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<blockquote data-quote="Swarmkeeper" data-source="post: 8384129" data-attributes="member: 6921763">Good point - when we’re talking about the pillars we’re categorizing the activities of the characters (at least that’s what the PHB has to say).&nbsp; It’s these activities - which come from the player’s imagination not the DM’s - that determine the pillar.&nbsp; Not to mention that the DM just shouldn’t be expositing what the PCs are thinking, saying, or trying to do - but rather just narrating the outcomes and the (potentially) changed scene that results.&nbsp; A valuable tip I learned on these boards is for the DM to avoid the word “you” as much as possible when running a game.“Adventurers can try to do anything their players can imagine, but it can be helpful to talk about their activities in three broad categories: exploration, social interaction, and combat.” PHB p8And “can be helpful” sometimes just isn’t all that helpful.&nbsp; IMO, we’re collectively suffering from overthinking the whole thing (don’t get me wrong, it can also be fun to deeply examine a part of the game).Seems all a new player needs to know is:Combat = fighting creaturesSocial interaction = talking with creaturesExploration = interacting with stuffIf a DM can create challenges in each of these pillars using the core rulebooks, great.If a DM needs additional resources to create challenges in one or more of these pillars, that’s fine too.Or, ignore the idea of pillars and just focus on the play loop.&nbsp; That works, too.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Swarmkeeper, post: 8384129, member: 6921763"] Good point - when we’re talking about the pillars we’re categorizing the activities of the characters (at least that’s what the PHB has to say). It’s these activities - which come from the player’s imagination not the DM’s - that determine the pillar. Not to mention that the DM just shouldn’t be expositing what the PCs are thinking, saying, or trying to do - but rather just narrating the outcomes and the (potentially) changed scene that results. A valuable tip I learned on these boards is for the DM to avoid the word “you” as much as possible when running a game. [I]“Adventurers can try to do anything their players can imagine, but it can be helpful to talk about their activities in three broad categories: exploration, social interaction, and combat.” PHB p8[/I] And “can be helpful” sometimes just isn’t all that helpful. IMO, we’re collectively suffering from overthinking the whole thing (don’t get me wrong, it can also be fun to deeply examine a part of the game). Seems all a new player needs to know is: Combat = fighting creatures Social interaction = talking with creatures Exploration = interacting with stuff If a DM can create challenges in each of these pillars using the core rulebooks, great. If a DM needs additional resources to create challenges in one or more of these pillars, that’s fine too. Or, ignore the idea of pillars and just focus on the play loop. That works, too. [/QUOTE]

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