Alchohol During A D&D Game?

[TheYeti1775]

I can drink at all my games. Especially my online ones (ever game naked - haha joking guys).

A few can be fun at some games, a few games you might want that drink. Especially when that RBDM has you surround and you are about out of cards up your sleeve. (Note to Funeris - hurry up with that Story Hour so I can talk about it.)

One very good rule though is the DM should never drink Jim Beam, while DM'ing an 11/12 level party. Blue Dragons tend to die quickily versus a Goshdarn Invisible Immovable Rod when they are doing a diving charge.

 

[Rel]

Eeeeeeeew, how vulgar.

How on Earth can you hope to collaborate creatively upon themes of high art, with wine from a BOX???

I think I'd much rather game with someone who drinks wine from a box than someone who thinks of their game as "high art".

 

[atom crash]

You're allowed to game without alcohol? Huh?

Seriously, judging by some responses in this thread and others I've read concerning table rules, I would seriously dislike gaming with some of these groups. With all the table rules and such, it seems more like going to a job than playing a game: You have to arrive promptly at 7 pm, game until midnight, eat before you arrive, no drinking, keep the table chatter to a minimum, and if your gaming style doesn't suit the rest of the group you'll find yourself looking for a new group.

I guess it would be different if I gamed with people I don't think of as friends.

As it stands, in my gaming group, we started out as people playing D&D together but now our games are more like a weekly social gathering where we happen to play D&D.

I'll usually have a couple beers if I'm playing. If it's my week to DM, I'll just drink loads of Code Red. I've found that DMing plus alcohol isn't a good combo for my game, though caffeine might be just as bad because it gives me loads of energy but no focus.

Years ago, I joined a group of gamers who all already knew each other and worked together. During one session, one player kept pulling the DM aside to "ask a question" in the back room. He even took another player a few times. "Yeah, Dan needs to be there too." they'd come back a few minutes later, all hungry with bloodshot eyes. I'm not completely daft, so after a bit I put two and two together and figured out they were going to the back room to smoke pot.

When I figured out what was up, I told them, "Look guys, I know what you're up to and it doesn't bother me. I don't smoke, but I won't mind if you smoke around me. Hey, it's your house, after all. Let's just get on with the game."

They all played chaotic characters and I had a lawful cleric, so them getting stoned during the game probably helped them stay in character. But the games were fun and I got along well enough with the other guys, so it wasn't an issue.

 

[the Jester]

Years ago, I joined a group of gamers who all already knew each other and worked together. During one session, one player kept pulling the DM aside to "ask a question" in the back room. He even took another player a few times. "Yeah, Dan needs to be there too." they'd come back a few minutes later, all hungry with bloodshot eyes. I'm not completely daft, so after a bit I put two and two together and figured out they were going to the back room to smoke pot.

When I figured out what was up, I told them, "Look guys, I know what you're up to and it doesn't bother me. I don't smoke, but I won't mind if you smoke around me. Hey, it's your house, after all. Let's just get on with the game."

Interesting- we smoke a lot of the ol' devil weed when we play, and when we have a new player we're straight up honest about it. We try to make sure our play style is compatible before we let someone into our group in the first place.

 

[Tarangil]

Gaming under the influence of alcohol has always proved disasterous for my players. But with them moderation was never an option. It is usually the only time any of my PC's experienced mass death together, and none of it was my fault (or doing) They brought it on themselves. Although it wasn't banned from the table it was frowned upon.

When I had players that had smoked up, they lived longer than the alcoholics, but the game was extended by quite a bit. I've had stoned players spend 2 1/2 hours in a 10x10 empty room checking every nook and cranny and get as much detail as possible.