Dungeons & Dragons Etiquette Part IV: Play the Game

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ArcticFox
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It's been a minute since I added some entries to the D&D etiquette series and I've been sitting on a couple. Please pardon the sharp-ish tone. It's been festering for a while.

Know How To Play Your Character - Yes. D&D is a complex game. Yes, 5th Edition has a lot going on. Yes, there can be quite a bit to keep track of, especially with character classes that have more things to manage than others, like spells. If you're going to play such a character, then you really need to know your character and what your options are. The time to be deciding what spell to cast or which monster to attack is when someone else is taking their actions and you have a moment to look your sheet over or consult the rulebook. Nothing ruins the flow of combat more than when it's the turn of a player who doesn't know how his/her character works and has to start reading in the book only when it's their turn.

As a subsection to this, yes, it can take time to learn to play D&D. Yes, there's a lot of reading material and yes, the way it all interacts can sometimes be a bit confusing. People are always happy to help but do you know what gets old? When you've been in a bi-weekly game for almost 2 years and people still have to help you figure out what modifiers to apply to your D20 roll when you're attacking a monster in combat. if you're the type of player who only ever cracks the spine of your Player's Handbook at game time and never in between sessions, this is probably you. And no, nobody's buying the "I'm sorry, I've been busy and I just didn't have a chance to look in the book!" If this is your line, you're a liar, because what you're asking people to believe is that you have literally been so overwhelmingly consumed with tasks keeping you busy that you literally haven't had the ability to sit down in a chair with a Player's Handbook and review a couple pages on how attack rolls work. Normal human beings would collapse from exhaustion from that kind of marathon business. But not you, right? Betcha you found plenty of time to binge on Netflix or YouTube though, haven't you? Made sure all your Facebook feeds are up to date? Favorite pics are up on Instagram? Been keeping up with all your Twitter follows?

But yeah. You haven't had a chance to read the &*%(*&@ rulebook. Poor thing.

Transportation - Not all of us are blessed with access to a car or public transportation to be able to get ourselves to and from D&D games. People are generally understanding of that. Here's the thing though... If you found a ride to the game but not back home, the time to ask someone for a lift is before you show up. Rule of thumb for those of you who depend on others for rides: Never get a lift from someone to a place without knowing how you're going to get home. If you just show up for the game session with no clue how you're getting home, waiting until only THEN to ask someone, then you're being a jerk. Now people will feel obligated because if nobody volunteers, chances are it's the host that's going to be stuck running you back to your house, because otherwise that's the person whose house you're stuck in. Oh, and by the way, if you aren't at least offering a couple bucks for gas, guess what that makes you?

Game Accessories - D&D has always had lots and lots of accessories and expansions that offer new classes, spells, items, character options, etc. D&D has also always been a game famous for its problems with power creep - the phenomenon where game supplements tend to raise the power level of characters, as opposed to just offering a wider variety of options without affecting game balance. Many DMs (Like myself) impose a restriction on what, if any, game accessories are available to the players when it's time to create or level characters. No, the Dm isn't just doing that to keep you down. No, the DM isn't just being a mean ol' poopyhead. The game accessory you want to use could very easily be game breaking and the DM has the right to make that call. No, he or she is not obligated to let you use Xanthar's Guide to Everything just because you blew $50 on it.

Game on.
"He who takes offense when no offense is intended is a fool, and he who takes offense when offense is intended is a greater fool."
—Brigham Young

"Don't take refuge in the false security of consensus."
—Christopher Hitchens

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