Tabletop RPG Thread

Was taking a look around and didn't see a general tabletop rpg thread, and that's one of my favoured hobbies so I figured a place to share stories from Dungeons and Dragons, World of Darkness, Savage Worlds, Engine Heart, homebrews, etc. would be a nice thing.

To start it off how about a tale from an Engine Heart campaign we wrapped up about a month ago. It was heavily influenced by the old Bee adventure when I showed it to my GM. I told it on /tg/ when the system creator announced that he was making new modules for the game so I hope you don't mind a rather large picture of that storytime.

SpoilerShow

Oh dear.
Tabletop RPGs are my favorite things, and I have some pretty strong opinions about them. If this topic is going to exist, I'm afraid I may have to visit it with mouth-foamy rants and raves from time to time.

In the meantime - I'm about to start my very first Apocalypse World campaign! Huzzah! Anyone else know that system?

It is so utterly sweet. Even before it looked like I was going to get to play it, just reading the book had a huge impact on how I'm running my other game. And last session, where I finally got to start using those ideas in said other game, was maybe the best we've had so far in the campaign. Not many roleplaying systems are so good that they make your play in other systems better, too. So I have very high hopes for this new campaign I'm starting with it.
Whoops, there I go, raving already.

I've heard only good things about Apocalypse World. It's by the same guy who did Dogs in the Vineyard I believe, enjoyed the game played in that. May have to pick it up sometime after one of our current campaigns ends.

Yup, Vincent Baker. I have Dogs, too, and that's another one that I haven't played yet but even just reading it is influential. That man knows his stuff.

Falconer, what systems are you playing right now?

I have played Apocalypse World before, and it is indeed very neat! I may also be banned for life from ever playing a Brainer again in that setting. System is not too shabby at all.

Falconer, what systems are you playing right now?

I'm GMing two slightly house-ruled games of Savage Worlds (one's steampunk Toronto mystery, the other waterworld post-apocalypse paradise slice of life), GMing an Engine Heart game, and playing in an unholy homebrew abomination my GM's developed that is six kinds of amazing.

Does anyone have any experience in how to deal with potential problem players while GMing? The two who've been in all my previous games either clicked with me so well or were so eager to make sure everyone was having fun that I've been absolutely spoilt so far, but I'm with an entirely new group now.

Peruse the Paranoia GM's guide. Train them to fear you. Brook no discontent.

Depends on the problem.

My general advice:

1. Before play, use the Same Page Tool* to make sure everyone knows what kind of game you're playing. Also check out this series of articles for some context. This should help smooth over some spots of trouble from well-meaning players with conflicting ideas about what "good" roleplaying is. Or frustrated players who aren't getting the kind of roleplaying they wanted and are acting out because of it. Some people really are just dicks, but why would you even join a gaming group to just be a dick? So you should make sure everyone's on the Same Page first. Sometimes "problem players" are just there to play a different game from everyone else and don't realize it.

2. After that, all the usual stuff about dealing with people. Talk to them, tell them what the problem is, don't be a dick back to them or talk about them behind their back. Be clear about what they're doing that bothers you, and be nice. Don't do what Slorange said, I assume he's kidding.

3. If they really do just want to cause trouble, and you're convinced that you can't have fun playing your game with them at the table, you face the horrible and awkward situation of kicking them out of the group. If it's a friend and you really don't want to offend them, or there are other social reasons why you really just can't kick them out... then may the gods have mercy on your soul. (Maybe cancel the game and have poker night instead or something, if kicking them out isn't an option?) But I really have no good advice for this. Just sympathy.

I've never been the GM who had to kick someone out, but I've been there for the next best thing. It was this pretty horrible situation where we voted on whether to kick the guy out behind his back when he'd gone out for a walk. I really, really regret not abstaining. I didn't even know the guy outside of the game, he was THEIR friend and I had no right influencing the vote when the potential social fallout wasn't a concern of mine. But I voted against him, because he WAS pretty disruptive, and I don't know, it made sense at the time. *shame*
The worst part was, he implied that he'd heard everything we were saying about him through the open window. And, well, he did not seem happy. Not angry, just, y'know, sad. Really sad, and let down. Understandably so.
I hope nobody's friendship was scuttled over that one. It wasn't even all that great a game.

So, don't do what we did! It was cowardly. Confront them to their face, and talk things over, and if you have to evict them, do it politely, with no social deception. But I hope that goes without saying. Even if it didn't for us.

*The page says you can negotiate. I didn't when I last used this, I just picked the right answers for Apocalypse World beforehand (in most cases there really was only one right answer that that system demanded) and handed it out at character creation time. This seemed to work pretty well. I had one player who seemed on the fence about the system, until he read it. That seemed to be the end of his uncertainty, and he had a great time during character creation. So don't feel you HAVE to negotiate. But obviously, listen to the players if they don't like those answers and consider switching systems if the answers are non-negotiable.
Most important is to just make it clear to the players that it isn't a quiz for them to fill out personally, it's a description of play. The alternate options are there because some people might not even realize that there ARE alternate options, they might assume that choice b. is the right way to do things and that's the end of it. So you're telling them that no, choice b. is just one of several choices, and it's not the way this particular game is supposed to go. This particular game calls for choice a. instead.

That same page tool is good, thanks. We've already discussed we want a heavy role-play game where any silliness has to come naturally from the characters, but the second question already is one that's important to know. I remember an old game I was playing in where we were basically bungling cartoon villains, and having the DM roleplay our leader berating us after failures got to the point where one of the players requested the DM just leave it as "and so you get a chewing out".

But yeah, figuring all this out seems really good especially in a group where the two loudest players are playing A: a law-worshiping member of a military order and B: a budding evil devil summoner. That's going to get interesting.

Yeah, you definitely want those guys on the same page! IIRC, there's a question in the Tool about PVP, yeah?
What system are you running?

Pathfinder as houseruled as I can get my players to accept, as I'm the only one in the group who's played any other systems before and a couple of them are pretty conservative with gaming.

Ahar. I was maybe gonna suggest you take a look at Burning Wheel, depending on what "heavy role-play" means exactly. You might find it suits your style better, depending on what that style actually is.
But it might be too hard a sell for your conservative players anyway.