kind of imagination scenario of some sort at all times. It's a lot like living with a permanent daydream running constantly in my head. When I'm not hyperfocused on some kind of mental task (like engineering design), my mind will wander to some pretty colorful and interesting places.

I have ADHD and (I suspect) mild aphantasia. My mind is also constantly wandering, but it’s like wherever it goes is covered in dense fog. I can visualize things a little bit if I really focus on it, but it’s never a clear mental picture. More like… the concept of a picture if that makes sense? Like, I understand what a thing I’m trying to visualize would hypothetically look like, but I can’t “see” it.

 

[Charlaquin]

Oh, that's a relief others feel the same way.

Had a great time, but the prep to make that adventure work was insane.

Yeah, I hated OOTA. Not only does it take a ton of prep to run, it’s also horribly railroady, and for the first part, just downer after downer. Wander through days of random encounters. End up in a settlement. Get captured. Place gets wrecked by a demon lord. Rinse. Repeat.