Serious question, who here actually tries to create such paranoia in their players? It’s probably one of the biggest reoccurring memes around here and I don’t entirely get it.
Is this the tone some people are actually trying to create and if so, why?
It could just be I have a very narrow group of people I’ve played with, but this doesn’t necessarily seem a tone I’d be striving for.
I had a sort of opposite problem the last time I ran a campaign. my players came into the game super paranoid, probably from reading stories about tricky DMs, and it made my life pretty difficult.
I did set up traps and misdirection, but only when there were exactly enough clues to figure it out. I learned that the major problem with that method, is that what’s obviously a clue to me wasn’t always obvious for them. so, I was thought of as a tricky DM. then, after I softened up, my sessions looked too easy and obvious.
honestly, it’s just a really difficult balance. I eventually got it to a good place for everyone, but everyone really does have a preferred level of deceit, and it isn’t easy to cater to a group of 5 with varying levels of expectation
Generally, such paranoia is only for a single adventure (I had a haunted mansion my friend did where that paranoia was well done), or a one-off scare/surprise we can all have a good laugh about later.
(To be fair it was specifically the lack of garden gnomes that was a significant plot point in said tale, but characters in a setting being aware of a lack of garden gnomes sort of implies that garden gnomes do exist in said setting… but, again, given Old Man Henderson’s nature they could have easily just ever have existed in his head…)
Serious question, who here actually tries to create such paranoia in their players? It’s probably one of the biggest reoccurring memes around here and I don’t entirely get it.
Is this the tone some people are actually trying to create and if so, why?
It could just be I have a very narrow group of people I’ve played with, but this doesn’t necessarily seem a tone I’d be striving for.
I had a sort of opposite problem the last time I ran a campaign. my players came into the game super paranoid, probably from reading stories about tricky DMs, and it made my life pretty difficult.
I did set up traps and misdirection, but only when there were exactly enough clues to figure it out. I learned that the major problem with that method, is that what’s obviously a clue to me wasn’t always obvious for them. so, I was thought of as a tricky DM. then, after I softened up, my sessions looked too easy and obvious.
honestly, it’s just a really difficult balance. I eventually got it to a good place for everyone, but everyone really does have a preferred level of deceit, and it isn’t easy to cater to a group of 5 with varying levels of expectation
Generally, such paranoia is only for a single adventure (I had a haunted mansion my friend did where that paranoia was well done), or a one-off scare/surprise we can all have a good laugh about later.
My life is so stressful. I like to giggle with friends when I play games. This would give me so much anxiety and end relationships.
Call of Cthulhu DMs, I’d assume, though I don’t know if there’s mimics in that, I’m just somewhat familiar with shoggoths and garden gnomes.
I’m genuinely curious how garden gnomes fit into the Cthulhu mythos. I thought I was relatively well versed on the topic, but that’s new to me.
Ah. I see you’re unfamiliar with the tale of Old Man Henderson. Enjoy.
(To be fair it was specifically the lack of garden gnomes that was a significant plot point in said tale, but characters in a setting being aware of a lack of garden gnomes sort of implies that garden gnomes do exist in said setting… but, again, given Old Man Henderson’s nature they could have easily just ever have existed in his head…)