Should I be a DM?

[Vella_Malachite]

Note: This isn't really a serious question as such...just me wondering how many limbs I'm going to have left at the end of the campaign...

I am creating a DnD 3.5 edition campaign and so far in my DM plotline, I have written "Do not laugh. It will get you lynched" or a similar variation more than 5 times.
I'm only halfway through.
I have done things intentionally to make the players jumpy, then had nothing come of it, and then the next time had something happen.
Basically, I've done my utmost to make sure the characters have no idea which way I'm going to go, just to see their faces.

Normally I'm not a sadistic person, but...

Obviously I should never be allowed this kind of power ever again.

Opinions anyone?

[mikeejimbo]

Yes, yes you should be a DM. DMs and sadism go together like mass and gravity.

[Thane of Fife]

Join the club:

The Sadistic Dungeon Master's Syndicate

Having a god complex is just one of the thing's which makes DMing fun.

[Nebo_]

I can attest that not being sadistic makes DMing harder.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

Do your players enjoy it? If yes, then there's no problem, and if no, well, at least you can make them DANCE for your merriment.

[Pronounceable]

Sounds like fine DM material to me.

[AslanCross]

I often throw battles at my players that are more difficult than CR-appropriate. They manage to come out on top each time and so far have not experienced any significantly demoralizing encounters.

Despite the seriousness of my campaign, however, I found it impossible to keep my players from finding things funny or poking fun at the situation they were in, except perhaps that time I had the city guard throwing them in jail for the supposed murder of their deceased party member who had been plotkilled due to her player quitting.

It was after an adventure in the woods, wherein they encountered a Zhentarim (evil Forgotten Realms organization) caravan. A high-level Warblade engaged their party single-handedly and murdered their leader (a swashbuckler/fighter who was affiliated with the military of the kingdom that had hired the other players). The party had successfully chased the Warblade off and was walking back to the kingdom's capital, all bereaved. When they got to the city gate, I asked the players if they wanted the curveball plot hook and not the mundane one. They all screamed in unison "YES, CURVEBALL!"

<Me>: The guard at the gate calmly regards you for a moment and closes the door. A few minutes later the gate rumbles open. The guard is now accompanied by a heavily-armed squad of soldiers.
"In the name of King Azoun of Cormyr, you are under arrest for the murder of Milica Illancet of the Purple Dragons."

They literally looked like this:

My point is, there really is nothing wrong with being "sadistic," especially if your players enjoy it. (Which brings up some strange questions I'd rather not discuss). In any case, I hope you and your players enjoy what you've come up with. Godspeed to you.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

*slowclap* Filler

[Zincorium]

Eh, not my personal style, but it's undeniably effective if your players are desperate or plucky enough (yay! a legitimate opportunity to use 'plucky'!) to withstand your constant impulses to drop rocks on them.

Look up Gary Gygax's work, it'll help as a reference.

[Yami]

In one campaign our DM gave us a full dungoen and a half without any encounters.

The first was an abandoned two story tall mansion with some 20 rooms. The second was some necromancers lair. We got sloppy half way through the necromancers lair and spent three days holed up in the most fortified room we could find while we prepared ourselves for the mad dash back out.

It can be good.

[valadil]

Hate is what motivates every good DM.

I try to make sure that I'm only tormenting characters and not players though. You don't want to have players leave the game feeling upset, unless you actually don't want them to come back next week.

The way I like to do things is to torment them for 95% of the game, but let each session end on a high note. And I don't really do this to make them suffer but to make the story better. I'd rather see the PCs overcome a meaningful challenge that kicked their ass repeatedly than win everything on their first try (though I do let them win when they earn it).

[Ashtar]

I've played Eeeeevil DM, been cruel to the characters, stripped them bare of their precious magical items, beaten them with lower level characters, thrown them in jail, betrayed them, sent them off on unbelievable quests set-up by the BBEG just to get them out of the way, sent them monsters they shouldn't be capable of handling, asked them 3 times: "are you sure you want to do that?" just to keep them off their toes and thousands of other horrible things.

I've also played a nicer campaign, where the tone was more heroic and light-hearted...

Guess what they talk about years later?
They refer to them as "the best campaign we ever had" and "the care-bear campaign".

But one thing... Don't make fun of them! There is nothing more hateful than a DM going "hahaha!" when you are trapped in a room, trying your best to solve the puzzle and escape with your life.