I say it without quotation marks but I know other DMs who do invoke the Mercer mystique with the quote marks. Ironically, more often than not when I've seen it "evoked" in "quotes" outside of CR, it's actually not warranted in my opinion.
We're talking about spotlighting. Personally I don't think such spotlight moments need to focus primarily on kill shots, there are plenty of times where there is a success of failure and I'll ask the player to narrate it. Honestly, "how do you want to do this" I usually use prior to resolution when a novel action is being proposed. I'll also use "So what does that look like?" for similar effect. When I spotlight, I'll pause the game explain the signicance of the action (you killed the BBEG, the grail you've been questing for is now within reach, etc) and then tell the player "it's your moment, share it with the table."
DMs steal from each other. It's what we do. The notion of a phrase being so sacrosanct or unique that you can't use it in your own game is antithetical to the collaborative nature of D&D. And the very act of shying away from it because one person popularized it is what reinforces the sense that it's off-limits.
Don't get me wrong; I am fully aware of the Mercer effect. If saying that phrase would cause problems at your table, or makes you feel constrained or like you're aping someone, don't do it. Every table is different and Matt Mercer is the first to stress this. But there's absolutely nothing wrong with borrowing something you like if it'll make things more fun for you and your players. It doesn't mean you have to play like Mercer. If your players are reasonable and well-adjusted people, they won't expect you to. And if they're not, that's when boundaries and clear expectations come into play.
As for me, I used to ask HDYWTDT until I thought it was more fun to let my players narrate combat instead of me. I describe what the environment is like and what baddies do on their turns only. My players have complete descriptive control otherwise. So now when they get the final blow, I usually say something like, "Dead! It's all you."
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If you visit novel-writing discussion boards, you will find plenty of debate about whether you can or should write a completely original novel.
My opinion is, "You can certainly try."
I say it without quotation marks but I know other DMs who do invoke the Mercer mystique with the quote marks. Ironically, more often than not when I've seen it "evoked" in "quotes" outside of CR, it's actually not warranted in my opinion.
We're talking about spotlighting. Personally I don't think such spotlight moments need to focus primarily on kill shots, there are plenty of times where there is a success of failure and I'll ask the player to narrate it. Honestly, "how do you want to do this" I usually use prior to resolution when a novel action is being proposed. I'll also use "So what does that look like?" for similar effect. When I spotlight, I'll pause the game explain the signicance of the action (you killed the BBEG, the grail you've been questing for is now within reach, etc) and then tell the player "it's your moment, share it with the table."
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
DMs steal from each other. It's what we do. The notion of a phrase being so sacrosanct or unique that you can't use it in your own game is antithetical to the collaborative nature of D&D. And the very act of shying away from it because one person popularized it is what reinforces the sense that it's off-limits.
Don't get me wrong; I am fully aware of the Mercer effect. If saying that phrase would cause problems at your table, or makes you feel constrained or like you're aping someone, don't do it. Every table is different and Matt Mercer is the first to stress this. But there's absolutely nothing wrong with borrowing something you like if it'll make things more fun for you and your players. It doesn't mean you have to play like Mercer. If your players are reasonable and well-adjusted people, they won't expect you to. And if they're not, that's when boundaries and clear expectations come into play.
As for me, I used to ask HDYWTDT until I thought it was more fun to let my players narrate combat instead of me. I describe what the environment is like and what baddies do on their turns only. My players have complete descriptive control otherwise. So now when they get the final blow, I usually say something like, "Dead! It's all you."