Worst miniature paint job evAr! Get it off the table!

[ssampier]

I have a feeling that this thread supports Geek Social Fallacy Number 1, Ostracizers Are Evil.
http://sean.chittenden.org/humor/www.plausiblydeniable.com/opinion/gsf.html

The DM and his group decide this guy doesn't fit in his group. Now the DM is to blame. Crazy.

 

[PallidPatience]

Don't be silly. People don't have the right to decide who is fit to be a friend, acquaintance, or otherwise someone to be let into their home. People don't have the right to decide with whom they socialize. If people shuld attempt to take that right, they should be scolded severely.

 

[Jesus_marley]

So we've got a dork in the group who feels it's his lot in life to try to make practical jokes of everything in the game. Well, he's gone too far. I made him take his mini off the table and told him to get a new one and paint it up seriously. He used a pink and yellow, smear-painted ape. It looked like the crap that runs out of the bottom of a moldy snow cone and it was GLOSSY! Big yellow beady eyes and he painted the groin to look like the "monkey" had wet himself and glued two BB's to the you-know-what..but it was smeared to look like some kind of pus-like discharge. Of course, the ape mini wouldn't even stand up because of the uncut seam on the bottom!

We have a table rule (made by the group) that everyone have a real miniature that stands up and is painted. Well, he was all pissed because he says he can't paint miniatures, but I think he went too far in trying to make a mockery of the game. It was the equivalent of not bringing your character sheet or using a die or penny for a character when everyone else goes out of their way to contribute to the game in a positive way. He's got a box full of mini's and we keep paint at the table for people that want to touch up or even paint during the game. Heck, other people have even offered to paint one up for him.

Was I wrong to ask him to take it off the table? At what point does a DM need to do this? Do you guys have rules like that? Is the guy just being an idiot to push the groups' buttons?

jh




..

It would appear to me that the behaviour on both yours and his counts borders on childish.
The Player appears to be expressing frustration with the fact that he is less than skilled with regards to painting a mini. Adding the BBs shows that he certainly has the imagination but lacks the practice required for a good job. His frustration may be more towards his own lack of skill than towards the "rule" of having a painted mini and he is simply trying to cover that by acting like a goof. The fact that another player offered to "paint one for him" would easily exacerbate that problem.
Does that make his mini (or his actions for that matter) appropriate to the table? I would guess no, considering your reaction to it.

Now on to you. I think your reaction may have been a little heavy handed. Granted, the mini was inappropriate for the table, but demanding it be removed was a bit much. Other than the stability problem, the player was abiding by the letter, if not the spirit of the rule. I think a better solution would have been to allow the mini for that session with the caveat that the player put more effort into a more appropriate mini and colour scheme for the next session indicating the consequences for not doing so. Also clearly indicate what exactly is appropriate. Essentially, give the guy a warning and boot him if he pulls the same stunt. and tell that you will.

As for the player that made and circulated the picture... that was just bad form.

 

[+5 Keyboard!]

This is an amusing thread. It's definitely given me a few chuckles and laughs.
However, this gaming group of your's sounds more like an elitist painting club than a group of gamers getting together to play their favorite RPG.
Perhaps it's time to evaluate which is more important to you: the minis or the game you use them for?

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

So one player doesn't want to abide by the rules he knew of going in, and somehow its the DMs fault?

 

[Kestrel]

I would be more concerned with how he played the game than what mini he used. Sounds like a pretty creative guy from the description of the mini, although he put his energy into rebelling against the rule instead of adhering to it.

I would love to see it.

 

[carmachu]

If it wasnt for the pratical joke part of wetting itself and BB's, then you would be wrong. But in this case that mini joke went a bit too far.

If he put honest effort into the mini, and it looked like crap, and you told him to take it off, then you would absolutely be in the wrong. Some people cant paint, and things look like crap. You didnt specify it had to be WELL painted, nor that it had to good color schemes.

But in this case with the other over the top stuff, your ok.

 

[dpetroc]

This is a somewhat over the top response to an over the top player. Usually this happens when the group has tolerated, negotiated, pleaded, begged the player to conform to a house rule which was designed to maximize the gaming experience for everyone at the table. Only so much strain can occur before someone snaps. Hence, Emirikols impassioned stance.

Should this boor have been allowed to continue with his garish, middle-finger to the party and DM mini? No.

Should a scene have been made? No.

If the player resents the other players 'artistry' (I can't paint worth a damn either, but it doesn't stop me from giving it the ol' college try), provide him with an appropriate pre-painted or (GASP!) unpainted miniature -- As long as the mini meets the criteria of 'looking like the character', insisting on the painting is unduly draconian. If it REALLY means that much, then just give him a DDM mini and call it a day. Or, if you want consistency, paint one up that is tolerable but doesn't suck too much of your time, and just place it in game. Don't ask. Just do.

By making it a point of contention, you 'force' the player to rebel further.

This guy is an inverse rules lawyer. He's going to slow the game down just to prove a point. Once you realized he was being difficult deliberately, you should have taken the choice out of his hands. The damage is done however, and this guy will continue to be a millstone around your neck whatever you do. Campaigns have come to a grinding halt over less -- cut him loose.

 

[Shadowslayer]

However, this gaming group of your's sounds more like an elitist painting club than a group of gamers getting together to play their favorite RPG.

Maybe, but people's opinions on the rule itself are largely irrelevant here. The guy flipped the rest of the group off. And expended a lot of energy to do it. He's gone.

It really IS that simple.

 

[Emirikol]

This is an amusing thread. It's definitely given me a few chuckles and laughs. However, this gaming group of your's sounds more like an elitist painting club than a group of gamers getting together to play their favorite RPG. Perhaps it's time to evaluate which is more important to you: the minis or the game you use them for?

jh.