"I pet the cat mimic with my other arm"
Dude.. I'm laying in bed between my son and cat right now. He's playing Marvel on Switch, I just made him look at this pic. Meanwhile, my arm is around the cat, petting her. She suddenly bites me while we're looking at pic. I reprimand and continue petting. Bites again. I reprimand and stop petting. Pause, resume petting in spite of angry tail in peripheral vision. Child applauds cat for getting me good while saying the pic is sick. I read your comment. I am living your comment. I would not have second guessed my current petting mimic if I hadn't read your comment. Pets biting cat again.
The only reasonable response to such a situation.
"Can I roll to pet the cat again?"
"psss-psss-pssss"
Mimics, mimics everywhere is a sign of a bad DM who can’t create tension without bullshit paranoia, or a personal grudge.
Unless the table signed up for that kind of adventure, the challenges should be achievable within the party’s abilities, eg “Oh if only you could speak with animals you could have foiled the BBEG’s plans”
I mean, the same could be said of GMs that run a module without telling the table they're running a module "to keep you from looking it up", etc. Personally, I flat-out tell my players I'll be running a certain module and that I'll be considering it like jazz does sheet music. In fact, when I ran Xanathar's arc after it's release, the silent business partner to his faction was an ages-old black market syndicate headed by a mimic mafia (with changelings as their juvenile stage, tasked with learning humanoid ways via a sort of rumspringa).
Establishing that not only can anything be a mimic, but the resonant fact that said mimics were more interested in observing rather than mindlessly ambushing outright was far more paranoia-inducing than any stereotypical expectation, NGL. It wasn't long before the party was all but wishing for the wardrobe/carriage/over-large chest/ornate tome to just attack and get it over with. 🤣🤘🏼
edit: spelling, clarity
I’d argue that it’s more fun to bury the lead on a module/set dungeon, to prevent any (even subconscious) meta-gaming from upsetting the play between more/less seasoned players, but I do like the “jazz and sheet music” analogy.
If someone clicks/is told you’re using Tomb of Horrors, they’ll know more than a player who is experiencing that for the first time organically. Obviously applying that and not breaking PC-player knowledge divide is the players issue to maintain, but they’ll still have that seed lurking in their brain about the upcoming set pieces
Wow, that jazz simile. Love it!
Still, memes likes this one actually breed such GMs, because somehow they think it's funny.
They are funny as memes, but beginner DMs might not be able to tell the difference.
I feel the same way about the False Hydra. As a recounted creepypasta it sounds cool. As an actual TTRPG enemy it's unworkable. Either the adventure will be very scripted, because the DM has to pretty much allow you to perceive it, or it will be completely unfair and insufferable, because you'll need to constantly pretend you don't notice it and that you forget things as it decimates the party. It's not a good D&D enemy, it doesn't even fit the rules of D&D well. Mind effect with no saves unless you cover your ears? C'mon...
Unless the table signed up for that
Can't trust any damn furniture!
The mimic table ate the contract.
It's also a quick way to turn a regular player into a murderhobo, because if can't trust anything not to be hostile, the best approach is to attack first.
Serious question, who here actually tries to create such paranoia in their players? It's probably one of the biggest reoccurring memes around here and I don't entirely get it.
Is this the tone some people are actually trying to create and if so, why?
It could just be I have a very narrow group of people I've played with, but this doesn't necessarily seem a tone I'd be striving for.
I had a DM hide mimics and traps everywhere and then get pissed at us for "wasting" so much time checking everything for traps.
my personal rule is to only lay a trap that has clear potential to be discovered in-game, with a context clue, and not an ambiguous "roll for perception" out of nowhere.
randomly dropping an anvil on a player is a dick move.
telling players they're walking through an active construction site of a new smithing conglomerate, with an unfinished forge 10 meters above them, at least sets the tone and let's them know caution is a reasonable option.
also sets up some weird intrigue that could easily turn into a sidequest.
Generally, such paranoia is only for a single adventure (I had a haunted mansion my friend did where that paranoia was well done), or a one-off scare/surprise we can all have a good laugh about later.
Yeah, if you try to make it a regular thing, I think you need to expect your player count to be less and less regular in correlation.
I think that's a terrific answer!
I had a sort of opposite problem the last time I ran a campaign. my players came into the game super paranoid, probably from reading stories about tricky DMs, and it made my life pretty difficult.
I did set up traps and misdirection, but only when there were exactly enough clues to figure it out. I learned that the major problem with that method, is that what's obviously a clue to me wasn't always obvious for them. so, I was thought of as a tricky DM. then, after I softened up, my sessions looked too easy and obvious.
honestly, it's just a really difficult balance. I eventually got it to a good place for everyone, but everyone really does have a preferred level of deceit, and it isn't easy to cater to a group of 5 with varying levels of expectation
My life is so stressful. I like to giggle with friends when I play games. This would give me so much anxiety and end relationships.
who here actually tries to create such paranoia in their players
Call of Cthulhu DMs, I'd assume, though I don't know if there's mimics in that, I'm just somewhat familiar with shoggoths and garden gnomes.
The party is ambushed in a tavern by four cats with white puffs on their chest. The cats mrowl out an ultimatum, but alas, the players do not speak Animal! After helping themselves to the players meals, the cats hang around and generally make a nuisance of themselves; knocking down cups and getting underfoot.
When the party finally realizes they're being extorted by Cat Sith, they're already an encounter deep in the next dungeon, and are making loads of rolls with misfortune! Only a rare fish will appease the cats, but how will the PCs find that out?
Are those just... normal cats?
Side note, if you ever want to calibrate Detect Evil, any cat will do.
kind of! They get codified unluckiness and a SOUL STEAL power if someone gets so unlucky that they die near them. No raise dead for u, should've been nicer to the weird cat.
...but they're otherwise just big cat faeries.
A furocious foe!
So... less dangerous than a normal cat then? :-D
Never let David Cronenberg or John Carpenter DM your games.
I softly scratch the cat mimic behind the ears
Worth it.
DM: that’ll teach you attacking every chairs and table in every room.
Thanks, I hate it!
