So I'm going through another RPG crisis of faith.
Sometimes I get to feeling that something just isn't right with my gaming life. Or maybe something's missing. Or maybe something has stalled. Unfortunately, I wasn't really able to pinpoint the problem.
Well last night I got a clue. I'm sure there are several contributing factors, but the one that dawned on me is that I am bored. Or perhaps more accurately, "impatient". I want to know what happens next. It doesn't have to be good or bad or even happen to my character, but please, just move it along already!
Even if things take a while to resolve, like combat for instance, as long as there is a sense of progression, I'm ok with it. Maybe it's just me, but I find the 10 minutes waiting in the car to feel SIGNIFICANTLY longer, nearly unbearably so, than the same 10 minutes watching the wife get ready. That's what it feels like sometimes when I'm gaming.
Sure, I'm there with everybody else and watching what's going on, but still I often feel like I'm alone in the dark, waiting for something to actually HAPPEN. I may be roleplaying, perhaps I'm interacting with NPCs and such, and that can be (and usually is) fun, but I can't really SEE what's happening since it's all in the DM's head. At worst, the DM is simply "roleplaying" the NPC, waiting for the player to ask the (undisclosed) "right" questions. Better, the DM might be working to shape the encounter by dropping hints playing loose with the NPC's motivations. Optimally, the DM is providing contant, descriptive, feedback, though even that can be too vague to be useful.
Consider typical "combat" in the same mode. At worst, the DM rolls all of the dice behind a screen, and all you know is if you "hit" or "miss". You can't really formulate a plan becuase you don't know what works and what doesn't. Is the monster immune to blades, or do you just keep getting poor rolls with the sword? Is high ground giving you a bonus, or are you just wasting an action manuevering? Better, the DM lets you roll your own dice, so you can see how that effects things, but you still don't know what kinds of bonuses or penalties you're getting from your choices. At best, the DM is very descriptive, and by his account of the action you can mostly tell if things are effective and why or why not, though the details are fuzzy and you still might not know how far away you are from finishing the fight.
These are all valid ways to play, but I'm sure you can see how one might be seen as more interesting and engaging than the other, whether it's your character or you're watching somebody else's character.
Maybe it's because I have less time to game than I used to and don't want to waste it. Maybe I've become spoiled and jaded and just can't be bothered to sit through "filler" anymore. I don't know. But that's where my trouble lies. Wish me luck.