Our last session of D&D brought me down. Something that can be nothing less than a bad role-playing trope was inflicted upon us. It was everyone’s favorite, the bar-room brawl.
We had climbed out of the sewer and the nasty fights therein. We opened a door and found ourselves in a seedy bar. We had managed to wash the filth off of ourselves, so we weren’t covered in slime, filth and gore. Nevertheless, we were looking for blood, armed and armored as any adventuring party would be.
Imagine if you will, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Statham, Vin Diesel, The Rock, and Dolph Lundgren, all wearing black leather and each toting a shotgun and an uzi. Imagine them coming into your favorite bar and demanding that everyone get out. I don’t know about you but I am outta there. Even if my friend gets shot, I am outta there. Sorry friend.
This was the situation when we burst upon this dim tavern. Half of the commoners in the room fled, as they should. The other half attacked us, unarmed and unarmored. Why, in any world, would that happen? How ludicrous a scene is that? Excuse me, Mr. Diesel, as I try to punch you in the face.
We laid into them, cutting them to shreds with our steel and spells. My Cleric wasn’t quite able to believe what was happening so he healed everyone and commanded them, again, to withdraw. They didn’t. In fact they broke bottles and attacked us anew.
Eventually we slew enough of them to make them flee. At the end of the fight, the cops come in and try to arrest us. SO… We escaped back into the sewer. Now the entire city watch is looking for us. Our option to get out of trouble with the Town Guard? A railroaded side-quest. Ugg.
Sunday, August 3, 2014
Random Rants
Another note on playing the game. It has come to my attention that some players of D&D, among other RPGs, play to abuse, even break the system. Role-play? So long as it doesn’t interfere with tearing into the system, rending it for all of its problems. And why not? The games all have problems. Why not exploit them? Reality? Physics? What’s important? The rules are important. Refer to the books. The books have the final say. That’s why it’s a game and not just make believe.
That said, ask yourself, the other players around you, what kind of game are they looking for? Do they all want to get deep into the system, deep into the words of the books? Would they like to take a fair amount of game time to discuss and iron out interpretations of the rules? There is a lot to interpret, especially for those that really like breaking down the rules. What do the other players want to get immersed in?
You see what I did there? I made it about the other players. Players should always do that. I guarantee you will have a ball if you are looking out for the other players and they are looking out for you, and each other. The characters don’t need to be nice to each other all of the time but the players should be, and even their characters should be cooperating. If you have a hog player, then he or she is looking out for themselves. It requires more effort by the other players just to be heard and respected. On the other hand, quiet players are also only looking out for themselves. They require more effort from the other players toward inclusion. It’s best and not unrealistic to have a table full of pretty darn balanced players. Insist on it.
Go take care of each other. Grow your relationships while playing this amazing game. Push yourselves. Stretch yourselves. If you want to relax, hang out, and have a few beers, go bowling. If you want to sit back, watch, and roll dice, go shoot Craps. If you want to dominate the scene, and be in control over your lessers, go get therapy. Life is too short and the highest potential of this game is too great to settle for less.
That said, ask yourself, the other players around you, what kind of game are they looking for? Do they all want to get deep into the system, deep into the words of the books? Would they like to take a fair amount of game time to discuss and iron out interpretations of the rules? There is a lot to interpret, especially for those that really like breaking down the rules. What do the other players want to get immersed in?
You see what I did there? I made it about the other players. Players should always do that. I guarantee you will have a ball if you are looking out for the other players and they are looking out for you, and each other. The characters don’t need to be nice to each other all of the time but the players should be, and even their characters should be cooperating. If you have a hog player, then he or she is looking out for themselves. It requires more effort by the other players just to be heard and respected. On the other hand, quiet players are also only looking out for themselves. They require more effort from the other players toward inclusion. It’s best and not unrealistic to have a table full of pretty darn balanced players. Insist on it.
Go take care of each other. Grow your relationships while playing this amazing game. Push yourselves. Stretch yourselves. If you want to relax, hang out, and have a few beers, go bowling. If you want to sit back, watch, and roll dice, go shoot Craps. If you want to dominate the scene, and be in control over your lessers, go get therapy. Life is too short and the highest potential of this game is too great to settle for less.
My Awesome Suitcase
Found this awesome suitcase at the SPCA Thrift Store. $1.50. Thanks Matt for passing it up.
You Are Playing Wrong
Something that is apparently easy for D&D players to say is that “there is no wrong way to play” the game. Further that so long as people are having fun, the game is being played right. It’s right for them. Some of my players casually say this.
They are wrong. There are several wrong ways to play D&D. I’m not going to say that one system or another is wrong, they are all wrong about something. I am going to focus on wrong ways to play. It’s the method of playing that is important.
An open system is the best system to play in. It gives the players the most freedom to do what they want. Freedom is best. That said, freedom is also cursed. It allows people to fully engage and embrace the worst part of themselves. Terrorists thrive in countries that have the most freedoms. Similarly, Trolls thrive in games where they can behave in any way they want.
Do you tolerate an abusive player in your game? Do you tolerate “competitive” players in your game, where players are playing against each other more than they are against the adversaries in the game? How about players that hog all the action, and then only criticize the ideas of other players? These players are probably the easiest for a healthy game to get rid of; there is no question that their behavior is wrong. Usually it falls to the DM to say this ‘far and no farther’, but this should be, and is, the power of every player at the table. If a proper boundary is set, and then crossed without consequence, the game should end.
An abusive player is not the only player that is playing wrong. A player that hardly plays is also playing wrong. I can understand young players coming to the game for the first time, taking a back seat and staying quiet most of the night. However, as time goes on, the quiet player, content only to roll dice when asked, needs to speak up. The most important part in a role-playing game is the role-playing. If people insist on remaining quiet, forcing other players to pick up their slack (with ideas and story progression), then they should be playing board games instead of RPGs. You don’t need to talk much when playing board games, and those games usually have that wonderful die rolling.
There are more types of players playing wrong, but this is enough for now.
They are wrong. There are several wrong ways to play D&D. I’m not going to say that one system or another is wrong, they are all wrong about something. I am going to focus on wrong ways to play. It’s the method of playing that is important.
An open system is the best system to play in. It gives the players the most freedom to do what they want. Freedom is best. That said, freedom is also cursed. It allows people to fully engage and embrace the worst part of themselves. Terrorists thrive in countries that have the most freedoms. Similarly, Trolls thrive in games where they can behave in any way they want.
Do you tolerate an abusive player in your game? Do you tolerate “competitive” players in your game, where players are playing against each other more than they are against the adversaries in the game? How about players that hog all the action, and then only criticize the ideas of other players? These players are probably the easiest for a healthy game to get rid of; there is no question that their behavior is wrong. Usually it falls to the DM to say this ‘far and no farther’, but this should be, and is, the power of every player at the table. If a proper boundary is set, and then crossed without consequence, the game should end.
An abusive player is not the only player that is playing wrong. A player that hardly plays is also playing wrong. I can understand young players coming to the game for the first time, taking a back seat and staying quiet most of the night. However, as time goes on, the quiet player, content only to roll dice when asked, needs to speak up. The most important part in a role-playing game is the role-playing. If people insist on remaining quiet, forcing other players to pick up their slack (with ideas and story progression), then they should be playing board games instead of RPGs. You don’t need to talk much when playing board games, and those games usually have that wonderful die rolling.
There are more types of players playing wrong, but this is enough for now.
My Introduction To Pathfinder II
June, 2014 - I had trouble waking up today. No really, I had trouble waking up today. My character was asleep when the Orcs attacked. Bells ringing, people screaming, steel clashing, and yet I couldn’t roll well enough to wake my character up. This was explained after the fact by saying that my character drank too much the night before. Something I stated at the time that my character didn’t do.
So my character ceased to be a hero for a few rounds, becoming over the top mundane. The story went out of my hands and into the rulebook. Therein was found whatever rule that made me roll to wake up. Understand please, the rulebook was telling my story. My story! I don’t blame the DM for this. He’s just following the rules for the game.
I will endeavor to tolerate this game, for the sake of contrast with other games. My education requires exposure to unpleasant things. My house also plays host to my gaming group, although I do wonder if they are enjoying Pathfinder at all. We enjoy each other’s company, and that is most important, but there are scores of other things we could do for fun.
So my character ceased to be a hero for a few rounds, becoming over the top mundane. The story went out of my hands and into the rulebook. Therein was found whatever rule that made me roll to wake up. Understand please, the rulebook was telling my story. My story! I don’t blame the DM for this. He’s just following the rules for the game.
I will endeavor to tolerate this game, for the sake of contrast with other games. My education requires exposure to unpleasant things. My house also plays host to my gaming group, although I do wonder if they are enjoying Pathfinder at all. We enjoy each other’s company, and that is most important, but there are scores of other things we could do for fun.
My Introduction to Pathfinder I
June, 2014 - I am a long time AD&D player, that is, I play an earlier version of the game that came out prior to 1987. I have limited exposure to later systems, via computer games, i.e. Baldur’s Gate and Icewind Dale. This is my first experience actually playing a character in any later version. I appreciate that Pathfinder is set apart from Wizards of the Coast’s inflated D&D product line. I don’t like that Pathfinder has totally inflated its own presence in the same way. But I will retell my experience of playing Pathfinder here.
I was struck by the complexity involved and the time it took to make characters. I didn’t care for that. Some might argue that having all of these variables, these options stated in the books, makes it easier to create and run a unique character. I disagree. Surely it should be up to the player to make the character unique. There is no character creation ruleset that, by itself, makes a character interesting. Read any novel. How often do you like the main character that is like every other main character? How good would mystery novels be if every detective was some form of Dick Tracy? I suggest that the fewer rules you have in character creation, the more unique and interesting the character HAS TO be.
My next critique is all of the rolls. I find myself rolling dice to see if I am successful at doing things slightly greater than mundane. What I like about AD&D is that the characters are heroes. I don’t need to roll to see if I fall on my face when I jump from the top of a stationary wagon. I’m a hero, and so I land with style, style reflected in the fact that I have an above average Dexterity. No roll should be needed.
The real problem with the rolls is the time it takes to do them. It hurts the pacing of the scene. Let me describe what I am talking about, if I can. We have five players sitting around a table. The Dungeon Master has thrown a bunch of Orcs at the party, an ambush. Scores of them, waving falchions in the air as they charge forward. Instead of allowing the danger to be realized and the tension to build, we get a call for a large number of individual die rolls. We have charts and rules from some book telling us how we are situated to meet the threat. And, of course, if I do roll bad, and my character falls off the wagon, then all of the players laugh at my gaff. Where did the tension go?
My DM is skilled. Let’s see where this goes next.
I was struck by the complexity involved and the time it took to make characters. I didn’t care for that. Some might argue that having all of these variables, these options stated in the books, makes it easier to create and run a unique character. I disagree. Surely it should be up to the player to make the character unique. There is no character creation ruleset that, by itself, makes a character interesting. Read any novel. How often do you like the main character that is like every other main character? How good would mystery novels be if every detective was some form of Dick Tracy? I suggest that the fewer rules you have in character creation, the more unique and interesting the character HAS TO be.
My next critique is all of the rolls. I find myself rolling dice to see if I am successful at doing things slightly greater than mundane. What I like about AD&D is that the characters are heroes. I don’t need to roll to see if I fall on my face when I jump from the top of a stationary wagon. I’m a hero, and so I land with style, style reflected in the fact that I have an above average Dexterity. No roll should be needed.
The real problem with the rolls is the time it takes to do them. It hurts the pacing of the scene. Let me describe what I am talking about, if I can. We have five players sitting around a table. The Dungeon Master has thrown a bunch of Orcs at the party, an ambush. Scores of them, waving falchions in the air as they charge forward. Instead of allowing the danger to be realized and the tension to build, we get a call for a large number of individual die rolls. We have charts and rules from some book telling us how we are situated to meet the threat. And, of course, if I do roll bad, and my character falls off the wagon, then all of the players laugh at my gaff. Where did the tension go?
My DM is skilled. Let’s see where this goes next.
My Mistakes As DM II
D&D is fun, mainly because of the people sitting around the table. Let me be clear, the game itself is less fun. If I have a bunch of people who hate each other around my table, then the game is not going to be fun. If all the characters die in one event, then that probably won’t be fun either. If one person is hogging all of the time insisting on pointless role-playing, then the game will not be fun. With all these and more, the uninitiated (with group fun) might wonder what fun there is to have.
The danger lies in striving for or allowing fun in a light-hearted, funny way. This is my sin. I have allowed comedy to break up the tension on too many occasions. It started simply enough, with the players choosing overly silly names for their characters. Innocent fun I thought. But now the names are a big part of the chiding fun that players have. It is nearly impossible to have serious play with a character named ‘Mergatroid Balls.’ Now when something serious happens, the uncomfortable player makes up a funny turn of phrase about Mergatroid Balls. Where did my tension go?
Other players have created all-encompassing back-stories for their characters. This allows them to break tension by pulling out some funny reference from the back-story, and inserting it into the play. This will happen more than you think.
Fun is had because the people you are playing with are great, not because of some funny, in-game gimmick that you have created or allowed. You might laugh once at a silly reference, but remember what that encourages in the players around you. I have learned much. I can say without fear that my game will be more fun than ever now that the tension is back.
My Mistakes As DM I
In the late 70’s, Doctor Who had a tool for every occasion. He needed to stop an enemy, he had K9. He needed to open a door, he had the Sonic Screwdriver. These things plus amazingly capable companions made the writing for the show extremely easy. There was always an easy tool for the doctor to use, an easy solution. He didn’t have to use his brain for all of these little problems. A similar issue is rampant in role-playing games.
Having an alignment system in my game was a mistake for this and other reasons. When I start another campaign, I won’t use an alignment system. That does not mean I won’t use Dungeons & Dragons, even though there are very good games out there that have no alignment system. My players like D&D, so I will simply remove alignments, and change those things that are affiliated with alignments (Detect Evil, Protection from Good, etc.)
The main problem is that my current game has become a game centered on alignment. It is like Doctor Who’s Sonic Screwdriver, being used all the time to solve all the problems. Yet the show is not about the Sonic. It’s about the Doctor.
D&D is about the characters. Fundamentally it is not about the flavors (cool swords, neat spells, special armor, powerful wands, etc.) So when my players use Detect Evil as a means to determine action, then there is a problem. Alignment becomes a cheat. Character development goes by the wayside because the Detect Evil spell tells the players how to act. The players should be determining their character’s actions, using their brains, not the game system. Their decisions make the story interesting, not the tools being used. Doctor Who is interesting because of the Doctor, not the Sonic.
I also don’t like the assumptions of alignments. We have a Goblin or an Orc. Tolkein made his monster races evil from birth. How easy and uninteresting is that, in this context? I see an Orc, therefore it’s automatically okay to kill it. There is no question, no thinking. It makes it easy to be a DM. I don’t have to give my monsters any personality or back story because they are evil. The PC’s will kill them on sight. Yea me! I’m a real DM! A real Story Teller!
Something should also be said about how flawed the alignment system is as written. So many interpretations on what the specific alignments entail. If I am Chaotic Good then that means I am not quite as good as someone that is Lawful Good. Bullcrap. I’m only Neutral Good, and so I am more Neutral than Good. More Bullcrap. I’m Chaotic Neutral, that means I can do whatever I want, not that I am insane. Oh, so much Bullcrap.
There are probably other reasons but these are enough. The story is sacred. The player’s participation is sacred. I want to encourage my players to use their brains and their hearts, not some cool formula, one given them from the start.
Player Bill of RIghts
The Player Bill of Rights
Definitions:Player – Any player in the game, including the Game Master.
PC – Player Character, the characters that the players play with, including Non-Player Characters.
The Game – A safe, cooperative effort.
1) The player has the boundary of skin. The player has the right to not be physically touched. 2) The player has the right to speak. (As happens on occasion, several players are speaking at once. For this and other reasons, being heard is not a right.) 3) No player has the right to verbally abuse another player. Saying, “It’s what my PC would say” does not excuse abuse. Attitude is everything. The game IS safe and cooperative. 4) Players have the right to leave the game.
Abuse is defined as a behavior from a player to another player that breaks one or more of the four aforementioned points (1-4). Charges of abuse should be taken very seriously, yet all players should feel safe to bring the charge(s). The charge will be handled diplomatically, with all players participating in the discussion.
Consequences: When abuse is charged and confirmed by a majority of players, then the offending player will receive an official warning. If the offending player at any time repeats or gives similar abuse, then they are to be dismissed from the game, and must vacate the gaming area. The length of this dismissal, given in number of game sessions to be missed, should be determined by all of the remaining players. If a number of sessions cannot be decided upon by a majority of the remaining players, then the offending player is dismissed permanently.
1) The player has the boundary of skin. The player has the right to not be physically touched. 2) The player has the right to speak. (As happens on occasion, several players are speaking at once. For this and other reasons, being heard is not a right.) 3) No player has the right to verbally abuse another player. Saying, “It’s what my PC would say” does not excuse abuse. Attitude is everything. The game IS safe and cooperative. 4) Players have the right to leave the game.
Abuse is defined as a behavior from a player to another player that breaks one or more of the four aforementioned points (1-4). Charges of abuse should be taken very seriously, yet all players should feel safe to bring the charge(s). The charge will be handled diplomatically, with all players participating in the discussion.
Consequences: When abuse is charged and confirmed by a majority of players, then the offending player will receive an official warning. If the offending player at any time repeats or gives similar abuse, then they are to be dismissed from the game, and must vacate the gaming area. The length of this dismissal, given in number of game sessions to be missed, should be determined by all of the remaining players. If a number of sessions cannot be decided upon by a majority of the remaining players, then the offending player is dismissed permanently.
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