Building Aethros: Journal Entry -002
Journal Entry:
Went on a weekend getaway with my wife (she never would have thought she would ever play Dungeons & Dragons in her life) I got the Starter Kit and we ran a 3 hour fun run. My wife was a Cleric player and I controlled her bodyguard fighter. I thought my wife would get over it but surprisingly she didn’t. Her engagement was great through a SUPER CLICHE test run.
The first interaction was bandits who jumped out - her character and the bodyguard dispatched them with ease.
She then came across a broken cart where she impressed the NPC with the stories of her journey. The NPC then gave her some gold.
With the bandits still lingering in the back of her mind (combined with her extreme pacifist nature IRL) she stumbled through a thicket which led to a ‘hag’ deeper in the Forrest. Her answer was to immediately rip the staff, which the hag was leaning on, and haul ass in the opposite direction (the hag was actually a good character who was an outcast hermit🙈).
There was then a stage where lizards ambushed them in swamp - I got the feeling she was not into it at this stage (+-2hours in). I was 100% incorrect - she was just uncertain as to what was happening in the longer fight scene. When we went through the information slower she really got into it. After her character ‘guiding bolted’ a lizard into butterflies🤣 and ultimately saved the NPC bodyguard who was rolling terribly. My money was that they were finished - she had other plans and really pulled out some great plays with a crit which helped in the beginning of that engagement. Long story, short - she dominated and didn’t have a clue how great it was to watch🤣
I downloaded and played with DnD beyond app to create a character with the intention to test. The detail and input required was far more intricate than I expected - which should be expected if you want to create a character with depth.
All in all the weekend was great learning and set the tone of the work I would need to do prior to my Birthday One-Shot.
Intent:
- Test out the Starter Pack
- Introduce my wife to D&D - tiny story mostly battle.
- Test DnD Beyond.
Reality:
- The starter kit was really simple to understand - realised it was way more shallow than I expected.
- My wife is a badass and has no idea.
- Learned DnD beyond app is more involved than expected in character creation.
DM Lesson: if the DM is not prepared properly they could ‘rush’ certain elements and that has a negative effect on the table.
People Lesson: something which should have been clear as it is engraved in me from a business sense - ‘meet people where they are’. Just because something is common sense to me does not mean it is common knowledge to someone new with this kind of activity.
Next Time: I will ensure that there is better preparation. I will set the tone better and be mindful of rushing through first time foundation explanations/rules - even if I get the concepts quickly, it does not mean everyone should be expected too.
Info I wish I had prior this session: be observant to understand where each player is - they might be in different stages and require different support/info.
My Question to DMs: Have any experienced DMs identified players at different stages and does it change how you interact with them?