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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mesh Hong" data-source="post: 5354645" data-attributes="member: 73463">Honestly I really wouldn't use that analogy. Chequers and an RPG are completely different and it isn't the type of remark that will help the situation. Again I am going to chip in and look at the situation from the other side of the fence. Most of the posters here seem to just assume the worst of this new person to our hobby but I want to understand him and help all the parties involved adapt and continue with what they say is a brilliant game. From the sound of it he is used to games where you control multiple pieces towards an overall defined goal and can achieve a victory (Wargaming and Magic). Roleplaying doesn't have the same structure, fixed end point or victory condition.  In a wargame situation you might be prepared to "lose" the skirmish on your left flank because it serves a greater purpose in your greater battle plan. In an RPG you have one character, and as such "victory" or "defeat" rests solely in its hands. That means that any set back your one piece has can have a major effect and reduce its chance of "winning". Now I realise that I am using dangerous terms such as "winning", but in all honesty that is probably what the person in question is thinking about. His comment about his character getting screwed over might point us in the direction that he feels that there is a competition between himself and the DM (it fits his previous gaming experience, so why wouldn't he?). He also seems to be complaining about areas of the game for which there are no definite systems or rules, again this is not what he is used to (in a wargame or magic every part of the game has set rules that can be studied, understood and exploited by expert players). Taking the "fire incident" (where his character unpredictably lost 2 potions) to him it could be analogous to half way through a game of magic his opponent suddenly flips through his deck and takes out 5 cards that are important to the functioning of his decks theme, suddenly putting him at a disadvantage from something he had no way of predicting. The resolution here is probably a long road. Roleplaying disputes can usually be boiled down to trust, Players must trust that the DM will not "screw them over" (putting it bluntly) and a DM must trust that his players will act in the spirit of the system or setting. Trust is something that is hard won and easily lost, so telling the person that "you are the type of person that whines when they lose a piece in chequers" is both inappropriate and overly adversarial.</blockquote>

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