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What DM flaw has caused you to actually leave a game?
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<blockquote data-quote="Imaculata" data-source="post: 7502692" data-attributes="member: 6801286"><p>But that depends entirely on your style of DM'ing. I don't do gotchas. </p><p></p><p>If there is something important in the room, I will draw their attention to it. No need for a game of whack-a-mole. If the statue is worth investigating, I will give my players a clue that this is the case. Otherwise they can assume it is just another statue.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Exactly.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Not if the DM hands out clues regarding what objects are important. I don't do gotchas. If the statue is important, I will include a clue in the description of the room that highlights the importance of the statue.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>In my games charisma-based skills are VERY important. Social encounters are not just based on what a player says. Just because I don't presume actions on the part of my players, does not mean that knowledge skills are useless either. The difference is that I don't feel a need to constantly ask my players to make checks to see things, before they have even stated an approach or action. If there's something or someone I want them to spot in a crowd, I just straight up tell them. If there's a statue I want them to recognize, I straight up tell them about the statue, or provide enough clues to draw their attention to it.</p><p></p><p>I don't ask them to make a roll unless they have stated an approach, and there are meaningful consequences to failure.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>That is obviously not how that works. In my game you would have already received clues if the magic globe is important, and I wouldn't presume you try to examine it, unless you state that action. If your knowledge of magic items is sufficient, I might just straight up tell you what the magic globe is. For example, if you're playing a wizard and the globe is a palantir, I might just decide that this is knowledge that a wizard would possess (or I may take your passive knowledge arcana into account). No roll needed for you, you already know what it is. Everyone else though, would still need to make a knowledge check, -<u>when they declare an action to examine the globe</u>. If however I am unsure if your wizard recognizes the item, then I wait for you to declare an action to investigate it. No rolls are made until you decide that you want to examine the magic globe.</p><p></p><p>We can also apply this to the "key in the drawer" example. If I want the players to find the key, I may draw their attention to the drawer by providing a clue. No roll is required to notice this clue. If however the key is entirely optional, I will wait till a player declares that they want to search the desk. If the key is hidden in the drawer, this may require a roll. But if it isn't, then their action results in an instant success. They find the key merely be declaring an action to search the desk.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Imaculata, post: 7502692, member: 6801286"] But that depends entirely on your style of DM'ing. I don't do gotchas. If there is something important in the room, I will draw their attention to it. No need for a game of whack-a-mole. If the statue is worth investigating, I will give my players a clue that this is the case. Otherwise they can assume it is just another statue. Exactly. Not if the DM hands out clues regarding what objects are important. I don't do gotchas. If the statue is important, I will include a clue in the description of the room that highlights the importance of the statue. In my games charisma-based skills are VERY important. Social encounters are not just based on what a player says. Just because I don't presume actions on the part of my players, does not mean that knowledge skills are useless either. The difference is that I don't feel a need to constantly ask my players to make checks to see things, before they have even stated an approach or action. If there's something or someone I want them to spot in a crowd, I just straight up tell them. If there's a statue I want them to recognize, I straight up tell them about the statue, or provide enough clues to draw their attention to it. I don't ask them to make a roll unless they have stated an approach, and there are meaningful consequences to failure. That is obviously not how that works. In my game you would have already received clues if the magic globe is important, and I wouldn't presume you try to examine it, unless you state that action. If your knowledge of magic items is sufficient, I might just straight up tell you what the magic globe is. For example, if you're playing a wizard and the globe is a palantir, I might just decide that this is knowledge that a wizard would possess (or I may take your passive knowledge arcana into account). No roll needed for you, you already know what it is. Everyone else though, would still need to make a knowledge check, -[U]when they declare an action to examine the globe[/U]. If however I am unsure if your wizard recognizes the item, then I wait for you to declare an action to investigate it. No rolls are made until you decide that you want to examine the magic globe. We can also apply this to the "key in the drawer" example. If I want the players to find the key, I may draw their attention to the drawer by providing a clue. No roll is required to notice this clue. If however the key is entirely optional, I will wait till a player declares that they want to search the desk. If the key is hidden in the drawer, this may require a roll. But if it isn't, then their action results in an instant success. They find the key merely be declaring an action to search the desk. [/QUOTE]
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