My DM has killed the game for me, sugestions on how to get back the wonder for me.

[KenM]

Ok, I'll try to make this as short as possible. Our DM has sent us on a long quest to find these gems and a breastplate. The Gems fit into the breastplate. After we find all the gems, we find the breastplate attached to a statue, we belive the statue is the main BBEG that is a lich turned into a statue. We have a portible hole so we stuck the statue in it. We are each holding one of the gems because they are useful magic items. We could stick the gems into the breastplate, but we are 99.9% sure that woud awaken the lich, so we will not do it.
We were told to destroy the breastplate, we can't get the breastplate off the statue. Every sugestion we make to our DM as to destroy it, the DM just said "no, i won't let you do that, it won't work". One player said we incase it in stone and sail into the ocean and dump it off. I said we planeshift to another plane and leave it there, we are high enough level to try, but the DM said flat out that it would not work. Now I don't have a problem with these things not working, but I think the DM should have let us try one of these things and have the BBEG come back for revenge.
The DM had us do some research and said the only thing that would work is if we put the statue and breastplate into the lava of a volcano. So after traveling a long way into the mountins we talk with some dwarves and get directions to a volcano. But we tried to see if it would melt in one of the forges that the dwarves have, but it would not work, destipe the fact forges are about as hot as lava.
So we go into the volcano and dump the staute into it, we watch it sink and not melt. The DM then ended the session and said that he will bringing the statue and BBEG back.
So, I feel we were railroaded into bringing the thing into the volcano becuase we were told it would work, and it did not. If the DM wanted it to fail, he could have had us try one of the other things we sugested and have that fail instead of railroading us.
I'm really disapointed with the way the DM handled this and I have lost my beliveabitly with the world. The DM is a good friend and some other people in the game are also good friends. I don't know what to do. Next time we are faced with a problem, I'm going to say. "it does not matter what I sugest or what the DM says we should do, He did not let us try the other things with the breastplate, and when we did the thing the DM said we should do, it still did not work. So it does not matter."
Sorry for the long post.

 

[Hjorimir]

Yub. Be the DM.

 

[Henry]

We all get feeling like that from time to time, but it's possible it could have been due to an external issue, either for you or for the DM, that caused the game to go down in this manner.

I suggest you all talk with the DM before next game, as a group, and see if there are some issues that need addessing. Life's too short to have no fun playing.

 

[Desdichado]

Henry's right. If the DM just isn't very good, take the reins for a while; show them how it's done.

Not necessarily suggesting you try this, but I tend to rebel badly against obvioiusly railroaded plots -- if nothing I suggest can be done "just because" I typically have my characters just walk away from the situation. "Fine, we can't destroy the friggin' breastplate? I leave it, and head back to town." kinda thing.

 

[Dave Turner]

It sounds to me like the DM has played too many hours of computer RPGs.

 

[KenM]

Accually He does not play any computer RPG's at all. I also tend to rebel agaist being railroaded as well.

 

[Jeph]

Damn. He (the dm) had SOOOOOO many chances to throw some cool plot twists, make interesting adventures, have you encounter neat NPCs, and in general run a really sweet game based on players taking the initiative.

And he threw it all away.

Find someone to GM who won't make those mistakes. Possibly you.
--Jeff

 

[BSF]

It sure sounds like you were supposed to hop aboard the train and see where it takes you. If you can planeshift, did you try a disintegrate? Or, planeshift to the positive energy plane, put the gems into the breastplate and have at it. If it is a lich, it won't be very happy to be infused with positive energy. Then, have everyone grapple the lich so it can't cast spells. If the DM can't handle that sort of creativity, then you are starting to play beyond his comfort level.

Talk to the DM, because communication is the best way to fix problems. Don't be adversarial, if you can avoid it. But, do express your dissatisfaction with the lack of options, the seemingly arbitrary nature of the "quest" and it's "resolution" and your loss of faith in the game. Hopefully, it will go wel. But if it doesn't, take a break for a while and play some other game/campaign to have fun.

 

[Pielorinho]

I'd suggest taking the DM out to coffee and telling him your problems with the game in a tactful, respectful manner. If that doesn't work, gracefully bow out of the game; in a few weeks, invite him and the other players to play in a new campaign you're running.

That's more drastic than my normal advice, but this sounds like a very serious problem. And hopefully you can talk the DM into allowing more open-ended gaming. Make sure you compliment him for teh stuff he does well, and give specific examples of the kinds of things you'd like to see more often in the game; if he gets into a defensive mode, you'll get nowhere.

Daniel

 

[KenM]

Part of the problem is a couple of years ago, I moved across state, I travel back there every two weeks to game. Trying to get everyone else to game here would not work out.