I was subbing another teacher’s class today and, at 2:45 with about 15 minutes of the school day left, a student said, “Ugh Mr. Hart can I go home?”
No. If I can’t, you can’t. And I can’t, so no.
Seems like a typical high school student thing to say, but it shows a deeper desire that the players at your table probably share:
When stuff gets rough, can they go “home”?
Do your players have a refuge in your world? Somewhere comparatively safe? Somewhere they care about?
It’s worth keeping in mind where “home” is in any given session, even if it’s just a base camp outside the dungeon where the horses are tied up, or a quiet room they found and reinforced so they can sleep when needed.
Some games have no home for the players, no safe place to rest, and that can be exhausting. It’s not necessarily a bad thing if you’re doing it on purpose, but it’s worth thinking about.
So before your next session, take a second to think: where, for your players, is “home”?
Dungeons & Dragons Lore: Old-School Golems – Merric’s Musings
How to Build a D&D Monk So Good That DMs Want to Cheat – DM David
7 Ways To Be A More Entertaining GM – Roleplaying Tips
The Goblin Village of Ormarsa – Dyson’s Dodecahedron
Uncaged | Volume IV – DMsGuild – $14.95
The Hermit: A new ship battlemap for Saltmarsh – DMsGuild – $0.99
Runa & Ulfgar’s Compendium of Big Boss Epic Goblins – DMsGuild – $12.95
Now get out there and tell a story!
Peace,
Maximilian Hart