I Need An Education On This

There has been a criticism out about magic items being monetized in the world where the PCs play. I am talking about having enough magic items in the world so that buying and selling them in larger cities is a normal act for PCs. I am not certain what the criticism of this is, except that it makes it potentially easier for lower level characters to become really strong. Mind you, I am not talking about buying a wish or a Ring of Wishes at your local super store for 5,000 GP. I am talking +1 and +2 items for sale in metropolises around your world, and at above book prices. Back to the criticism. To have a party of 5th-8th level PCs fighting a band of mercenaries laden with +1 weapons causes an excess in magic items. These the victorious party could sell for a good amount of cash.

Understand, I am all for a strict, even tight hold on the amount of magic available in the world, although that is not the game I am currently running. But to say that you can have a lot of magic but that it shouldn't be monetized, is ridiculous. That is my main point. If magic is widely available, like it is in pretty much every adventure module ever published (by the official company), then not being able to buy and sell it is totally unrealistic. If I have collected eighteen +1 longswords, then it stands that I should be able to sell them or at least trade them for an upgrade. To have a merchant say "I'll give you 2 flocks of goats and my daughter's hand for those swords" is without reason. If having a lot of magic in the world is a bad thing, and I am open to that idea, then fine. But if there is a lot of magic in the world then perhaps we shouldn't be critical of monetization.

More of my Setup

This is part of my Dungeons & Dragons set up: Tall cardboard screen with some house rules, Blue Dice Tower with tray, Duel Phone Holder, Microphone. The holder is for players not present at my table. They can use their cameras to see details on the table-top map. We are high tech. I have seven players; two play from out of town. Oh, the Stormtroopers hold up signs of spells up in the background, like Prayer. The fancy box holds table-top aids.

Out of Town Player

Matt is one of my players who lives six hours from where we play D&D. He joins us via a reliable internet connection and is able to interact with and see the other players around the table. I will not pretend that this is as good as having Matt at my table, but he wants to play and we want him at our table. We tend to send him photos of maps and movements to give him the best idea possible about what is going on:

The Player Map

We used dice so that Matt could give a quick reference as to where on the map he is talking about.

Matt's character is usually out front.

My Screen

Here is my DM screen. Notice the dice tower is outside of the screen, in public view. Know also that I stand when I DM, so there is no hiding myself behind the screen,

Player Involvement

Recently I felt a bit put upon to create adventure for my players. My players, it seemed to me, just wanted to have some fun and wanted me to provide something. I can do this, I told them, I can provide them all of the railroad game sessions they want. It may have been a bit heavy handed of me to put it all on them, as it is not all on them. However, I did want to point out that it is their responsibility to insure that I don't run a railroad game. One of my players was unclear where the line was. He didn't want to be filling in all of the details on what was coming up in the game. I told him that this wasn't what I was talking about. I don't need the adventure to be spelled out for me to run it for them. I just need ideas. I don't want the players to get used to showing up and having me unload my ideas on them alone.

I challenged my players to think of some goals that their characters could pursue. This is the least I would hope for, that the character would be real enough to the player to invest ideas into. They know enough about my world from having played in it for several years now. They can help me keep the game personal by making their characters personal.

Aside from goals there is a lot that a player can provide in terms of ideas. One player said that his character is on the run from the law in a particular kingdom, for unknowingly deflowering a princess. I created three weeks of excitement due to that one line of backstory. Another character wanted to find a sword that was of particular importance to her church. While it took some time for the party to come around to look for it, it was always a possible line of adventure that I could work with.

What I like the least is when the party goes into a tavern and looks for jobs. I go to lengths to point out only the least interesting jobs imaginable, like babysitting and building fences. A party used to getting gold pieces for their work, won't settle for silver. Another thing I like the least is when I ask a player what they want in life for their character, and they respond with getting XP and gold - and nothing more. That kind of desire is best fed with railroad games, and as railroad games lead to shorter overall campaign life, you'll have more time to figure out how to get your players involved.

Paid D&D Writing

The Puritan: Creativity and D&D
For ‘The Town Crier’ section, The Puritan magazine is looking for pieces on the theme of Dungeons & Dragons, its influence on personal creativity, art, and pop culture. They will publish a mix of personal essays, critiques, and creative explorations. Some topics to consider are:
– How D&D has influenced your creativity, shaped your writing, or affected your life around the table
-D&D’s appearances in TV shows, movies, and books, and how its representation has changed over time
-Why the RPG has had such a noticeable resurgence in popular culture
-The ways that D&D has influenced authors and artists
-How the game can be a safe space for collaborative storytelling
-The intimacy of creating and playing campaign characters
-The role of Dungeon Master as a creator/referee/gatekeeper
The Puritan magazine also publishes work year-round – interviews, essays, reviews, fiction, and poetry.
Deadline: 15 October 2019
Length: About 1,000 words
Pay: CAD25 for the D&D feature; CAD25/poem, CAD100/review or interview, CAD150/fiction, and CAD200/essay for the print magazine

Fudgers Anonymous

Wouldn't it be nice if DM's and Players alike could go to a local place on Tuesday nights to get help for their addiction to fudging die rolls? It seems to me that it is an addiction. I have made every protestation against fudging dice and yet I find that I am regularly tempted. Rolling publicly, (so that everyone could see your dice) does help, but you could always lie about your plusses. "Yes, I rolled a 5, but I am plus 13, so I hit." Lying and cheating are one in the same and are too easy. We need help. I need help. Let's open a forum and decide on a proper 12 steps. Admit first, that you have a problem.

Treat It Like It's Great

"Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do..." - The Apostle Paul

The point is, Dungeons & Dragons is worth it. It is the greatest game in the world by far and on par with only the best group social activities that are available. Imagine that, what you do around that table on campaign day is as good as anything else. Go to the movies with friends? I'd rather play D&D. Go to the bar and watch the ball game? I'd rather play D&D. Go bowling? Go picnic? Stay home and party? Just give me the game! It is great.
Just because D&D is great in itself doesn't mean that there isn't notable responsibility attached to it. If it isn't great in your experience, then make it great. Reliable content is out there if you need help. It is worth the work, and we all have to do it. A football player only works for a couple of months during the season. But in the off-season, he still works. He has to keep his body in shape. He has to see to any injuries he has. He has to stay up on technology and what's going on in his sport. As a DM in this noble, great and fun activity, you've got to make it great, if it isn't.
The hurdle, I suggest, is that most of the D&D stuff out there from decades of production, is fluff, harmful, and unnecessary to a healthy campaign. That is true for the majority of the advice as well. Therefore, it is important to have a very good idea of what your game is or will be. Be as idealistic as you can be. Do not settle for vague notions of "I just want the game to be fun." The football player does not say that, without knowing all that goes into it. He may very well have experienced greatness, and greatness is fun.
D&D is great and it is worthy. Do the work.

Let's Make Fun of Geeks

I have had a couple of players who openly discuss their lack of lives. If you commit to play D&D then you obviously have no life. Surely there is some other life that you should be living. If your life was better, then you wouldn't have to condone to play D&D every week.

I know these players never really think about what they are saying. These are good people. They do good things. I enjoy their company. In fact, when my best friend says "I have no life" when he considers playing in an additional game, I think that he is joking. He is making fun of what used to be the external, stereotypical point of view of geeks.

It is only now that I am calling these players out. If they truly think that playing D&D is an unworthy commitment or worse, then they cannot think much of people who happily commit to playing. Furthermore, it speaks of someone who has low self-respect, as in, "Yes, I play this game and therefore I have no life." Respect yourself, dammit.

This is only one instance of several where such thoughtless, disrespectful words have been spoken at my table. It's not funny anymore.