Let's all stop complaining and have a This Guy thread for a change
>we introduce a new dude to our party
>we play a session with him but a thing comes up and we can't hang out the following weeks because we have no other place to play
>>Don't worry guys, I have an apartment where we could hang out!
>we meet up at his apt
>he made us brownies
>turns out he's a chef in training
>he picks up the comfiest chairs imaginable
>he always makes new stuff for us every time we hang out to play
>the campaign ends, chef's pretty bummed because we had a great time
>decides to play the GM part on his own campaign and brings a friend who doesn't know how to play
>chef treats his friend like he's made of pure gold and takes time to explain the rules to him without patronizing him
there needs to be more people like him in the world
>>44324333
I love meeting new people who live virtuous lives. My group are all really good people who constantly put effort into improving themselves and succeeding at life in general. Good life-affirmers all of them.
I feel like it's getting rarer to find people who genuinely love life and live it well these days. Most people seem like they'd rather be dead.
Glad you found a cool new dude, OP.
Also mirin those trips.
>>44324333
I once had a guy who had asked to join my campaign, whose schedule changed suddenly, and he actually TOLD me about it, and apologized. He emailed like a week ahead of time, and everything!
(I feel like my standards have been pushed too low by all the flaky people.)
>>44324333
>be part of local gaming community
>TTRPGs, MTG, even LARP, they do everything
>Join Achtung! Cthulhu game
>Waiting outside this pub where we're gonna play, seeing if anyone else is coming
>Guy with ponytail comes along
>Realize we're waiting for the same thing
>Introduces himself as M, really nice Hungarian guy
>First session
>Char creation
>We all make military characters
>Collectively realize we have no booksmart guy
>"Oh, that's alright, I can reroll as an antiquarian or a professor!" says M
>throughout the game always just really nice to play along side
>Offers to buy rounds of drinks for us
>Talking about mass one off day where we book out a venue and have 10+ one off games running at once
>Tell him I always wanted to try pathfinder and have friends interested too
>"Oh, I have some experience with Pathfinder! I could GM a game for you and your friends"
Most of what makes him a this guy is just his friendly demeanor so it's hard to describe, but he's a legit dude.
>>44324396
Someone who values your this much is someone worth keeping around.
>>44324333
>starts a thread with trips
This Fuckin' Guy, right here.
It's a story I must have told a dozen times here on /tg/, but back in highschool when D&D 3.5 was new and exciting, I had a DM who had us go through the usual character building process, but we rolled 4d6 drop lowest for our stats (and he gave re-rolls if someone ended up with a shitty spread). Once we had picked our race, class, feats, skills, gear, and all that shit, he stopped us and said "Okay, now increase your lowest stat to an 18."
My current group is pretty nice, but playing online over IRC is a slog. I wish I could get everyone together to play, but we're all scattered across the continent. It's hard sometimes, but they try, and that's all I ask of them.
>Half of the party had been kidnapped by doppelgangers and replaced
>The party walks into a room and finds copies of themselves tied up and gagged
>Ungag them, "Watch out! That other me is a doppelganger!"
>Two of the more brash players just kill their doubles in their chairs, revealing the tied-up versions to be fakes.
>The rest of the party debates on what to do. Finally they decide to ask the cleric of Nerull to just kill the version of himself in the chair
>Cleric thinks, and then does it, slicing the double's head clean off with his scythe
>Party waits
>Doesn't turn into doppelganger
>Roll initiative
My player decapitated his own character, in low-level 3.5 where that shit hurts both EXP and money-wise. I'll always give him infinite kudos for that dedication to character.
>>44324529
"Now increase your lowest stat to an 18"
Damn, that's not a bad idea. I might pull that on y players.
>>44324333
>Friend brings new player to my ongoing Roll20 campaign last-minute
>He rolls up a soft-spoken martial artist with wind and lightning themes
>Mainly watches and pays attention during the first session, learns the mechanics in minutes
>Comes up with a cool backstory before the end of the second session
>Genuinely roleplays incredibly well despite it being his first time playing a TRPG
>Has a cool, fulfilling character arc without hogging the spotlight
>He's my favourite character of them all
>My game ends, he offers to run the next campaign
>Says he loved my setting so much he wanted to do a follow-up game about the children of the protagonists
>I agree, hoping he doesn't mess with my setting too much
>He expands my setting in awesome ways, respecting everything I built in the first campaign while filling in the blank areas we never explored
>It's his first time GM and he's doing great
>He clearly puts hours of effort into each session and I've never seen the rails
>Tough but fair and never makes the same mistake twice
>Lets you play nearly anything but talks with players between sessions to rebalance them if they're too weak or strong
>All the old characters make cameo appearances and he nails their personalities perfectly
>His old character shows up but is never an overpowered DMPC
>Weaves my character's backstory into the main plot effortlessly
>First campaign ends with the most satisfying conclusion I've ever experienced
>Currently on his second campaign and going strong
>Recently found out he's doing his Masters in Game Design
>All-round awesome person I would hang out with IRL if he wasn't across an ocean
I only wish I could play in his new campaign, but one of the players has become incredibly toxic and apparently I'm the only one bothered by her bullshit antics. She's an awesome person and I know that confronting her would only make her leave the group, so instead I just Skype with This Guy every week and we chat about games and stuff.
>>44324333
Is something wrong with me, OP? I keep joining groups and always people want to do ideas that are like "hey let's be silly for no reason" and I just feel really kinda bitter. I've never had a This Guy. Like people wanting an all Grunt party in Halo Mythic, or how they want to use Divine Shot in Dark Heresy to use a rocket launcher to snipe a guy across the planet because you can see him on a TV.
I wish I could get good. I wish I was less bitter about things and could just shut my brain down and be goofy.
>>44324769
Smoke weed.
>>44324769
Firstly, you're not gonna cut out any jokes had within a game. Doing that is completely unreasonable.
Secondly, if you want to play games that don't incorporate jokes and silly shit into the actual plot, then join an IRL group. You never mentioned you played online but I'm gonna take a bet here and say you've played mostly online.
If you join a real life group then you are more likely to get well rounded individuals.
>ITT things that never happened
>>44324831
ITP: Poster that's bitter he can't find anyone good to play with.
>>44324831
why can't you just have fun, anon
>>44324829
I don't wanna cut out all jokes, I just want to save it for when it's necessary. Like not mocking the BBEG constantly. The people I game with just take nothing seriously, and I don't know why.
And the only IRL tabletop shop around is full of That Guys.
I just feel bad, anon, but your advice is appreciated.
>>44324852
Because I had fun once and it was awful
>>44324880
I'm currently in a really good area for tabletop gaming but I get how it is to live in a shitty place for it.
I guess you might want to try alternative methods of joining games. I'm not sure how you find them right now but try another place, like Roll20 Games or the Gamefinder here on /tg/.
Also, again based totally on me guessing but try not to look for game systems based on their settings like Halo Mythic or Dark Heresy. They tend to attract that guys from experience. Try searching for more broad systems respected for their rules, like Pathfinder etc.
> Made a game on Roll20
> Left the listing up for a week so I could take a chance to get to know the potential PC's
> Got to know some players as well
> Select a group of four
> Characters are well-written and roleplayed well
> Have an amazing time GMing for a group of people I never met
Simple, but so refreshing after some of the nightmare scenarios online games can drop on you.
>>44324944
>systems respected for their rules, like Pathfinder
Good advice, otherwise.
As a guy who is in an IRL group, how bad does online get, rpgs are weird for us, we get along just fine until we start playing
>college town
>buddies and i pick up 3.5
>only one person calls up for sessions
>shyest guy
>brought a 12 pack, all the splatbooks you could imagine, and 3 rulebooks so we wouldn't all be sharing one
>teaches us shit we'd never have found on our own while being the nicest shyest motherfucker
>every session he'd bring 2 beers per person (10 cause he didn't drink) of their favorite drink and books for each of us
>incorporate him into friends circle out of session as well
>he even volunteers DD
>gets a job offer 3 states over to be a proff after he finishes his doctorate there
>left a huge hole we don't even want to fill cause it would insult his memory
Jim if you're reading this we miss ya.
>>44324529
Same thing our DM used to do with us. Was your DM's name Marc by chance?
>>44324944
>try not to look for game systems based on their settings like Halo Mythic or Dark Heresy. They tend to attract that guys from experience
My experience has been the opposite, really.
The people who really know, and invest themselves, a strong setting are less likely to be That Guys because they want to craft a good story, not sperg about rules.
That said, you need a group of like-minded people, or at least a handful who are united in idea, or there will be clashing.
I'm in a SW group with 3 people who really get the setting, 1 who is just a damn good roleplayer and is passingly familiar with it, another who is picking it up, and another who just does not get it at all, and I think never really will.
Guess who the that guy is?
>>44325090
Now I want a Jim who brings soda to every game... Anon, why do you make me jealous of your group when I already have an good group?
>Online game
>DM is a nice non-manchild guy in the army
>Is always on time or tells us ahead if we need to change the game's time
>One player is an Aussie, another is a Finn
>Both are fun to play with and courteous to each, the GM, and me.
>Fourth players are constantly rotating in because ether they're shit or it's their first time and they decide they don't care for the game (I miss my German).
>Aussie played a dorf fighter, I played a half-elf cleric, Finn plays a
>Becoming best friends IC and OOC, making playful cracks at each other and such.
>Finn is always on the spot to tell us the answer if we forget something, are learning a new mechanic, or just need some help
>Only known these fuckers about half a year, but I want to spend Christmas with them.
Maybe I'm weird for thinking they're really good, but fuck, I've gotten some shitty people before so I'm grateful for these guys restoring my faith in tabletop.
>>44325437
Fuck, the Finn plays a aasimar kineticist.
>>44325437
We all have, but honestly, the only good guys, ie up to my standards, I've played with online are guys I know irl already.
>>44324333
Peridot is so fucking cute.
>>44324529
>"Okay, now increase your lowest stat to an 18."
I like this
>find myself in a new class without knowing anybody
>within a few months manage to get a group of classmates to play D&D
>as the only one with some experience i'm picked as the master
>one of the players is an intelligent and polite guy
>he always fixes every problem the group has and is always nice to everyone
>fast forward one year
>the group became huge and D&D is now a huge part of our class, everyone has at least tried it once
>i have a fight with one of my players over a petty reason and she leaves, carrying her boyfriend with her
>after a while the exact same thing happens with an other couple
>over the next months i start feeling doubts about my DMing skills but he's always there to encourage me and make costructive criticism
>after a few months the group is smaller but more solid and my players are loyal and engaged
>This Guy starts his own group and constantly asks me for advice and we help each other
>he still plays with me
>the group was on the verge of breaking when i had a fight about real life issues with one of players (my fault this time)
>i went to him and asked him if regardless of what happened he would still play with us
>"always, i have never doubted that"
>after almost 3 years the group is still going strong
sometimes This Guy is not the guy who brings sweets or sheets, he's the one who remains and encourages you despite everything
>New to 40k, start Eldar because dem models tho
>Go to FLGS, first time inside, saw on website that 40k night was then
>Meet a Dark Eldar player
>Explains how to play, proper list building, do a 2v2 against Orks
>Teaches me how to paint, gives me a few of his models he doesn't use anymore
>Mfw getting to play in Apoc with my Dark Kin bro
Seriously, the kind people in my FLGS make the experience so much more.
>>44324333
>Look for a game on roll20, despite being let down for various times already
>find an already established group who's got a game going on and is now looking for a player to join the group
>send a PM to the GM of the game to express my interest
>we chat and hit it off fairly well, I tell him of my ideas
>he is very helpful and helps me go through character creation because it's a new system for me
>actually also makes a picture of my character to introduce to the group
>introduces me without any problems the next session they have
>gives every player their time to shine
>runs the game smoothly and gives entertaining descriptions and interactions
I've hit the jackpot, /tg/, I've done it. I found my best group yet and it's been an amazing 15 sessions so far.
>>44325090
Wait...my This Guy was also named Jim...
>>44327106
>yfw there is only one TRUE 'this guy'
>He travels the world, joining games in need
>Teaching every group he comes across about how to be a cool player
>By doing this, he hopes that others learn from his example and thus make the RPG community brighter
>>44327106
Huh, that's interesting. My dad's name is Jim, and he's always been super bro-tier, so much that in high school several of my friends told me they wished they had cool parents like mine.
So good advice is: Find guys named Jim, avoid guys named Craig. I've never met a Craig who wasn't an asshole.
>>44325336
This guy gets it.
It also helps to play with people you know.
I'm in a Rogue Trader game with four of my best buddies from high school. Each of us has played the miniatures game and the Dawn of War series, and read either Eisenhorn or Gaunt's Ghosts. We have our moments of fun and joking, but we prefer that such moments should ultimately just emphasize the grimdark shittiness of the setting.
I honestly don't know if I'd ever play with anyone else but them.
>>44325090
>>44327106
My first GM for 2e was a grognard named Jim who has been gaming longer than I have been alive.
I'm about to run a 40k game for him.
>>44327253
You have those true blue boys you know that any time they are there, the game will be fucking better for all.
>>44327194
Does that mean he has a nemesis - the one true "That Guy?" Were they in the same gaming group together, back in ye olden days, and "this guy" realized that something must be done to stop rampant faggotry?
>>44327771
No, there are dozens or hundreds of Those Guys. Think about it, we've all felt those little ticks of festering That Guy- a bad ruling we disagree with, the urge to get on the phone, passiveness outside of combat. When we give in to these urges, we become That Guy, just for a moment. Some, though, go too far. They are dominated by That Guy impulses.
This Guy crusades with kindness to stop Those Guys. There may only truly be one, but he's out there, working to save us and restore Those Guys to decent players.
>>44324333
my This guy-award goes to the dude who played an inquisitor , but actually did some research about the archetype.
instead of HURRDURR HURRUTUCS he actualy played a character which was more a good guy who helped where he could , even if his doctrine made him do questionable things.
the concluson was , he trusted his order to be the right one , but as he walked around with a bunch of mercenaries and an actual wizard, he rollplayed his character developement from a doctrine-following inquisitor to a person who turned down the one or other eye on the "nice" abominations.
He later got into an actual both in-and-meta-game conflict about his definition of morality.
Until today , he incorperates this change of personality into his character , which is almost as enjoyable to follow as the actual game.
>>44325336
If the experience is based too strongly off the setting then you might end up with someone who's really, REALLY into the lore, painfully so.
If the setting takes a backseat to the story then you can end up with the people who enjoy roleplaying.
Although keep in mind my experience is mostly limited to RL TTRPGs, I'm not a big fan of online groups.
Holy shit... some good Roll20 stories... either R20 is sending shills into 4chan, or this is some legit dope.
I want to believe, anons, I want to BELIEVE!
>>44324829
I have 3 IRL groups. It always ends up downright silly.
>>44329197
You meet proportionally the same amount of shit people both IRL and Roll20. It happens to be that due to the larger pool of people on the internet, you're getting more shit in a row than usual though eventually, percentages should lead to you finding a good group at some point.
>>44329197
Oh, and nice girl, Anon.
>>44327221
...VirtualOptim's real name is Craig. This is fucking uncanny
>>44329777
I think that is where that trope comes from, anon.
>>44329197
The Roll20 games I've played in have included:
>AD&D game with 3d6 roll in order, no re-rolls, class chosen in advance. Everyone died in the first session and the GM wouldn't use Skype, only text.
>ANIMA: Beyond Fantasy game where I got mind-raped 15 minutes into the game and made into a slutty maid for the rest of the party's enjoyment
>Corporation (basically Deus Ex) game where I got blown up before the mission even started because one of the players decided to detonate a brick of C4 on my character's helicopter
>My current game, described here >>44324706
I'm 1 for 4 with Roll20 but at least the games that sucked only lasted one session, whereas my current group (gained from that Roll20 campaign) has lasted for about 3 years.
I guess you have to sift through a lot of crap to get to the good stuff, but when you find it, it's worth it. I think that applies to IRL gaming as well, though, since I was about 1 for 8 with my IRL games.
>>44330234
Eyy, that second game sounds like my kinda jam.
Point me in their direction.
>>44330234
Just gotta keep looking I suppose.
>>44324604
>All cha 18 party with a str 18 sorcerer
>>44330234
I'm sorry that your experience with Anima was ruined.
>been wanting to play a 40k rpg for years, but never had a chance to play
>fail to find anything in game finder threads, games either never take off or I'm too late
>ask for a game in a 40k general thread
>this guy adds me on Skype, introduces me to a campaign
>high level game, everyone is a good roleplayer and a nice person overall
>DM is wonderful with descriptions, makes cool maps and his plots are fresh and original
>0 rails
>lots of cool stuff going around
>delight.jpg
I cannot believe I got so lucky as to get admitted to an established group just like that
>>44331742
>been wanting to play a 40k rpg for years, but never had a chance to play
>fail to find anything in game finder threads, games either never take off or I'm too late
>ask for a game in a 40k general thread
>this guy adds me on Skype, introduces me to a campaign
>high level game, everyone is a good roleplayer and a nice person overall
>DM is wonderful with descriptions, makes cool maps and his plots are fresh and original
>0 rails
>lots of cool stuff going around
>delight.jpg
I cannot believe I got so lucky as to get admitted to an established group just like that
I don't know what the hell you did anon, but here
>>44327221
>>44329777
Awww shit. My fathers name is craig and its true to all hell....
>>44330825
Trust me, it's not as fun as you might imagine. They left me at the home base for the entire session after that (about 4 hours) and their psychic shenanigans meant that all I could do was clean their house and wait patiently for them. I spent the whole time chatting with a friend on Skype. When the session was nearly over they came back and started some pretty fucked up ERP shit that I wasn't into so I just disconnected and never went back. The GM sent me a message asking why I left, I told him I wasn't into that kind of ERP and that any GM who sidelines a player for 4 hours is an asshole, he responded by calling me a dirty whore who was begging for it. I'm a guy, by the way.
>>44331680
ANIMA isn't that great a game, to be honest, even with the changes the 2nd Edition / rerelease offers. The balance is all kinds of fucked up and it's really easy (and pretty much intended) that players game the system to make crazy broken characters. If you try to make anything resembling a well-rounded individual you're so far behind in terms of combat or supernatural ability that you might as well just kill yourself before the fight starts.
I have a hack of the game that simplifies the system and prevents min-maxing, I'll post it in a few minutes once I find it.
>>44332349
>If you try to make anything resembling a well-rounded individual you're so far behind in terms of combat or supernatural ability that you might as well just kill yourself before the fight starts.
That's funny, all the Anima fans I've seen on /tg/ have said that the game assumes you don't minmax, so doing so breaks it.
>>44332349
I think it's on an external hard drive. The BIG change was moving from rolling 1d100 for task resolution to 1d20. Every modifier in ANIMA comes in multiples of 5, so it just reduces number inflation and makes the math easier. Despite the d20 it doesn't resemble D&D mechanics at all, so inb4 "Herp derp, you made Anima D&D you idiot."
>I simplified the stats so there are 4, not 8.
>I reduced the number of classes from ~20 to 5; Warrior, Prowler, Domine, Mystic, and Psychic.
>I removed and changed a number of Gifts and Drawbacks so that Gifts are always useful and Drawbacks are always going to be a problem for the character.
>I reduced the number of Skills / Secondary Abilities to 7, basically making the Categories (Athletics, Intellectual, Social) their own Skills. Characters can specialize in sub-skills to a limited degree.
>I added flat caps by level to certain attributes and sub-attributes, no longer can you make a starter character with a +150 in a specific Skill.
The other big change was how I handled advancement. Instead of spending DP freely you get a number of levels instead. Every level of Warrior, Prowler, etc. gives you a flat set of bonuses, plus some Skill points to invest where you want, and a pool of points to pick certain abilities. Warriors, Prowlers, and Domines get Martial Knowledge. Mystics get extra Zeon, Magic Accumulation, Magic Projection, Summoning skills, and Spells Known. Psychics get extra Psi Points and Psi Projection.
Basically, it makes 'multiclassing' easier and a viable option without getting your character nerfed HARD. It ensures that every Class does its thing well without min-maxing potential. It ensures that everyone gets a decent amount of Skills without enabling abuse of the Skill system, and since certain class levels add to Skills (Warrior adds to the Vigor skill, since they all need to be tough) it lets characters specialize without getting OP.
Sorry for the thread de-rail. Back to the discussion?
>>44325239
Nah, his name was Dan
>>44324333
>guy joins along with me and a friend in some girls kingmaker campaign
>in hindsight, really weird campaign, colonizing some continent filled with mary sue-like immortal vampire-daemons who have an affinity for giving magical herpes
>he plays a cleric to my evil illusionist wizard king, my friend a mask-and-tricorn rake-type.
>we set out to conquer the dirty natives and spread 'civilization'
>campaign comes to an end due to gm flipping shit in one game, and it somehow meant ours would end to due to 'muh emotions'
>ask cool cleric dude if he would want to play in my own kingmaker game
>'sorry man, I am going for a two year mission to south america for my church'
A dedicated man of god within the game and without. I still miss not playing together Kirk ;_;7
>>44332691
>Instead of spending DP freely you get a number of levels instead.
Shit.
>>44327771
BEHOLD! There shall rise a thread to gamedom so horrid, a That Guy so THAT, even the grognardiest of players shall wither and retreat before him. You shall know him by this moniker: BIG BOY BLUE.
But take heart, oh those bearded of the neck, for my crit with Legend Lore reveals another One. He shall not be one who fights; no, he shall go out into the pubs and FLGSs and cons and he shall show you the True Way of Gaming. All the rules shall be made clear and elegant, the snacks will be made tasty and without sugary crash, and the table talk shall be fun banter with no awkward conversation. And he that teaches you these things will be known by the name of--JIM!
Old DM owned a restaurant with a detached catering hall. He' d set our table up in the center of it. It was always clean, comfy, and quiet. Around noon we'd take a few minutes off and eat.
> so what do u all want to eat?
> steak? Fine.
>no charge.
> drink low? He would buzz a girl and she would bring the drinks.
As a bonus he rocked as gm. Had printed maps, and would hang d&d tapestries up for game day.
All around great guy.
>>44335280
Is owning a restaurant and having the staff wait on you really being a great guy?
>>44335355
It helps I guess.
He'd employ anyone if you asked him. Gave people rides, loaned money, even sent flowers to a player that had a death in the family.
Ya, decent guy all the way. No weird shit in his games either.
>back in college, 2007ish
>five hours into the game and our stomachs are audibly rumbling
>we can no longer focus on the game
>even the DM is starting to feel it
>pizzas arrive with breadsticks, dips, and drinks
>longtime player tells us to put our money away
>he pays, gives huge tip, tells us he got a $3000 in autism bux from a college bursary
>>44335355
he was literally paying them, anon. That is literally their job.
>>44331913
>This Guy right here
>>44329927
Virt's such a giant asshole that his assholery has echoed out into both future AND past, turning other Craigs into shadows of his own assholish self? 'Cause I've met Craigs who were douchebags before Virt was out of diapers.
>>44332691
To be blunt, rather than simplifying the system, it feels like you just imposed limits on the creativity of your players and removed a lot of the variety the system is meant to provide.
>>44332349
>If you try to make anything resembling a well-rounded individual you're so far behind in terms of combat or supernatural ability that you might as well just kill yourself before the fight starts.
Oh fuck off. That's an outright lie.
>>44335454
Autism money from a scholarship?
Sign me up!
