Campaigns you *don't* want to play in

[Shadowlord]

Re: It's the players, not the game...

The opposite of this, though, is the player who dictates to you, the DM, how it's gonna be... those players I tend to get rid of pretty quickly.

Oh, and then there are players who seem to think it's their job to be as frustratingly annoying as possible and to cause problems and be a general PITA at EVERY step of the way... I just got rid of a player like that... [/B]

But what if you have an uncapable DM who not only ignores most rules, but doesn't listen much to players' actions? He just writes a story (a good one though) but he decides from the beginning how it will resolve. That's not roleplaying, that's telling a stroy with an audience.

Would you mind if the player corrects him when the DM makes fatal mistakes all the time (and I don't only mean rules mistakes, but what's essential to any RPG: "interaction"!).

 

[Jemal]

If that's a joke or a shot at me it went over my head.

Gurps...
Burps...
actions are placed inside ** symbols.
Read his post over with that in mind...
Get it now?

(Don't you hate it when a joke has to be explained? oh well)

 

[Shadowlord]

*

 

[rounser]

Not I. Sorry. Player induced antics can be fun. The savage herd of squirrels in my game is certainly remembered. But it works because it's the exception.

Savage herds of squirrels sounds kinda lame, to be honest.

 

[Jemal]

You want silly?

ALL HAIL THE FUZZY BEDIRP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and if you see one that's not fuzzy, RUN!

 

[Kichwas]

Forgotten Realms.

The one published setting I have absolutely zero ability to connect with any aspect of... and my DM is just plain stuck in it.

Every time he describes the kind of world he would like to run, he describes Kalamar. But I can't get him to take a look at the book because it wasn't published by WotC...

That just adds an extra level of frustration.

 

[Kichwas]

...

 

[BiggusGeekus]

That just adds an extra level of frustration.

I hear you. Try this to introduce him to a new setting:

1) Prepare an adventure in the setting for level 3 characters. It should involve the background just enough to give it flavor, but not enough to overwhelm the players. I've noticed that players are willing to learn about 2 or 3 new things (e.g. Name of kingdom, who that kingdom is at war with, and general goals of the setting). So keep the background info to 25 words or less.

2) Tell folks you'd like to run a one-shot and that you'll make the characters if they don't want to bother to do it. Offer it as a change of pace.

3) The characters you create should be campaign setting sterotypes. Don't get fancy. The big, huge viking guys should be big, huge and have axes. Sneaky merchant people, should likewise be sneaky and rich.

4) If any players ask to make their own characters, shoot them the list of setting feats. People like to look at feats more than they admit. If they don't play a character that is ideal to the setting, don't worry about it. You don't want to put them in a straightjacket.

5) Run the game. Have fun.

I've found that to work wonders. I have one guy begging to play in my homebrew after doing that.

Good luck and happy gaming!

 

[WanderingMonster]

Any setting can be brilliant, but there is a formula:

1) Committment--Everyone has to be committed to the game. It doesn't matter if it's a one-shot or a campaign. You have to be able to throw yourself into it.

2) Comprehension--Everyone has to grasp the concept. I can't count the number of ideas that tanked because I, or the players did not "get it".

3) Communication--Tell them what you want, and listen to what they want. Again, the cool game I wanted to run sucked because the characters the players made were not quite what I envisioned.

4) Cameraderie--everyone has to be friendly (playerwise).

It's not a guarantee, but it's definitely heading in the right direction.

 

[Quinn]

I don't want to play in any BAD campaigns. Any campaign could be fun and exciting, but it's up to the DM to make it so. I've played in some great GH and FR games, and I've been in ones where I stuck around only to see how bad the game could really get. If I had to pick one campaign that I'd rather not play in again, it's any campaign that describes itself as grim, realistic, or low-magic. I think if you gathered up 100 DMs running such a game, perhaps only 5 of them are running anything remotely entertaining for the players.