Comments on: Dealing with Problem Players

By: Chris Williams

Chris Williams — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 01:23:38 +0000

The trouble I have as a player is that I tend to be paranoid because of all the crap I’ve unloaded on my players over the times I’ve DMed.

On another front, another weakness I have as a player is that I “grew up” playing in a group where serious intra-party conflict was non-existent. Not a Mister Rodger’s Neighborhood sort of non-existent, but more a Star Wars sort of non-existent. There was the banter and such, and poking and jesting at one another’s expense, but escalating it to the point of hostility between characters was a line that felt very unnatural to cross.

Having recently re-entered the gaming scene after almost two decades, I find myself in a a very different situation. Most of my fellow players have no such aversion to conflict, and there’s even one or two who seem to go out of their way to stir up as much of it as they can. I find gaming with them an experience that I have a hard time *really* getting into. Because of my background, there are times when I feel like a guppy in a shark tank, but since it’s the only game in town (as it were), I’m determined to get over it.

By: Evil Machinations » Handling Problem Players

Evil Machinations » Handling Problem Players — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 21:21:20 +0000

[...] Dealing with Problem Players: Why GMs tend to make poor players. [...]

By: The DM

The DM — Wed, 14 May 2008 10:20:07 +0000

@Donny – See, that’s what I mean! I think we don’t take the playing side as seriously.

The DMs last blog post..Dungeons and Dragons 4E Cosmology and Core World

By: DONNY

DONNY — Tue, 13 May 2008 22:07:57 +0000

LOL! My players despise my new PC since I’ve handed off the reins. The NE Barbarian Ranger / sadistic sociopath with an unhealthy obsession with “letting peple’s air out.” I admit it is a little bit of payback, but that doesn’t stop it from being fun!

By: The DM

The DM — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 04:24:40 +0000

@ Sue – Thanks for stopping in! I like your idea about “Memorable Things.” I’d probably look at it in terms of “Memorable Events,” myself.

Oh, and I’ll take the edgy temper, but I’m not sure about the quick mind

I’m a parent to three small-ish children, so I get the boredome=acting out thing. I do try to behave, though.

The DMs last blog post..How To Kill Your D&D Game Without Really Trying

By: Sue London

Sue London — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 04:12:31 +0000

I think that I’m a slightly better player than DM, but fairly proficient at both. I’ve done them both for so long it is hard for me to remember which parts informed the other. I measure success by Memorable Things. Gaming groups of course live and die by their gaming stories, so each Memorable Thing that my DMing or playing has contributed to the common narrative is a small victory.

It sounds to me like you are naturally energetic and have both a quick mind and edgy temper – which makes for a clever, fast-paced DM but quite often an easily bored (and thus acting out) player. I probably wouldn’t be able to keep far enough ahead of you/have enough complexity to keep you fully engaged. You would need a DM who manages to make playing as varied and intriguing as DMing is – and those are few and far between.

Sue Londons last blog post..Heave that Talent and Creativity