Voluntary TPK?

[Sheltem]

As I said above, Ogrork, the pool was obviously dangerous, or would you jump into a boiling pit of tar? Just because a dark clad figure with a raspy voice told you there was a piece of gold at the bottom?
I thought I made it quite clear to my players that it was quite dangerous.
And it was NOT a quick way out of my campaign as everyone loved it and is now playing new characters.

I thank you all for your answers. I didn't think to get so many in so short a time.
Please keep them coming.

 

[Aust Diamondew]

Well once one of my character tried to convince the rest of the party and several NPCs to commit ritual suicide with him. He ended up dying a few minutes later in a duel with one of the NPCs after he'd killed one of the PCs in a duel.

It's sort of a long complex story.

 

[Ogrork the Mighty]

As I said above, Ogrork, the pool was obviously dangerous, or would you jump into a boiling pit of tar?

Whoops! Had a brain fart there.

That is kinda weird. Maybe they were drunk at the time? I've seen players do weird things when they're intoxicated. Probably though, they just weren't taking it seriously.

 

[Rackhir]

I did once talk a party of first and second level characters into attacking an adult dragon. Does that count as voluntary suicide.

 

[werk]

<snippity>He decides that I wouldnt put a hydra there if I didnt want them to fight it. <snip>

I hear a few of these on this thread. That is, the players feel that because something is there, they are supposed to interact with it/attack it/steal it/whatever.

I never really had this problem because I have tons of misdirection in my game, players have to be convinced to take a specific course of action because they've been sucker'd before. I think it is a throw back to playing planescape so much, my party is rarely the toughest kids in town...and I want them to understand that fact. I also feel that many DMs only flesh out their story line, instead of the whole setting, so anything that is fleshed out is assumed by the players to be part of the story.

I always called these 'Golden Glowing Grab-me's'. You go into the treasure room and in the middle of all the treasure is a beautiful magic sword sitting on a pedestal with a spot light on it. Invariably, the first PC the grab the sword is fried/poisoned/cursed/crushed/imprisoned/gender-changed/alignment-changed/you-name-it. But players will kill each other to be the first to grab the darn thing.

So they went there and found a pool of boiling viscous liquid, obviously NOT healthy.
At this point the rogue and the fighter decided to undress and go for a nude swim.

Now this is a little different. What would affect the party's perception (common sense) to make them think that the suicidal activity is OK? Did the info about the pool come from a reliable source, like a mission giver or mentor/patron? Have they heard previous stories about swimming in pools bestowing power?

I probably would have started this particular situation with..."assuming you don't plunge in, who sticks their toe in first?" "OK, when you stick your toe in it feels like it is burning...like you stuck your toe in boiling stew, when you pull your toe out the skin is hanging off in blisters (take 1 point of damage)...it hurts like Baator...are you sure you want to continue?"

 

[TheAuldGrump]

I had a party try to swim the Rhine equivelant in my world once rather than go upstream to a bridge, or downstream to a ferry.

In Spring.

Below a city (filth).

The only one who did not make the attempt and drown was the person with Swim...

The Auld Grump

 

[AdmundfortGeographer]

I played with a DM who would always start out each new campaign with PCs instantly finding a Deck of Many Things. It never failed that all of us would be tempted to draw at least once. I remember at least once we all had to roll new characters from disasterous drawing.

No, we never learned. Each time that deck of many things appeared at the beginning of new campaigns we would all take draws...


Regards,
Eric Anondson

 

[saethone]

LOL @ head of vecna, thats hillarious

 

[Kae'Yoss]

LOL @ head of vecna, thats hillarious

It's one of D&D's own legends. Don't tell me you don't know about
Eric and the Dread Gazebo, either!

 

[satori01]

So let me get this straight:

1) You gave a carrot adventure hook, by dropping a hint about a source of old obscure power.

2) You players were intrigued enough by it to adventure to find it, or conversely you inteded it to be your adventure path and encouraged them to go to it.

3) Upon finding the carrot you are surprised that your players take a bite from it and die.

Frankly I do not think your players were engaging in sucidial behavior. Players do not assume that insta kill encounters are something that DM will include into an adventure, especially at low and mid levels, and especially people whom are realitively new to the hobby, (read did not play 1e modules).

I generaly find,(and you might of done this), if you want to place realistic highly dangerous situations, you need to place hints with your players to stock up on the needed supplies. Tales of the horrible burning melting death to be found at the carrot, having animal companions, summoned monsters, or npc jump in and die, remains, etc etc.

What seems obvious to the DM creating the adventure is not always so to the players.