Things that annoy you as a PC

[just__al]

Inspired by the things that annoy your pcs thread...

I'll start the ball rolling with a few

Having fellow players that the DM doesn't trust not to act on out of character knowledge so either the DM and a player have to leave the room or the player who isn't "there" has to leave the room.

Having to have someone explain a rule to another PC that comes up every game. Bonus points if it's a rule that directly relates to their character.

Rogues who sneak off in every city to pick pockets and basicly solo adventure. Nothing wrong with splitting off but there's a difference to everybody splitting up and doing their thing and the Rogues sneaking out when everybody else is asleep because doing stuff together means they have to share the DM's attention.

Uber NPC's showing up to help the group for no other reason than to just have the DM get a chance to show off.

 

[diaglo]

the inordinate amount of other characters/monsters with training in a class.

just how many people in the world have dragon's blood or can see like a lark or track bandits across bare stone or summon a giant owl out of thin air?

 

[Wippit Guud]

Red herrings.

My co-players are confused enough as it is...

 

[Soundbyte]

Players who play spellcasting PCs but don't bother to actually read the spell definition, assuming that knowing the name of the spell is sufficient.

Also players who try to make their PCs the best at everything, and are constantly trying to move in on other PC's specialties.

 

[alsih2o]

players who get the ranges confused on spells they have cast a thousand times.

oh, wait, that's me!

 

[Gnarlo]

DMs whose personal pet peeve leads them to screw over the player group; e.g. they hate high fantasy/high magic so at 5th level you're lucky to have a +1 sword and a couple hundred gold, but then fail to take that into account when they throw high CR monsters at you.

Along a similar line, finding out about the DM's house rules by attempting to do something and being told "it doesn't work that way in my world," when it is usually something that anyone that has lived in the world and studied their profession for the last 18-140 years (depending on their race) would know and not have to find out through trial and error.

 

[Inconsequenti-AL]

Fighting anything with equipment.
Fighting more than 1 enemy at a time.
Fighting anything that differs from its MM2 entry in any way.
Fighting anything except kobolds.
Fighting anything that isn't blind.

Like all unnamed whinges, these stack.


More seriously...

Other players that get stuck in 'amoral cyberpunk mode' while playing DnD. Won't play any alignment except Greedy Faux-Evil (with Selfish tendancies). Try to cheat you or sell you up the river all the time. Possibly try to kill you if they've had a bad day.

Cheating players. Either that or the table that has the magical power of making any dice rolling under it come up a 20. I hate them both equally.

Not being able to die.

Dying too often!

Uber NPCs that fight your battles while players spectate.

 

[JesterPoet]

Anyone, player or GM, who plays RPGs to "win"

 

[DragonLancer]

Lets see...

Characters who aren't team players, or try to play kill.

Not enough treasure, although I accept that there is a fine line between just right and too much.

Plots that are too cryptic or Machiavellian.

DM's who can't get out of the railroad frame of mind.

 

[Zappo]

Players that act like kleptomaniacs just because they have sleight of hand.

Players that won't bother reading the rules concering their abilities.

Players that after 3/4 years of 3e still need the DM to build a correct character.

Players that, between initiative count 11 and initiative count 10 of the same round, discuss their strategy for half an hour (I'm going to purchase a one minute hourglass for this very reason).

The stuff that really grazes my nerves, though, is when I meet objects, events or actions that help dramatism, suspense, and challenge, but make no sense at all. They strongly remind me that I'm just playing a game. Here are some examples.

Riddles. Especially when they are the key to a trap, door, or something. It's not that I don't enjoy solving them, but they make no sense at all, their only purpose is the metagame one of challenging the players. Who on Earth would let people pass if they solve a riddle? Either you want them to pass or you don't, unless you're insane. The worst thing is that you get them in fantasy literature too. If I build the door to Moria, either I want everyone to pass in which case you'd have to just touch it, or I don't want everyone to pass in which case the password would be not be bloody written on the door itself, and it would be something like ldf83_23sdf@3kl30#10. Stupid elves.

NPCs that hold back on vital information for the sake of dramatism. "When should we charge?" "You will know". Like hell, either we agree on a signal or I'm out of here. Come to think about it, if I ask any question about the plan and the answer is "you will know", you are guaranteed to get a lecture.

PCs that hold back on vital information for the sake of dramatism, for that matter.

I dislike adventures that specify how the players should solve them and award XP accordingly. Some time ago, we played a short one where there was this massive goonie-style floor-opens-on-a-vat-of-acid trap activated by pressing the wrong button, with the right button supposedly being indicated by a (damn) riddle which a (admittedly insane) NPC told us. Instead of wasting time on the stupid thing, I suggested to just tie us so that it was impossible to fall, and press all the buttons until the door opened. Or have the buttons be pressed by a flying PC while the rest were safe away. Turns out that we would have got more XP by solving it the "right" way. Blargh. Trusting my life on the possibly wrong solution to a riddle posed by a madman would be a good idea?

the inordinate amount of other characters/monsters with training in a class.

Yeah, but I think that NPC classes are fair game.