"You can't assume things"

[Michael Silverbane]

The more sensible formulation is probably, "If you are able to do so, you should check that your assumptions are correct before acting on them," but it's a little wordier and thus less catchy.

Trust but verify.

 

[Merkuri]

Honestly, if I were the DM in that situation, I would have been the one to speak up and say, "Uh, guys, you saw a curtain in that room," if they started talking about how there were no windows.

I am a very visual person, and a tad ADD. I frequently miss parts of audible descriptions if I'm not paying 100% attention or if one part of the description grabs my attention and distracts me from the rest of it. I do not fault players for not picking up on a piece of my description, and I don't hesitate to point things out to them if it sounds like they missed something.

But the idea that the players did note the curtain but didn't think there was ANYTHING behind it (and that thinking that something is behind it is metagaming ) is just odd. That's like seeing a lever in a dungeon and not wondering what would happen if you pulled it.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

Look, Snowleopard, I don't want to be rude or anything, but ...

Haven't you been coming here, like, once a week, and posting a "Man, my players *suck* / are stupid / are causing problems" story?

 

[SnowleopardVK]

Look, Snowleopard, I don't want to be rude or anything, but ...

Haven't you been coming here, like, once a week, and posting a "Man, my players *suck* / are stupid / are causing problems" story?

Meh, I have little else to post. They have plenty of good moments, but rarely do anything amazingly good enough to be worth posting. A lot of what I post is in reference to old groups of mine too, especially the worse things. The current group has its problems but I do like them a lot and the games are fun. They certainly aren't stupid or sucky, they're sometimes frustrating, but all people are like that.

And EN Worlders sometimes help me quickly see solutions that would have taken a while to think up myself. I've managed to fix a few problems before they got serious with the solutions I get by posting them here.

Also plenty of the responses are amusing or interesting enough to be worth making a topic.

 

[malcolypse]

the other player made him look like a fool

I don't think that player needs any help.

Also, SnowleopardVK, if this was one of my players I think I'd have hit them until they were smarter or died of the cranial injuries. But I mostly play with friends that I happen to know are clever folks, so I might assume they were messing with me. Either way, they're better off with a beatin'!

 

[Pentius]

Look, Snowleopard, I don't want to be rude or anything, but ...

Haven't you been coming here, like, once a week, and posting a "Man, my players *suck* / are stupid / are causing problems" story?

I've noticed it, too, but I like it, because it's funny, and often mirrors past experiences of my own.

 

[Aberzanzorax]

As I look around my own house....

Every curtain has a window behind it.



EDIT:
Sorry.

Every curtain has a secret window behind it.

 

[RainOfSteel]

"We can't check behind the curtain. That would be assuming that something's there. You can't assume things."

Stating you can't investigate the blatantly obvious because it would be metagaming is ridiculous on the face of it.

The conversation you provided strongly indicates a form of irrationality is in play. There isn't a kinder way of putting it, regrettably.

 

[jimmifett]

One of my players recently assumed that if a PC died, the campaign ended. When I asked why, the response was "well, everyone else is level 2 or 3 (all were level 2), and how would I keep up as a new level 1?"



I then explained that the rest of the party would probably go back to town, check out the tavern, and poof, find an adventurer of equal level looking for action, or maybe find someone imprisoned in the dungeon that they can free who joins the party.

The concept went totally over the player's head. "But what about all my gear?"

*headdesk*

Not too surprised really, this is one of my players that can't figure out the difference between LFR and an actual campaign, and is obsessed with the items at the end of the mod.

Same player, during an LFR mod in which that player's PC was near death said "don't worry, i'll take the poverty resurrection option".

I then told the player "No, you are near the end of heroic tier, you'll have pay the GP to be resurrected".

The player balked, "I don't have that much money", as the PC jingled like a christmas tree of magic items.

I informed the player, "If your PC dies, perhaps an ally can sell some of your gear to have you resurrected."

The player then went on about not giving up any gear to which I responded "either the party can pool money to bring you back, or you can have some of your gear sold, but you are not taking the poverty resurrection clause if the value of your gear can support the GP cost. I suggest you make sure your character does not die if you like them."

The player's PC survived just fine, and the player now has a newfound respect for the mortality of thier PC, but still grumbles about it.

One of the many reasons I don't DM LFR anymore

 

[Umbran]

The conversation you provided strongly indicates a form of irrationality is in play. There isn't a kinder way of putting it, regrettably.

I am not a big one for internet telepathy, but it sounds a lot like irrationality of the form, "Duh, I didn't think of that, now I'm feeling a bit dumb and want to rationalize it so I don't feel so dumb."

Or maybe the guy just got stuck in a mental rut. It happens.