A short story cautioning Dungeon Masters against being so restrictive with their vision that they crush their player's creativity.
By Riley Rath
This blog is NOT an "ultimate guide to ____," nor is it outlining some DM theory, nor is it critiquing Dungeons and Dragons fifth edition rules as written.
Instead, I'm going to tell a quick cautionary tale...
Several years ago, when I was still getting the hang of D&D 5e, I was about to begin my third campaign.
And boy was I EXCITED.
The previous two adventures had been very short, and I had made all the amateur mistakes. I'm talking about classics like:
1. Taking way too long to choose which spell to cast.
2. Insisting I get the lion's share of the loot for "character reasons."
3. Being confused by action economy.
4. Arguing with the DM.
... reeeeeeeeeal amateur stuff.
(Side note: I will forever be grateful to my first DM for tolerating my eager, but annoying, ignorance!)
But this time was different. I had finally grasped that I was one part of a whole, and that I didn't need to be the big hero that could do everything. That I could play a flawed character that grows overtime. I could stop taking myself so seriously, support others, be silly, and just have fun :)
One day, I came up with an absolutely 'genius' play on words: instead of "owlbear"... what about "owl bard"?
That sent me down a creative rabbit hole that led me to... well... dear reader, allow me to introduce you to Fagaceae Quercus (Latin for oak tree); my "owlbear bard" character.
Image does not belong to Awesome Dice
Before you say anything, this character of mine was going to be heavily homebrewed. The idea was that some wizard awakened a small owlbear that was the runt of the litter/pushed out of the nest (not sure how owlbears weed out the weak).
The small owlbear would have grown up in the wizard's tower, witnessing great magical wonders as well as transmutation horrors and evocation devastation. After all, as everyone knows, crazed wizards tend to be neglectful, and rarely live in environments safe for children.
As a result, this small owlbear was scared of darn near everything. If something was even remotely unknown, he would be convinced that the worst possible outcome would happen.
To cope with living in constant danger, Fagaceae comforted himself by playing simple, plucky tunes on a lute and hooting to himself quietly.
In the campaign, Fagaceae Quercus would be an adult, but like so many adults his traumatized upbringing left him with a significant vice: COWARDICE. He was just like the Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz... with just as much crying and less jumping out of windows (that scene always scared my sister).
Image does not belong to Awesome Dice
He compensated by being exceedingly kind and resolving uncomfortable conflict with mirth and music. He was a jolly, feathery monster, playing a tiny lute and singing everything with an owl hoot.
I was so eager to present this character idea to my DM. I had vision, but no knowledge of the game to make it a reality. He, on the other hand, had been playing for well over a decade, knew all the little rules of D&D 5e. I was relying on him to help me make it a reality.
I was shocked when he refused to even entertain the idea.
Keep in mind, it's not like we're doing some ultra-serious campaign of survival through the Underdark or the Gothic horrors of Curse of Strahd. It was a standard, western European, high fantasy-inspired Dungeons and Dragons campaign. The D&D setting equivalent of white bread. And there was nothing about my character that would ruin his vision of the plot or composition of the party.
The DM didn't care. When I asked why, he just said it was "against the rules."
I tried to reason with him. I said I would take a huge reduction to my HP and my speed. I insisted he would be staunchly pacifist, refusing to get close enough to involve himself in combat. Under no circumstances would he fight, having only Bard spells to support, heal, inspire, and entertain others.
It didn't matter: "No, that's a monster, that would be unfair."
I told him about the "hero's journey" I had for this character. How his cowardice would inevitably let down his friends, forcing him to remain in shame or find another way. At some point, still remaining a pacifist, he would need to stay in danger and face his fears.
But my begging and reasoning got me nowhere:
It didn't matter that I was excited...
It didn't matter that I had some research...
It didn't matter that I was flexible...
My creativity didn't fit the DM's preferences or taste. So it was never going to happen.
Looking back, we could've easily just reskinned the owlbear with the Goliath or Firbolg playable races. I could've still rolled stats and filled out a character sheet like any other character. And given that there are now space hippos, clearly it was never THAT big of an ask.
Image does not belong to Awesome Dice
I don't know... maybe he knew that being an owlbear would prevent me from entering any of the towns or cities, or my large size would prevent me from delving into some dungeons with narrow passageways. But that is REALLY giving him the benefit of the doubt, and wasn't what I experienced in the campaign.
The whole experience was really confusing and caused me to kind of resent the DM a bit. I found another character to play, but even that one felt really constricted and noticeably under powered compared to some other characters in the party.
All of that is bad enough, but you wanna know the worst part?
My creative spirit was crushed.
I felt like there was some mysterious, invisible, unwritten code about what a player character could and should be, and I was wrong for stepping out of bounds. There was a "right way" to play D&D... right characters to play... and because I wasn't Vex or Vax from Critical Role, I had to head back to the drawing board.
Granted, it's just a game. And I wasn't so discouraged that I quit the game forever. But I don't think it is a coincidence that I took a 2 year break before making any serious effort to find people to play with again.
And I only got back in when I found a DM who knew not just the rules, but the SPIRIT of the game (thanks Aaron).
I remember reading somewhere that Gary Gygax said players should be allowed to play ANYTHING so long as you can start out weak and gain strength as they level up. I understand that this wouldn't work for some campaign settings and adventures, but as a general rule, I couldn't agree more.
Image does not belong to Awesome Dice
This post wasn't meant to be a bitter rant... and hopefully it has not come across that way. And lord knows DMs sometimes MUST reign players in and bring them down to earth.
But to conclude, my message for Dungeon Master's is this:
You are definitely carrying the biggest creative burden of anyone at the table... no doubt about it. But do not forget that D&D 5e is a creative outlet for your players too... many of whom are allowing themselves to truly think outside the box for the first time in YEARS.
So encourage creativity in your players.
Work with them so creativity can flourish.
Make concessions so everyone has space to be creative.
Always go the extra mile to weave your player's creativity into your fantasy world. Many of them are already taking a vulnerable leap of faith and going outside their comfort zone. So create an environment where they (and everyone else) can safely be creative, and then get out of the way.
Like Saint Gygax said: don't let them be overpowered god-men... but it's fantasy... let their creativity thrive in a way the regular world won't.
Riley Rath
Riley is a freelance copywriter, content writer, and marketer based out of Spokane, WA. He is thankful to have the opportunity to combine his passion for imaginative role-playing to help FLGS, tabletop, board game, and D&D related businesses communicate their distinct value to players everywhere. When not playing or writing about board games or DnD, he is busy hiking, cooking, and gardening... very hobbit-like for a 6'4" dude.
A DM, feels like you stopped reading part way through. He did describe in detail how he tried to work with the DM, and the DM basically having none of it. Yes, he did start off saying “heavily homebrewed”, but then didn’t describe anything to really build mechanically. A reskin was a perfectly viable option, and even if he didn’t think of it as the player, the DM might have thought of that if he hadn’t immediately been dismissive. I fully agree that a player needs to have consideration for the DM and fellow players, but everything laid out here sounds low-lift with some cool potential for party dynamics and social interactions.
That was a great article. I, as a DM, always do my best to say “yes” whenever possible!
It’s good and wonderful to be excited and creative, but you still aren’t understanding the lessons you said you learned. You say you understood that you aren’t the core hero and it isn’t all about you and you’re part of a larger whole, and then you went and made an entire character that would require a wild amount of homebrew without consulting your DM in any way and then we’re shocked and resentful when they didn’t allow it.
Work WITH your DM, communicate with them, ask about the setting and type of game you’re about to join, build a character that will thrive in that setting and story. Communicate. D&D is a cooperative game.
You’re still approaching it from a position of “well this is my idea and this is what I want to do, so everyone should bend around me.”
Your Dungeon Master is playing too, they aren’t at the table to serve you. Not all DMs are comfortable with heavy homebrew and the resultant balance issues.