My DN Rant (cont'd)

[The Dungeon Nazi]

For those of you who missed the thread, I had a new player coming into my game, who wanted to bring in a character from a previous game. I asked for more information, and he sent me a summary of the beginning of The Crystal Shard, centering on Regis and an entourage charged with protecting him, composed of paladins of Heironius.

So it turns out the guy has no interest in playing Regis -- the story he sent me was the beginnings of an attempt to write a long, long story to fit his character into my game. His old game most definitely did not take place anywhere on Toril, so I guess he was using the only FR material he's familiar with, the first few Drizzt books, to anchor his character into the game.

Anyway, as most great stories go, this one doesn't end so simply. After explaining that Regis was not the character he wanted to play, he told me that it was instead a fighter who wielded a half-glaive (I guess like a short spear, but a with a glaive tip? He said 5' long or something).

The half-glaive is a drow weapon.

The half-glaive is a drow weapon that does not crumble in sunlight -- it just loses its powers.

The half-glaive is a drow weapon that has a 50% chance to turn the target to stone on a natural 20.

Does this half-glaive belong in the hands of a 1st-level character? Unless convinced otherwise, I'm just going to give him whatever starting equipment he's eligible for after picking his class and region. Opinions? I'm curious if anyone else has run into something like this with their players.

 

[uv23]

No one should have access to a magic item at 1st level.

 

[MasterOfHeaven]

I heartily disagree. If I pay good money for that Arrow Of Sleeping, you better believe I'm going to get it! Seriously, I agree. That enchantment is only slightly less powerful then a Vorpal enchantment on a weapon. If he wants that weapon, he'll have to get it later on. You know, if I was you, I would just drop this player now, because from what I've seen he's just going to create problems if he doesn't get his way.

 

[Weeble]

DMs should follow guidelines like the Character Wealth by Level table in the DMG so that 1st level characters can't go out and buy +5 vorpals and things of that nature, unless, of course, you like high magic campaigns. By all means then, buy yourself a castle and kingdom and a Magic Item Mall.

 

[DM with a vengence]

Give this guy a slap with the Book o' Game Balance and then a kick out the door.

If this is the first time that he's played D&D, I might be a little more leniant but he should know better than to ask for a highly powerful unique magic item at first level.

If he wants a magic item, give him an amulet that adds +1 to saving throws against a specific spell, or a weapon that had +1 to damage against a specific monster or person. Something cool but not overpowering. It sounds like he really wants a high-level campaign, and if you feel truely evil, give it to him and then unlease all of the Smackdowns in the rules forum on him in the first encounter.

**Hint: Kyton Rogue in a room filled with chains will just leave a mist of blood**

 

[Leopold]

Evil Bastard DM mode:

Give him the weapon that doesn't crumble in sunlight. Tell him "HERE MY SON! GO FORTH AND CONQUER!!!" Let him get all cheery and happy. Then let the party camp. Let that bugger whip out the glaive during the nite (make sure it's a full moon) when the rays of the moon strike the weapon it crumbles to dust.


you have fullfilled every part of the agreement for the PC:

1. It's a half-glaive (check)

2. It's a drow weapon and doesn't crumble in sunlight (check)

3. It turns the enemy to stone (check).



Never stopped him from using it did you?

 

[rounser]

I say, save the "zombie turkey sandwich" wishes for Efreets and Wish spells - doing it in response to a player-DM deal is just cheesey. Either fulfil the request or don't - boobytrapping it is kind of feeble, IMO.

 

[kkoie]

this player of yours is a total joke. He's got to be kidding himself. I don't see how it would be possible to give him a magic item of that power, and still be fair to the other players. The guy sounds like he needs to grow up and start playing fair.

K Koie

 

[Humanophile]

Hmmm. I want to give this player a beating, but you'll have to find out about his old game first. If it was a monty haul style, I'd cut him some slack for not knowing his character's rear end from a dungeon complex. If it was more up to speed, than...

Minor hijack here, but this player seems hooked on books where the character gets some MacGuffin artifact early on, and than goes off on some halfarsed adventure. Explain to him that D&D doesn't work quite that way, set him down with a basic fighter (or just have him observe), and see if D&D proper floats his boat. If it does, great, you have a good player. If not, than leave him back to his books and the gamepit.

 

[The Dungeon Nazi]

I want to avoid being painted into a corner where he expects me to give him the exact weapon he's wanted since he rolled up this character.

What I'm going to do is give him his half-glaive (masterwork, if he wants to spend money on that) and deem that he takes an exotic weapon proficiency for it. So do I halve the price of the masterwork glaive?

And since I'm going to tell him that he can have his custom "Medusa's Gaze" forged when he has access to whatever he'll need to create it (though he'll be hard-pressed to find any means of forging drow weapons anytime soon), how do I calculate the cost and requirements of his half-weapon?