u/redmanistan

Hello drifters!

I’m curious if anyone here also plays D&D and has tried to capture the atmosphere of The Age of Decadence in their campaign.

If you’ve tried something like this, I’d be really grateful for advice. Did you remove, weaken or change any D&D mechanics to make the game feel less heroic and more brutal? Or did you add or emphasize certain rules, systems, factions, social mechanics, scarcity, injuries, reputation, etc.?

I’d especially appreciate concrete examples from your own games: what worked, what didn’t and what helped create that Age of Decadence mood at the table.

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone!

I’m playing in a campaign with a group of other players and we often run into puzzles, investigations, social encounters and general problem-solving situations.
As a player, I usually figure things out pretty quickly and suggest practical solutions. When talking to NPCs, I also tend to ask a lot of follow-up questions that lead to useful information.

The thing is, my character is an experienced mercenary who is used to taking charge and solving problems, so I don’t really feel like this is a metagaming issue. The problem is more on the table side: the other players usually don’t suggest solutions that are as effective or as practical, so we often end up in situations where my character solves most of the problems that involve common sense, planning or asking the right questions.

I don’t really like that, because it feels like I’m pulling the spotlight away from the rest of the party. They get fewer chances to plan, investigate or influence the direction of the group.
I’ve tried stepping back and giving others more room to handle questioning or investigations, but that usually just means we end up getting much less useful information. And from my perspective, the questions I would ask are often pretty obvious and don’t require special character knowledge like magic, religion, history, etc.

So I’m curious: have any of you been in a similar situation? How did you handle it in an elegant way, without either dominating the game or deliberately making the party less effective?

Thanks in advance for any advice!