Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is coming! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*TTRPGs General
"You're a half elf? Really?" From the P.A. Podcasts
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Barastrondo" data-source="post: 4958686" data-attributes="member: 3820"><p>Well, that also says something about the observer. If you tend to assume, unless instructed otherwise, that a character resembles its player in any way save the ways said player specifically says it doesn't, that's your own assumptions at play. And depending on the observer, it can be hard to overcome that initial assumption; lots of people came away from <em>A Wizard of Earthsea</em> thinking of Ged as white. </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>In theory, yes. However, I don't think people are wrong for doing it otherwise, even if it's not my style, because they might not be into roleplaying in a way that involves the concept of "I have an audience." There are gamers out there who don't particularly care if anybody else at the table thinks it's cool that they're playing an elf: they think it's cool to play an elf, and therefore they do so.</p><p></p><p>Where my hackles raise is when the word "should" comes into play. Do I think people should give me some sort of description of their character if I ask? Yes. Do I think they should make repeated efforts to get descriptive details across even if nobody else at the table is expressing interest and they're not particularly interested in the process of getting descriptive? Nope. If there is no demand, either on your fellow players' part or your own, I don't think people should be held to that.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Sure, particularly for specific groups. If there's no demand from your fellow players for description, you can still persevere at it and maybe bring them around to wanting more description if they have a positive experience.</p><p></p><p>But here's the thing: if you want more details about your fellow characters' appearances, the number-one best way to encourage them to provide them is to ask. Not to tell them how much more fun everyone else would be having if they kept on nudging elements of their character description into conversation: just ask. It is the absolute surest way to make sure that they know there is an audience for that sort of thing. Because if nobody else at their table is asking, there might not be an audience for that sort of thing. And if there isn't — and if a player isn't at the game with the intent of portraying a character for an audience — there's no moral impetus for trying to change things. </p><p></p><p>Again, I'm basically playing devil's advocate here. I like descriptions. I try to get them out of all my players. But I always ask for descriptions if I don't have the picture straight in my head. If it turns out that somebody's been a half-elf for two sessions and I never noticed, it's at least 50% on me for not inquiring in the first place, or bothering to remember if it did come up.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Barastrondo, post: 4958686, member: 3820"] Well, that also says something about the observer. If you tend to assume, unless instructed otherwise, that a character resembles its player in any way save the ways said player specifically says it doesn't, that's your own assumptions at play. And depending on the observer, it can be hard to overcome that initial assumption; lots of people came away from [I]A Wizard of Earthsea[/I] thinking of Ged as white. In theory, yes. However, I don't think people are wrong for doing it otherwise, even if it's not my style, because they might not be into roleplaying in a way that involves the concept of "I have an audience." There are gamers out there who don't particularly care if anybody else at the table thinks it's cool that they're playing an elf: they think it's cool to play an elf, and therefore they do so. Where my hackles raise is when the word "should" comes into play. Do I think people should give me some sort of description of their character if I ask? Yes. Do I think they should make repeated efforts to get descriptive details across even if nobody else at the table is expressing interest and they're not particularly interested in the process of getting descriptive? Nope. If there is no demand, either on your fellow players' part or your own, I don't think people should be held to that. Sure, particularly for specific groups. If there's no demand from your fellow players for description, you can still persevere at it and maybe bring them around to wanting more description if they have a positive experience. But here's the thing: if you want more details about your fellow characters' appearances, the number-one best way to encourage them to provide them is to ask. Not to tell them how much more fun everyone else would be having if they kept on nudging elements of their character description into conversation: just ask. It is the absolute surest way to make sure that they know there is an audience for that sort of thing. Because if nobody else at their table is asking, there might not be an audience for that sort of thing. And if there isn't — and if a player isn't at the game with the intent of portraying a character for an audience — there's no moral impetus for trying to change things. Again, I'm basically playing devil's advocate here. I like descriptions. I try to get them out of all my players. But I always ask for descriptions if I don't have the picture straight in my head. If it turns out that somebody's been a half-elf for two sessions and I never noticed, it's at least 50% on me for not inquiring in the first place, or bothering to remember if it did come up. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*TTRPGs General
"You're a half elf? Really?" From the P.A. Podcasts
Top