I have mentioned before my roommate is also DMing a game I play in. After the last session she didn't really want to talk about the game. And today while doing prep for the next session she suddenly tossed the adventure path away and said "I don't think I want to do this anymore".
She is very frustrated with the play styles of two of the players and she feels it is sucking the fun out of the game for her.
These two players play the game in a very paranoid manner. I have to admit I often end up grinding my teeth over some of this issue myself.
They have gone beyond being careful into the realm of absurd.
Here a just a couple of examples.
We knew that the bad guys who wanted us dead hung out at a bar at the very busy wharf. I came up with a plan to investigate and get the lay of the land by utilizing alter self potions so we didn't look like the group they were looking for.
I also picked a time when the docks would be busy with a lot of people about. They refused to do it they were worried that since alter self is magical any one able to detect magic would know. I played the wizard and rolled very high on my spellcraft roll. I told them that since we all carried magic items it would be just one more aura mixed in with many. I also pointed out that most people in the city have one or two small magical items so it not unusual for people to have a magical aura. There next argument what if the bad guys had a gem of true seeing then we would be exposed or what if they had been scying on the party.
So instead of us the adventures going down and investigating and maybe getting some XP they voted to hire a member of the thieves guild to scout for us. None of us were members of the thieves guild and we had to pay a pretty penny for what in the end amounted to bad information that almost got us killed. I did point out that there was evidence that the bad guys were in the thieves guild.
They have done this many times run away from things or refused to do something because it might be above our level.
This has cost us XP and treasure so the DM is always scrambling with a way to make it up.
The last session I think is what broke the camel's back for her. We had been in the city games at the arena as a cover to investigate things going on under it in the tunnels. We had finished up and we split up two of us to go talk to the wizard and the person who sponsored us in the games. The other two to take counsel at the temple to St Cuthbert.
When I and one of the paranoid players got to the wizard house there was no answer when we knocked and the door was unlocked. I opened it and the smell of death hit us. So of course paranoid player wanted nothing to do with it and refused to go in with me or got get the city guard.
I went alone found the wizard his servants and our sponsor murdered. The place had been ransacked. I did a search and found hidden in the wallpaper design a coded symbol my guild uses to communicate. I found a hidden compartment with very vital clues of what was going on.
I came out and hired a boy off the street to fetch the guard. About this time the other two players come up. When the paranoid player of that set heard I had summoned the guard he went nuts. He was raving that they were going to throw us in jail blah blah. No matter that the fact the victims had been dead at least 24 hours and at the time of the death we were at the arena in front of thousands of people.
He insisted we leave. The other paranoid player agreed but the paladin and I dug our heels in and we stayed. They left us.
The guards came took our statements asked if we had any clue of why this happened and then let us go. They treated both myself and the paladin with the up most respect.
Now we had some unfinished business in town like waiting for some magic items we had commissioned. Giving the churches and the King information on what we found. We are working for the King and the temples of St Cuthbert and Heirneous.
Instead of staying the other two insisted we leave the city right then and there without the items , without telling the King or the temples. They are convinced it would be suicide to stay because the bad guys took out a powerful wizard. And we are no match for them even though we are tenth level and there is no evidence that the wizard in question was super high level. I found his spell book in the wall safe and didn't have any spells over fourth in it.
So not to split the party we gave in and went. So now we are going across country without our magic items and we didn't stop and properly provision ourselves for this.
The DM has confided in me that at this point she is just tired of pulling punches because of stupid behavior like this. That she doesn't want to jump through hoops to make it okay. That we have left both king and church in the lurch with no clue at what is going on for all they know we are either dead or have gone bad. We don't have enough food for this trip. And some of us don't have all our items the paladin for example was not wearing his plate armor and they wouldn't wait for him to go and get it.
The DM is not a killer DM she does not go out of the way to 'get" the PCs. So I don't get where all this paranoia comes from.
But I get why she is frustrated because I am often frustrated too. I understand the concept of smart planning but I don't get the concept of worrying what level everything is or worrying that the bad guys might have abilities that can hurts us. We are supposed to be adventurers ours is a dangerous way of life.
The game is not until Sunday so I advised her to try and talk to the other players. I also thought maybe she should take a break for DMing.
She is very frustrated with the play styles of two of the players and she feels it is sucking the fun out of the game for her.
These two players play the game in a very paranoid manner. I have to admit I often end up grinding my teeth over some of this issue myself.
They have gone beyond being careful into the realm of absurd.
Here a just a couple of examples.
We knew that the bad guys who wanted us dead hung out at a bar at the very busy wharf. I came up with a plan to investigate and get the lay of the land by utilizing alter self potions so we didn't look like the group they were looking for.
I also picked a time when the docks would be busy with a lot of people about. They refused to do it they were worried that since alter self is magical any one able to detect magic would know. I played the wizard and rolled very high on my spellcraft roll. I told them that since we all carried magic items it would be just one more aura mixed in with many. I also pointed out that most people in the city have one or two small magical items so it not unusual for people to have a magical aura. There next argument what if the bad guys had a gem of true seeing then we would be exposed or what if they had been scying on the party.
So instead of us the adventures going down and investigating and maybe getting some XP they voted to hire a member of the thieves guild to scout for us. None of us were members of the thieves guild and we had to pay a pretty penny for what in the end amounted to bad information that almost got us killed. I did point out that there was evidence that the bad guys were in the thieves guild.
They have done this many times run away from things or refused to do something because it might be above our level.
This has cost us XP and treasure so the DM is always scrambling with a way to make it up.
The last session I think is what broke the camel's back for her. We had been in the city games at the arena as a cover to investigate things going on under it in the tunnels. We had finished up and we split up two of us to go talk to the wizard and the person who sponsored us in the games. The other two to take counsel at the temple to St Cuthbert.
When I and one of the paranoid players got to the wizard house there was no answer when we knocked and the door was unlocked. I opened it and the smell of death hit us. So of course paranoid player wanted nothing to do with it and refused to go in with me or got get the city guard.
I went alone found the wizard his servants and our sponsor murdered. The place had been ransacked. I did a search and found hidden in the wallpaper design a coded symbol my guild uses to communicate. I found a hidden compartment with very vital clues of what was going on.
I came out and hired a boy off the street to fetch the guard. About this time the other two players come up. When the paranoid player of that set heard I had summoned the guard he went nuts. He was raving that they were going to throw us in jail blah blah. No matter that the fact the victims had been dead at least 24 hours and at the time of the death we were at the arena in front of thousands of people.
He insisted we leave. The other paranoid player agreed but the paladin and I dug our heels in and we stayed. They left us.
The guards came took our statements asked if we had any clue of why this happened and then let us go. They treated both myself and the paladin with the up most respect.
Now we had some unfinished business in town like waiting for some magic items we had commissioned. Giving the churches and the King information on what we found. We are working for the King and the temples of St Cuthbert and Heirneous.
Instead of staying the other two insisted we leave the city right then and there without the items , without telling the King or the temples. They are convinced it would be suicide to stay because the bad guys took out a powerful wizard. And we are no match for them even though we are tenth level and there is no evidence that the wizard in question was super high level. I found his spell book in the wall safe and didn't have any spells over fourth in it.
So not to split the party we gave in and went. So now we are going across country without our magic items and we didn't stop and properly provision ourselves for this.
The DM has confided in me that at this point she is just tired of pulling punches because of stupid behavior like this. That she doesn't want to jump through hoops to make it okay. That we have left both king and church in the lurch with no clue at what is going on for all they know we are either dead or have gone bad. We don't have enough food for this trip. And some of us don't have all our items the paladin for example was not wearing his plate armor and they wouldn't wait for him to go and get it.
The DM is not a killer DM she does not go out of the way to 'get" the PCs. So I don't get where all this paranoia comes from.
But I get why she is frustrated because I am often frustrated too. I understand the concept of smart planning but I don't get the concept of worrying what level everything is or worrying that the bad guys might have abilities that can hurts us. We are supposed to be adventurers ours is a dangerous way of life.
The game is not until Sunday so I advised her to try and talk to the other players. I also thought maybe she should take a break for DMing.