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the guy at your table who only wants to play D&D (discuss.tchncs.de)

submitted 7 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Full post on Reddit. Final paragraphs:

And I know that sounds bad. I know! I know this basically all sounds like "you prefer 5E to these other games because you have to actually try to play them?" But the answer is actually yeah, exactly! It's not that I'm checked out on my phone or something, but I've learned I'm not actually interested in thinking too much about my part at the table. I think being there at game night with friends is fun, but I mostly just want to be along for the ride until it's time to roll some dice to hit something and let the other players figure out what to do otherwise, maybe get in some banter-in character in between encounters, and chill. In everything else I've played, I'm dead weight if I'm not actively participating. In 5E, I can just kind of vibe until it's time to roll to unlock a door or stab someone, and I'm not penalized for doing that. The game is neither loose enough that it needs my constant input outside of combat, nor complex enough to need any serious tactical decisions. That's a very comfortable spot for me!

So yeah. I imagine there's a lot of players who would prefer other systems if they tried them, but I'm not one of them. And I imagine there's actually a lot more people like me at tables than you'd expect! Hopefully this gives some insight into why someone would still prefer 5E over everything else, even after giving a lot of other games a shot. Thanks for giving me a chance.

Interesting reflective statement from a 5e player.

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

The final aesthetic is called submission, though I prefer the term that the Extra Credits’ team use: abnegation. It just sounds cooler and more complicated. Submission is the pleasure you get from turning off your brain and losing yourself in a task you don’t have to think too hard about. Grinding levels in World of Warcraft. Mining minerals in Minecraft. Farming item drops in Diablo III.

Now, submission is an odd one to discuss in tabletop RPGs because it is one that tabletop RPGs doesn’t handle so well. The thing is, even the simplest tasks in an RPG require a high cognitive load. You have to think things through. But still, the concept of “beer and pretzels” play exists for a reason. Go down into a dungeon, kick down doors, kill orcs, take their loot, go back to town. Lather, rinse, repeat. That is submission or abnegation.

And there are people who want exactly that. They look like challenge seekers sometimes, but they don’t want to work too hard or think too hard. They just want to goof around and enjoy a simple game with clear, straightforward goals.

— theangrygm.com