I have a 4 year old I run short 15-20 minute ‘D&D’ games for. I thought some of you may find how I run these games interesting so here ya go…
The Player Character
The player can play any kind of character. They could be a weird LEGO barbarian, a squirting bath time turtle, or a broken clown doll named Zulu (my kid has issues) they all are viable given the simplicity of the rules.
Every character starts with 3 stress counters at the beginning of each session.
The Rules
To succeed at a task the player must roll a d6 and roll equal to or greater than:
DC 2-easy
DC 3- average
DC 4-hard
In non combat encounter, if a player fails a roll they can spend 1 stress to reroll and decrease the DC by 1.
Ex:
‘Can I convince the ogre to be my friend by making him a pie?’
‘Absolutely! You need a 3 or better.’
‘I got a 1… *hands over a stress* can I put whip cream on it and try again?’
‘Yes you can. You now need a 2 or better.’
‘A 6!’
‘Congrats the ogre loves the pie and thinks of you as a sister!’
In a combat encounter the players are either attacking a foe or dodging a baddie’s attack (the story teller never rolls dice, just the kids). Always assume the players go first in most circumstances.
If the player is hit by a baddie’s Attack they lose 1 stress. If the character has no more stress the baddie wins that fight and the story progresses in a natural way.
Minions lose after 1 hit, and to dodge their attacks or hit them is DC 2. (If there are no villains accompanying the minions you can increase their to hit DC to 3)
Villains lose after 2 hits, and to dodge their attacks or hit them is DC 3. (The villain can escape instead of being defeated for plot purposes if necessary)
Ex:
‘I rolled 2 to zap the goblin with my rainbow laser gun!’
‘You missed. The goblin screeches loudly at you trying to make your ears pop. Roll a 2 or better to protect your ears.’
‘I rolled a 4! I filled my ears with Cotten. Can I try to zap it again?’
‘Sure, you still need a 3 or better.’
‘5! I rainbow blast it!’
‘He is blinded by your radiance, runs into a wall, and knocks itself out.’
Not all NPCs need to be romanceable! As a DM, you can simply decide that any particular NPC is off the table, or set a DC so high you are certain your players can’t make it. If you feel the need to justify this to your players, there are plenty of options. Maybe the character is already in a commited relationship, or they aren’t attracted to the PCs gender/race/faction. Maybe the NPC has got too many issues to puruse a relationship. Maybe the NPC is ace. Maybe the NPC just doesn’t have time for romance right now.
I would also encourage you to make your players put more effort into romancing the NPCs that are availabe. Call me crazy, but I don’t think you should be able to start a relationship (or even a casual fling) with a single succesful skill check. Maybe successful charisma checks ignite the attraction, but they need to be followed up with an actual investment of time and/or gifts and whatnot. You don’t necessarily need to play these scenes out blow by blow, but have your players at least think out the general strategy of their seduction. Not only will this prevent players from casually disrupting your plots, it will also make whatever relationships they do pursue feel more meaningful and interesting. Plus, it’ll give your NPCs more depth and make it so it doesn’t feel like the world revolves around the PCs.
Thanks for the question, and good luck!
There are two other methods I’d suggest:
1) Talk to your player OOC and let them know that you find it uncomfortable that they try to romance every NPC. Ask them to stop doing that and let them know that going forward you won’t allow a “seduction” roll for every NPC they want to flirt with. (Always remember you as the GM have final call as to whether a roll should even happen or is appropriate)
2) Treat a charisma roll as a charisma roll… sure he wants to go for seduction. But this NPC is just not that into him… so “I’m flattered but not interested right now” then brush past it with a “your charming approach seems to have made them more inclined to treat with you fairly/well, think well of you”. But it doesn’t have to end with “Oh [character] name!” *swoon*
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Blessed of The Traveler is a guide to incorporating transgender characters and stories into the Eberron setting for Dungeons & Dragons, with looks at how several cultures and faiths approach gender, as well as a look at magical transition methods!
You know, I see a lot of posts out there about dumb shit that players do and while all of those posts are incredibly valid, I feel like this is dumbass DM erasure. I dearly love every story about bards who seduce the final boss and warlocks with sugar daddies and all that BUT I think DMs are greatly misunderstood to all be these serious controlling entities who just want their players to follow through with their perfectly planned scenerios. Here’s to all the dumbass DMs out there who:
– forget their NPC names and constantly make up new names for unimportant recurring NPCs when the players see them in hopes that they wont remember
– plan a whole dungeon around one (1) spongebob reference that they really wanted to fit in
– accidentally give two NPCs the same name bc you just pull from a list and you forgot to cross it off
– choose to homebrew everything bc they have an Artistic Vision but the vision is just that you want there to be three gnomes in a trench coat selling sketchy magical items somewhere in the setting
– use the same dumbass voice for every NPC but with different 90s surfer slang for different characters
– make just awful items and make their players buy them (I’m currently working on the “Ross From Friends” tramp stamp of +1 AC)
– realize they only have 28 minutes before the next session to plan and instead make text posts on tumblr.com
Anyway if any DMs want to add onto this with some dumbass shit they’ve subjected their players to feel free
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