Poll: Who did play in a group where the master had a "pet NPC"?

[Durifern]

Just read in the "What I hate thread" that several people ran into pet NPCs of their masters, NSC which are uber and just there to "deus ex machina" everything not fast enough to escape.

So, how familiar is it to you.

Personally I haven´t had such an experience although my former master and now I always use NSCs as party members but only in a passive way.

 

[Nifft]

Dragons are my "pet" NPCs when I DM. It's fairly hard to get one to go adventuring with your party, though.

-- Nifft

 

[Cedric]

I've had a few GM's who played with pet NPC's, but fortunately all of them were good enough at juggling the challenges thrown at us that the npc's always helped, but never overshadowed us.

Sometimes the npc's needed saving as well, all in all it didn't work out bad at all.

I've also been in groups that rabidly turned on the nearest npc like shark's in a frenzy. They looked for any chance to ditch the npc...and if the npc ever died, they just rolled the body for valueables and tossed it in a ditch with a thin covering of dirt.

Then again, had a few NPC's that meant as much to the group as any otherm member of the party. Players would risk their lives and well being for the npc's safety.

Cedric

 

[blackshirt5]

I've played in games like those, I hated them(Nick's games especially; ugh, if we got showed up by that team of Shadowrunners again, I was going to wrap my hands around his neck and squeeze!) so much that it's not even funny. However, it did teach me an important lesson about NOT doing that in my games; in fact, I've noticed that I target the party wizard(who's an NPC) MORE than the players sometimes.

 

[Zappo]

Oh, yeah. I mean, one would expect that it's a fairly simple concept to grasp.

"Don't make NPCs that steal the spotlight".

And still you do meet DMs that just don't get it. I've played that kind of games, and they are really, truly hateful.

Personally, I just don't have NPCs permanently follow the party. The PCs are The Heroes. Anyone else might at most tag along for an adventure or two, but he's not The Hero.

If I want to be a player, I don't DM.

 

[blackshirt5]

Although let me add that I love villains who steal the spotlight, temporarily, from the players; i.e., a villain that just makes the players say "damn he's cool." But that's more a function of just being a good DM, I think; the NPC isn't travelling with them and showing them up on their side; he's following them and showing them up in battle.

 

[Zappo]

Villains don't qualify for "pet NPC". A "pet NPC" must be mostly on the PCs' side.

 

[blackshirt5]

I never said it did Zappo.

 

[Numion]

Check out this thread in the wizards' boards for sheer amusement. Some DMs bragg about their DM PCs, how cool they are and how the PCs adore them.

Yeah right. And why majority of those DM PCs are "kewl" demonic races like Fey'ri or Tiefling?

 

[Chroma]

I confess I have a pet NPC...

...and he's incompetent!

The pet NPC I use in my campaign is the complete opposite of Uber.

He's a low Wisdom, low level, cowardly rogue, who happens to be the only remaining child of a powerful noble the party is beholden to. This noble placed his son under the party's stewardship in hopes that he'd "learn to be a hero." He's more of a comic foil than a god character and has added quite a bit to the game... especially trouble. *laugh*