DM Chat

[DexterWard]

I will be using this space to present topics for discussion. Discussion might include CoreRules, HouseRules, 0e basic concepts, specific game mechanics, aspects about the setting, etc.

[DexterWard]

I meant to post this, or some version of it, awhile back and kept forgetting...

Four Zen Moments (Matthew J. Finch – A Quick Primer for Old School Gaming)

1. Rulings, not Rules
   • You don’t use a rule; DM makes a ruling
   • The players can describe any action, without needing to look at a character sheet to see if they “can” do it. The referee, in turn, uses common sense to decide what happens or rolls a die if he thinks there’s some random element involved, and then the game moves on.
   • Getting through obstacles is more “hands-on” than you’re probably used to. Players use observation and description as their tools and resources.
2. Player Skill, not Character Abilities
   • You don’t have a “spot” check to let you notice hidden traps and levers, you don’t have a “bluff” check to let you automatically fool a suspicious city guardsman, and you don’t have a “sense motive” check to tell you when someone’s lying to your character.
   • You have to tell the referee where you’re looking for traps and what buttons you’re pushing. You have to tell the referee whatever tall tale you’re trying to get the city guardsman to believe. You have to decide for yourself if someone’s lying to your character or telling the truth.
3. Heroic, not Superhero
   • Old-style games have a human-sized scale, not a super-powered scale. At first level, adventurers are barely more capable than a regular person. They live by their wits.
   • Characters don’t become Superman; they become Batman. And they don’t start as Batman – Batman is the pinnacle.
4. Forget “Game Balance”
   • The old-style is not a “game setting” which somehow always produces challenges of just the right difficulty for the party’s level of experience.
   • The players have no right to depend upon a rule in the book, the referee has no right, ever, to tell the player what a character decides to do. That’s the player’s decision (unless there’s a charm spell going).

What does this mean for you; Your DM's Intensions:

• The 0e campaign is as much about Player skills as it is about Character skills, even more so in some cases.
• Your character sheet is minimal, including their background, because they will be developing their pathology/skills as the campaign and their adventures progress.
• The Players play a key role in deciding where the adventures go. The DM is just there to describe the environment and adjudicate actions fairly and evenly.
• The DM will incorporate as much of the Character's pathology and Player's ideas as reasonably possible. I will never tell you "NO," but may inform you when an idea/action might put you and/or your party in a dire situation (i.e. killed).
• The basic 0e scenario is the Dungeon Crawl. The characters are trying to increase their skill (trying to reach the level of Batman) and gain wealth while staying alive.
• For all intents and purposes don't think about Rules. There are no skills listed on your CharSheet for a reason; Your character pathology dictates that. Think about it from this perspective: Can your character's traits/pathology/actions meet or exceed a suspension of disbelief test within the confines of this campaign? If so, then you're good to go.

Choose 0e if…

1. You want the players to start out playing characters that are slightly-better-than your average Joe.
2. You want to play characters who will slowly level up into competent adventurers.
3. You want the game to focus more around exploration and discovery than combat.
4. You’d prefer fewer rules (with more being adjudicated by the GM on the fly).
5. You want death to be a serious and real threat to the party.
6. If you are interested in a system with combat in which swords break, people fall, someone throws up from a blow to the stomach, a helmet goes spinning away, someone gets tangled up in a curtain, or other such events outside the formal rules, then 0e is for you.

0e Considerations…

• Creativity is more powerful.
• You can "do more" than you can in common RPGs.
• Character development is happening, rather than in your backstory.
• The players should engage with the fantasy as much as possible, and have the referee arbitrate the outcomes of their specific actions in real time.
• The idea of game balance is also de-emphasized in favor of a system which tests players skill and ingenuity in often strange or unfair situations.
• The players should expect to lose if they merely pit their numbers against the monsters, and should instead attempt to outwit or outmaneuver challenges placed in their way.
• Most of the time in old-style gaming, you don’t use a rule; you make a ruling.
• Getting through obstacles is more “hands-on”
• Players use observation and description as their tools and resources
• Old-style play is about keeping your character alive and making him into a legend.
• The player’s skill is the character’s guardian angel
• Don’t hold back on your skill as a player just because the character has a low intelligence. Role-playing is part of the game, but it’s not a suicide pact with your character.
• A player can describe and attempt virtually anything he can think of. He doesn’t need to have any sort of game-defined ability to do it. He can try to slide on the ground between opponents, swing from a chandelier and chop at a distant foe, taunt an opponent into running over a pit trap … whatever he wants to try. That doesn’t, of course, mean that he’ll succeed.
• Without spot checks and automatic information gathering rolls, players don’t have a way to generate solutions by rolling dice and checking their character sheets. They have to think. That’s how player skill comes into the game.

Tips for Players…

1. View the entire area you’ve mapped out as the battleground; don’t plan on taking on monsters in a single room. They may try to outflank you by running down corridors. Establish rendezvous points where the party can fall back to a secure defensive position.
2. Scout ahead, and try to avoid wandering monsters which don’t carry much treasure. You’re in the dungeon to find the treasure-rich lairs. Trying to kill every monster you meet will weaken the party before you find the rich monsters.
3. Don’t assume you can defeat any monster you encounter.
4. Keep some sort of map, even if it’s just a flow chart. If you get lost, you can end up in real trouble – especially in a dungeon where wandering monster rolls are made frequently.
5. Ask lots of questions about what you see. Look up. Ask about unusual stonework. Test floors before stepping.
6. Protect the magic-user. He’s your nuke.
7. Hire some cannon fodder. Don’t let the cannon fodder start to view you as a weak source of treasure.
8. Spears can usually reach past your first rank of fighters, so a phalanx of hirelings works well.
9. Check in with the grizzled one-armed guy in the tavern before each foray; he may have suddenly remembered more details about the area.

Sources
Matthew J. Finch – A Quick Primer for Old School Gaming
Principia-Apocrypha
PHILOTOMY’S Dungeons and Dragons Musings


Thoughts, comments, ideas???

[SilverBen]

There was a noteworthy academic study on video game design published about 16 years ago which remains relevant and applicable to role playing games today for both DM and Players.
https://www.aaai.org/Papers/Workshops/2 ... 04-001.pdf

It lists eight emotional rewards that players get from playing video games and consider them "fun." Seven of them apply to role playing games.

1. Sensation: Game as sense-pleasure
2. Fantasy: Game as make-believe
3. Narrative: Game as drama
4. Challenge: Game as obstacle course
5. Fellowship: Game as social framework
6. Discovery: Game as uncharted territory
7. Expression: Game as self-discovery
8. Submission: Game as pastime

[OGRE MAGE]

I have one thought.

I love everything I just read.

[SilverBen]

DexterWard, my first two pieces of advice are "(1) Don't take anyone's advice you don't ask for and (2) Don't take anyone's advice you don't pay for. But my third piece of unsolicited and unpaid advice is: why not take an informal poll of the players to learn which of those eight game concepts rank highest for them and then tailor encounters to them? Just rank the top three for each player.

Mine are (3) narrative, (5) fellowship and (6) discovery. Anyone else care to share theirs, Ogre Mage, perhaps?

[DexterWard]

There was a noteworthy academic study on video game design published about 16 years ago which remains relevant and applicable to role playing games today for both DM and Players.
https://www.aaai.org/Papers/Workshops/2 ... 04-001.pdf

That's a very interesting paper. I read the first page and part of the second. Downloaded it to my tablet so I can give it a more thorough reading. Thank you for sharing


GM Stuff
As for the Module 1: What Lies Beyond – Ch.1 thread...I will make a DM post tomorrow. Between family obligations, the holiday, and trying to get the new CoC campaign up and running, I'm a few days behind...Sorry about that.

Additionally, I will be reviewing the House Rules and Class descriptions this next week to tweak a bit. All of the classes came from the original White Box, the additional three supplements, and Dragon Magazine. I want to make sure they are all squared away and aligned with the spirit of OD&D (0e) before you guys hit 1st level. I will also be adding your XP thus far (tomorrow).

[OGRE MAGE]

At a glance: 6, 4, 5.

[Bluetongue]

Different measures of 6, 5, 3. I try to get into my characters and roleplay them with and emotion while trying to do the fantastic heroically and have as much fun epically failing. Helping to world build in some way is a good challenge, building your own mage tower or running a merc/thieves guild or captaining a pirate crew. Creating new stuff such as unique spells and crafting items.

[DexterWard]

DM Health/Sanity Check

Hey folks...I like to do a DM check-in of sorts with players from time to time, just to make sure I'm moving the campaign in a direction everyone is happy with... So...

How is everyone doing so far? Am I providing the types of scenarios you want, and addressing everyone's likes/desires?

We're about to transition into full on dungeon crawl, and I'm starting to flush out parts of the dungeon. Silverben's "Emotional Intelligence" share was very intriguing, and I think will help me greatly from a planning perspective as a DM. I have a variety of options in mind, depending on what decisions the party makes. I'm also trying to include a little something for each character.

If there are any aspects you'd like to see as we move forward, just shout them out.

[SilverBen]

How is everyone doing so far?
If there are any aspects you'd like to see as we move forward, just shout them out.

Five out of five stars for DexterWard the DM! Some details

• The posting expectaiton for players seems just the right pace
• The game is focused on storytelling not mechanics. (I am enjoying to be part of this game for the role playing, unlike many other game which were focused on (dice) roll playing)
• I really appreciate when a player's post summarizes or includes some aspect of the previous player's post. This not just helps plot continuity, but also helps players share the game experience.

Suggestion: I would suggest a time limit of some kind for the dungeon crawl, if you have not already planned one. The characters need a motivation not to take their time.

For my character in particular, I don't have any specific goal so survival is always good baseline goal!

[DexterWard]

Suggestion: I would suggest a time limit of some kind for the dungeon crawl, if you have not already planned one. The characters need a motivation not to take their time.
For my character in particular, I don't have any specific goal so survival is always good baseline goal!

Thank you Silverben, I really appreciate you taking the time to voice your thoughts.

And yes, I have thought about "Time." In 0e Time is never your friend
I have several methods in mind, Resources being one of them. Additionally, my dungeons are not typically static. Things will move around: Events/creatures/etc., things you've already encountered/experienced (Giant bee-things, Giant Slug in the crypt, Purple glow at the end of the south mine tunnel). As you explore the dungeonous areas below the village you will inevitably change the status quo, exposing those areas to "the light" so to speak, ultimately setting some things in motion/changing the state of those environments which previously had their own status quo's. There are also rules (used loosely) for dungeon exploration which I will be posting this weekend that will affect "Time" and how much of that stuff you want to spend in the dungeon

[OGRE MAGE]

I am digging where this is headed with no complaints whatsoever.

Keep up the good work and we will do our best to survive.