How would you feel?

[Mark]

I'd rather not post the link as it's not my website.

Understood.

However, here's the history. (followed by my character's history) ... and mine for comparison...

It's difficult to curb the kind of enthusiasm that she has, especially since it is (as you mention) the first time she's really dived in as deep to background creation. Perhaps the DM is walking on eggshells to avoid discouraging her and figured everyone else would simply let it slide without discussion or debate.

Edit - Throwing in the towel seems to be a popular suggested solution to your problem but that's something you might want to only consider if communication doesn't prove fruitful and if you have a good number of game alternatives to explore, IMO.

 

[Arnwyn]

Seriously I'd just quit now. You can talk to her and you can talk to the DM but because neither of them thought this was the stupidest thing they had ever heard to start with they probably won't understand your point and will think you are trying to "ruin the game".

I'm going to have to echo jdavis's sentiments here (though see his qualifying quote, below). What is the DM doing here? Based on what you have said, I'm assuming that he has accepted this proposal? Or, is that just an assumption on your part that "because he posted it to the website, he has accepted it"? Maybe the DM hasn't even read it yet. I would:

Ask the DM why he doesn't have a problem with this, any answer that is not "I do have a problem I just don't know how to approach her yet" is a sure sign the whole thing is doomed to be a disaster.

Yep, ask the DM immediately, and point out the offending portion of the other player's background.

I'll be honest with you - in this case, you're putting the blame on the wrong person. The fault lies with the DM (sad to say). The player (who sounds somewhat newer to the game) may just be trying to come up with an interesting background, not understanding what the implications of her background are and how it can affect the game - but the DM certainly should. I can't believe the DM has accepted such an asinine character background.

 

[Mercule]

I'll be honest with you - in this case, you're putting the blame on the wrong person. The fault lies with the DM (sad to say). The player (who sounds somewhat newer to the game) may just be trying to come up with an interesting background, not understanding what the implications of her background are and how it can affect the game - but the DM certainly should. I can't believe the DM has accepted such an asinine character background.

Agreed. The history doesn't sound too power-hungry. To say that "she made the party beg" may be a bit of an overstatement. "Stew for a while" could be an hour rather than days, and an hour is a perfectly acceptable amount of time to figure out if you need to run from these people or let them out.

It also sounds like this player is just clueless about what characters at that power level can do. One Teleport spell, and the Wizard is out. I'd say the player is just enthusiastic and green. See if she's flexible in her history and work with her. If she isn't, then you can get upset.

Like others have said, though, the DM is the one at fault. He never should have accepted that history as it stands. If we give him the benefit of the doubt (which is reasonable), then these histories are tentative and meant to spark discussion. If that doubt is proven wrong, then I'm not sure your DM is up to the task of this game. Still, everyone makes mistakes. See how he reacts.

Hey, I've got 20 years of almost continuous GMing under my belt and I make some pretty dumb mistakes. That said, even having played/DMed 3E since the first week it came out, I'd be very hesitant to start a campaign at epic levels. There are just too many "butterfly wings" that can cause hurricanes at that level.

 

[Shallown]

I honestly don't think her background is that bad. I admit it is raw and inexperienced but think about it haven't we all been there or at least near there.

Look at what she said. Let you stew. As someone pointed out this could have been the reasonable hour it would take for her to make up her mind and I think most of my characters would stew for a while.

Much pleading on thier side could mean from this halflings point of veiw one character was pleading or whining which is possible or maybe that is just t he rogues opinion of what the party sounded like.

I think the rogue is putting words in your mouth yes but it is her personal history with her personal veiws.

I don't know what levels you are considered to be at at the time but she did credit the group with scary big spells.

I would give the benefit of the doubt since it sounds like you GM'ed this person and I would hope have some understanding of the person's motives. Yeah if they are a powergaming role play spolt light stealing hog then smash them apart for the idea but from what it sounds like they are just new to this sort of background and for taht I think some lienency should be employed. And like a lot of people have said just talk about it but look at it objectively then decide if this is something you can live with.

Just my thoughts
later

 

[jdavis]

Well the history is actually not that bad with the one big exception of "trapping' the party. She really doesn't say how she trapped the party (and obviously doesn't understand that there are plenty of spells to let the party escape just about any trap at high levels, not to mention the party can feed itself even at low levels with a simple clerical spell). After reading it I'll back off on her being power mad or scary, but the DM really should of worked with her on this, it's just compleatly unfeasable. (maybe he could help her find a magic item that would allow such a trap or maybe he could come up with a way to rewrite it so only she thought she had them trapped, they were just trying to get information out of her and could leave at any time, or well anything to get across to her that this one little mistake ruins a pretty decent background and needs some work. She obviously doesn't have a clue but was trying real hard, the problem it seems is that the DM didn't have a clue either (and that's real bad news starting a new game under him, especially at high levels). I'd still go ask him why he didn't have a problem with this and I'd explain in detail the 100 or so reasons this wouldn't work, then the group should sit down with the girl and flesh out group history as a group. I'll retract on what I said earlier this is a fixable problem, but only if you nip it in the bud (I'd still be scared of his DMing skills at this point though).

 

[Voadam]

I then devised a plan and set my traps. Of course the traps worked but alas why did I not think about the fact that a dragon would not come back to a town where no food or wealth was offered. Instead of a dragon I caught the self same party that Roger was so intimidated by.

I let them stew for a while, just to be sure they were not about to ransack my town. After much pleading on their side and a few large and scary spells thrown my way I decided to let them out and even feed them as it seemed they could use it.

Over the meal I inform them of my plight, leaving out the bit about the thieving and all, I may be arrogant but I am not stupid, and they feel sorry for me and escort me back to Southfordshire with a promise to get this dragon which now has a taste for flesh. Well you won't believe it but these marauding adventurers actually overthrew my old guild and now the city is safe and boring and I am stuck here with nothing to do.

My god they actually set up a better police force while they were there. That sucked.

Sorry, but I decided that rather than be caught like a rat in a trap in that town I would tag along with the adventurers.

It took much convincing but after keeping on them and following them from inn to inn, I finally convinced them to allow me along on their dragon hunt.

I gave them the choice of taking me with them or meeting me there, they took me with them for my own protection, awww isn't that sweet.

OK this is not that bad, she has the party at one point falling into a trap, her letting them stew for a while as she checks them out, pleading, scary spells retaliation/warning, and releasing them then feeding them. I think the "pleading" could easily be her interpretation of a barbarian threatening to snap her little neck if she did not release them.

Except for that pleading part it seems not a big issue at all.

Even the feeding can be an interpretation of a hobbit looking at a human, "My god you are nothing but skin and bones! How long has it been since you've had six normal meals in a day?"

I don't see this as trapping you, taunting you, starving you, and then having you beg for your lives and food while at her mercy type of situation.

If you have items or spells (like dimension door) that you constantly have ready that could get you out you might want to let her and the DM know so that this could be incorporated into her story or simply ask that the offensive pleading element be removed.

 

[Voadam]

We are about to start a campaign that involves high level characters that are supposed to have known each other for a while and work together. The DM has asked us to submit character histories for our characters and one of our fellow players has done something I consider to be a big faux pas.

Her character is introduced to the group by capturing them in a trap (physical) and making them beg for their lives, freedom and food.

At the time the rest of the group was powerful enough to defeat the dragon that devastated her town but yet we had to beg for our release from her and she was the same level the other 6 players were.

Never were any of us so much as asked about this history, and taking that kind of tact towards the other players just isn't cool unless it's cool with them....

It doesn't seem that she made you beg for anything. She did say there was pleading (which could be her incharacter interpretation do to her not being trapped) and she fed you, but not that she made you beg for your lives and food.

 

[Djeta Thernadier]

I wouldn't like it.

It seems rather unfair to the other players. For one thing, if you were to have all been friends before the capaign begins, you should have all come up with a past history together, that all agreed on.

For another thing, I'd prefer to start as a lower level, both as a player & DM to help your characters growinstead of starting off ultra powerful. But I guess that's just MHO.

 

[just__al]

It doesn't seem that she made you beg for anything. She did say there was pleading (which could be her incharacter interpretation do to her not being trapped) and she fed you, but not that she made you beg for your lives and food.

Upon a second rereading, I'm somewhat inclined to agree. I've talked with some of the other gamers and we are planning on quietly and camly bringing up our objections with the backstory and making some reasonable suggestions.

One player briefly talked to the DM. The impression the player got is that is that the DM is hoping not to get involved either way and that we can handle it with the player. He doesn't want to have to tell her no. The DM also mentioned if we all waited to do the backstorys together this might not have happened. Sadly I now have to agree...

4 of the people playing live in my house 2 of us have DM'd the last two campains and we decided we'd give the DM a break by being mostly done by tomorrow so the DM could concentrate on helping the less experienced 3.x players finish up their characters.

I wonder if we didn't bite ourselves on the ass...

 

[Xeriar]

The GM posted the character history on the campaign website. That's essentially approval. I haven't had the opportunity to discuss with the DM and I'm holding off until everybody is there on Saturday when we wrap up chargen. But she is anything but a bully. Just not the best gamer.

He has DM'd before just not 3E/3.5E

Alright. I'm not sure what the heck the DM was doing, I hope for the sake of those involved that the campaign turns out alright.

The player in question probably has no idea that this is a big faux pas. She's not a very experienced gamer. And, we've been playing 3.0 together for a year. Two different campaigns, one I just finished DMing and one another player ran first. She seldom can keep up with her options and has never made even passable good use of her characters spells when she played a druid or a cleric. I'm actually glad to see her playing a rogue because she'll be able to keep up (hopefully).

Reminds me of a girl whose online alias begins with a B...

In that case, I would probably talk with her one or two on one about how players are responsible for their own characters and not others. I would try to avoid crowding her by having -everyone- talk to her, but make it clear that all of the other players are dissapointed by that part of her background.

Try to get it across that, in the background, she was running other player's characters, and that is not cool.

Talking to the GM may prove more fruitful if she is stubborn about it, or it may not. If they're both adamant about it, there might be other issues going on.