Suicidal players

[Fifth Element]

Random stat generation. Then you won't know what you're playing until you actually play. Combine that with PCs who start off at first level.

So your suggestion for dealing with a player who wants to try a new thing is to basically prevent him from being able to do so, by greatly reducing the chance for him to get a character he wants?

It's just a game, dude. There's nothing inherently wrong with wanting to try new characters concepts out.

 

[awesomeocalypse]

I'm also not sure what random character generation would solve. If the issue is that the players couldn't care less if their characters live or die because they aren't really the characters they want to be playing, I'm not sure how handing them a randomly generated character that they've had literally no role in shaping is suppoed to prevent apathy.

 

[Squire James]

I allow players who no longer enjoy their characters to quietly drop them and create someone else if they want. I tell them I am free to use their former PC in any manner I please, and I sometimes use them as "rivals who left the band for another group" and in one case an actual enemy.

I also award slightly more than DMG treasure guidelines, so any new character coming in has slightly lower-quality gear than those who kept at it a long time. It's still better than forcing someone to play a character they don't like.

None of my players has done this, but if they still act suicidal in order to deprive me of my new NPC I would get a little cranky. There's nothing keeping me from making them undead, after all!

 

[lobsterGun]

I talked to a guy at Gencon one year that had an idea on how to handle experience in a Paranoia-like scifi game he was writing. Experience you gained as a PC could only be spent on your next character, and once the experience was spent, it was gone.

So, as the PCs in the group start getting killed off the power of the group increased, so the group could face even more powerful challenges. This let the lowbies in the group gain XP at an accelelrated rate, while the higher level guys, faced increasingly difficult challenges.

It lead to an interesting dynamic. If you wanted to play a game breakingly powerful character, it was in your best interest to play your weakling first level guy as long as possible.

Unfortunately, his game was never published.

 

[LostSoul]

So your suggestion for dealing with a player who wants to try a new thing is to basically prevent him from being able to do so, by greatly reducing the chance for him to get a character he wants?

It's just a game, dude. There's nothing inherently wrong with wanting to try new characters concepts out.

Yeah, that's one of my ideas. I think it would help solve the issue.

I didn't make any value judgements.

I'm also not sure what random character generation would solve. If the issue is that the players couldn't care less if their characters live or die because they aren't really the characters they want to be playing, I'm not sure how handing them a randomly generated character that they've had literally no role in shaping is suppoed to prevent apathy.

It means they can't build a PC before they roll the stats. If they want to grow attached to a PC they'll have to do so through play.

 

[Nifft]

I talked to a guy at Gencon one year that had an idea on how to handle experience in a Paranoia-like scifi game he was writing. Experience you gained as a PC could only be spent on your next character, and once the experience was spent, it was gone.

So, as the PCs in the group start getting killed off the power of the group increased, so the group could face even more powerful challenges. This let the lowbies in the group gain XP at an accelelrated rate, while the higher level guys, faced increasingly difficult challenges.

It lead to an interesting dynamic. If you wanted to play a game breakingly powerful character, it was in your best interest to play your weakling first level guy as long as possible.

Wasn't there an Asian-themed game with a similar mechanic, whereby your character's "honor" carried over to his next-of-kin (i.e. to your next PC)? So it was in the player's interest to make sure his PCs died honorably, and often?

Cheers, -- N

 

[JiffyPopTart]

Several thoughts on the matter...

1. You don't have to kill a character you are tired of playing. You can just write them out of the story. That way you can bring them back later if you want to.

2. Story Arcs: Instead of writing stories for characters that take place from levels 1 to 30, create individual story arcs that take place over a few levels. That way if someone wants to swap out they can stick out the arc without derailing your story.

3. You can change your character ruleswise without changing their story. When we switched our campaign from 3e to 4e a player in my game changed his combat oriented cleric to a warlord. Same background and story, totally new class. So what if warlord is martial instead of divine, it doesn't mean he can't work for the church and be favored by his god of choice.

DS

 

[coyote6]

It means they can't build a PC before they roll the stats. If they want to grow attached to a PC they'll have to do so through play.

I dunno, it seems like random chance would be more likely to generate a character they aren't happy with, which means they are more likely to go into "suicide mode". I think that would increase instances of the problem.

I remember people doing that long ago -- roll up a character they didn't like, give him a stupid name, and play him long enough to die stupidly. Then roll up a new character.

As to the original topic, perhaps try working with the players on switching characters? Rather than the player having to commit PC Suicide By DM, just let them retire one character (possibly via awesome death scene, perhaps to permanent NPC-dom -- which lets you kill or villainize them, or perhaps just into a limbo they could come back through), and work with them to integrate the new character into the story.

Or, if you have one player who is always changing characters, ask him if he'd like to try an experiment -- give him some sort of magic item that "randomly" (i.e., whenever he wants to change characters) obliterates and reincarnates the character in a whole new identity. Then he can change characters without changing characters. It wouldn't be appropriate for all campaigns (or even most, really), but if you have a player who just can't stick to a character, maybe it's worth a try.

 

[LostSoul]

I dunno, it seems like random chance would be more likely to generate a character they aren't happy with, which means they are more likely to go into "suicide mode". I think that would increase instances of the problem.

I imagine that would happen. Then he looks at his new 1st-level PC and at the other PCs, who are 3rd level at this point, and wonders if it's all been worth it.

 

[Fifth Element]

I dunno, it seems like random chance would be more likely to generate a character they aren't happy with, which means they are more likely to go into "suicide mode". I think that would increase instances of the problem.

My thoughts exactly. If the player in question wants his character to be a certain way, making him roll randomly is not going to keep him happy. DMs have to remember they're not the only ones at the table.