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InitialsDiceBearhttps://github.com/dicebear/dicebearhttps://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/„Initials” (https://github.com/dicebear/dicebear) by „DiceBear”, licensed under „CC0 1.0” (https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)SI
Posts
4
Comments
250
Joined
2 yr. ago

  • The dice determine success or failure, but your strategy can have different outcomes. If you're offering a bribe to the guard the DM has to figure out how much it costs you, wheras if you're telling him a dragon is attacking the south gate, he might be pretty pissed when he comes back.

    And if you don't have "charisma" irl and have no idea either of the above are options...think about charismatic characters in books, movies, tv. What tactics did they use that you can crib?

  • The best DMs are a treasure; they can make anything fun.

    I think "good" systems (from a DM's perspective anyway) are the ones that make that job take a the minimum amount of effort; If I need a monster, I can make a statblock, but if the system includes a monster manual that has it for me, I can spend that prep time on some other encounter. Likewise, having just enough lore, such that I can grab elements and inspiration, but not so much that I have to exhaustively research it, is a huge benefit.

    From a player's perspective, I guess my priorities would be a system that isn't actively frustrating to use, and one that I can have a pretty good understanding of the likelihood of whether any particular choice will succeed or fail. Doesn't have to be perfect knowledge, just so long as I have the chance to make a meaningful decision between my options.

  • See, I think I have a lot of that in my games, but it's an undocumented duty of the DM. D&D can be very stand-and-deliver if you're doing theatre of the mind combat without much scene-setting, but it also becomes very tactical and/or swashbuckling if you describe the area in detail. Or, even better, use visual aids like a battle map. It really all comes down to: the players can't swing from the chandelier if they don't know there's a chandelier.