The druid is not fighting!!! LONG!

[Lord Pendragon]

Ony if the DM is doing a bad job. NPC's are people too don't forget.

What, now you're saying every healer would let people die if it meant any danger to himself? I tend to think it'd be pretty easy to find a cleric of Heironeous or Kord that would be more than ready to serve as a combat medic.

Sorry guys, but your being far too harsh on the situation.

Hardly. Rather, you seem to be going out of your way to justify the druid getting to screw his party over without any consequences.

 

[cildarith]

The world is full of adventurers,

Or so you assume. This depends entirely on the tone flavor of the campaign the DM is running, and should not be taken as a given.

 

[DanteHayes]

And have no healer whatsoever.

As opposed to a healer who doesn't heal when you need it but, still syphons off a share of the treasure?

I guess the idea of compromising didn't take.

If by compromise, you mean that 75% of the players bend their will to 25% of the players wishes then, no. Anything else would require that the player of the Druid alter his precious presona.

 

[DragonLancer]

How are we being harsh?

Ok, I'll try and explain this again.

5 friends get together to play D&D once a week or whenever as part of an ongoing campaign (I'm asssuming here). One plays a druid, with an altrusitic goal of reaching epic levels. He is not playing a combat character, and doesn't always have healing spells to hand (since he's a druid not a cleric). He doesn't close to combat because he doesn't want to be taken down or be hurt so that he has to use nessecary healing on himself. During a fight when the party should have run away (and yes, it is a superior force if they are having to hold them at bay rather than fight), the PW needs healing. The druid decides that before he does that he is going to boost his protective spells. Unfort, the PW died (because the party didn't run) and everyone blames the druid's player.

The DM in question raises the issue here to see other views on the situation, and basically gets told that the surviving party should lynch him. Come on guys, character deaths do happen. Sometimes its because of other party members, sometimes its inaction or simply bad luck.
What if it was the NPC defender who fumbled an attack, unfortunately hit the PW and did enough damage to kill him? Whould you be out for his blood as well? I don't think so.

If the other players arn't happy with that then why should that one player be grilled for it. He made a choice, regardless of his ultimate OOC motivation. The party shouldn't dump him, kill him, have him beaten up/killed...etc. Thats not what the game is about. The game is about having fun, and playing. The party I'm sure should handle this situation in good graces, as friends, but do it IC. Let the party discuss this as characters. Its not fair on that one player that he should be forced to make a new character because of this. Wheres the fun for him then?

 

[Wippit Guud]

Dragonlancer, you are bringing OOC stuff into it. Everything I've said until this point has been from a perspective of the characters, not the players.

As a player, I'd tell him I'd be his personal bodyguard and get him to epic levels if he'd help out a bit more. Even give him magic items to help him out (my mage characters usually make items for everyone else). The last thing I want is an upset player.

Everyeone else said to handle it in character, so my suggestions have been in character

 

[Tsyr]

If 5 people are hired to go paint a house, and 4 guys paint it all while one guy sits off under a tree, claiming he doesn't want to get paint all over his clothes so he can wear them to a date later that night (doesn't want to die to get to epic levels), should the other 4 let him get paid for the job?

That makes it seem like the druid isn't doing jack... That's not what I got out of it... I understood it to be that the druid was helping, just not when it involves things like going into melee against a superior foe, as he is not a melee character.

There is a bit of difference between the two.

 

[DragonLancer]

Dragonlancer, you are bringing OOC stuff into it. Everything I've said until this point has been from a perspective of the characters, not the players.

Unless I've read something wrong, and its always possible, I recall the players not being happy with it either.

 

[Necrogorgon]

DanteHayes: By "compromise" I mean that both sides should be willing to give in a little. If you wish to stand on principle, then it is easy to argue that this is unfair, but if there is to be a chance for everyone to be at least "ok" with the situation, then I think a compromise is the only way to go. If I am the DM here, this never becomes a big enough problem to discuss because I am going to remind BOTH sides that it is the goal of the group for everyone to have fun, not just some of the group.

 

[Wippit Guud]

Unless I've read something wrong, and its always possible, I recall the players not being happy with it either.

Heh... I'm not happy with a lot of stuff players do in campaigns I'm in... the rogue making a thieves guild with a paladin in the party comes to mind as one specific instance... but the roleplay stuff I gotta let slip by.

 

[Pielorinho]

Y'all are being too harsh because we don't have any indication that the other players want to kick the druid's player out of their group (or the druid out of their party). I kind of feel like I'm hearing this:

OP: Guys, I have a friend who occasionally recites Monty Python lines when we're around. He's a nice guy, but that's annoying. Any ideas on how I can gently suggest he stop?
Other posters: KILL HIM!

Some folks on ENWorld have a distressing tendency to make this their first line of advice: when confronted with a problem player in a group, no matter how mild the problem, they suggest booting the PC and/or player from the group before attempting any less radical solution to the problem.

I think Dragonlancer, and certainly myself, are just suggesting that this can be amicably resolved, but that if IC or OOC aggression is the first response, it's unlikely to end up with everyone satisfied.

Daniel