One key component was realizing that what made Of Gods and Dragons so compelling for me as the DM also might have limited the impact for the players. I ran a low-combat high-social interaction campaign, and that's fun for me, but my players might have been looking for more combat and less talking. Or perhaps the balance was fine, but what impressed me so much was seeing my world handled kindly by the players, and they weren't in a position to appreciate that the way I was. Either of these could explain why my friend gravitated more to the mystery campaign.
But there was something else. Over the intervening weeks, I've continued to chat with my friend about best experiences, and something has come into focus. My friend regards his character Beor from the mystery campaign to be his favorite character, and I can empathize. Beor is a character who has strong principles but who is new to talking about them with other people, someone who by the campaign's end was the moral heart of the group. That also describes my character Daisy, though she and Beor share at least as many dissimilarities as similarities--let's not overstate things. But thinking about Daisy helped me to understand my friend's connection to Beor.
See, when I started playing Daisy, I found that I was hooked. Something about her just fit right, and I let myself sink into her character completely. Every choice was a thrill, and I really got into character deeply. Looking back with distance now, it's hard to say what exactly clicked--it just did. And even though the campaign she was a part of had some bumps and was ultimately canceled before we could play the ending, it's still my favorite experience playing D&D.
That's when it clicked: maybe Of Gods and Dragons had flaws, but not being a player's favorite campaign is not a damning thing. My friend connected with Beor at least as much as he connected with the campaign, and being host to that is magical. You might be saying to me through your screen, "You kinda freaked out over nothing." And I do see that. But tabletop games are my art, and thinking there was something wrong with my ability to grade my work was distressing.
So as much as I have preached talking to your players about the games you run, here's your grain of salt: it's all a matter of perception, and trusting your gut is ultimately the best general direction to trust unless you have big reasons to assume otherwise.
That's all for now. Thanks for reading, and happy gaming!
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