DM Confession: Sometimes I add traps where there were none originally because the rogue player decided to search, and they would enjoy finding one. The operative word here is "sometimes."
Usually a hallway is just a hallway if it's written that way. It really depends on the player, the mood, the tone I'm trying to hit, if the group is vibing on the idea that there might be unseen peril, etc.
— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) October 24, 2021
My friends really dislike the notion of the DM altering the parameters of an encounter or space on the fly, so much so that they asked me to stop in no uncertain terms. So when I want to do this sort of thing, I try to bake it into the prep. Sure, if it’s something the players have stated they don’t want, don’t do it.
I should just boiler plate that on every damn tweet, huh?
— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) October 24, 2021
This is a facet of what I call DM’ing by bullet point. You create your events (most of them) so they can be set in front of players as they drive the campaign. So much less stressful for a DM. You can also sneakily listen to the players fears to put them in your back pocket 😉 Oh ALWAYS listen to the players' conjecture on what's Really Going On.
A DM's greatest gift is a character/player who goes off on speculative tangents about all the worst case scenarios. Goldmine.
— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) October 24, 2021
Yeup, absolutely.
But if a player is engaging with the adventure in a meaningful way, giving them SOMETHING for their efforts is worth the behind the scenes juggling. Moving Thing A from Location Y where I originally wrote it to be in Location X where a player had hunch to look for it is a very good thing.
Otherwise you run the risk of accidentally head faking them NOT to search Y later.
— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) October 24, 2021