Player motivation

[BastienCil]

For each question, choose the answer that best applies. If you can’t decide between two options, select them both. Then, find your answers in the key below. Add up the number of answers you gave for each motivation to see how important that motivation is for you.

1. Deep in the Underdark, your party pursues a wizard who has betrayed you. Footprints lead one direction, but you hear something coming down the other tunnel. You say:

A. “Let’s ambush whatever’s coming, because we know that’ll be a fight. We could waste hours of time in these passages without meeting a single foe.”
B. “My lust for revenge burns like alchemist’s fire. Each moment it remains unquenched, I suffer. If these footprints might belong to my enemy, I must follow.”
C. “The approaching noise is probably a mindless predator drawn by our lights. Our contact in the mage’s guild said the wizard had apprentices – if these footprints aren’t his own, they might have been left by a student who could lead us to him.”
D. “According to my map, this tunnel leads to the duergar city. I see nowhere else the wizard might be headed. Let’s get there first and learn something about the city that we can use against him when he arrives.”

2. Another player wants to set up an ambush in preparation for an upcoming combat encounter. Which argument is most persuasive?

A. With a surprise round, a good initiative check, and an action point, your rogue gets combat advantage with three attacks before the enemies get to move.
B. Surrounding the enemies prevents them from escaping and spreading word of your presence, which could prevent problems for you later.
C. It gives you a chance to describe how your character learned to set up camouflage blinds and decoys while growing up in the Fellreeve.
D. The friend who proposed the ambush hasn’t gotten the party to follow her suggestions lately.

3. A social skill challenge with the prince of the Efreet broke down, and now the party has to fight their way out of the City of Brass. What explains the breakdown?

A. Nobody in the party is trained in Insight, even though you told the paladin to swap her Heal training for Insight last time you all levelled up.
B. Who cares? It’s time to stop talking and start kicking efreet butt!
C. During the skill challenge, you learned that the prince opposes the faction that can aid your quest. Publicly making an enemy of him will help you befriend his rivals.
D. The party had all the information it needed from the prince, so you used his crown of flame to light your pipe.

4. During a session, the Dungeon Master notices you’re writing something. You show her:

A. A map of the dungeon, with notes indicating the possible location of areas you’ve heard the inhabitants talk about.
B. A list of suspects responsible for the mysterious crime wave hitting the characters’ home city.
C. A note to the DM describing how you want to plant a forged love letter from the goblin empress in one of your comrade’s backpacks.
D. Funny things people said during the session, to be added to the campaign’s quotation list.

5. Which of these behaviors from other players bugs you the most?

A. Talking out of character during intense roleplaying moments.
B. Moving to a square that prevents your character from charging into a flanking position.
C. Putting you on the spot to make an important decision for the group.
D. Forgetting the name of the duke’s chamberlain during a tense negotiation.

6. It really makes your day when you:

A. Discover a hidden sublevel in a dungeon that other characters passed by without noticing.
B. Hear the other players talking about a crazy situation you got them into months ago.
C. Use what you’ve learned about the enemy to manipulate them into fighting each other instead of you.
D. Roll back-to-back critical hits and drop an enemy before it takes a swing at you.

7. When you level up, how do you prefer to choose your new power?

A. Visit the character optimization forum at the Dungeons & Dragons website to read discussions about builds for your class.
B. Think about what best fits the things your character might have learned based on the last few sessions.
C. Get advice from the DM or another player.
D. Figure out the maximum damage that each one could do, and pick the biggest number.

8. Why might you choose to seek out an artifact?

A. The potential for conflict between its goals and yours offers great roleplaying opportunities.
B. It has a mind of its own, and following its impulses is sure to keep things interesting and unpredictable.
C. Finding it requires a long, exciting process of researching buried secrets and interpreting clues.
D. It is the last link to a forgotten world of the past, and it might know secrets of an ancient culture.

9. A dispute has arisen among your fellow players. What would most make you want to resolve it?

A. People are starting to take it personally, and you want everyone to get along.
B. The disagreement is taking time away from an exciting combat.
C. Success in D&D depends on teamwork, and an unresolved argument makes cooperation more difficult.
D. Your character has been through a lot with this party, and the dispute imperils those hard-won bonds of fellowship.

10. The most important feature of a dungeon is:

A. A complex, nonlinear layout, with branching paths, hidden areas, and alternate routes.
B. Puzzles, clever traps, and opportunities to gain a strategic advantage through good planning.
C. Rooms full of chests to search and doors to open – preferably during combat!
D. A rich history and intricate relationships among the dungeon’s denizens.

SCORING KEY

Actor: 1B – 2C – 5A – 8A – 9D
Explorer: 1D – 4A – 6A – 8D – 10A
Instigator: 3D – 4C – 6B – 8B – 10C
Power gamer: 2A – 3A – 5B – 7A – 9C
Slayer: 1A – 3B – 6D – 7D – 9B
Storyteller: 1C – 3C – 5D – 7B – 10D
Thinker: 2B – 4B – 6C – 8C – 10B
Watcher: 2D – 4D – 5C – 7C – 9A

SCORING YOUR MOTIVATION
Add up the number of points you scored for each motivation.

4-5: This is a primary motivation for you. Share your motivation with your DM, so he or she knows the best ways to keep you engaged in the game.
2-3: This is a secondary motivation for you. You enjoy occasional events that satisfy this type of player, but you get bored without some variety in the DM’s approach.
0-1: This is not your motivation. At best, you tolerate events designed for this type of player, but you’re always itching to get back to what makes the game fun for you.

Source : Dungeons & Dragons : Player's Strategy Guide page 12.