tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post4575151150880705568..comments2023-10-14T03:58:59.333-06:00Comments on The Tao of D&D: Oz's DilemmaAlexis Smolenskhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10539170107563075967noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-49569014397952635652010-02-23T09:22:10.640-07:002010-02-23T09:22:10.640-07:00Recently the enthusiastic rookie in our group got ...Recently the enthusiastic rookie in our group got her PC charmed by an NPC mage. And so did the player. The rest of us were expecting the NPC to do or become something really horrific but the PC kept getting close, putting her arm round the NPC etc so none of us could get in for the kill. She just thought the NPC was a harmless young girl, which is what she in fact turned out to be. It's just an example of somebody naturally inhabiting a role and acting on their instincts, reacting to another person's (albeit imaginery) emotions.Fran Terminiellohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02506269178716477521noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-5557765644292862482010-02-17T00:35:40.402-07:002010-02-17T00:35:40.402-07:00I'm with Trollsmyth on this. It's up to t...I'm with Trollsmyth on this. It's up to the players. If they don't want a heavy role playing game, you're not going to have one. If that's what you want, you should get new players.<br /><br />I think that a DM can set the stage, but the acting is up to the folks who are on it.<br /><br />With that said, the quality of your stage dressing, and the cues you give to your players is going to have a direct impact on the quality of the response.<br /><br />Of course, let's all remember that we're not putting on a play.Original_Carlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03521777462227997158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-19600626275455172792010-02-13T21:57:35.279-07:002010-02-13T21:57:35.279-07:00I don't think a DM can (or should) require the...I don't think a DM can (or should) require the player to emote. Any emotions must come, from an honest place within the player. <br /><br />The fact that players feel safe to react emotionally to in-game situations reveals their own maturity, and the trust that exists between all of the players and the DM.Aaron E. Steelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07789462075611254929noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-44695800371429048092010-02-13T05:59:12.241-07:002010-02-13T05:59:12.241-07:00And I'll counter it's up to the player. I...And I'll counter it's up to the player. I'm blessed with players right now who do this because, to them, it's part of the fun. Rules to adjudicate or "enforce" this sort of thing would just get in our way.<br /><br />I suppose you could (and I have, now that I think about it) right rules that take such things into account. Imagine a set of "needs" like a character from the Sims; characters whose need levels drop too low suffer debilitating consequences that may be mitigated by willpower. In the game I designed, stats functioned as a variety of "hit points" for the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of the PC. Just as loosing too many physical hit points could cause the character to collapse, pass out, or die, loosing too many mental hit points could lead to madness and losing your emotional hit points should invoke extreme behaviors or surrender to temptation.<br /><br />But, as in all things, it remained with the players to really play out the effects. Recently, one of the PCs in Doom & Tea Parties lost a hand, and while the rules said nothing about the agonies of the experience, the player stepped up the challenge and portrayed the character's shock and agonies. As the DM, I can set the stage and provide some motivation, but if the player isn't interested in going there, it's just not going to happen.trollsmythhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01895349218958093151noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-67305167346429000172010-02-12T15:51:48.007-07:002010-02-12T15:51:48.007-07:00This really is at the heart of D&D.
You'...This really is at the heart of D&D. <br /><br />You're rolling dice, looking at books and checking sheets of paper. Meanwhile someone is describing things to you and you're yelling out numbers - where's the humanity in all of this? <br /><br />To me, a really good sesh of D&D is when you totally become your character, not in the method-acting way, just you see things through their eyes. Experience the highs of victory in battle, misery at defeat, fear during attack. TBH I think the fun stuff happens more than the misery but it's all part of the experience, it should be part of the game. <br /><br />However, it's got to be down to the skill of the DM (sorry to put more pressure on those already v talented and hardworking DMs) to bring this out of the player, rather than just an instruction as to how their character should behave for the next few months, years whatever. It should be implicit but hard hitting. <br /><br />Great post.Fran Terminiellohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02506269178716477521noreply@blogger.com