Should charismatic players have an advantage?

[S'mon]

One player is likable, charming, a joy to be around. He roleplays his character superbly. Everybody likes him. The GM likes him.

Another player is a charisma black hole. He will not speak in-character. Fellow players merely tolerate him. He sucks a lot of the fun and energy out of the room, just by being there.

Should the charismatic player have an advantage in in-game task resolution, especially at character-interaction stuff?

 

[Mark CMG]

Should the charismatic player have an advantage in in-game task resolution, especially at character-interaction stuff?

Not as such but I tend to expect more from the charismatic player if doing something in-game where that ability could be of use. I also don't give in-game advantage to intelligent players in situations where that would go against their character's make up. However, I do seem to allow wise players to have their characters run away when it would be prudent to do so.

 

[The Shaman]

Yes, in the same way that a player who is a better tactical thinker has an advantage and a player who better understands the game rules has an advantage.

 

[S'mon]

Not as such but I tend to expect more from the charismatic player if doing something in-game where that ability could be of use. I also don't give in-game advantage to intelligent players in situations where that would go against their character's make up. However, I do seem to allow wise players to have their characters run away when it would be prudent to do so.

Interesting, maybe I need polls for INT and WIS too!

I wonder what Gygax would have thought of this "Players should not be rewarded for using their native wits/charm/wisdom" meme?

 

[NewJeffCT]

One player is likable, charming, a joy to be around. He roleplays his character superbly. Everybody likes him. The GM likes him.

Another player is a charisma black hole. He will not speak in-character. Fellow players merely tolerate him. He sucks a lot of the fun and energy out of the room, just by being there.

Should the charismatic player have an advantage in in-game task resolution, especially at character-interaction stuff?

do you mean they're charismatic/anti-charismatic out of game?

In theory, the out of game charismatic person should not have an advantage unless he or she is playing a charismatic character. However, it doesn't always work that way in reality.

In my last campaign (D&D 3.5E), we had one guy who was sort of an out of game charisma black hole, but he played a human sorcerer with maxed out Charisma. A lot of the time, I would (as DM) emphasize something about his force of personality or magnetism (offsetting his lack of verbal charisma, though I didn't say that part)

 

[S'mon]

do you mean they're charismatic/anti-charismatic out of game?

Yes.

 

[Mark CMG]

I wonder what Gygax would have thought of this "Players should not be rewarded for using their native wits/charm/wisdom" meme?

I think he was fine with whatever a DM wanted to do at their own table.

 

[Dice4Hire]

Since I have no charismatic players, this has never come up. <grunt, scratch, grunt>

Seriously, I give them a bit of a bennie, but not let them rule the roost unless they have skills in those areas on their sheet.

 

[ExploderWizard]

Yes, in the same way that a player who is a better tactical thinker has an advantage and a player who better understands the game rules has an advantage.

DING!

Can't give xp right now.

Sometimes though, it depends on the situation. A real charming approach might not be the best one in every situation. I see this sometimes while watching Burn Notice.

I would have punched Michael in the face on numerous occasions if I was playing some of the bad guys on that show.

 

[JamesonCourage]

One player is likable, charming, a joy to be around. He roleplays his character superbly. Everybody likes him. The GM likes him.

Another player is a charisma black hole. He will not speak in-character. Fellow players merely tolerate him. He sucks a lot of the fun and energy out of the room, just by being there.

Should the charismatic player have an advantage in in-game task resolution, especially at character-interaction stuff?

Well, I was going to vote "only in limited circumstances, eg when they deliver a speech superbly," but I read your post, and it sounds like the second guy is someone I wouldn't play with. If he's sucking fun out of the room, he's probably doing stuff we don't enjoy (extreme rules lawyering, drawing people out of immersion, trying to break the system to "win" the game, etc.). If he's doing that, I'll get rid of him. If he's still around for someone reason, I'll probably favor the guy that isn't an extreme rules lawyer, doesn't draw people out of immersion, and doesn't try to break the system to "win" the game.

However, being charismatic out-of-game won't get me to break the internal consistency of the game by giving out bonuses or being more lenient. As always, play what you like

Yes, in the same way that a player who is a better tactical thinker has an advantage and a player who better understands the game rules has an advantage.

I do agree with this. If a player is more intelligent, he'll know what to do a lot more often than a lot of average-intelligence players. Same for players with some common sense. I have a player who is pretty intelligent, but what would probably be classified as a low wisdom (no emotional intelligence, bad common sense, etc.). In one game (not D&D or my game), he saw some sort of liquid eating into the concrete outside of a building. His first reaction? "I want to touch it."

He's actually pretty intelligent, but it times like those that we give him flak for. A more intelligent (or wise) player, even with a stupid character, wouldn't have asked to do that. It's just the cards you're dealt. As always, play what you like