Your players don’t care about your world’s lore. But that’s no reason to stop developing it. We’ve all heard that first part before. And it’s largely true. Most players’ eyes glaze over (myself included) when the lore drop hits. Exposition is the exterminator of fun. But even lore presented in optional ways can miss the mark.
The lore is not the product. Your players didn’t agree to come play D&D so that they could experience your lore. They came to engage in the fun and imaginative experience that is roleplaying games. That can include wonderful lore from the depths of your imagined worlds. But too often we put that lore on a pedestal as something to admire or bask in. Yet it’s not the star. It’s not even a star. So what is it?
The lore is the creative engine for game master inspiration and energy. Your excitement as game master drives the energy of the entire game. Build worlds. Develop lore as deep or shallow as you want. But build out the lore that will keep you excited to drive this game onward. Tap into that lore to bring energy to the table and excitement for what’s to come. That’s the kind of lore that leads to interesting worlds and games. That’s the kind of lore that players will ask about. They don’t care about some lost history that adds verisimilitude to the world. They care about this wild reference that the game master is weaving into their story with fervor!
The lore feeds the fire of meaningful choice. We foster player agency by giving meaning to their choices. That meaning is often in the form of rewards or consequences. We can deploy our world’s lore to bolster meaning in player choice. That cobbler they helped? He was the god of mercy in human form. The weapon they gave away? Its history is drenched in the blood of the continent and now it hungers for more.
When we use the lore in the context of our players, their decisions, and the story, we make it matter to the game at hand. It’s not the goal or the product we’re presenting to players. But it has its place. Lore drives game master inspiration and is a ton of fun to develop. Build your lore. Use it well.
Game on.