Horrible, Horrible role-playing.

packedcracker · Post by **packedcracker** » Fri Jan 11, 2008 8:48 pm

Have you ever just had bad role-playing. Or just one PC being so out of character it made you want to snap their neck? That's what this threads about.
I Personally have had some horribe cases of OOC-ness, a palidan that just wanted to mindlessly kill anyone who slightly offended him, even thoughs of a good alignment, a monk who wouldnt risk loosing his treasured weapon to save the lives of him and his party members because the monsters first intentions were to destroy valuable magic items.
If you have anything like this then post it.

themaelstorm · Post by **themaelstorm** » Sat Jan 12, 2008 3:47 am

I'm not sure it would exactly fit in here, but lemme tell you anyway..

I once was gonna GM a Fallout game. The players was to start in a vault. I had a co-dm who had a nice way of questioning the players to get details of their character. So she and I get to one of the players. He wanted to be a gothic guy, with all the hair, piercings etc. Their vault was to be over-conservative and strict, so I told him it would be impossible becouse they wouldn't be aware of what a goth is. Told him they had only read standard books that tell about "normal" people and such standardization. He insisted with "interesting" ideas like "I don't need books, I was born gothic" "If noone in the vault knows metal music, I invent it!" (not to mention they wouldn't have musical instruments and be under control even if they had it) Me and my co-dm got upset. He also wanted a different hairstyle. Told him this vault was conservative and strict and they cut everyones hair in a standard (short) manner. He first told me he would cut it himself (Actually, he would need to grow hair, since vault cuts it very short, heh). Then I again told him he wouldn't know what a goth is, he answers me "Ok, then my character doesn't know it, but let's make it so that his hair is like that!" Me and my co-dm get a boost in rage-meter. Finally, when she asks "what does your character like?" the answer is "darkness, pain and sex". When I told him they wouldn't give him something so he can cut himself, he told he would bang his head to walls to feel pain. ;_; Anyway, he kept insisting on senseless stuff and me and my co-dm turned crazy. I decided to take him in the first game, drop him into sewers where horny mutants dwell so he will find his darkness, pain and sex. (But after this interrogation about character, he hit on my co-dm (and he thought she was my gf) then performed some incredible lame and idiotic behaviour, so i kicked him directly)

Something like that. Worst meta-thinking-senseless player I ever had.. or, I was to have.

GawainBS · Post by **GawainBS** » Sat Jan 12, 2008 11:41 am

We have had several cases.
First time was on part of the DM, of all people. It was in D&D. Our party was made up of a Cleric of Pelor, a Bladesinger, a Paladin of Pelor, a Wizard, an Order of the Bow Initiate and a Kobold Sorcerer. Pretty important later on: the Wizard was the DM's twin-brother, the Archer his girlfriend and the Paladin his childhood friend. Also, the DM is someone who gets turned on by RAW. (= Rules As Written, so not much space/sense to see how a rule was meant.)

First case: during our adventures, we had made a prisoner, whom got stabbed by the Wizard while he was drunk. A pity, but such things happen. The DM decided that the next time the Cleric or Paladin would use one of their divine-granted abilities, they would receive visions from Pelor telling them they had sinned by letting the prisoner getting killed. Nice idea. So, the paladin tries to smite a foe, gets his vision (The DM handed him a piece of paper so that the rest of us didn't know what happened) and he immediatly yells (He has trouble communicating in normal decibels) "I charge the Wizard!!" We asked why he would do that. His explanation: "Because of him I can't smite anymore!"

Second case: Same Paladin. His job was to charge on his mount and deal damage. Mine, as the Bladesinger, was to tank. It goes pretty well with things like Displacement, Mirror Image & Stoneskin. Anyway, after a couple of sessions the Paladin gets pissed of about my AC, which was pretty high. So he starts to pump all his cash in to his armour & shield, just to get a higher AC. That he had a crappy weapon and hardly hit anything anymore, that wasn't important. Neither was the fact that he never got hit because he was always Ride-by-Attacking and thus out of reach of the enemy.

Third case: We had a mission to retrieve the Book of Vile Darkness. When we finally had it, the Wizard suddenly grabbed it, and he and the Paladin teleported out, because all that time, they had been worshippers of Vecna. (An evil tyrannical god.) Nevermind that the Wizard and Paladin had zero ranks in Bluff and that the Cleric had a Sense Motive check of 33 without rolling. Also nevermind that our base of operations was the High Temple of Pelor. Just as well ignore the fact that our Cleric was a favoured servant of Pelor and that Pelor couldn't be bothered to notice that one of his greatest Paladins was corrupted. All that time, they had been working behind our backs, even the Archer was involved. Those players wondered why the rest of us were pissed off...
Anyway, the Wizard and Paladin get to start new characters. Another Wizard and a Champion of Correlon Larethian. It's a prestige class that symbolizes a noble, good, integer, wandering defender of all things elven and the elven people in general. They act as judges and champions and are lauded for their kindheartness.
Bear with me now, I have to give some extra background. My character, who had been in the party from day 1, was a noble in hiding and always used a pseudonym instead of his real name and dyed his hair and such things to avoid drawing attention. The players knew this, but their characters didn't. In the course of the adventure, the Paladin started at random times to make Gather Information checks to find out the truth about him. Nevermind that he had no reason what so ever to do that, apart from his player knowing my character's background. Also, my character was a devout follower of Correlon Larethian and spent several sessions emphasizing this.
Ok, back to the main line. His knew character, this Champion of Cor. Lar. is build in very close resemblance to my Bladesinger, just so he could tank as well or better. Pity for him he didn't have spells. His backstory: He was a son a noble, and he had to flee the realm because he killed another elf in a duel over a woman... Remember: he's supposed to be a noble, wise defender of his people. Also, he got ranks in Craft (Painting) just so he could paint the Bladesinger's face, send the picture to his father, who could identify it and inform his son that the Bladesinger was indeed that noble in hiding. Urgh. Some pretty far-fetched metagaming, eh?
But it doesn't end here. He was Chaotic Neutral, because "Good is boring." (Beware people who think like that.) Still, he was a Champion of Cor. Lar. Anyway, he got Leadership and a Gold Dragon cohort. We pointed out that you can only have a cohort within one step of your alignment, so the DM said that from now on that Champion was Neutral Good, from one instant to the next...

So, in the end, we all felt a little cheated, because the DM ressented us for not "RPing good enough"...

Pandaroon · Post by **Pandaroon** » Sat Jan 12, 2008 12:11 pm

Behold, for I am the Cleric in Gawain's story!

About the Champion of Corellon being CN, I objected that it wasn't very sound fluff wise, as being his champion, he could at least share the allignment. So suddenly he became CG, accompanied by litterally saying that he was more of an avatar for his God than me of mine. Then Gawain's story about the dragon ensued.

Earlier, when finding our way through kobold mines, we encountered thus said kobold clan. These were oppressed by two dragons, and had to give their all to stop us. In the same dungeon was a new pc keeping prisoned, dying and famished hanging on chains. I stabilize and release him, but since I was a pauper at the moment with only my robes and staff, I suggested the paladin giving him some rations and water: the paladin clearly answered: "No sorry, my griffon ate all the meat, I have nothing left." After I fixed that guy up, and at least Gawain gave him his rations, we fought our way through the mountain, and the kobolds retreated.
We arrived in a room where a bunch of Gray Renders were chained up, looking hungry. Gawain and I suggested to release them and send them away through a mouth in the cave further in the same room. So they smelled rations in Gawain's and the archer's backpack, which we used as bait after releasing them. This being done, the kobold chieftain approaches us, tells he wants to surrender if we spare his tribe. He gives the key. Since I am the diplomat, I accepted the deal and clearly took the key. The paladin said: I take a piece of meat from my bag and throw it at the kobold, then the Gray Render will devour him! I say: No you don't...
Him: Yes I do!
Me: Then I stop you!
Him: you're not close enough!
Me: But you just heard I took the key.
Him: no, I took it!
Me: Enough! Hold Person.
Him: haha, I made a DC 26 Will Save, thus succeeding by 3.
Me: nuh-huh, That wasn't really good, you lose divine grace and you fail your save.
Him: oh, then I didn't do it.

themaelstorm · Post by **themaelstorm** » Sat Jan 12, 2008 6:33 pm

As a DM, I'm pretty happy to have Smite Metagamer class skill, however whenever a DM metagames or support it, a kobold bard dies in a texas-chainsaw-massacre way. So do not do it.

Please.

Fiberfar · Post by **Fiberfar** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 11:16 am

Pandaroon wrote: "No sorry, my griffon ate all the meat, I have nothing left."

Pandaroon wrote: The paladin said: I take a piece of meat from my bag and throw it at the kobold, then the Gray Render will devour him!

Certain people should be dipped in the fiery pits of hell...

Ribzlibz · Post by **Ribzlibz** » Tue Jun 17, 2008 10:48 am

jesus do i have a story for you. i was in a party as a rogue (i like bein sneaky

)
with a paladain and bard as companions. we entered a town and headed to the bar to get some local info on the nearby shrine. however the bard went womanizing. so we left him behind (though continuously yelling for him to follow.) eventually 'he got what he wanted' with the woman, but kept using diplomacy checks to try and get her to do such a thing again. meanwhile me and the paladain got to the shrine. an evil tiefling jumped out. we were pretty low level, but together we could take it. escpecially with a paladain who had smite evil. i advised him to do so... then he ran off like a wuss. In the end we had a dead rogue, a cowardly paladain, and a very satisfied bard

gothicducks · Post by **gothicducks** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 3:59 pm

I demand roleplaying in my campaigns, and when my demands are not met by certain players, I try quite hard to discreetly kill them off. Or I tell them that I'll kick them out if they don't roleplay.

GawainBS · Post by **GawainBS** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 4:38 pm

gothicducks wrote:I demand roleplaying in my campaigns, and when my demands are not met by certain players, I try quite hard to discreetly kill them off.

I think that itself falls under "Horrible, Horrible role-playing". Personally, I rather like to reward roleplaying rather than punish the lack. Sometimes a player just doesn't feel like it, or some people are more timid and just don't like standing in the centre of attention. I have met with much better result by granting the opportunity, insteadof squeezing it out of them.
In my experience (This isn't addressed at you, gothicducks), the DMs who demand roleplay are the most abominable ruleslawyers in existence, which isn't supportive/encouraging for the RP. For example, my Bladesinger uses Alter Self to shift in a troglodyte, and I described it as a reptillian form granting him scales, powerful hunched legs, but still recognisable facial features and elven eyes. My DM immediatly vetoed that because Alter Self gives you the appearance of general member of the species. If I would have ever used the spell to infiltrate, or trick or deceive, then I'd agree with him, but now this was purely cosmetic and descriptive.

Lord_Chaos · Post by **Lord_Chaos** » Tue Aug 19, 2008 9:49 am

Intellegence

One thing that peeves me the most about players not staying in character is if a character tries to do some thing their character is not smart enough to do for example i had a character who was a gnome rouge and engineered a divice to take a large dimond from a trapped pedistool useing a door knob, spiderweb and rope but failed and missed the dimonde completely so the next player who was a half-orc barbarian decided he was going to engineer a divice similar to a bomb squad robot to take the dimond off of the pedistool with metel from broken armor and weapons nevermind the fact of not having anywhere near the tools needed and never mind the fact he was lvl 5 with an intellegence of 12

Siberys · Post by **Siberys** » Tue Aug 19, 2008 10:56 am

An intelligence of 12? He's fully capable of doing that.

As a general rule of thumb, sometimes it's okay to consider an intelligence score x10 equal to a person's IQ score. Meaning, a 12 intelligence would be somewhere in the 120 IQ range, and is more than capable of steam engineering a robotic device to do said action.

Remember, 10 and 11 is average for characters according to DND, so he's already above average.

GawainBS · Post by **GawainBS** » Tue Aug 19, 2008 11:13 am

I agree with Syberis on the INT.
I do think, however, that Lord_Chaos had a problem with that player using his own, rather than his character's, knowledge to pull it off, with the character being a Barbarian, who aren't exactly known for their great engineering skills.

(In most settings, anyway.)

Lord_Chaos · Post by **Lord_Chaos** » Wed Aug 20, 2008 11:50 am

that makes sense

That makes sense Siberys i guess he would be smart enough to pull it off but i think it was more of what GawainBS said about the fact he was a barbarian not exactly the most likely to have great engineering skill

Siberys · Post by **Siberys** » Wed Aug 20, 2008 12:06 pm

Well given the circumstances, even jury-rigging a device should have been out of the question to begin with.

I was just remarking that an intelligence of 12 could probably Jury-rig it well enough. Maybe for a one shot use or something.

eragonn9 · Post by **eragonn9** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 5:48 pm

One of the people I regularly play with has a..... "small" problem with staying in character, and always justifies his actions with "I'm role playing"
For example, one campaign I recently ran took place in the desert. Their village had run out of water, so they were sent out to scout for more. After a few hours of exploring, he and his companions ran into a large oasis. His two friends ran up and filled buckets and marked it on a map. He said "I'm going swimming"
When I reminded him of the situation, He looked at me and said "I'm role playing. How often am I going to get to swim?"
Riiiiiiight....

Fiberfar · Post by **Fiberfar** » Fri Oct 24, 2008 8:25 am

eragonn9 wrote:He said "I'm going swimming"
When I reminded him of the situation, He looked at me and said "I'm role playing. How often am I going to get to swim?"
Riiiiiiight....

Some nasty moster should have eaten him out in the oasis, or a failed swim check should have finished that.

eragonn9 · Post by **eragonn9** » Fri Oct 24, 2008 2:18 pm

It was in a war campaign, so as he removed his full plate, he got shot by a enemy patrol unit. He was upset, but he learned that going against your character's story sn't role playing, and he's gotten (A little) better.

Kaessir Addaj · Post by **Kaessir Addaj** » Tue Oct 28, 2008 9:36 am

I, too, have had my share of x#!t in my group...
we have this guy, and don't know what RPing is apparently, as his characters are always the exact same thing: Elven Wizard Boy/Girl, 17 intelligence (he seems to always have at least a 16/17), an elven double bow, and his spells are always the same: Leomund's secret chest, Phantasmal Killer, Acid Arrow, Ray of Frost, Meteor Swarm, Chain Lightning, etc...

The thing is his character is always a sexually undetermined person (there was this time we found out he was a guy after three sessions just because he mentioned something about his undies), he hates all other races just because "they're not as beautiful as I am", he never pays atention to anything said, and, though he is quite capable of RPing, he just won't try 'cause, as he believes, he is too good...

The only reason we still play with him is that his bestfriend is the best player we have... and they're always togheter...

Worst thing is that in my city (I'm Mexican, I live 'bout middle Mexico) roleplaying is not too good... all roleplayers are either .... let's just say "dumb"... or are afraid to talk to girls... U__U

eragonn9 · Post by **eragonn9** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 2:15 pm

Kaessir Addaj wrote: Worst thing is that in my city (I'm Mexican, I live 'bout middle Mexico) roleplaying is not too good... all roleplayers are either .... let's just say "dumb"... or are afraid to talk to girls... U__U

Wow. Sounds like my group of friends..... None of the people I play with will talk to any girls outside of their family. Not even one another's parents :laugh:

nokturnal1980 · Post by **nokturnal1980** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 7:32 am

We had a cleric that would loot the bodies of the fallen and then scream foul if another party meber were to do the same thing.