Do you train your players?

[Crothian]

The game trains people to play a certain way. You get XP and advance by killing things, and you get magical items and becoem more powerful by taking their stuff. So, is it really bad for a DM who doesn't want to play exactly that way to encourage the players to do something a little different?

 

[Glyfair]

Somewhat. I definitely have things set up to encourage heroic behavior.

I also let my players know what sort of game I'm running, also. If you want to run around attacking the authorities, stealing from random people, etc. then you want to find another gamemaster, because that's not the game I enjoy and not what I run.

Now, when a player begins to cross the line (such as the player who tried to tie up the little old lady who only wanted to get out of town), I'll put reminders as to why such behavior is discouraged. In the example I mentioned, she cried out for help and the town guard started making there way to the area. Even though the players were gone when they got to her, they found reminders of the incident in the coming days. For example, when they met with the mayor he mentioned he was busy because some thugs were attacking little old ladies and he had to deal with the problem.

 

[Wombat]

Well, there are a couple answers to that.

First there is the Direct Reward category -- XP can be handed out for acting well/in-character. In addition, since we us Monte's AU, we have Hero Points to hand out.

Then there is the Indirect Reward category. This usually comes down to "survival". If your character acts like an arrogant jerk, his life expectency will be something about that of a dill pickle when my brother is hungry (e.g. the survival may be measured in seconds).

My players also know that I use the method of handing them more than enough rope to hang themselves.

Players learn that there are ramifications and repurcussions to their actions, sometimes quite unanticipated ones if the wrong person happens to be viewing matters. Equally, since stories change as they are told, many characters find that their heroic actions have been either way overblown or utterly ignored, if the circumstances are wrong. Heck, one of my players wanted to hire a bard as a press agent...

 

[Umbran]

Yes, I train my players, but generally not with XP.

The single biggest problem I have had with games is tardy players. So, the rule became - the fresh, homemade baked goods will become available half an hour before the scheduled game start. If they are gone before you get here, too bad. If they aren't gone, but you are late, you don't get any. You get to sit and watch while the others eat their cookies, cake, pie, etc.

Harsh. Perhaps even cruel. But it worked.

 

[Crothian]

Yes, I train my players, but generally not with XP.

The single biggest problem I have had with games is tardy players. So, the rule became - the fresh, homemade baked goods will become available half an hour before the scheduled game start. If they are gone before you get here, too bad. If they aren't gone, but you are late, you don't get any. You get to sit and watch while the others eat their cookies, cake, pie, etc.

Harsh. Perhaps even cruel. But it worked.

That's a good method to cure tardiness.

 

[Thanee]

I guess, no.

Of course, I do not tolerate retarded behaviour, but that's something different.

I generally do not reward the "quality" of roleplaying in any way.
And I do not try to lure them into my own playing style by rewarding certain types of actions.

I try to be objective and fair.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Umbran]

So, is it really bad for a DM who doesn't want to play exactly that way to encourage the players to do something a little different?

I wouldn't think so, especially when the game does present other options. The rules do say you can give XP for something other than killing, and there's certainly ways to get stuff without taking it off a dead body.

I tend to make sure, though that it isn't quite so much my own personal style that I'm rewarding, so much as the generally agreed upon style for the campaign. Sometimes it takes a while to figure out what that is...

 

[jsewell]

After reading some of the other posts, I suppose I do train players. I'd never really considered it 'training', though. I reward players more if they outwit their opponents, rather than overrun them. That said, I make it difficult for them to do either. By that, I mean I encourage party dysfunction. For example, if the party's wizard (or whoever) casts detect magic, I'll pass the results to that player on a scrap of paper, and leave it to him/her to decide what to do. I will also take players out of the room for certain encounters, such as what happens during that player's watch. Sometimes I'll even pass notes to players for no reason what-so-ever. If you want to generate paranoia, that is an excellent trick. I never announce how much XP each party member gets (I'm no fan of the 'even distribution' idea), they can decide to tell the others if they wish. Finally, if the players are being too cooperative for my tastes, I'll split the party up - which requires a lot more work on my part, but it's more fun. The result is (what I believe to be) a greater sense of realism in character interaction. However, the negative side becomes crystal clear when the party faces Duke So-and-So, Lord of the TPK. When everyone thinks everyone else is hiding something from them, it's not much of a leap for one or two players to make the assumption that Fred or Sara is actually an agent of the Duke. So you have to either prepare escape plans for the Duke when he normally wouldn't run, or you have to make 'outs' for the players that are more obvious than they should be.

 

[Lord Rasputin]

I haven't yet, but now that you mention it, maybe I'll start training my players. Those yellow puddles underneath the gaming table can become quite annoying.

 

[Crothian]

After reading some of the other posts, I suppose I do train players. I'd never really considered it 'training', though.

That's why the phrasing was picked, it is not something I expected a lot of people to call it, but it works well to describe the action.