D&D General Worst D&D advice

[Willie the Duck]

Treat the rules as written as a challenge. If it is possible to create a nonsensical situation in the game using the rules, you should make a beeline for that, demand it by played out as such, and declare loudly that it proves that the game is 'broken.'

People who have been on message boards a long time generally have solid advice!

And are as big a deal in the gaming community, and have the industry insider information they claim to have.

“Who’s got a dirty hoard!? Is it you? Do YOU have a dirty hoard?”

Are you flirting with the dragon or treating it like a pet (or both)?

 

[Flamestrike]

Double points if there's a prophecy about him!

And the whole campaign boils down to the PCs being witnesses to him fulfilling it.

 

[James Gasik]

It cracks me up when I play in / watch a game and time is super taffy.

At one extreme, you wake up and do maybe two things and it's suddenly late in the evening. At the other extreme, you've been playing for hours of real life time and your resources are exhausted, but it's only been a couple hours in game.

My personal favorite is DM's who have no sense of how long it takes to travel. They think in terms of modern transportation and roads, and to them, 100 miles is something you should be able to cover in a few hours. When you point out to them that it probably takes 10 days, and they said you needed to be someplace in a week, they tend to get real defensive.

In this vein, more advice: ban anything that lets players move faster- teleport or phantom steed is right out. If they buy horses, have them die or get stolen. Remember, it's not about the destination, but the journey, and why would you want to get there faster?

 

[Warpiglet-7]

What really matters is the extra 2 points of damage.

yes, you might be a glass cannon or a mobile weapons platform that stays back and spams cantrips, but your fun is secondary to mathematical concerns.

I mean nothing hooks a new player like a few extra pips or points. I know you want to play a strong warrior but what you really need to do is dump strength to an 8.

see also expectations of healers in some editions

 

[Mort]

And the whole campaign boils down to the PCs being witnesses to him fulfilling it.

Sadly I got to witness one of these first hand (many years ago).

Got invited into a group (which I now think was my friend's attempt to spread the misery!)

Found out quickly that EVERY situation consisted of the PCs being useless/getting their behinds handed to them followed by the DMPC party (there was a full group!) swooping in to save the day; with a clear goal of fulfilling some kind of campaign goal that the PCs would witness. I made excuses and bowed out after about 2 sessions!

 

[Flamestrike]

Sadly I got to witness one of these first hand (many years ago).

Got invited into a group (which I now think was my friend's attempt to spread the misery!)

Found out quickly that EVERY situation consisted of the PCs being useless/getting their behinds handed to them followed by the DMPC party (there was a full group!) swooping in to save the day; with a clear goal of fulfilling some kind of campaign goal that the PCs would witness. I made excuses and bowed out after about 2 sessions!

Im shocked you lasted 2 whole sessions. I would have been out of there quick smart!

 

[Flamestrike]

This next one is for Star Wars Games.

''Make sure you really ramp up the Stormtroopers in your game, by giving them Elite Trooper levels, so they can hit the PCs more often. They're supposed to be the Empires finest after all!'

(And similar genre deaf advice).

 

[Azuresun]

Tropes exist for a reason: they are fun.
Dump your Int as a barbarian, roleplay your Halfling as a child, have your bard seduce anything, play a druid as a stoner hippy, rangers should be loner who dont engage with the party and scream the name of your mystical attacks as a monk.

Trust me, everybody will be surprised and amused at so much refreshing novelty!

Tropes are terrible, and you should subvert them at every chance you get. Play a butt-kicking princess who doesn't like dresses, a misunderstood Native American orc or a mean halfling. No, you don't need to do anything else, original is the same thing as interesting, right?

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

Tropes are terrible, and you should subvert them at every chance you get. Play a butt-kicking princess who doesn't like dresses, a misunderstood Native American orc or a mean halfling. No, you don't need to do anything else, original is the same thing as interesting, right?

A 6-pages backstory can easily replace interesting roleplay and character development at the table. Even better, a single weird quirk can replace a whole personality if you lean veryyyyy hard into it!

 

[James Gasik]

Remember, it's your game, and your story. The player characters are your property, to do with as you please. Tell stories about the characters, narrate their thought processes, and even take control of their actions if the players don't follow the script.

Also: never show the players the script!