D&D For the deaf

[Magnera]

Okay, so a few friends of mine are deaf and wish to give DND a try( they know only a little about it). While I am confident in my skills to keep them on track and keep things simple, I do have one problem.

They are deaf. (Not hearing-impaired btw) So I have no idea how to explain the world to them with out some of the most important ways of description. I dont know how to tell them, your character hears the kobolds in the back of the cave, or that they will have to make a move silently check because those orcs might hear the leaves crunching the upon the ground.

I know they would have as much of a blast as I do, but im the only one the hears in the group. (except the guy who has a cochlear implant, but he doesn't know the world of hearing all that much either.) I want the help of the forum to help me make a game for new, aspiring, Role Players. A game where I don't need to describe sound and still make it amazing.

[Newoblivion]

You can try and explain Listen as something else. You can tell them that they "sense" something behind the door rather then hear it.

Also. You can make the entire world deaf. So in this world they are just like everyone else.

It sounds to me like a hell of challenge. I wish you good luck with this :)

[andromax]

I would imagine that the concept of sound isn't as foreign to them as you might think. Deaf people can still perceive sound via touch (bass). I don't think you should sugar-coat it by trying to coddle them. Most disabled people don't appreciate that.

Of course, you know them and I don't.

[Magnera]

Yeah, I am well aware that they are just as competent as I am. (One of them can tell a song was made by Beethoven by feeling the speaker, so I definitely know what you mean.)

More than anything, I really want the first experience to be good one, something that will bring them back. I fear that hearing may or may not help with that.

Its a wonderful idea to have the whole world deaf! If I cant find something else then this is what I will do.

[GolemsVoice]

I'd second what andromax said. While they might not hear themselves, I'm sure they know that people, in general, hear things, and how that works. So why not tell them "Your fighter hears kobolds down the path?"

Otherwise, play an underark campaign, for example, where things like tremorsense are much more important.


Also, respect to you for trying such a thing!

[Chilingsworth]

Can we assume communication (between you and your players) is not a problem? Also, are you meeting in person or playing via a chat room or the like?

First, you're not saying they don't know sound is a thing, are you? I mean sure, they've never sensed it, but they still know it exists? Surely the concept of "I need to make a move silently check to avoid detection by the orcs" isn't that difficult.

If it is, then I suggest consolidating spot/listen and hide/move silently into "stealth" and "perception" repsectively. That way, defining exactly how you notice something or keep something from noticing you can be abstracted.

As for flavor text and the like: try emphasizing vibrations (and putting them in environments where there are vibrations to emphasize.) Stampedes, or massive machines, earthquakes might be useful enviornmental elements. Also, the shaking of the ground when sufficently large creatures move.

Focus on the visual aspects of things. You might be able to benefit the guy with the implant by using actual sounds (rather than descriptions of them) during the game. Of course, if you feel the other players would disapprove of the special attention you were paying to that player, don't try this.

EDIT: if you do make the entire world deaf, you might want to make silent spell a +0 level adjustment metamagic, and give it as a bonus feat to all casters, or spellcasters in that world will be abit gimped. Also, remember the ramifications of communication by sign language versus a spoken language, such as the inability to communicate if you can't actually see whoever you're communicating with. Or, give everyone telepathy, I suppose.

Hmm, can sonic spells be silenced? What about language dependant spells and holy word (and its differently aligned analogs)? Also, bard spells cant be, so bards in such a world would have a 20% failure chance for all their spells.

Obviously, those things could be changed, but doing so would have ramifications that also deserve consideration.

[Juntao112]

Yeah, I am well aware that they are just as competent as I am. (One of them can tell a song was made by Beethoven by feeling the speaker, so I definitely know what you mean.)


Beethoven, incidentally, was deaf!

[JaronK]

Treat it like you treat Blindsense, Blindsight, Tremorsense, and similar.

JaronK

[Kane0]

My advice would be to treat it as if it werent an issue at all. As long as you can communicate between players, the game can flow and they know what hearing is, continue as if it were no obstacle at all. Hearing is a part of the world, and they may enjoy havig a character that can literally do somethi g they cannot, in a similar way many new players want to do magic first and swig swords later.

Course, you know your group best. Go with your gut, and play a game with your mates. Find what works best and build on it. There is no wrong unless there is no fun.

[only1doug]

I agree with many of the other posters here, your players are interested in a fantasy game, so the fact they they personally have no experience of hearing noises does not mean that you shouldn't describe the sounds their PCs hear.

I would imagine that they have read books in which sounds are described, the description builds a mental image even if the person does not share the reference.

Don't be afraid to ask your players for feeback, its in everyones interest to improve the game.

[Magnera]

Thanks guys, I think I have a good plan for what I am going to do this Saturday (game day). Ill post here in the forums as to how gaming with the deaf went.

[Derpldorf]

The over deity has punished the multiverse for its sin of hosting the songs of the dread bard Beiber by laying a curse of silence upon it and everything therein!

[Edge of Dreams]

This definitely sounds awesome, and I want to find out how it goes.

Are you going to play at the table with Sign Language? Written word? Or online with typing?

[Kalaska'Agathas]

Don't be afraid to ask your players for feeback, its in everyones interest to improve the game.

I think this might be the best route to take - ask your players how they'd like to handle it. I think they're going to have a better understanding of how to adapt to it than a bunch of hearing people.

[Laserlight]

Presumably your players can't summon bolts of flame, nor cleave an anvil in half with a single stroke. The fact that they also can't hear, doesn't mean that their characters can't or shouldn't.

[Ravenica]

The worst thing you could do was deafen their characters :smalleek:

this is their chance to hear things! (even if only because they rolled high on a listen check)

[Flickerdart]

Adventure on the plane of Pandemonium.

[Yahzi]

Presumably your players can't summon bolts of flame, nor cleave an anvil in half with a single stroke. The fact that they also can't hear, doesn't mean that their characters can't or shouldn't.
I concur.

In this situation the only thing I would be worried about is if they were playing deaf characters; then I know I'd get the descriptions of the world wrong. But as long as they're playing normal characters, describe the world in perfectly normal terms.

[Flickerdart]

Presumably your players can't summon bolts of flame, nor cleave an anvil in half with a single stroke. The fact that they also can't hear, doesn't mean that their characters can't or shouldn't.

I think the point is that they don't have a frame of reference for what hearing things is like, so "you hear kobolds behind the door" is a useless description for them.

[J-H]

I don't know what kobolds sound like either... well, maybe yappy but that's about it. "You hear what sounds like draconic from behind the door, but in voices too wimpy to belong to a large creature."

If your group are adults, you could always ask a couple of them for suggestions on how they want to handle it.

[Tr011]

I would think they would be able to understand those things, I mean they i.e. maybe read comics where exactly those things are kinda explained. Since their characters probably won't be all deaf, I think saying that listening sense senses a creature behind them makes as much sense as telling me my tremorsense tells me a creature is behind me because I sense two footsteps stepping on the ground.

But unluckily I'm not familiar with deaf people so I can't be sure.

I mean if I understand tremorsensing just from DnD, they should know pretty much about hearing in real life, no offense ofc.

[ksbsnowowl]

The second method would be to simply say what they are hearing. "Kobolds in the back of the cave." "A battle between knights and a dragon." "Two people discussing an assassination plot while trying to not be heard." This would save game time, by virtue of getting directly to the point.

Whether you did it intentionally or not, you just cut to the (stereotypical) heart of Deaf culture. They are generally blunt and direct, and often get annoyed with how we hearing folk dance around the point with innuendo and flowery language.

If you are doing it via sign language around the table, just make sure you are rested, both physically and mentally. Signing for a lengthy period (more than an hour or two) can get tiring, more mentally than physically. That's the big thing I remember from running a game with a deaf person years ago.

I would also suggest that you use the battle mat to your advantage when describing the scene. If there's something down the length of the cavern, make sure the cavern is drawn on the table, have their characters positioned, and indicate visually the rough area where sound is coming from. That will help bridge the gap in description vs. real world experience.

So yeah, keep the auditory descriptions in the game, but keep them pertinent and to the point, while at the same time allowing your visual descriptions to be a bit more intricate.

I also second getting their input.

(Married to a Deaf woman for 6+ years.)

[Gnome Alone]

"you hear kobolds behind the door" is a useless description for them.

Not useless, just abstract. One would just go, "Oh, I hear kobolds? Okay, I knock again and get my pamplets about Pelor ready for handing out."