RangerWickett
Legend
I've occasionally ranted about how my players' characters have been evil in my games. They've sailed with mad scientists who tortured halflings. But then they fought against some warmongers and arms dealers, and I felt like they weren't really that bad of PCs.
Then they left the passengers of another ship to fend for themselves after a fight they instigated left the ship in flames (the party got the lifeboats). But afterward the party got to the mainland, got some 'antipsychotics' for one of the PCs who'd been having opium fits, and again fought the recurring villains, so I figured they'd get back to more decent ways.
When the captain of another ship they were sailing on burned his own sails and sent his crew away in the life boats, leaving the party on board with a ship full of passengers the captain hated, the party did the 'sensible' thing and killed all those passengers, so the captain would no longer have a reason to sit in the ocean and die. The party got to the mainland, and again on the trail of the villains, managed to stop one of their plans. At this point, I was sure the party was finally getting more interested in the plot than in random antics.
Then . . . in last night's game, in order to make the party feel more tied to an organization, and less like outlaws, I had the local noble reward them for their recent defeat of some nasty folk by giving the party a ship of their own, which they could use to sail to the next part of the adventure. The ship needed a crew, though, so the party set up shop in the local taverns with signs saying, "Sailors needed. The more missing limbs, the better. Parrots a bonus."
So of course I have a bunch of retired pirates join the crew. I figure it'll be funny. And I'm fine with funny. What I'm not fine with is how the party then decided it'd be fun to be pirates on the way to their next stop. They sank one ship, and seized another, and though they let most of the crew go, they killed a few people along the way.
I realize that the group goes insane every time they hit the open seas. It's really quite disturbing. I mean, I can deal with it. But just, dang it, again my players get far too much of a kick out of taking advantage of those weaker than them. I'd love to just kill all their characters when various law enforcement officials from three different countries come for them, but they'd think I was spoiling their fun.
Argh. What I wouldn't give for a group who actually wanted to be heroic for a change. It's fine to have characters with shadier motivations, those who are looking out for themselves and such. But this group is just full of thugs.
I really liked what I had planned for this game, and aside from the thuggery it's going well, but I know I can't convince them to change their minds, so yeah, I think I'll just off 'em. There are enough people looking for them.
Then they left the passengers of another ship to fend for themselves after a fight they instigated left the ship in flames (the party got the lifeboats). But afterward the party got to the mainland, got some 'antipsychotics' for one of the PCs who'd been having opium fits, and again fought the recurring villains, so I figured they'd get back to more decent ways.
When the captain of another ship they were sailing on burned his own sails and sent his crew away in the life boats, leaving the party on board with a ship full of passengers the captain hated, the party did the 'sensible' thing and killed all those passengers, so the captain would no longer have a reason to sit in the ocean and die. The party got to the mainland, and again on the trail of the villains, managed to stop one of their plans. At this point, I was sure the party was finally getting more interested in the plot than in random antics.
Then . . . in last night's game, in order to make the party feel more tied to an organization, and less like outlaws, I had the local noble reward them for their recent defeat of some nasty folk by giving the party a ship of their own, which they could use to sail to the next part of the adventure. The ship needed a crew, though, so the party set up shop in the local taverns with signs saying, "Sailors needed. The more missing limbs, the better. Parrots a bonus."
So of course I have a bunch of retired pirates join the crew. I figure it'll be funny. And I'm fine with funny. What I'm not fine with is how the party then decided it'd be fun to be pirates on the way to their next stop. They sank one ship, and seized another, and though they let most of the crew go, they killed a few people along the way.
I realize that the group goes insane every time they hit the open seas. It's really quite disturbing. I mean, I can deal with it. But just, dang it, again my players get far too much of a kick out of taking advantage of those weaker than them. I'd love to just kill all their characters when various law enforcement officials from three different countries come for them, but they'd think I was spoiling their fun.
Argh. What I wouldn't give for a group who actually wanted to be heroic for a change. It's fine to have characters with shadier motivations, those who are looking out for themselves and such. But this group is just full of thugs.
I really liked what I had planned for this game, and aside from the thuggery it's going well, but I know I can't convince them to change their minds, so yeah, I think I'll just off 'em. There are enough people looking for them.
