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Message: <blockquote data-quote="iserith" data-source="post: 7924205" data-attributes="member: 97077">So in other words, if DMs and players are looking to have "peak dramatic moments" in their games, nobody actually needs to do what you're advocating.I DM, play in, and observe a lot of games. A great many DMs from what I can tell use the method you ascribe to. "You think..." and "You feel..." is peppered throughout their games, pushing the PCs into particular directions or reactions. Almost always it's in response to a question by the player because the DM's description was inadequate. It's a fairly common approach in my experience, but one that demands a critical look in my view.I challenge everyone reading this to count the number of times the DM does this in a game they're in or watching on Twitch or whatever. It's interesting. You can judge for yourself if it's being done to create "peak dramatic moments" or if it's really just a solution to correct for a problem the DM is creating or a way for the DM to push play in particular directions, such as to keep people on the plot or to create the DM's desired outcome to the story.As DM I don't care even a little bit about how a player chooses to respond to a situation. That's none of my concern, provided that what they're doing is fun for everyone and helps contribute to an exciting, memorable story (which are the goals of play outlined in the rules). In part, I'm playing to find out what they do in the face of what I present. Putting my thumb on the scale by telling them what their own characters feel does a disservice to my players and to my goals as DM. I certainly would not "roll an Intimidation check for the monster" because there is no uncertainty as to the outcome since the player always decides how the character reacts which means the prerequisite for the ability check was not met in the first place.What the DM is doing in your example above, when you boil it down, is putting social pressure on the player to respond in a way that is in line with the description. The DM may not even realize this is what is occurring. You may say the player can do as he or she likes, but if the player doesn't react within a range of options that the DM's description suggests is appropriate, then it just looks weird and out of place in front of everyone at the table. Players who don't want to seem like they are doing something weird or out of place in front of other people will therefore modify their reaction to be in line with what the DM said their characters are feeling. It's a bit of DM manipulation.Further, if I'm playing my fighter who has a personality trait of "I can stare down a hell hound without flinching" (from the Soldier background) and you tell me my character feels queasy about a rotten corpse (to build on your example upthread), you have done me a disservice in my view. It's up to me to decide how my fighter responds to the rotten corpse. It is not up to the DM and I would remind you of that right then and there. And that response from me would not be out of line with what I have seen in other games: The DM tells a player how their character reacts and the player objects because it's not in line with how the player imagines his or her character and now the game has to pause so this can be resolved. This can be avoided by simply not doing what you advocate.And so, given this, not only do we not need this approach to create "peak dramatic moments," but we should also be wary of it because it can create a conflict between the DM and player.The game lays out what each person in the game is responsible for. It does not set forth an "unreasonably high standard of description and plot layout." In fact, it says very simply "The DM tells the players where their adventurers are and what's around them, presenting the basic scope of options that present themselves." That's all the DM is asked to do and it's so the players can make reasonably informed decisions. Among those decisions might be to express fear or the like in the face of what is presented to them. But that's for the player decide when he or she performs his or her role in the game which is "The players describe what they want to do" via active or descriptive roleplaying.I would suggest they need to take a harder look at DMs telling players what their characters think and feel and how they act. Especially since, as has been shown, it's totally unnecessary and can lead to problems at the table.</blockquote>

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