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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Haltherrion" data-source="post: 5387542" data-attributes="member: 18253">If it is a detailed setting as you say than the likely issue is that they don't really understand the setting; it hasn't been presented to them in a manner that matters for them. It might be too abstract or perceived as a lot of detail to slog. You may have shortened your text for the forum post here but if it was actually presented as "pirate islands, borderland forests, knightly realms," etc., that's pretty sparse on detail and while it may conjure clear cut images for you, your players will have their own images and may be leery of exactly what you have in mind. I've asked players what to do at times, either at start of campaign or mid-game. For the start case, in addition to some information on the world, I will try to present them with at least a paragraph, sometimes a page of what each of the options might mean. For the in-game choices, I am usually much less formal (no write-ups to choose from that is) but on the otherhand, the choices will hopefully be already established in-game. Last session, they cracked a treasure vault they have been chasing off and on for 11 sessions. It had a spirit in it that gave them some information on the current situation that they had been dealing with, her own agenda, and a proposition for them regarding some material aid in return for the party doing something for them (I've left out all the gorey detail). We roleplayed the encounter and in-game the players seemed interested in her offer. After the game ended, I made it clear to them that this could be another many session arc and that it was up to them whether they wanted to take this path or not. I reminded them of some of the other things they could be doing. They opted for the path as I expected they would because this path has been setup earlier and aligns with several of the PC's backgrounds but I still gave them the choice, partly because there is an implicit contract here: they have given me the green light, I will prepare more than I otherwise would for this arc. The trick is not to give them completely open ended choices but give them bounded choices within an established context.</blockquote>

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