...As of today Rotku becomes Rotku the Amazing and Wonderful DM. I expect to be called that from this point on when I'm addressed.
For those of you who don't know me and haven't experienced my DMing before, below are a few recommendations, rules, regulations, rights and other words begining with r.
- (1) The DM is always right. End of story.
(2) Should rule (1) not apply, please refer to rule (1)
(3) Don't listen to the first two rules; I'm more than happy for players to question me. Just like everyone else here, I am still only human and make mistakes at times. When these happen, feel free to point them out to me. If you're not happy with something, or have a complaint or question, do not hessitate to ask. I am usually more than willing to share the reasons behind it, or admit that I have erred. Always remember though that DMs are gods.
(4) Be respectful at all times. I don't mean like calling me Sir Rotku or anything silly like that. Just be polite. Treat others as you expect to be treated yourself. If you attempt to be rude to me, you'll quickly find my ears turned off towards you and a lack of DMing in your direction.
(5) This is meant to be fun for me as well. I'm here, just like you are, to have fun. And I certainly plan to have fun. So do not bug me. Should I find that I'm not enjoying myself and decide to take a week or so break, live with it. I am not your personal slave.
Now we get to the more fun things!
Rotku's DMing style.
I have heard it said many times that DMs are the Storyteller and a God rolled into one; it is their world and the PCs are the stars of it. When I first began DMing I use to agree whole-heartedly with this, but with a bit of experience behind me I now say I disagree; hence leading to Rotku's first DMing philosophy.
- Rotku's DMing Philosophy Number 1:
The Players are the Storytellers, the script writters and the stars. The DMs are here to make sure the world around operates in the correct way to the players actions.
This does not mean that I will not be running plots or anything of the sort. What it does mean is I won't be holding your hand, figuratively speaking. If I introduce a plot, it is up to you, the player, to choose what to do with it. I am open to anything, and will react to your actions. It also means that I love running one on one personal devlopment plots, so bios are always loved (even if sometimes it takes me weeks to get around to reading them...).
- Rotku's DMing Philosophy Number 2:
Roleplaying Rules!
Ask anyone who has been DMed by me before, and they could generally tell you I am a big fan of roleplaying, and have a dislike for combat. I'm not saying the two are mutally exclusive, just my preferences, both as a player and a DM. Do not expect big hack'n'slash quests. Expect quests where you have to use that small thing floating around inside your skull. This leads quickly to the next one.
- Rotku's DMing Philosophy Number 3:
Levels don't matter, it's how they are used that counts.
Of course, levels do matter a lot in many situations. But there will always be occasions that a smart thinking level 1 can best a level 530. If you look at the paragraph above, you'll see I prefer quests that make you think, both the player and the PC. If you think outside of the box, you will go far.
- Rotku's DMing Philosophy Number 4:
Smart risks leads to high gain. Stupid risk leads to low gain.
I've never liked that old "High risk, high gain" belief. If you go charging a bunch of peny-less barberians it might be a bloody high risk, but you won't find anything of worth on them. Think about all the options before you choose a course of action. Even then continue to look at them all, as new ones are bound to open up.
- Rotku's DMing Philosophy Number 5:
We're here for fun.
If you're not enjoying something, let me know. I will do likewise. Often I can make changes to make sure you enjoy it more, but sometimes it could be that you're just not suited to my style of DMing or the quest. If that's the case, 'too bad' would be the words that slip out of my mouth.
- Rotku's DMing Philosophy Number 6:
Twist, tangle, mix, chop, stir and generally messed up plots are best.
Do not expect everything to be simple, 2D and obvious at first appearance. Often the meaning won't come clear until later, sometimes months later. It often helps to talk about your experiences with other PCs and listen to theirs. Things might sort themselves out. You'll often find, with a bit of effort, that my plots tend to be intwined with each other. Sometimes they are, sometimes they aren't.
- Rotku's DMing Philosophy Number 7:
Every action has a reaction.
You're living in a world populated by many others. Should you decide to attack a group of bandits, one of their brothers might swear to Hoar to take revenge on you, if that's the last thing they ever do. Likewise, everything has its' place - should you change something, there will be concequences - good or evil. If you drive out that pesty group of goblins, something bigger might move into take their place; or that group of Moonmaidens might finally be able to reclaim their long lost holylands.
This also means that if you do something, you won't be getting out of the reaction by saying that you don't want to be involved in the plot. Dispite what I've said above, in the end of the day the DM is incharge.
- Rotku's DMing Philosophy Number 8:
Keep it realistic; but remember this isn't Earth, so expect the unexpected.
Do I really need to explain that? Well, yes I do. But I really can't be bothered - think on it, it's pretty obvious.
Well, with that out of the way, just a few more things to quickly note. First of all, I don't want to see any use of Meta. Just because on the log in screen it says that the Old Man is just a commoner level 1, do not believe it. Sometimes when toolsetting I might be tempted to level him up to the level 15 Sorcerer he is meant to be, then remove those levels, keeping the abilities and spells, and add 1 commoner level. Evil? Maybe.
I will generally let someone use any spell out of the PHB (3E), although there are some times that I will say no. Check this thread for details on how I operate this.
And last but not least, after getting you all exciting about finally been DMed by Rotku, I'm going to burst your bubble. I'm joking about DMing here. I'm really DMing in Waterdeep
Na, not really. Just that I won't be DMing until around the start of next month; giving me a bit of time to get use to the server, and then 10 or so days over in Australia for the ALFACon. I'll post up my DMing times then, but they tend to be pacific coast nights, to Euro mid-mornings; as I'm in New Zealand (+13 GMT currently with DLS). Oh, and I use GMT times - don't expect me to use any of these silly PST, CST, DWT, VZT or what ever! GMT or GMT+13, none other!
Anyway, look foward to seeing you all around, and please forgive the above ramblings and spelling mistakes!
