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When thinking back at fond memories of playing Dungeons & Dragons, I almost always recall sessions and situations where a greater goal was completed. The moments that have stuck the most in my head are the ones where the group completed a quest/mission that had meaning, and ultimately smoothed out the rough edges of a longer story. I bring this up because as I journey through my own personal goal of becoming a better game designer, I want to find ways that provide for this experience in a more meaningful way.

Around the time that I started work on Monster Vault : Threats to the Nentir Vale in 2010, I was exploring the more philosophical foundations of RPG design principles. What I had learned from mentors and experience alike, is that exploration and discovery are just as important (if not more) than system architecture. With a simple change in tone and message, you could inspire readers to paths you never considered prior.

 

Fast forward to today. As we approach the release of Into the Unknown: The Dungeon Survival Handbook, it fills me with excitement that readers might find that same familiar spark. So, I pose to you these questions:

What was your favorite moment of exploration? Did you ever have a revelation as you discovered something that just made the story click?  Finally, what is the single most important thing that all adventurers should bring with them into a dungeon?

About the Author

Matt James is a freelance game designer from Washington, DC. In addition to many articles in Dragon and Dungeon magazine, his works include Soldiers of Fortune (Open Design/Kobold Quarterly),  Monster Vault: Threats to the Nentir Vale, Into the Unknown: The Dungeon Survival Handbook, and Lair Assault: Attack of the Tyrantclaw. Follow Matt on Twitter at www.twitter.com/matt_james_rpg

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While we let the experts track it down, I wanted to let everyone know that the D&D Group Forums are still fully functioning, you just didn't succeed at your perception check to find the hidden passage to get there.

All is not lost, however.  Here's a map.  Enjoy!

(tl;dr The Forum link is broken/missing from the main group page, but WotC is working on a fix.  Click above to go to this group's forums)

The perfect moment of Dungeons and Dragons, the "sweet spot" of a roleplaying game, has got to look something like this:  Players are engaged with whatever applicable rule systems stand before them, connected to their characters, and jointly creating with the GM a narrative that will stay with all participants for a long time to come.  Countless ways to chase this perfect moment exist. I'm concerned with one such method right now: turn your character inside out.  

Normally, the advice for effective roleplaying includes thinking as your character and acting how they'd act.  This is effective much of the time, but it requires strong engagement and connection between player and character.  Even with the best DM and story, it's easy for players to disconnect or even fail to connect in the first place.  A player could be confused or distracted. She could be tired or feeling "off".  Maybe someone told a funny joke, or there is a new movie out.  Some of this is general table management, but the point remains. A player or players wants to lock into his or her character's state of being to make the most of the session and their character.  So to get IC -- in character -- we need to get OOC, out of character.  

What is your character thinking?  This is a common question to ask yourself when playing a character.  How often have you shared that information with your fellow players?  You don't need to share your thoughts at every decision point, but sometimes sharing what your character thinks sparks off interesting roleplaying.  Certainly your friend's characters can't know what is in your character's head.  You share with the players, though, to build richer interactions.  Roleplaying hooks aren't just bartered from player to DM and back.  PCs can also give each other "hooks" and opportunities to riff off what fellow players are doing.  These hooks can turn ordinary situations into memorable roleplay.

Say you are in a dungeon full of giant spiders.  Your character has just failed a Thievery check.  You ask yourself how your rogue might react to that. You decide that the rogue is afraid of spiders.  You could keep that information to yourself, but you decide to announce:  "Terrance failed that check because the spiders made him nervous. He's so freaked out he can't concentrate."  Greg, playing the party's cleric, decides this might represent an opportunity for roleplay.  

"Noting Terrance's lack of concentration, Relan places a hand on his shoulder.  What troubles you, my son?"

You've now constructed a scene where Relan helps Terrance deal with his phobia.  Knowing what motivated Terrance helped Relan's player interact with the rogue in a deeper, more nuanced way.  If both players agree, they might even revisit this scene in later adventures.

You also open room for relevant out of character discussion.  Players can ask why you're afraid, discuss possible reasons if you're stuck for a good backstory for the phobia. Players might offer their character's phobias in response.  A short discussion like this generates "story fuel" you can then reincorporate back into your play experience, driving things forward.

As a DM, you can actively elicit this behavior and put it to use for your story. It's simple, really:  After an important moment, ask the players how their characters feel about what just occurred.  The responses that question gathers for you can bring you many sessions of adventure hooks and subplots as you explore your player's reactions.  The trick here is to keep asking questions until you receive information that you can act upon later in the story. "Why is that?" is a great universal question that propels you deeper and further into your story. Use it to follow up your initial character until you strike gold.  Everyone at your table enriches their experience by learning the inner lives of those they adventure with.

Whether you are a player or DM, using inner thoughts and motivations is a great way to take your game to the next level.

What ways have you done this in your game?

game_fiend, otherwise known as the mild-mannered yet still wildly creative Quinn Murphy, is editor-in-chief of the blog At-Will.  When he is not playing 4e or thinking about 4e, he is writing about 4e.  You can see his tweeted exploits as gamefiend on Twitter.

Special thanks to Dave Chalker for his  input.

So, I’m mainly a Dungeon Master, and have previously found myself with a question, but no answer.  I imagine most of us have pretty varied roleplaying game experiences.  Dungeons and Dragons is not the only tabletop game we play, nor is it the only game our players have played.  And from those players, I’ve gotten a request that I haven’t had much to respond with, for D&D – a recommended reading list.  Lots of games provide you with not only a set of rules to play, but also a very specific world to set those rules within.  And along with that comes a list of books you can read to help you get the feel for the game or the world.  You play a game about vampires, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula is going to be at the top of that list, as an example.  The list is there to answer a fundamental pair of questions:  “What is it going to be like play the game?” and secondarily (but no less important) “What sorts of things should I know to be a better player within it?” 

 D&D has never had a recommended list like that.  Maybe that’s because the game itself is so broad.  D&D has a much wider scope than most other tabletop RPG’s out there.   Sure, we’ve got our campaign settings, which do give us specific places for our Elves and Dwarves to run around in, but even those are just frameworks.  Other than “read the Realms novels”, there’s not a lot of material I can suggest to help you get a feel for what a Realms game is going to be like.  The same is true of Eberron, and will likely be true of Dark Sun as well.  Even that isn’t a perfect suggestion.  My Realms game is going to be different than yours, and both of ours is going to be different from a third game, and so forth.  Campaign settings intentionally leave a lot of empty space regarding theme, concept, and suggested play styles, so the Dungeon Master has room to be creative.

Take that a step further along.  It’s even more difficult when you include your own homebrew campaigns.  At least in the Realms we’ve got the novels by Ed Greenwood, R.A. Salvatore and others.  But how do I suggest to my players the kinds of things they can read to get the feel for my post-apocalyptic world, wherein Primal energy has been supplanted by Arcane?  True, the party is a group of graduates from  an Arcane Academy.  But this is a dangerous place full of mercenary bands protecting tiny pockets of civilization from starving Orc tribes and rampant necromancers.  Harry Potter, this most definitely is not.

At the very least, we can always fall back on the rule books and magazine articles themselves.  But that, while worth something, is still not quite what the player asking for that Recommended list is looking for.  The rule books do have some great story material, and a lot of tasty rules crunch to read through.  What they don’t do is give you a feel for the game, and they certainly aren’t all applicable to everyone.  Martial Powers is great for the guy in my group playing a Fighter, but only distantly relevant to the Cleric’s player. Moreover, they still don’t answer those two questions I posted at the beginning.

Well, it’s about time to change that.  The Player’s Strategy Guide is coming next month, and having read through it, I feel like I’ve finally got something I can unquestioningly recommend to every single person who plays D&D.  This is a book about making you a better player, just as the Dungeon Master’s Guide has been a book about making you a better DM.  The book covers the full range of playing a D&D game.  It’s got character building tips.  It’s got combat strategies.  It’s got suggestions to make you a better roleplayer.  If it’s something that ever comes up at a D&D table, it’s probably got a mention somewhere.    

Maybe it’s just me, but I really love this book.  Admittedly, I’m also the guy who’s been DM’ing for over 10 years and still reads the DM tips in every Dungeon  Master’s Guide we put out.  I love learning, I love self-improvement, and I grab at any chances I can to do either.  The Strategy Guide fulfills that desire fantastically.  It’s easy enough for a new player to pick up and really get an understanding of the game, but it’s got enough depth that someone (like me) who’s been playing through multiple editions still has lots to get out of it.  If you’re wanting more, you can find some preview information here: www.wizards.com/dnd/Article.aspx?x=dnd/4...

And best of all, in the end it answers those two questions beautifully.  It gives you a feel for how to play D&D, and also how to be better at it.  Recommended reading?  Definitely yes.  Maybe even required.

Crown of King Syxcakor

Long ago there lived a king- a king that was deemed such not by his holdings of land nor the amount of coin in his coffers, rather a king through force and manipulation. Instead of ascending through noble blood, this man worked for many years coaxing and politicking his way into positions of power throughout the King's Court. Using nothing more than honeyed words and a sweetened lips, this grand manipulator would eventually bring a kingdom to its knees. Strife with internal conflict and the threat of civil war was on the cusp of everyone’s tongue. This man, known as Syxcakor, would be the puppet-master leading the great deception.

Legends would tell that Syxcakor was a puppet himself, driven by some unimaginable deific horror that was trying to pierce its way to the known world. Still, others speculate that he was merely a god amongst men, masquerading around in some form of sick game, shattering lives in the process. Regardless of the true story, one thing could not be denied; Syxcakor has successfully pinned high-noble against high-noble, commoner against common, and successfully sundered an entire kingdom.

Syxcakor knew of the boon that was granted from his hard work and he was not about to let it slip away. Convincing high-mages of the value in keeping his loyal subjects calm and controlled, he had them create a crown of significant power-  such power that would effectively allow Syxcakor to placate any form of uprising and secure his dominance over the populous for the rest of his days.

No one is quite sure what ultimately happened to Syxcakor, nor if the legend is even true, but what is known is that such a great artifact does indeed exist and if one were to find it, it would surely yield great power.

About the Author

Matt James. When not freelance writing for Dungeons & Dragons®, Matt is chained to his desk working endlessly on developing his website; Loremaster (www.loremaster.org) or www.twitter.com/matt_james_rpg