Bit late this week with my article, sorry about that. Instead of boring you all with tales of why I’m late I figured I’d just get into it right away.



Mark showed us some interesting info in his article Can’t. Mark talked about the Flaws or Disadvantages that a character might have which limit his ability to do certain things. I thought I’d take this is a slightly different direction and look at the times when your GM tells you that “You can’t do that.”



One of the things that players hate is being told their character can’t do something. The only way to make it worse is to not explain to them why they can’t do it. To help a GM out, most of guidebooks tell us not to tell a player they can’t do something, let them try. Sure they may fail, but let them try anyway. While I find this advice is good, I don’t think it works all the time. Sometimes you have to tell the players they can’t do something, or that something they normally can do isn’t working. The trick is in how you tell them.



If a player has a power/ability/etc that allows him to do something, there is a good chance that eventually they will run into something that will render that power useless or ineffective. Sometimes there is an obvious explanation for why that is happening. If Superman were to see kryptonite he’d know exactly why his powers were failing, but if there was no kryptonite in view it would be harder to understand. These situations can be very frustrating to players as unexplained loss and failure is hard to take.



Another frustrating situation for players can be found in some published adventures. In the Tomb of Horrors adventure for AD&D there are a bunch of traps and situations where the players will automatically be hit and take damage no matter what kind of protection they are using. No saving throws either. The frustration felt here is compounded if the character dies or is incapacitated because of the event. The hard bit for the GM is that he isn’t shouldn’t tell the players anything about why something is happening - At least not directly.



If the players have no way to divine the how and why on their own, they can only work with what they can see. If we directly tell the players the how and why we give them very powerful info that they normally should not have access to. This info can often sway the outcome of the adventure by allowing the players to circumvent situations that they normally could not have gotten by.



My solution is to be a Descriptive Clue Dropper. Instead of coming out and saying “You can’t do that” give a description of what happens when they try, with the description containing a clue as to the how and the why.



“As you open the door, a spear suddenly launches at you, too quickly for you to move… (rolling dice)…The unnaturally sharp weapon pierces your armor and does 24 damage!”



By using the words too quickly for you to move and unnaturally sharp we have given a clue to our players that things are outside the norm and thus non-normal effects are possible. Thus if the spear is able to penetrate magic armor and spells it must be due to something about it that allows this to happen.



Sounds like a simple thing to do, but it’s very critical. As you know, the players can only see what you tell them they see. Simply handing out damage or effects is actually going to create more work for you than if you take the time to put a few descriptors on events. The players want to get into the game, and these kinds of descriptions during difficult times are key.



On the other side of the screen, players need to understand that they are not going to know the how and why behind everything that happens to them. The GM is going to do his best to give a good description, but as players we need to realize that sometimes we just can’t figure it out right at the moment. My advice for players on this is not to argue but to ask questions.



If you are told your power suddenly doesn’t work ask questions. No use in arguing with the GM, that’s rude and useless. Assume there is a reason why and investigate. What did it feel like when it happened? Is there physical or mental effects connected to it (stomach pain, blurred vision…)? Are there any signs in the area (symbols, writings, colors) that are out of place? Did the GM remember that your power was a gift from a lawful diety?



Fact is that sometimes the GM isn’t sure what kind of descriptor clues he should give, and he’s not going to remember every aspect of your character so don’t be afraid to help out. These questions will give the GM a chance to give you some info that might help you figure out what is going on. Questions like this are also signs of good roleplaying skills - showing attention to details and helps to keep the GM on his toes. Which is always a good idea.





Well, that’s all from me for now. See you in the Forums!