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Inspired by a recent discussion on the Vaults of Vaarn discord about getting players to be less adverse to every single encounter, I want to introduce a tool that I use early on in almost every RPG campaign I run.
I’m unsurprised that the Vaarn discord is where I found this, the setting is mostly a giant open desert with plenty of space to run in. Being based off Knave, lethality is higher than modern editions of The World’s Most Popular Roleplaying Game™, there’s good reason to run. The crux of the issue is that out of the box it’s very easy to have players come to the conclusion that encounters should be avoided at all costs. They present the risk of violence or death, rarely fully block the path to whereever your party might be headed and these factors lead to a policy of not interacting with the game world. I’m a big believer in some of the encounters you set up in advance will be bypassed and you as a referee should be ok with all that, however, let’s look at an idea to avoid this.
The dog is not a literal dog all the time, but the name of this encounter derives from niche twitter account Can You Pet the Dog?, which just asks “can I pet the dog in this video game?”. While there’s no form for the dog, it should be some sort of non-ominous animal that makes sense for your setting. The dog should be curious, friendly, maybe a bit shy, but non-aggressive always, and acts like a blank slate for your players. If the players get worried, do you best to reassure them that the dog isn’t being aggressive towards them or even suspicious. The dog has no treasure, no reward for being defeated, nothing, it exists as an encounter to help set tone and reassure players and the referee alike. Also importantly, don’t use the dog as a trap, that’s not the point here and in my mind would only confirm that encounters should be avoided like the plague.
Ok, so why do we put in this meaningless encounter where there is no risk, no reward, no real stakes?
The dog exists as a test, as a referee I am not a fan of the trope of “band of murderhobos” for a party, and I’ve found that most people who veer in that direction tend to try and enter combat with the dog, assuming that all encounters that exist are present for the purpose of violence. Players who aren’t of this mindset will engage with the dog and try to figure out the why of it all. The entire purpose here is to let them know that some encounters are just fine and safe and I’ve found that this fosters an environment of player curiosity. Sure, if you’re fleeing the town guards and see their heraldry on a passing group of people, you’re gonna avoid encountering them, but that makes sense, there’s a cause and effect there. What it does do is remind your players that there can be value in these passing encounters, even if it’s just that you get to pet the dog.
So the next time you’re starting up a new RPG Campaign, consider adding a dog (no matter how strange and un-dog-shaped it might be) for your players to pet.
