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Help me convince my players that the Cleric is cool
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<blockquote data-quote="The Thayan Menace" data-source="post: 1702882" data-attributes="member: 18307"><p><strong>Railroading Kills Campaigns</strong></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>There is nothing wrong with being the "filler" in the party. In fact, I typically enjoy being such a character (i.e., a cleric) because I know that my presence will be appreciated by everyone at the table (DM included).</p><p></p><p>However, if my DM told me that I only had a choice of ONE class, ONE gender, and ONE deity, I would seriously consider gaming elsewhere.</p><p></p><p>You see ... for me, the D&D game is about character "agency". PCs should be able to take creative actions and make decisions which matter, without feeling like they are mere puppets for the DM's plot.</p><p></p><p>If my DM had such uber-specific requirements as were mentioned above, I would be inclined to believe that my character would always be second-place to their storyline no matter what I did.</p><p></p><p>Now, while I respect the freedom of DMs to adopt the so-called "storyteller" style, I can tell you from personal experience (regarding a DM we <em>ejected </em> from our gaming group) that it will alienate your players and cause resentment amongst friends.</p><p></p><p>Let's face it. If a DM's plot is so dependent on specific things happening (e.g., the need for a female cleric of Ehlonna in the party), then they should spend their time writing a great fantasy novel; they should not spend their time holding players hostage to a game where they feel disempowered from day one.</p><p></p><p>Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I believe the term I'm looking for is "railroading".</p><p></p><p><span style="color: Red">D&D is a cooperative venture.</span> Alienating your players by severely limiting their choice of character (i.e., a litmus test for "railroading") will leave you with one of three things:</p><p></p><p>You will have a table of disinterested gamers who stay because they cannot find another game.</p><p></p><p>OR ...</p><p></p><p>You will have a table of resentful friends who feel like you are wasting their time and are actually considering giving up on RPGs.</p><p></p><p>OR ...</p><p></p><p>You will have an empty table.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="The Thayan Menace, post: 1702882, member: 18307"] [b]Railroading Kills Campaigns[/b] There is nothing wrong with being the "filler" in the party. In fact, I typically enjoy being such a character (i.e., a cleric) because I know that my presence will be appreciated by everyone at the table (DM included). However, if my DM told me that I only had a choice of ONE class, ONE gender, and ONE deity, I would seriously consider gaming elsewhere. You see ... for me, the D&D game is about character "agency". PCs should be able to take creative actions and make decisions which matter, without feeling like they are mere puppets for the DM's plot. If my DM had such uber-specific requirements as were mentioned above, I would be inclined to believe that my character would always be second-place to their storyline no matter what I did. Now, while I respect the freedom of DMs to adopt the so-called "storyteller" style, I can tell you from personal experience (regarding a DM we [I]ejected [/I] from our gaming group) that it will alienate your players and cause resentment amongst friends. Let's face it. If a DM's plot is so dependent on specific things happening (e.g., the need for a female cleric of Ehlonna in the party), then they should spend their time writing a great fantasy novel; they should not spend their time holding players hostage to a game where they feel disempowered from day one. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I believe the term I'm looking for is "railroading". [COLOR=Red]D&D is a cooperative venture.[/COLOR] Alienating your players by severely limiting their choice of character (i.e., a litmus test for "railroading") will leave you with one of three things: You will have a table of disinterested gamers who stay because they cannot find another game. OR ... You will have a table of resentful friends who feel like you are wasting their time and are actually considering giving up on RPGs. OR ... You will have an empty table. [/QUOTE]
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