HooterScooter

Ask, Don't Tell

I am a sucker for the Show, don't tell technique in descriptive scenes. Instead of telling players that "The worker is terrified of paranormal activities in the haunted house.", we show this fact by saying something like "The walls of the worker's room are full of recently placed protective charms and amulets". 

It works fine for me so far, until I found The Between – A Carved From Brindlewood tabletop roleplaying game about a group of mysterious monster hunters in Victorian-era London. This game uses the Paint The Scene technique to ask players to flesh out descriptions of a scene.

Instead of telling player, we let them show by asking, "What evidence do you see that shows workers are terrified of the recent events?"

Even if this technique is present in the story game play culture, it is applicable to other play styles as well. There are three main benefits from using this technique:

  1. Engagement: We invite players into collaborative worldbuilding using the leading questions.
  2. Understanding: We glimpse the world through a player lens. Do they see the world as you envision? Is any clarification needed to help players make decisions? This is the opportunity to listen.
  3. Connection: Players are more familiar with the scene they paint because they "own" this scene. They do not just know, they see and feel.

There are time and place for this technique. Applies it correctly, player will be more engaged, and you will know them better.

Further reading