Bud, some DMs are hilariously bad at hiding their behind the scene work.
My cousin's best friend is a DM and terrible at it. His table has a notetaker, an exploiter, and an optimizer.
Queue the ensuing hilarity.
D&D General Wizard vs Fighter - the math
My cousin's best friend is a DM and terrible at it. His table has a notetaker, an exploiter, and an optimizer.
Queue the ensuing hilarity.
EzekielRaiden
Follower of the Way
Even ones that are good at it are trying to keep up a deception against multiple people indefinitely. That's a difficult situation even for people who are actually trained to do that sort of thing.
I can imagine.
Scott Christian
Hero
There are some bad DMs out there. Most have strengths and weaknesses. If it doesn't fit your playstyle, then that is ok. But to suggest changes to the game because of a bad DM is not reasonable.
I'm not saying that the game been changed to over overcome bad DM or bad DMing traits.
But i think the game should not be designed around a "one size fits All" mentality nor pretend every D&D fan comes from the same mindset.
The game to too big for that. And WOTC wants a billion dollar D&D.
Oofta
Legend
Have you read the DMG? While there should be more, there's a ton of "make it your own game" and multiple suggestions on how to run thing. D&D core books do not preach one true way.
Oofta
Legend
D&D is not designed to be a narrative cooperative game. The DM has always had behind-the-screen knowledge, always built and adjusted encounter difficulty based on the party or that first level party wouldn't make it far out of the front door. The way DMs do that is going to vary from one DM to another and their techniques will work for some people and not others. Some DMs take whatever is in a module and use that, whether it's a cake-walk for a TPK. Others will build encounters ahead of time, but only as part of overall prep. Some will adjust encounter B because encounter A was more or less difficult than expected.
For me? I don't major adjustments to stats once initiative is rolled but up until then it's open game. I never fudge dice rolls although (based on player preference) I likely will not use killer tactics. Even then if I really f*** up in extremely rare cases I may lower HP or neglect to use a recharge power. But for the most part? The players only know and are given information that their PC knows.
But this is just another of the extreme DM example paraded around as "proof" that the game doesn't work even though it's worked that way for going on 50 years now. Bad DMs are going to be bad DMs. If they're constantly fudging, constantly bringing in reinforcements every time the fight is too easy, that can be an issue. The solution? Chat with your DM, explain your issues. Help them become better DMs. Communication of expectations and what you want out of a game is a two-way street.
For me? I don't major adjustments to stats once initiative is rolled but up until then it's open game. I never fudge dice rolls although (based on player preference) I likely will not use killer tactics. Even then if I really f*** up in extremely rare cases I may lower HP or neglect to use a recharge power. But for the most part? The players only know and are given information that their PC knows.
But this is just another of the extreme DM example paraded around as "proof" that the game doesn't work even though it's worked that way for going on 50 years now. Bad DMs are going to be bad DMs. If they're constantly fudging, constantly bringing in reinforcements every time the fight is too easy, that can be an issue. The solution? Chat with your DM, explain your issues. Help them become better DMs. Communication of expectations and what you want out of a game is a two-way street.
Micah Sweet
Level Up & OSR Enthusiast
I couldn't care less what WotC wants. There are many different ways to play D&D. If some of those ways are contradictory; ie, if two or more playstyles don't work together, then they shouldn't be the same version of D&D.
I think a lot of the DMG outreach and variants were almost all tailored to the same groups of people. And the mechanics were heavily tailored to one style.
DMG was clearly catering to old school DMs who already have tons of veterancy and really did not need much variance. A lot of the advice and variance for "middle school" and "new school" thoughts like combat options or epic boons.
Scott Christian
Hero
I second this. I would also add they should actually read the DMG. Ninety percent of the DMs' or players' problems could be solved if they actually read the books and absorbed the lessons within those books. I would even add that new DMs should be reading all the adventure paths they can get their hands on.
Scott Christian
Hero
The game is not designed around a one size fits all. In fact, D&D is one of the most versatile RPGs out there.
