Not All The Time

Recently my players spent an hour preparing for a situation that never happened. They were on a cog, sailing on the Great Sea, in my world. As they were in a "sea lane" they expected to intercept another ship teaming with Duergar slaves and their Drow captain. They new this other ship was about a day behind them at worst. So, knowing the size and make of the other ship, the players planned out the encounter as best as they could.

Let me say, as a DM, that it does my heart good to see my players cooperate to this degree. Each of them stated what they planned to do and how they would do it. The devil in the details is what took them the hour. How to get there as a cohesive team? Who would face the captain and what "buffs" would they need? What spells would work best in the confined space? Why not just blow up the other ship? Oh, because they wanted it to transport slaves. It was a pleasure to see them work this all out.

They did overlook a detail presented earlier, however. In passing, they heard that the other Drow ships would be making another stop. This would have them take a coastal track instead of traveling the sea lane. I could have re-stated this detail, to save them the time, but I feel it is more important to adhere to the reality of the situation. It is important to not micro-manage the players in this way. I have stated before that my players are adults.

You might be saying that I should have either intervened. to save my players the disappointment of not being able to use their preparation, or that I should have given them their desired fight. If you think that, then I think you are wrong. Remember that I am not there to provide them everything they want. I am not there to provide them a fun time. We are all there because the game is fun and because we are good people doing a fun thing. We are dealing with the successes, failures, celebrations and disappointments that the game causes. It is important to give the world, and the monsters, their due.