D&D General How do you handle Romance in D&D games?

[doctorbadwolf]

In this case, as a magical academy, chances are any romance for any character would be their first, cringey foray into that world of hormones, crushes, infatuation, and equal chances at bliss and disappointment.

I doubt it, it isn’t a magical high school, it’s a magical college, IIRC.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

My only experience anywhere adjacent was a drop in player deciding that he was going to rape an NPC and the DM trying and failing to diffuse the situation. Broke the group.

So, that's a "No" from me.

I also had an experience like that. The DM (a survivor of assault) froze, and I and another player told him that he was going to do no such thing, and in fact needed to leave immediately.

Sadly, he tried to argue about it, and left with some fresh bruises. It is what it is.

 

[LordEntrails]

I've never had a table interested in sex or romance, other than the passing bard comment. The only time it ever came up was in a play by post campaign I was running with a split party, and that was only once.

 

[iserith]

Ah yea, the classic “punish players for being interested in roleplaying and not just constant dungeoneering” routine. Great advice. /s

It's right there in the DMG, page 69: "There are two ways to play the game: boring constant dungeoneering that we know everyone hates, and transcendent romantic roleplaying that makes you better than everyone else."

 

[Ancalagon]

My games don't feature any overt sex, so anything beyond torrid handholding is likely to fade to black. And I don't generally position NPCs as to be targets of PC romance.

Between mature, consenting adult players, romance is fine.

When one of the players is immature, and using in-game romance for expression of out-of-game desires without discussing that aspect of it first, there is very likely going to be a problem, and making a problem will get you removed from the table.

Immaturity is indeed a problem.

... and for a number of us, we learned how to game when we were immature. So stuff that is perfectly fine for well adjusted adults was, uh, quite bad with teenagers. There are a number of "lessons" I learned back then (don't do X in D&D it's going to be a naughty word show) that it took me several years to realize that those lessons were applicable to that situation, but not D&D as a whole.

But, when you are with a group you don't know well, those "don't do X" are probably still applicable...

 

[aco175]

Mostly old James Bond stuff or Han Solo stuff where there is some intent but no visual. Maybe some Disney's Beauty and the Beast where the 3 barmaids fawn over Gsaston. Maybe some day-after jokes about taking the; gold piece girl on silver piece day.

 

[Ancalagon]

Mostly old James Bond stuff or Han Solo stuff

I don't know why, but I initially read this as "Moldy old James Bond stuff"

 

[HammerMan]

we have done 'romance' but it was always fade to black/3rd party narrative... we even have had PCs have children (although it has been a while).

in 2e we had a player have her bladesinger flirt with another woman (really uncomfortable at first because the DM was a guy who at that time had never had a GF) but it became hilarious when it turned out the woman (an important NPC for sure) was a Gold dragon... and the PC asked if the shape change/polymorph would allow for a female dragon to have a child with a female elf. However once we got past the childhood gasps, the PC DID have a half dragon child. It ended up (this was like a 4 year campaign) with half the party having families but it all started with her.

I don't think I have had ANY relationship stuff in 5e at all, at some point I guess we stopped but I can't point to when.

 

[HammerMan]

I doubt it, it isn’t a magical high school, it’s a magical college, IIRC.

aren't most high school and college movies/TV shows written interchangably

 

[Jmarso]

in 2e we had a player have her bladesinger flirt with another woman (really uncomfortable at first because the DM was a guy who at that time had never had a GF) but it became hilarious when it turned out the woman (an important NPC for sure) was a Gold dragon... and the PC asked if the shape change/polymorph would allow for a female dragon to have a child with a female elf. However once we got past the childhood gasps, the PC DID have a half dragon child.

And thus was spawned the race of Dragonborn...