Escaping Violent Players

[Lanefan]

If it's a choice between someone showing up to the game armed and someone showing up to the game with a case of beer, I'll take the beer-bearing person every time....and help drink it too, if offered any.

I can't offhand remember the last home game I was involved in that was completely dry. Probably 20 years ago or more at least.

Lan-"a civilized society doesn't need guns"-efan

 

[Jd Smith1]

If it's a choice between someone showing up to the game armed and someone showing up to the game with a case of beer, I'll take the beer-bearing person every time....and help drink it too, if offered any.

I can't offhand remember the last home game I was involved in that was completely dry. Probably 20 years ago or more at least.

Lan-"a civilized society doesn't need guns"-efan

I've long banned alcohol at me table; certainly since the 80s. I don't drink, and I don't like the smell.

 

[Umbran]

Mod Note:
Folks,
This thread is not going to become a discussion of gun ownership. Please drop it.

 

[Darth Solo]

Breaking News: Some TTRPG players have real psychological issues!

This is why you screen players. Easiest way?

"The party has taken out the Orc warriors and now face a group of female orcs defending their children with short swords! What do you do?"

Their answer to that should handle everything you need to pick your preferred group. I promise it will. If you ask the right questions you will filter the bad players from the good players you want.

Another one is to have a scene where the PCs are escorted before a King who jabs them with insults. If their reactions would insult a King it is what it is.

Bad players can't help themselves. Really. They will expose why they don't belong at your table.

 

[Jd Smith1]

Breaking News: Some TTRPG players have real psychological issues!

This is why you screen players. Easiest way?

"The party has taken out the Orc warriors and now face a group of female orcs defending their children with short swords! What do you do?"

Their answer to that should handle everything you need to pick your preferred group. I promise it will. If you ask the right questions you will filter the bad players from the good players you want.

Bad players can't help themselves. Really. They will expose why they don't belong at your table.

That is certainly no screening issue I would consider. I've never, since 1979, had a group who would react any other way.

 

[Mongoose_Matt]

took out a framed poster (one of his own) with his dice after an endless series of "illegal procedure" calls in Blood Bowl.

I am not unsympathetic to that. There is no way the dice in Blood Bowl are random...

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

So it's kinda like a Voight-Kampff Test...

"You’re in a dungeon walking along in when all of the sudden you look down, and you see a flumph, it’s floating toward you. You reach down, you flip the flumph over on its back. The flumph lays on its back, helpless on the stone floor, wiggling its tentacles trying to turn itself over, but it can’t, not without your help. But you’re not helping. Why is that?"

Advice on making sure players are a good fit for the table is probably something that should be in the DMG, along with good table etiquette in the PHB.

This is why you screen players. Easiest way?

"The party has taken out the Orc warriors and now face a group of female orcs defending their children with short swords! What do you do?"

Their answer to that should handle everything you need to pick your preferred group. I promise it will. If you ask the right questions you will filter the bad players from the good players you want.

Another one is to have a scene where the PCs are escorted before a King who jabs them with insults. If their reactions would insult a King it is what it is.

Bad players can't help themselves. Really. They will expose why they don't belong at your table.

 

[aramis erak]

So it's kinda like a Voight-Kampff Test...

"You’re in a dungeon walking along in when all of the sudden you look down, and you see a flumph, it’s floating toward you. You reach down, you flip the flumph over on its back. The flumph lays on its back, helpless on the stone floor, wiggling its tentacles trying to turn itself over, but it can’t, not without your help. But you’re not helping. Why is that?"

Advice on making sure players are a good fit for the table is probably something that should be in the DMG, along with good table etiquette in the PHB.

Anyone using that particular one would be me walking away from them and their table.
Part of that is my general approach to games is "Players control what their characters attempt; the rules, GM, and dice interact to determine the results of that attempt."

"The party has taken out the Orc warriors and now face a group of female orcs defending their children with short swords! What do you do?"

Their answer to that should handle everything you need to pick your preferred group. I promise it will. If you ask the right questions you will filter the bad players from the good players you want.

For me, that's non-selective as to player, but is determinative for the games I'l let them in.

 

[Lanefan]

Breaking News: Some TTRPG players have real psychological issues!

This is why you screen players. Easiest way?

"The party has taken out the Orc warriors and now face a group of female orcs defending their children with short swords! What do you do?"

Their answer to that should handle everything you need to pick your preferred group. I promise it will. If you ask the right questions you will filter the bad players from the good players you want.

This assumes - often wrongly, IME - that players are largely going to play themselves as their characters and can't/won't separate the two.

In any case, my answer to that question about the Orcs would be something like "Once I know what character I'm playing and what makes it tick, I'll be able to answer that question".

Another one is to have a scene where the PCs are escorted before a King who jabs them with insults. If their reactions would insult a King it is what it is.

Bad players can't help themselves. Really. They will expose why they don't belong at your table.

Yet again, good players can play bad characters perfectly well.

I had a character (not player, character!) in my game once who was utterly incapable of speaking two sentences without insulting someone in his vicinity. Ironclad guarantee he'd have insulted that King within minutes and probably got himself thrown in the palace dungeon, or worse. (then again, a party with collective wisdom greater than a shoe wouldn't have let him within earshot of the King in the first place...)

The player was great, and IRL not at all like his character. The character was horrible, yet played exceptionally well.

If @Wik is still around these parts he'll know exactly who I mean.

 

[Jd Smith1]

So it's kinda like a Voight-Kampff Test...

"You’re in a dungeon walking along in when all of the sudden you look down, and you see a flumph, it’s floating toward you. You reach down, you flip the flumph over on its back. The flumph lays on its back, helpless on the stone floor, wiggling its tentacles trying to turn itself over, but it can’t, not without your help. But you’re not helping. Why is that?"

I'm with aramis on that.

If a player can get along with others, show up on time each week, and not argue with the GM, he's a long ways to being 'in'. If he takes an in-game stance that 'nits grow into lice', well, that's an issue for the other players, not me. Although I've never seen a player really object.