Post by Joseph Barros on Nov 2, 2013 9:49:21 GMT -8
I'm the DM. My goal is to create a fun game with as much player input as possible because I love collaborative storytelling. I do not have a full game world map to show the players because if I were to create it, not only would it be poorly drawn, but also covered mostly with gray fog. As we progress that fog will be rolled back to uncover new locations created both by me AND the players. You tell me what you think is cool and I'll see if I can make it work.
I don't take the adversarial approach to DMing. I am not trying to kill your character. I AM trying to role-play the antagonists. Not every encounter need end with one side 100% wiped out. Not every encounter need even to begin with combat for that matter, but that's more up to the player than the DM for the most part.
Mechanically I am generally more of a strict constructionist. I think any DM who has more than 5 house rules should consider playing a different game system that better represents what they want to see in a game. That said, the ones I have may seem radical and honestly, some are quite experimental in nature. The goal is to streamline some of the clunky parts of the game so that we are getting more out of the time we invest. Therefore none are written in stone and all are open to player feedback. All I ask is to give them an honest try.
Finally, in game, I will try to reward creativity as much as possible with success. Furthermore, I will never penalize a character for said success. For example If I plan a big encounter and you figure out an alternative way to overcome it, even if it means avoiding fighting altogether, you will still earn the XP.
"SAY WHAT??!!"
I'll clarify more with another example similar to one presented in a blog on the topic I recently read. Lets say on your way to rescue the princess you enter a room with a giant spider. Beyond the spider is your only means of progressing further into the dungeon to reach the princess. The obvious resolution is kill the spider and if you want to handle it that way, then go ahead! Roll initiative!
However, what if you notice that in the far corner is a large egg sac. What if, hypothetically, the druid remembers that if a female giant spider has an egg sac to protect it's number one priority is keeping it close and protecting it, but not necessarily killing everything in sight. So you decide to just hug the wall opposite the egg sac to try to get to the door hoping the spider will let you pass so long as you don't appear to pose a threat to the egg sac. If it works guess what? Encounter successfully resolved! XP awarded! Now, there of course will be plenty of encounters where combat cannot be avoided, but do not assume that something in your way means a fight to the death. I'm always open to alternatives and if they work you don't miss out on anything! I will not penalize creativity!
Finally, if a rules debate comes up that goes beyond 60 seconds time it will be resolved in my favor. If the debate is between players and I don't think I know the answer, the debate will be resolved by d20. However, I will make note of the protest and research it before the next session so that it can be resolved before play resumes again.
One of the many hats a DM must wear is referee, and before the age of instant replay whatever the referee said was final. It's possible they could be wrong, but still you trust that they know the rules well enough to make bad calls a rare occurrence or you wouldn't have hired them in the first place. You trust that their only motivation is purely to enforce the rules as they are written while simultaneously maintaining the flow of the game to the best of their ability, because if you let the players and coaches debate it out a three hour game could easily become a terribly boring 5 or 6. I ask that you give that same trust to me as your DM for the same reasoning.
I don't take the adversarial approach to DMing. I am not trying to kill your character. I AM trying to role-play the antagonists. Not every encounter need end with one side 100% wiped out. Not every encounter need even to begin with combat for that matter, but that's more up to the player than the DM for the most part.
Mechanically I am generally more of a strict constructionist. I think any DM who has more than 5 house rules should consider playing a different game system that better represents what they want to see in a game. That said, the ones I have may seem radical and honestly, some are quite experimental in nature. The goal is to streamline some of the clunky parts of the game so that we are getting more out of the time we invest. Therefore none are written in stone and all are open to player feedback. All I ask is to give them an honest try.
Finally, in game, I will try to reward creativity as much as possible with success. Furthermore, I will never penalize a character for said success. For example If I plan a big encounter and you figure out an alternative way to overcome it, even if it means avoiding fighting altogether, you will still earn the XP.
"SAY WHAT??!!"
I'll clarify more with another example similar to one presented in a blog on the topic I recently read. Lets say on your way to rescue the princess you enter a room with a giant spider. Beyond the spider is your only means of progressing further into the dungeon to reach the princess. The obvious resolution is kill the spider and if you want to handle it that way, then go ahead! Roll initiative!
However, what if you notice that in the far corner is a large egg sac. What if, hypothetically, the druid remembers that if a female giant spider has an egg sac to protect it's number one priority is keeping it close and protecting it, but not necessarily killing everything in sight. So you decide to just hug the wall opposite the egg sac to try to get to the door hoping the spider will let you pass so long as you don't appear to pose a threat to the egg sac. If it works guess what? Encounter successfully resolved! XP awarded! Now, there of course will be plenty of encounters where combat cannot be avoided, but do not assume that something in your way means a fight to the death. I'm always open to alternatives and if they work you don't miss out on anything! I will not penalize creativity!
Finally, if a rules debate comes up that goes beyond 60 seconds time it will be resolved in my favor. If the debate is between players and I don't think I know the answer, the debate will be resolved by d20. However, I will make note of the protest and research it before the next session so that it can be resolved before play resumes again.
One of the many hats a DM must wear is referee, and before the age of instant replay whatever the referee said was final. It's possible they could be wrong, but still you trust that they know the rules well enough to make bad calls a rare occurrence or you wouldn't have hired them in the first place. You trust that their only motivation is purely to enforce the rules as they are written while simultaneously maintaining the flow of the game to the best of their ability, because if you let the players and coaches debate it out a three hour game could easily become a terribly boring 5 or 6. I ask that you give that same trust to me as your DM for the same reasoning.