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<blockquote data-quote="Jaelommiss" data-source="post: 6639105" data-attributes="member: 6775925">It seems like the player really wants to 'win', whatever that means in D&amp;D. In my experience, this comes when players don't realize how complications can make the game more fun. Remember the story of the halfling that never saw trolls in the woods, safely traveled over the Misty Mountains, didn't leave the path in Mirkwood, and backstabbed the sleeping dragon before heading home with a pile of gold that didn't have multiple factions trying to claim it? No? That's because complications make for a great story. Always winning is just plain boring. In everything I've ever done in life, satisfaction is proportional to challenge overcome, and some players just don't quite realize that this applies to D&amp;D too. Winning a certain fight isn't victory because there was no chance for loss. Making the perfect plan that cannot fail is a great way to 'win', but really isn't as exciting. One of the most fulfilling victories I earned in D&amp;D was a frontal assault on a hobgoblin castle, despite knowing of back ways in that would be far safer and more likely to succeed. By creating greater risks, victory was sweeter when it finally came.If you decide to talk about the situation with the player as others have suggested (I support this suggestion, if only to get it off your chest) it might help to explain that failure is one way to advance the game and that it doesn't mean that he has 'lost' at D&amp;D.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Jaelommiss, post: 6639105, member: 6775925"] It seems like the player really wants to 'win', whatever that means in D&D. In my experience, this comes when players don't realize how complications can make the game more fun. Remember the story of the halfling that never saw trolls in the woods, safely traveled over the Misty Mountains, didn't leave the path in Mirkwood, and backstabbed the sleeping dragon before heading home with a pile of gold that didn't have multiple factions trying to claim it? No? That's because complications make for a great story. Always winning is just plain boring. In everything I've ever done in life, satisfaction is proportional to challenge overcome, and some players just don't quite realize that this applies to D&D too. Winning a certain fight isn't victory because there was no chance for loss. Making the perfect plan that cannot fail is a great way to 'win', but really isn't as exciting. One of the most fulfilling victories I earned in D&D was a frontal assault on a hobgoblin castle, despite knowing of back ways in that would be far safer and more likely to succeed. By creating greater risks, victory was sweeter when it finally came. If you decide to talk about the situation with the player as others have suggested (I support this suggestion, if only to get it off your chest) it might help to explain that failure is one way to advance the game and that it doesn't mean that he has 'lost' at D&D. [/QUOTE]

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