We’re doing phrasing - And getting you a free boost

One of the weird quirks about TTRPGs compared to other RPGs is that we don’t have any kind of digital input for controlling our characters. We trade the flexibility of the system for the fuzziness of the medium. You’re forced to communicate everything via talking, and anyone who has tried to ‘play stealthy’ in a TTRPG has inevitably run into a GM who calls out “you never said where you were hiding” as they ask everyone to roll initiative. Usually, this comes from improper communication. Even experienced players who know all their rules can fumble when it comes to stating their character’s actions.

Communication is a skill in our medium, and it is one of the things you learn as you grow as a player. Keep an eye out for opportunities to increase your communication level, and avoid the trap that causes a combative relationship with your GM.

Level 1: Asking questions

Weirdly, playing like an absolute newbie often gets you what you want in an RPG. When a player doesn’t know anything about the rules, they speak their intentions and ask the GM to fill in the gaps. A total newbie who wants to infiltrate a guard’s office may bluntly ask, “Is there any way I can sneak in there?” An understanding GM will see the newbie and help to come up with a plan. “Sure you can - roll me a stealth check as you track the guard movements and jump in the window at an opportune time.” Since the GM has bought in, even if you roll low on your stealth check, they will give you a lot of leeway. Maybe you leap in, but your boot falls off. The next guard patrol walks by and picks it up, talking about it and saying they need to check in with the captain about this. Now you’re on a countdown clock to finish your work before the captain comes back with the office keys.

The downside is this asks a lot of the GM. You are asking them to take part in playing your character for you. A GM who didn’t get a good night’s sleep, or who is feeling a little bit burnt out, or who has just decided that it’s time for you to ‘learn the rules for yourself’ will start to push back. Expect them to start saying “Sure, what are you going to do to accomplish that?” If you don’t come up with your own idea, maybe they relent and help you out - or maybe they just say that you cannot.

Pushing back like this as a GM is actually a pretty effective way to encourage people to learn their abilities. You cut them some slack at first, and then expect them to come up to speed. As that new player gains rule familiarity though, they go in one of two ways. They have learned the keywords of actions in TTRPGs, and that comes with power that can be used poorly.

the trap: Declaring actions

Once a player knows all their rules, it is natural to stop asking questions. Instead of that new character asking about sneaking into the guard tower, an intermediate player can fall into a trap of declaring their actions. “I want to try and sneak into the guard office, so I need to roll stealth. Right?” Your GM might even give you kudos for learning all your abilities and suggesting how they are used. This is a trap for the you though, as you get into the habit of knowing what rolls you are likely to make.

As you continue to gain confidence, you may get more and more bold. “I stealth into the guard office.” And this is where things fall apart. Once you are sure of the actions you can take, the way you speak begins to assume success. Declaring “I stealth into the guard office” doesn’t have buy in from your GM to add the narrative flair of observing the guards and jumping through the window, so no affordance is given to any plan you may have had in your head. When you inevitably roll a low score with one of your checks, the GM has no baseline to judge failure against. When you roll that 1, the GM will narrate how “you nonchalantly walk to the front door and grab the handle RIGHT AS the guard captain walks out and they immediately grab their sword.”

Because the GM isn’t ‘in’ on your character’s plan, the easiest thing for them to assume with a natural 1 is complete incompetence. This feels BAD as a player, and when you get unlucky and roll 1 a lot, can lead to feeling picked on. While a particularly good GM will try to pull your character’s plan out of you, not all will be able to. Anything you don’t say can’t and wont be used to help you in the court of TTRPG.

Level 2: Giving intention

There is a second path though! Once you learn your skills and abilities, you can begin to give character context to your questions from level 1. Sneaking into the guard tower can now be “My character is really good at acrobatics and stealth, they are going to try to ninja flip into the office.” Your GM now understands the approach you would like to take to get into the office, and a couple of example strengths you will lean on to make that happen. Any failures that occur will be directly related to the strategy, and will likely feel more fair. If the GM asks you to roll stealth and you get a 1, they knew you were doing flips to get in. When you flipped into the office, now maybe you kicked the window and shattered the glass, alerting the nearby guards to come take a look. This isn’t as lenient as level 1, but it isn’t an immediate failure, and the player would still have options to hide from the guards or try to wrap up before they arrive.

Level 3: Narrative Collaboration

Looking back at the examples here, we can see a few more patterns. The more buy-in the GM has, the more lenient the rulings will be. But also the more work you ask the GM to do, the more generic the results will be. So how can you maximize the buy in the GM has while minimizing the work? Bring specific character details and ability choices into your discussion.

“My cat burglar background is because I used to be a thief who dropped in from rooftops all the time, so I’m used to entering through windows. And I took the ‘silent leap’ feat. Can I try to silently leap through the window at an opportune moment?”

Now THAT is great action communication. As a GM, you gave me the key information that you are an expert at this kind of approach. Your character isn’t panicked, they have all the tools for the job. If you already snuck your way to the guard office, I as a GM would say “Yes, your character is a pro, and slips in unnoticed.” You didn’t ask the GM to roll a stealth check, you explained narratively and mechanically why you would absolutely crush the check. I don’t even need you to roll, it works. Wait, no roll? Auto-success?

Enjoy A Free power boost

The funniest part about improving your communication is that you may notice that you have to roll fewer dice. Once your GM is bought in on your tactics, excited for your outcomes, and working with you instead of against you, they will naturally begin to give you the benefit of the doubt. When the GM is in your corner, communication gets easier and you’ll find yourself given more opportunities to set up in ways that both of you can enjoy.

The best part about not rolling dice is that you can never roll a 1. The GM doesn’t need to be lenient.