Questions tagged [problem-players]
For questions about participants in an RPG who, for whatever reason, contribute to the difficulty of running the game.
69
votes
13answers
4k views
What should I do about a religious player who refuses to accept the existence of multiple gods in D&D?
I am working on a campaign which I am going to run for a group of friends, all of whom are new to D&D.
I was discussing available classes with one of the players, more specifically classes with ...
2
votes
2answers
152 views
Players make a single plan with no backup plan, then complain about DM unfairness when their plan fails [closed]
I have been running a campaign that recently has had two very roleplay/exploration heavy arcs (really 1 arc, and the consequences of that arc). The arc in question was a heist, where the players were ...
41
votes
14answers
10k views
My players want to grind XP but we're using milestone advancement
I've been running a D&D 5e campaign where the levelling up has been done at certain landmark points or milestones. Regardless of your opinion on that specific system, it's reached a point where ...
20
votes
2answers
1k views
How do I politely tell my players to shut up about their backstory? [closed]
Disclaimer: I know backstories are good and necessary but here's the issue -
Two players have a joint backstory, and one of them is REALLY into it, and it's starting to disrupt game time because he ...
4
votes
0answers
208 views
Improving myself and getting rid of my bad player habits [closed]
For a period of time (one or two years? Hard to tell) I became oddly ill. Incredibly sleepy, irritable, forgetful and it was all I could do to participate in the game. The GM thought I was becoming ...
19
votes
3answers
755 views
The other players in my D&D party keep ignoring me. How can I get the other players and DM to consider my input equally?
I wanna preface this whole thing by saying that some of my party get along well and interact with the story - not to mention that outside of the campaign, I get along great with the other players. ...
-1
votes
2answers
319 views
A player in my game is using homebrew to powergame; how can I stop this? [closed]
A friend of mine is in a game I'm DMing. I've allowed homebrew, so now he's using complicated and weird classes to get an edge.
How can I solve this without killing and or banning his character and ...
1
vote
3answers
472 views
Too much drama not enough D&D! Canceling the game [closed]
This is going to be a long one to explain and it's more about the players than the game but any input would be appreciated.
I am the newest player in my D&D group. I came into a group of great ...
1
vote
0answers
212 views
How do I deal with a problem player overstepping their boundaries in a 1-on-1 campaign? [closed]
I’m GMing a 1-on-1 campaign (it’s all homebrew, by the way). My player likes to weigh in on what’s happening, and sometimes oversteps her boundary into GMing territory. I let it slide a lot, since it ...
13
votes
4answers
672 views
How can I convey to my group that they have to discipline their murderhobo?
Introduction
I guess most GMs have had a group of murderhobos in their sessions before and there are quite a few nice answers dealing with how to react to them, these threads have nice answers, but I ...
26
votes
3answers
2k views
I'm having difficulty getting my players to do stuff in a sandbox campaign
I've been a GM for about three years now. I've been GMing for this group for almost two years next month. I have an issue with motivating my players to take action.
It's a sandbox campaign and they'...
2
votes
1answer
370 views
My thieves party constantly steal from each other, but when I do they attack me and berate me. (long post) [closed]
Yesterday something happened during a D&D 5e session that created a between me, a player, and the three other players. I'd like to have your perspective on the matter, and a way forward, because ...
8
votes
2answers
3k views
Players Circumventing the limitations of Wish [closed]
So I know that Wish is meant to be a really powerful spell, but some of my players from my group (I am the DM) seem to have spent some time into getting around the limitations of Wish. Now, I know ...
8
votes
1answer
257 views
How to leave a campaign you've been playing for a long time? [duplicate]
I've been playing a campaign for a while, a year or so (I know this isn't 'long' in terms of some campaigns but it's too long to just drop and say 'it's not my kinda playing style'). It's an online ...
2
votes
0answers
218 views
How can I get my players interested in my campaign again? [closed]
I am an experienced DM, having run a number of campaigns with the same group of players. We're all in middle school. I'm currently running a campaign that I made myself for D&D5e. Recently, my ...
9
votes
2answers
2k views
How do I handle a situation where one of my players wants another player gone? [closed]
I run a game with around 6 people. One of my players (A) wants another one of my players (B) not to play with us anymore.
A has come to me in the past two different times with complaints about B, ...
1
vote
0answers
88 views
Can a player make a persuasion roll on another player? [duplicate]
We ran into a recent issue in my group where one of the PCs attempted to persuade another. The character who was being persuaded mentioned something about how persuading another PC is not allowed. I, ...
16
votes
3answers
1k views
Player using charm spells on party players [closed]
I'm playing a barbarian with a small party. My character's backstory was completely ruined because the caster decided to use charm on me when wanted posters that looked slightly like my character ...
9
votes
1answer
424 views
How can I, as DM, deal with an attention-grabbing player, and a group who can't speak up?
I'm running a campaign of D&D 5e with a few friends of mine, all of us being first timers in the genre. We play online, since some of us live too spread-out to meet regularly.
We are about to hit ...
41
votes
6answers
7k views
How do I deal with a powergamer in a game full of beginners in a school club?
I am the DM for a group of players, 4 of which are very new to the game, and one of which is a very experienced player.
I have run into a problem now where the experienced player is effectively ...
2
votes
1answer
393 views
How can I revitalise a group after someone leaves in a loud way?
I went through some of the Tomb of Annihilation module a few months ago. Due to someone throwing a tantrum (certain things he was saying was true in certain ways, but the way he said it was terrible), ...
24
votes
6answers
5k views
How can I get players to stop ignoring or overlooking the plot hooks I'm giving them?
I have run a couple of campaigns with a few of my friends, and these people are genuinely interested in Dungeons & Dragons.
However, no matter what I do, they will not focus on the story, ...
3
votes
1answer
446 views
Should I allow one of my players to change characters mid-campaign? [closed]
I found myself in a predicament. One of my players told me that he wants to change his PC to play a different one mid-campaign. I would generally just say yes if there's a good reason, but that's the ...
59
votes
8answers
12k views
How can I handle a player who pre-plans arguments about my rulings on RAW?
When playing D&D, I have always taken the following approach:
I will do my best to adhere to Rules As Written (RAW)
If I don't know a rule off the top of my head I will look it up
If something I ...
22
votes
3answers
3k views
How to satisfy a player character's curiosity about another player character?
I am new to DMing. I am starting off with the Lost Mine of Phandelver adventure to get my feet wet.
One player in particular is playing a half-elf bard. They have watched a lot of Critical Role and ...
1
vote
1answer
194 views
Supporting role: Group efficiency vs Table “fun balancing” [closed]
I'm playing a cleric in a 4-player group along with a paladin, a warlock/bladesinger melee multiclass, and a rogue. The paladin is level 5 and the rest of us are level 4.
The table uses stat rolling ...
8
votes
4answers
720 views
A player has asked the DM to ignore the lore to enable his character concept. What are the pros and cons if the DM does so?
Context
I'm posting this on behalf of a friend. She wants more than just our group's opinion. I don't know the other guy at all, but I was given screenshots of their conversations in order to get ...
30
votes
6answers
6k views
How can I get my players to come to the game session after agreeing to a date?
I have been playing D&D-5e for a while with my friends and a lot of times, when they say they are completely sure they can come to a meet, they end up not coming. I would at least like to get them ...
49
votes
5answers
12k views
How should I handle players who ignore the session zero agreement?
My D&D group is currently playing a campaign. It went smoothly for the first half. And then, by request, I allowed two of the current players' friends to join the campaign, all of whom have no ...
5
votes
3answers
477 views
How do I get my players to engage with the game better?
I've got a group of 5 players that have split broadly into 2 camps. Either, they're actively engaging with the game (LE Warlock and CG Ranger have formed a frenimies pairing and actively engage in ...
11
votes
1answer
642 views
Is having explosions as a go-to solution considered bad table manners?
I am working on a Starfinder character who specializes in explosions, whose go-to solution is applying explosives to a problem till it ceases to be a problem. I am afraid I will be perceived as ...
-1
votes
2answers
369 views
Dealing with an abusive player [closed]
Continuing on my last question, which I will congratulate all the answers that I got, some of the answers were about that other player I mentioned.
He plays a Druid (lv.3), and he is in a party ...
3
votes
4answers
447 views
How can I get an uninterested group of players to listen to me, or focus on the game in general?
I am having some major trouble running a game of Pathfinder: Rise of the Runelords.
As some people know this quite a hard campaign, and while it is the first one that I have ever really run, I am ...
7
votes
0answers
357 views
How to deal with a player that can give it but can't take it [closed]
So basically long story short we have an inter-party conflict where a guy has cut off a limb of another character and is meta gaming to kill two other players. Then, he got involved in the decision of ...
-8
votes
2answers
579 views
Need help dealing with a Chaotic Evil murder hobo fighter [closed]
Okay so the title kinda explains it but I'll give some backstory to this extremely edgy non-creative character.
So this character is a human who spent his younger life trapped in a shed by abusive ...
3
votes
3answers
909 views
RAW, can you use the Sharpshooter and Great Weapon Master feats to make an improvised weapon attack with a longbow?
Occasionally when looking through posts I see people talk about taking Sharpshooter and Great Weapon Master so that they can make an improvised weapon attack with a longbow at -10 to hit +20 damage. ...
5
votes
0answers
326 views
A player's character stole from another PC, leading to a conflict. As a DM, what can I do? [closed]
I am the DM for an online Evil campaign for D&D. The players just found the Book of Vile Darkness however one of my players decided to pickpocket the book from the player who had found it and had ...
7
votes
4answers
901 views
How do I encourage my players to … play? [closed]
I'm new to DMing. Of the many, many problems I anticipated I never expected to have players not do anything at all, and I'm not sure what to do with that.
Its a small group with only 3 players. We've ...
81
votes
17answers
15k views
How should a DM resolve a smooth-talking player with a weak Charisma score PC? [closed]
This is an old problem, but one I am curious to find an answer to.
One of our players is naturally a smooth talker, and his personality allows him to talk his way out of situations on the spot, and ...
9
votes
4answers
815 views
How to handle players who push fun aspects way too far?
I'm a DM running a Naheulbeuk campaign with coworkers on lunch time.
The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk is a humorous french podcast adventure, which parodies RPG, fantasy pop culture and tabletop games.
...
59
votes
6answers
9k views
How can I tell if I am a problem player?
Suppose I suspect that I might be considered a "problem player" but I am not sure. I play using techniques, decisions, or moves that, while not blatantly inappropriate, are atypical or time-consuming, ...
3
votes
1answer
428 views
How do I deal with a PC who is playing like a child, and is constantly throwing the party into disarray? [duplicate]
In the group I'm in, there is a player who claims that their character is "off his rocker", and is purposely throwing every situation into mindless childish chaos (it's been going on for the past 3 ...
2
votes
0answers
56 views
How can I get a player to remember his character's bonuses? [duplicate]
In my Dungeons & Dragons group(s), we have a player who can never remember ability scores, spells, bonuses, etc. We currently have two groups, and he is in both. We enjoy playing with him, but it ...
0
votes
1answer
296 views
Issue with a uncooperative player [closed]
So we have a good campaign goin, second with this group though some of them joined mid-way through the last campaign. Though not entirely important to this question, it's a D&D 5e campaign.
That ...
63
votes
13answers
15k views
How can I impose consequences when PCs commit severe crimes?
For context, this is my first adventure as a DM. The PCs are level 2.
About 40 minutes into the first session, while investigating the rumours about a ghost ship, the group meets with Aleyd Burrows, ...
3
votes
3answers
665 views
How can I prevent one character from leaving the group to do his own thing?
I have recently made a rather epic story for my players to play though. (In the sense of a long overarching story). I have been running for a few sessions but a particular player is constantly trying ...
41
votes
6answers
6k views
How do I keep my players from focusing too deeply on unimportant details?
A little bit of backstory. Me and a few friends from my job decided to play D&D 5e while we're kinda stuck in one place and were quite bored. So we got everything we needed and they chose me to DM....
16
votes
4answers
550 views
How to deal with players who take up most of the time by doing solo actions?
I am sure this has been asked already, as this is probably a very common problem, but I didn't find anything.
I am playing in a campaign I made myself using homebrewed rules based on a German pen-and-...
2
votes
1answer
223 views
How do you fix player in-fighting? [closed]
My players constantly get into arguments and verbal fights over trivial things such as how to get something or how to handle a situation and its hard to get them to just decide on something or to come ...
12
votes
4answers
774 views
How do I tell my S.O. that I am not enjoying playing with this group?
Recently, my group started a game of Starfinder that is run by my S.O. Part of the reason my S.O. wanted to run the game was so that I could have a chance to play as a player since I've been DMing ...
