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What Do You Do?
written by Donat P. Fevre
October 4th, 2007 · 2 Comments
This is perhaps the key question to ask your players, and often. It’s a key to preventing railroading. It’s a big key to improvising. And it’s the key letting your players be free in what they have their characters do.
This question alone can open up many more opportunities for fun in your campaign. It will allow you, as the DM, to explore places you haven’t even thought of, as well as the players. This one question can really be a great workout for the imagination.
It’s also great to let players do whatever they want. It let’s them feel like they’re in control, not you. It also helps them feel like they’re really in the fantasy world, rather than just a player controlling a pawn. Your player’s aren’t slaves after all, so set them free!
So let the party rogue break into a house and steal stuff. Let the barbarian and/or fighter get drunk at a bar and start a brawl. Let the pious characters go to the chapel or alter of their deities and pray. Let the rangers and druids free the animals of a zoo.
Just let your players do as they wish. The fun will simply be there if you do! 
Aside from just the question, what do you do to make your players free to do as they wish?
If you like this post, buy me an ale!Topics: D&D for Beginners
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I agree. It’s also important to give the players information before asking the question.
Ancient post, but I thought I’d reply. “What do you do?” can be great with experienced players, but can be pretty open-ended when you’re dealing with complete noobs. From today’s session, with a kid who had never played any pen-and-paper RPG before:
ME: You’re in what amounts to an adventurer’s campground, about 5 miles south of the small market hamlet of Shalasvyr. It’s dusk. Other parties of adventurers are making camp for the night, all slightly apart from each other. There are trees here and there, and on one tree about 100 feet from you, there appears to be something that is drawing attention. Adventurers wander up to the tree, alone or in groups of two or three, look at something on the trunk, perhaps discuss it, and walk away. What do you do?
PLAYER: Um. I’m going to start hiking to [major city on overland map].
ME: Dude. Look at the map scale, that city is 300 miles away. It will take you weeks to get there on foot, and it’s dusk now anyway. Meanwhile, more people are coming and going, looking at something on that tree over there. What do you do?
PLAYER: I guess I go to sleep.
ME: [suppressing a sigh] OK, you go to sleep. Do you sleep all night?
PLAYER: Yes, sure.
ME: OK, you wake up and most of the other adventurers have already broken camp. There are only a few people left in this area. You can see something that looks like parchment fluttering in a light breeze, tacked to the trunk of that tree everyone seemed curious about last night. What do you do?
PLAYER: I pack up to leave.
ME: OK, you’re done.
PLAYER: I’m going to head to [major city 300 miles away].
ME: Roll a d20.
PLAYER: What am I rolling for?
ME: An intelligence skill check. [rolls] Wow, you have this really strong desire to go look at whatever is stuck on the trunk of that tree.