This is the 8th of an 18 part series on How to be a DM. To start at the beginning, click here.
In an RPG campaign, the scenes of your story are set in the environment. Let me tell you how I describe the scene during the exploration phase.
Exploring the Environment
When the PCs are starting out in the adventure, they are in the phase called “exploration”. They are traveling about examining things around them and talking to people. You simply describe what the characters encounter and what happens. Generally, the PCs can think of the obvious things to explore such as investigating mysterious sounds or talking to the stranger sitting at the bar.
Your job here is to describe enough detail for it to be interesting but to avoid too much narrative. If your players, seem stuck, give them a clue or have the environment interact with them.
“The mysterious stranger stands up from the bar and walks over to you. You see he is a surprisingly attractive half-orc. He asks you where you bought your new cloak.”
You seldom need to use props during the exploration phase. Theater of the Mind works fine for most of these scenes. However on occasion you may want to add a visual element for several reasons.
You may want to add visual interest to an episode which doesn’t have a lot of visual detail in other scenes. There may also be an upcoming combat encounter you want to foreshadow. Or you may want to keep your players on their toes THINKING there might be combat. (See how sneaky I am!)
Skill Checks
During the exploration phase the players will be doing skill checks to see if they can accomplish what they are trying to do. Generally, players roll a die and add some modifiers to see if they are successful.
Do not make them roll dice for every little thing! That is way too annoying and slows things down. Remember, you want to keep the pace moving, so the players don’t tune out.
If you don’t have skill checks, the players think they can just do anything they want and the story falls flat. Even superheroes have physical and mental limits. In an RPG, these are defined by their ability scores. They cannot open every door and hear every sound.
So when the PC says they do some action, immediately judge in your head whether they can obviously do that or if realistically they could fail at it. If they COULD be unsuccessful, ask the player to roll a skill check against either a number you had written in your notes or a number you make up on the fly if it was unexpected.
Be fair and make the number follow the physics of your world. Don’t make it too hard just “because”. No one wants a capricious DM.
Sometimes You Fail in Life
But even if there is a low chance they could fail, you should still regularly make them check. It is a game not just a story. And things don’t always work out in life.
Sometimes you trip and fall over your own feet and sometimes you surprise yourself with what you can accomplish!
At some point, the characters do some action that triggers a threatening situation such as trap, puzzle, or potential combat situation. At these points, more visual detail really helps.
In our next story, I’ll discuss the option of adding that visual element using computers. Is it Technology to the Rescue?
Bitzy the Bard
“Life is an adventure story and you are the star. Choose to play a hero!”
