There is a certain class of kids, usually fairly young, that
experiments rather than role plays in D&D. These are often kids with short
attention spans or a more mischievous personality, but not always. In the past, I
used to classify their style of gaming as bad role-playing, but now it becomes
clear to me, that I was very much mistaken and the tools I tried to apply to
fix the situation were wrong as well.
I will give typical example:
DM: After exploring the dark tunnels for hours, you
finally find the gate to Doctor Kierstein’s underground palace. A pitiable
creature opens the door for you. It is a broken thing that appears to mix the
worse aspects of a dwarf, an ape and a bird. The thing eyes you suspiciously and
slurs, “Vot zo you vont?”
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Role-playing, I Strike at Thee!
Kid 1: I roll Nature to see if I can recognize what
kind of creature it is and if it’s evil or not.
Kid 2: I tell him, “Show us to your master at once! We
have urgent news!” I also roll Medicine to see if I can fix him later.
Kid 3: I, eh, use Eleven Accuracy.
Kid 4: I attack Kid 2 with a harpoon!
DM and Kid 2 in unison: Why on earth would you do that?!
Kid 4: Dunno.
DM: No, seriously, you can do anything you want, just
give me an in-game reason.
Kid 4: Okay, I hide in the shadows instead.
DM: Why?
And so it goes . . .
Are you sure this is the best time to consult the map? |
I have spoken a lot about this problem in the past, so I won’t
repeat myself. If you’re curious, here’s a Wizards-era (aka, “before the fall”) article that covers it. Coincidentally, this article was so controversial it was even covered by io9.
Now kid 4 is a different story; his actions are not just
misaimed, but also very detrimental to group morale and reek of GTA and its ilk
rather than D&D. However, assuming he’s not doing it because kid 2 was rude
to him this morning or because he’s a D&D bully, we must wander why is he
doing it and what can we do to help him return to the Straight Path.
Yesterday, I had a chance to conduct a candid interview with
a kid who plays this way, but is otherwise a good-natured and pleasant boy, albeit suffering from a fairly serious learning disability.
He said that his motivation is usually curiosity over what would happen if he
did this or that. When I asked him what his character’s motivation is, he
replied, “Who cares?”
What I read between the lines is that his character wasn’t
his avatar in the imaginary world of the game, but rather his instrument to
affect this world. That is, for him, the game is not about portraying a
character, but about using a character to do fun stuff without a trace of
immersion, storytelling or suspension of disbelief. This would explain why some kids refer to miniatures as
"toys" or "dolls," to characters as "players" and to NPCs as "baddies" or "creatures."
Now, I wonder, how to introduce them the joys of real
role playing. I am not sure yet, but Pelor willing, I will be sure by the time I
post part 2!
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Any more insight on this?
ReplyDeleteIs it just a matter of age and maturation vs (developmentally appropriate) narcissism?