Gathering Information [Archive] - Wizards Community

Gathering Information [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
JBeauMI
04-15-06, 10:41 AM I am having a tough time (actually the entire party) gathering any useful information from the DM for the plot lines in our game. For example, we found an elf female in a cell who had been captured and tortured by the bad guys. Rather than providing us with any useful information, or accepting us as possible rescuers, she gives us static. So we walk into another trap. It seems like the only useful information we receive is what we buy, and that is too little information for the price.

Can you give me some tips on getting information from the DM?
HappyDragon
04-15-06, 11:17 AM What type of campaign is the DM running?
More action orientated, more intrigue based, more story or character driven.
Perhaps the DM has only allowed one reasonable option so far because of the style of campaign. Is the DM themselves a fan of solving things and mysteries?

What types of characters are you playing?
If a female elf is being questioned by a bunch of big burly, rough and tumble advneturers armed to the teeth, they may look no differen to the tortured captive than the scary original guards did and hence not be very forthcoming.
More straight to the point, is your group the type of group people are actually going to want to talk to?
JBeauMI
04-15-06, 12:36 PM The DM is running a heavily modified "Age of Worms" scenario in Faerun. The DM is running it as a very mysterious game, which makes gathering info that much more important, and that much more frustrating when we walk away with little of nothing. He started with a hook of nearly all the characters being students of a mysterious man named Velius Moonstone. Generally, we would look like battle-weary adventurers. We can be charming and disarming on occasion, but that does not seem to get us good data.
Need_A_Life
04-15-06, 01:25 PM Do as I did when I was sick of us running our collective foreheads into a wall during interrogation of a captured enemy: Charm Person.

We had tried everything, come with threats that if we had gone through with them would have given us an evil alignment, we had tried to appeal to his sense of decency, and appealed to his logic, he wouldn't tell us anything. I charmed him and got the information we needed and then left him behind.(party didn't go for my idea of taking him with us and "forgetting" to renew his fly spell. We were on a mountain at the time, so he'd be red goo on the cliffs).
ToxicWiz
04-15-06, 01:49 PM well start with a simple solution first... ranks in gather information, intimidate and let the highest charisma person do the talking.

After that there is physically beating your informant and magical means.

make friends at the local ale house or start building alittle less than honorable rep. likied or feared, it will add up.

roleplaying can help here as well. if you have the stats in strength, act them. don't ask them to tell you, make them to tell you. hold them in a grapple over a pit, beat them, threats and torture, if you get the information, it's doesn't matter how many bones they have left at the end.

if nothing else works... kill them and make an example of them to anyone else who would dare hold information back. goblin two talks more when goblin one is blasted to pieces by your spellcaster before his eyes.

as you may guess, I frequently act as the bad cop of the group.

well... there's the evil side of it.
kelvinaw273
04-15-06, 02:13 PM Diplomacy can work wonders. So can not being intimidating. Remember there is a BUNCH of you doing the asking ... perhaps with the female elf in the cell you needed to (1) get her out of the cell to somewhere she felt safe (2) getting ONE member of the party to talk to her alone, preferably a female one.

Also, find out who she is and why she was important - info that you might not get from her, you might need to obtain it from another source.

It is also possible that you overlooked a source of information early in the game, something that might have told you a great deal. Cover the ground from the biginning, and leave no stone unturned.
JBeauMI
04-15-06, 04:56 PM Thanks for all the input. All of our information gathering has been through role playing. My character is a female, half-elven cleric of Mystra, so she should get along with anyone who is not CE or a follower of Shar. We have a paladin in our party, which does eliminate some of our options.

It seems to me that the DM is trying to make it more difficult than necessary. Perhaps its me, since I am finding it tiresome instead of fun?
kelvinaw273
04-15-06, 05:23 PM You need an OOC talk with your DM if you feel that he is being intentionally obtuse and all you feel is frustrated. Perhaps he will drop a few hints for you.
HappyDragon
04-16-06, 01:18 PM Indeed, have a talk with the DM OOG as kelvinaw273 has suggested.

Speaking from a DMing perspective you sometimes think the clues are so obvious, but there is sometimes a habit of losing the perspective of the players. Of course the DM sees the clues as being obvious because their the one that came up with them.

Just try to remind the DM of this if some of the other suggestions in this thread don't work.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
JBeauMI 04-15-06, 10:41 AM	I am having a tough time (actually the entire party) gathering any useful information from the DM for the plot lines in our game. For example, we found an elf female in a cell who had been captured and tortured by the bad guys. Rather than providing us with any useful information, or accepting us as possible rescuers, she gives us static. So we walk into another trap. It seems like the only useful information we receive is what we buy, and that is too little information for the price. Can you give me some tips on getting information from the DM?
HappyDragon 04-15-06, 11:17 AM	What type of campaign is the DM running? More action orientated, more intrigue based, more story or character driven. Perhaps the DM has only allowed one reasonable option so far because of the style of campaign. Is the DM themselves a fan of solving things and mysteries? What types of characters are you playing? If a female elf is being questioned by a bunch of big burly, rough and tumble advneturers armed to the teeth, they may look no differen to the tortured captive than the scary original guards did and hence not be very forthcoming. More straight to the point, is your group the type of group people are actually going to want to talk to?
JBeauMI 04-15-06, 12:36 PM	The DM is running a heavily modified "Age of Worms" scenario in Faerun. The DM is running it as a very mysterious game, which makes gathering info that much more important, and that much more frustrating when we walk away with little of nothing. He started with a hook of nearly all the characters being students of a mysterious man named Velius Moonstone. Generally, we would look like battle-weary adventurers. We can be charming and disarming on occasion, but that does not seem to get us good data.
Need_A_Life 04-15-06, 01:25 PM	Do as I did when I was sick of us running our collective foreheads into a wall during interrogation of a captured enemy: Charm Person. We had tried everything, come with threats that if we had gone through with them would have given us an evil alignment, we had tried to appeal to his sense of decency, and appealed to his logic, he wouldn't tell us anything. I charmed him and got the information we needed and then left him behind.(party didn't go for my idea of taking him with us and "forgetting" to renew his fly spell. We were on a mountain at the time, so he'd be red goo on the cliffs).
ToxicWiz 04-15-06, 01:49 PM	well start with a simple solution first... ranks in gather information, intimidate and let the highest charisma person do the talking. After that there is physically beating your informant and magical means. make friends at the local ale house or start building alittle less than honorable rep. likied or feared, it will add up. roleplaying can help here as well. if you have the stats in strength, act them. don't ask them to tell you, make them to tell you. hold them in a grapple over a pit, beat them, threats and torture, if you get the information, it's doesn't matter how many bones they have left at the end. if nothing else works... kill them and make an example of them to anyone else who would dare hold information back. goblin two talks more when goblin one is blasted to pieces by your spellcaster before his eyes. as you may guess, I frequently act as the bad cop of the group. well... there's the evil side of it.
kelvinaw273 04-15-06, 02:13 PM	Diplomacy can work wonders. So can not being intimidating. Remember there is a BUNCH of you doing the asking ... perhaps with the female elf in the cell you needed to (1) get her out of the cell to somewhere she felt safe (2) getting ONE member of the party to talk to her alone, preferably a female one. Also, find out who she is and why she was important - info that you might not get from her, you might need to obtain it from another source. It is also possible that you overlooked a source of information early in the game, something that might have told you a great deal. Cover the ground from the biginning, and leave no stone unturned.
JBeauMI 04-15-06, 04:56 PM	Thanks for all the input. All of our information gathering has been through role playing. My character is a female, half-elven cleric of Mystra, so she should get along with anyone who is not CE or a follower of Shar. We have a paladin in our party, which does eliminate some of our options. It seems to me that the DM is trying to make it more difficult than necessary. Perhaps its me, since I am finding it tiresome instead of fun?
kelvinaw273 04-15-06, 05:23 PM	You need an OOC talk with your DM if you feel that he is being intentionally obtuse and all you feel is frustrated. Perhaps he will drop a few hints for you.
HappyDragon 04-16-06, 01:18 PM	Indeed, have a talk with the DM OOG as kelvinaw273 has suggested. Speaking from a DMing perspective you sometimes think the clues are so obvious, but there is sometimes a habit of losing the perspective of the players. Of course the DM sees the clues as being obvious because their the one that came up with them. Just try to remind the DM of this if some of the other suggestions in this thread don't work.