Performance reviews and cleaving.

[Xini]

Ok so you've got a group filled out with serious minded rogues with plenty of stealth and subtefuge. They are really looking forward to sneaking past guards and quietly achieving their objectives.

Then the last person in the group makes their character. Firstly he decides to play Munchy the cleric. Munchy is a cleric of the god of pranks and Munchy is devoted to his work. Munchy also wears heavy armour and has a dex of 6.

They player who designed Munchy is shot with d20s around the head.
Said player decides to redesign.

Krango is a theif. However he's not like most thieves and despises getting his hands dirty. He uses a bow and is very dexterous but is quite fragile.

The other players, still feeling bad for having used the metal dice, let this character into the group even though they know that the whole "I don't get dirty" will prevent them from climbing the drain pipe to the roof and other such misadventures. They know that the characters frailty will keep them from being useful in melee to the extent that they are a liability but they let it in because they see no other option.

Basically if you've got a person in your group who has come up with a character which is an absolute liability, what do you do?
(I'm running with the assumptions that getting shot of them is entirely not preferable, upsetting them is irksome and forcing them into a corner is usually fruitless.)

 

[MerricB]

Explain to the player the style of the group and the campaign, and the type of PC he needs to create. If that doesn't work, drop the player.

 

[Xini]

Explain to the player the style of the group and the campaign, and the type of PC he needs to create. If that doesn't work, drop the player.

Oh yeah I hear you there. The problem I have is that I explain the campaign theme planned, I explain the options and then he seems to, with a simple twist, turn all the arguments around so that his concept fits.

If your familiar with personality profiles the guy is an ISTJ.

Basically I'm looking to address this problem entirely in character, without upsetting him and in an incontravertible manner.

Any takers?

 

[Black_Swan]

You can't address it in character...that will just cause wasted game time.

Just tell your friend that his character while fun, is going to have to work with the group. So while he hates getting dirty and it's cool and funny if he complains about it..he will have to get dirty.

As far as I can tell that's 2 pc's he's made that are incompatable with the group. It's obvious he puts his fun ahead of the rest of you and enjoys being annoying.

Compromise out of character so you don't waste your time while you are playing.

Believe me..it's easier to compromise or just drop him then it is to argue in game with him about his characters personality.

 

[molonel]

Oh yeah I hear you there. The problem I have is that I explain the campaign theme planned, I explain the options and then he seems to, with a simple twist, turn all the arguments around so that his concept fits. If your familiar with personality profiles the guy is an ISTJ. Basically I'm looking to address this problem entirely in character, without upsetting him and in an incontravertible manner. Any takers?

You are trying to be very nice. I respect that. But if the player is being deliberately obtuse, find out what is annoying the other players are trying to play, then quietly explain to the player, "Just toss some ranks in this or that, and bump your Con so you're not an absolute weenie" and be done with it.

Don't make it more complicated than it is.

His first character draft with the cleric in heavy armor with the Dex of 6 ought to show you that he took "Pain in the Ass" as his first level feat, so don't feel like you have to be TOO nice.

 

[Mark CMG]

Performance reviews and cleaving.

(. . .)

Basically if you've got a person in your group who has come up with a character which is an absolute liability, what do you do?
(I'm running with the assumptions that getting shot of them is entirely not preferable, upsetting them is irksome and forcing them into a corner is usually fruitless.)

I get the feeling from your thread title that you've decided to remove this person from the group and are looking for more specific advice in that area, no?

Basically I'm looking to address this problem entirely in character, without upsetting him and in an incontravertible manner.

Any takers?

There are no good in-game solutiuons for meta-game problems. You need to be honest with yourself and with the player if you want a satisfying outcome to this problem.

 

[hong]

From the thread title, I'm wondering who's getting cleaved after this guy gets dropped.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

Get him a pair of gloves to keep his hands clean when he might actually have to touch something dirty.

Why can't this guy be the lookout for the group. He stays at a distance, and doesn't get involved as much. Maybe after a while of being a little bored on the sidelines, he'll be more receptive to making a character that can mesh with the group.

That said, I do think you really do need to talk to him out of game and find out what is up.

 

[lukelightning]

Basically if you've got a person in your group who has come up with a character which is an absolute liability, what do you do?

You tell the player "you can't have a character like that." People forget that D&D is a cooperative game, not a story. There are lots of "anti-hero" or incompetant characters in stories; that's fine, but it only works because they are in a story. Jar-Jar Binks only survived Episode 1 because it was written that way.

 

[jefgorbach]

looks workable especially if he concentrates on archery feats to maximize his ranged melee ability - forget the exact names, but basically weapon choice:bow, improve point-blank attacks, shoot-into-melee, etc so he can stand with the wizard(s) out of melee range since he's fragile but still add to the group's attack.