What way of playing D&D is completely incompatible with your way?

[The Human Target]

PvP or PvDM

Not that it isn't fun to have a little inter-player conflict or get one over on the DM from time to time, but I'm there to have fun and enjoy each others company.

 

[Li Shenron]

What way of playing D&D is completely incompatible with your way?

I tried to think hard about it, but I cannot find any gaming style that is truly completely incompatible with me. Even if I have my own (sometimes strong) preferences, I can probably play at any gaming table, although I suppose that I may not do it forever in every style.

Maybe if I really have to pick one... it'll be "the style of constantly whining about the current style"

DMing is another thing, because I cannot certainly provide a decent job at every style.

 

[Lanefan]

What way of playing is incompatible with my way?

1. Overly cautious players who play overly cautious and-or cowardly characters knowing that the less cautious among us (i.e. me) will be the ones who stick our necks out and get killed for it while the cowards survive to gain the levels/loot/reputation/rewards paid for with my characters' lives.

2. Playing such that the game of build-a-character and-or optimize-a-character is more important than the game of play-a-character.

2a. Playing without any reference to reality. People in reality are random in what they can do and what they are good at. The game should work the same way.

3. Game systems where I can't keep track of what's going on in the story/combat/whatever because I'm spending so much time referencing and updating all the abilities, feats, powers, skills, and other assorted gype on my character sheet.

3a. Game systems where level-up happens so fast that I don't have time to get used to playing with one set of abilities etc. before another gets loaded on.

4. Games where we-as-players get the answers before we ask the questions.

5. Playing in such a way that the game rules take precedence over common sense (an example from a game I was in: during a combat two characters wanted to move together (i.e. side by side) from one part of the battlefield to another so both would be covered during the move by the "silence" effect one had, this was disallowed as a character can only move on its own turn and two characters could not take their turn simultaneously...sigh)

6. Players and-or DMs who do not or cannot entertain me. I try to be entertaining when I play, I expect the same in return.

6a. Playing without a sense of humour.

7. (worst of all) Playing a hyper-optimized party as if it were a well-oiled machine where everyone always gets along perfectly and nobody ever dares go off plan or think for themselves. Efficient perhaps, but mind-numbingly boring after the first time it's done. Bleah!

Lanefan

 

[Aenghus]

Players whose characters are all inexplicably brave past the point of foolhardiness, constantly taking crazy and unnecessary risks, getting the whole party in trouble, and often getting other characters killed.

Players who treat their PCs as completely expendable, and who have no value on continuity , constantly changing PCs, abandoning agreements, plots and responsibilities of the previous PCs by any means necessary, including suicide by monster or jumping off a cliff.

Players who avoid any sort of collaboration in PC design and constantly come up with special snowflakes, lone wolves, psychos and traitors, and then don't understand when their useless PC gets left behind/ fired/ arrested/ executed.

GMs who expect quick decisions while not providing enough relevant information to make such decisions.

GMs who browbeat the players into making what is effectively a random decision, and then are cross when its the wrong decision, even though it would require telepathy to discern what the right decision was (assuming there was one in the first place).

 

[harpy]

Focus and fidelity to RAWish play. Players and GMs constraining themselves to the RAW to work out what is possible in the world. The bulk of play consisting of metagame chatter and game terminology, character builds, rules referencing. Players sitting around debating a player's next action, essentially pausing the game so that they can mull over optimal tactics. Relying too heavily on rolls to resolve actions rather than roleplaying it out.

 

[outsider]

"Sometimes we go entire sessions without rolling a single die."

 

[Tequila Sunrise]

"Everything must be random! Random stats, random hp, random dungeons, random encounters, random loot." There's a place for random stuff, but don't overdo it.

On a related note, "Balance doesn't matter! Pick the options that fit your character, even if another option is inarguably superior!" I'm far from a hardcore power gamer, but I just can't ignore math.

Also, "My character is the strong silent type" and "I brought a non-adventurer to D&D." Seriously, I've had PCs wander off into the sunset to go back home. Because that was their character goal.

A table where a fight almost never happens. And when it does, it is hand-waved because half the players and the dungeon master do not know or care about the combat rules. Bored now!

Luckily I've never experienced this, but yeah I couldn't handle this style. I might even feel justified in using that horribly prosaic phrase "It doesn't feel like D&D." I think rolling d20s to kill monsters is one of the very few things that count as a D&D fundamental. And I like it that way.

Others include "Everything should be 100% by the book" rules-lawyers, and worse "Everything should be 100% realistic" reality-lawyers.

Yes, and yes! In fact I have a slang word for gamers preoccupied with RAW that I won't post in public, no matter how tempting it is. It burns to keep it inside though...

PC Plot Protection. The game revolves around the PC but the world does not. PCs should not be treated like special snowflakes. I don't care how powerful you are mouthing off to the king of the land is a bad idea and there will always be bigger fish.

God yes! Nothing kills excitement and tension like knowing my PC can't die.

I can't game in a large loud room (like at some conventions or game stores) where I have to yell to be heard.

Does that count?

Hell yeah. Also, "You don't mind if I smoke/drink, do you?" Well I'm asmatic and I don't think you're going to be nearly as funny drunk as you think you are, so YES I mind.

 

[Ratskinner]

I'm pretty flexible as both a player and DM, but two things are likely to have me looking for a polite way of not returning:

• Compensating/capricious DM - we are here to have fun, not see if we can "beat" you....we know you could with a whim, and have trusted you to create a fun time, instead. There is no good "lesson" to be learned from high character mortality and "letting the dice fall where they may" is not a virtue. It can't fix the DM's threatened masculinity...just expose it.
• Ignorant DM - ignorant as in "ignoring your players' signals." If most of the folks sitting across from you are playing casters or sneaky types...why not have an adventure that plays to what they are interested in, rather than a stand 'em up then knock 'em down dungeon crawl? (vice versa also applies.)

 

[Halivar]

• Not counting experience and having the DM tell you when you level. It just kills me.
• Chaotic neutral characters. CN has always been, IMXP, an excuse for people at my table to act out their worst fantasies. I think I'd rather have a CE character than a CN character at my table.
• Over-cautious players whose sole intent is to make sure you don't have any adventures. Because adventures are dangerous.
• Character swappers. Last week they were a changeling duskblade. This week they are a dragonkin sorceror. Next week they want to be a dwarven runepriest.
• Save or die.
• Hand-waving through potential roleplay and skipping straight to prepared material. I have a DM who, when queried about whether I can hob-knob with the town elite in the evening, simply replies, "Yeah, you do all that. Now, the next day, you guys are at the mouth of the dungeon cave..."
• Getting angry at the dice. When people throw dice I just try to call the game.
• Having side conversations (about out-of-game stuff, no less) while the DM is talking. Oddly, I can deal with this more easily if I'm the DM, since I have the patience of Job. But when I'm a player, it just burns me up that a fellow player would be so disrespectful and waste the DM's time.

 

[Stormonu]

Grid-iron combat. I like my minis, but I don't like having to pull them out every time because the fight is going to be a knock-down, drag-out brawl.

Characters that despite being first level, already have been specced out to 20th level.

Players who believe that the alignment system is an excuse to play "alignment" Stupid or that all such NPC members of an alignment have said tag attached to their alignment. (e.g., Lawful Stupid, Chaotic Kill-Em-All, Neutral Neurotic).

Choose-My-Adventure campaigns where players have no real choice but to follow the railroad.

Powergamers and Party killers just make me unhappy.