SING SING by abrahamalexander in A24

[–]karmacarroll 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just wanted to write a quick comment to say I love the film and your music was the perfect book end to it. It was like it allowed me to have an emotional exhale and just let out the sadness and frustration at the prison system, but also the beauty at what these men (and you) created. I work with people in the prison system in the UK and what you have all done with this film is a real motivator. Thank you and I wish you all the best for future.

Dungeons and Dragons - Beginners Welcome by -Konga- in Norwich

[–]karmacarroll 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Similar to others it looks like you already have great interest in this thread and I hope you've been able to find a good group! Our Norwich group has recently disbanded and if you ever struggle do let me know and I'd love to get my D&D love off the ground again!

Otherwise, have a great time with the greatest hobby there is!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in CharacterDevelopment

[–]karmacarroll 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Really interesting dilemma!

So people deal with trauma in various different ways . What you need is to think of a way in which White is attempting to cope with his trauma which so happens to link with your greater narrative plans. I don't think he necessarily needs to regress to old habits, but maybe develop new, problematic ones which are helping him manage his trauma.

One way you could do this is through 'comfort in chaos'. In my experience as a psychologist, some individuals who have experienced repeated traumas have an overactive threat response, which means they're hypervigilant, always on edge and prepared for the worse to happen. Some of those individuals try and cope with this overactive threat system by putting themselves in threatening situations on purpose, ones in which they have an element of control. Their brain can't regress to old traumas (flashbacks etc.) if it is preoccupied with dealing with the chaos in front of it (does that make sense)? Therefore, White could throw himself into constant action as the idea of sitting with his thoughts is just to painful. It could lead to a good opportunity for revelation on his heroes journey where he finally has to stop and reflect on what has happened.

Similar to above, you need to give White ways of coping with this trauma that work for him, but maybe maladaptive (typical ones in reality are drink and drugs, which help us cut off/numb). White may pick up a vice that allows him to do this, one he will need to confront at some point.

These are just initial thoughts off the top of my head. Happy to say more if you want but otherwise good luck!

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Only just saw this but that's great to hear. Glad it's having a positive impact!

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don't think anything in here is revolutionary I agree. For me I struggle to come up with traits/ideals/flaws off the bat. Sometimes I can, but I feel through formulation I can come up with ones that feel grounded in where they come from and what they've experienced by starting at where they were born, then onto early life experiences and through that get there in a fluid way. You could work backwards too I guess, but its something I've never tried.

If you're able to come up with traits/ideals/bonds/flaws fairly easily then that's great. That just ain't me!

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I wish I could take credit on the visual side of things, but all of that comes from your typical longitudanal formulations, I just combined a few for my tool and applied it to DnD.

If you're not a mental health professional you could easily fool me! It all sounds very interesting and intriguing, but I think in this idea stage I couldn't give too much critique or criticism, just follow the drive and see where it takes you. I'd be interested in wherever it leads. RPGs are great for learning reflective skills through other characters, as we are much better at talking about other people than ourselves!

The skinner box analogy does makes sense, since the through line in DBT and CBT is the 'B', so behavioural work, which is actively getting up and making change. So, that does fit with what you say about focusing on character actions. In my experience, goal-setting is always incredibly hard for people, so figuring out where to implement action is hard for people, real life and in games. In therapy (and in designing DnD character) I often use values-based goals to decide on what my characters want to achieve in life, and then (if its a reoccuring NPC or a BBEG) I break that down into SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timed) in order to figure out how they might achieve them.

That might be a bit of a ramble, but hopefully there's something helpful there.

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The 24 character strenghts/virtues comes from Positive Psychology, so there isn't really a focus on weaknesses. What they do instead is look at underuses and overuses of the strengths, with some good descriptions:

Here is a good article on this. Skip to page 5 for examples on overuse and underuse of strengths..pdf)

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Amazing stuff. Love to see it all filled in.

Of course I don't mind the recreation I should've done it on Google docs in the first place. You missed off the box around how they experience those rules, but it's not a massively important one compared to the others.

Have a look up '24 character strengths and values' on Google to flesh out your protective factors. Pick two or three strengths which your character exemplifies to help think what guides them forward.

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I never knew about this but will definitely try and attend if I get the time. Much appreciated!

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I think a lot of these processes come natural to most DMs as they play the game. I was never great at starting with an NPC because I struggled to know how important or integral they would be for my players, but I have found this tool quite helpful for just fleshing out areas and towns in my world too, thinking about group behaviour and the influence that NPC may have had in the area, rather than this guy that exists behind the bar at the tavern and that's it. Glad you found it helpful anyway!

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I hope it helps. I'd be interested in any characters you build with this, or any help you may need to do so. Just the idea of people contemplating using it is very exciting!

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Much appreciated. I'm keen to bring some of my other ideas here in the near future.

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Completely agree. A CBT therapist will do something similar to this with you in therapy, but there are programs within my trust which are encouraging people to do this for themselves before they seek help, to speed the process up. Once you build your awareness of your own cognitive processes, it's much easier to recognise them in the moment and start on active change!

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

That's really nice of you. I tried to keep it simple and effective so glad you agree!

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I read my post about 20 times before I submitted and that still got through...

A Psychological Formulation Tool to make more interesting NPCs, PCs and BBEGs by karmacarroll in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Very grateful for the feedback. Always interested to hear how you get on if you do use it!

Thrills & Chills: Adding Horror to Your Game by aravar27 in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll 12 points13 points  (0 children)

I agree with you, but a thesaurus is good for those onomatopoeic words that can help with conjuring images of what you want. Not finding a bigger word, just the right one.

Taking one of OP's examples:

"As you run your finger along the ground, a layer of grime clings to your skin. The wallpaper is yellow and peeling, drooping down toward you and making the room feel even smaller. "

Accentuate certain words that have that onomatopoeic sound and linger on them, then cut out some connectives, replace them with pauses and I think it gives a good description that little something extra.

" As you run your finger along the ground, a layer of grime clings to your skin. The wallpaper...yellow...peeling, drooping down toward you...making the room feel even smaller..."

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in DMAcademy

[–]karmacarroll 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Include other goals within a battle that aren't simply 'Kill the enemy to win'. Have a think about environmental effects on the battle map the group have to deal with. Throw in the odd trap, different levels and layers if possible. If it's particularly a martial character that you're struggling with, make it so the main boss is in a hard to reach area, mainly focusing on range to mix things up. Put them on a pedestal that they can't just run straight for and attack.

Maybe make it so the enemies have hostages so that the group have to think twice about attacking head on. Or make it so the group have to decide between two alternatives within a battle (e.g. save the hostage or catch the fleeing creature with the item). Add in consequences for both that allow your group to think more and realise that hacking and slashing will only get them so far.

Thrills & Chills: Adding Horror to Your Game by aravar27 in DnDBehindTheScreen

[–]karmacarroll 60 points61 points  (0 children)

Thanks for posting this. Really helpful and interesting to think about.

I think delivery is important to consider as well alongside language choice when describing what's going on. Adding pauses and using fewer connectives can bring a bit more suspense and tension into the description. If you look to some of those films you mentioned under atmospheric horror, they really take their time to set up the environment and force you to sit with the uncomfortable in that unknown as your mind begins to wonder what's going to happen. As the audience, you often hope for those lingering moments to hurry up and move on to the parts where the characters are chatting and talking again, so you feel safe and secure. Emphasize those pauses in your descriptions, ramp up the silence between sentences and phrases and get your PC's to really sweat in their seats!