This is a thread for all the bad habits you've developed as a player/GM and for discussing ways to break them.
When describing a room I have a tendency to only focus on things that are important to the immediate problem the PCs are facing, letting the players fill in the blanks by simply saying what kind of room they're in. It really kills investigative games.
I'm trying to fix this by making lists of miscellaneous items that would reasonably be in the rooms in whatever building the PCs are in when I prep for games. Sometimes if I'm out and not really doing anything I think about how I would describe wherever I am as I would if I were describing it to my players. It's difficult to be consistently mindful of smaller details while keeping track of everything else that goes into running a game but I think I'm getting better, my players seem to find investigation heavy games more rewarding lately.
In most games, my characters usually have a sense of morals. That doesnt neccesarily mean he wont do unethical actions, but they do draw the line somewhere. I mean, what is the point of going against a BBEG if YOU are the real evil guy?
I know, its bad to being a good RPG player, but i'm not going to kill a harmless toddler in a game just because I can or because the GM would allow it. Just because the option is open, doesn't mean you have to take it.
Am I wrong in thinking like this? Am I just a bad player?
>>45744861
I actually wish that was something my players did more. They are all too willing to take extreme measure if they think the ends justify the means. I encourage inter party drama and arguing as long as it stays in the game, it's pretty boring when players are satisfied being killbots.
My bad habit is that I'm a loot happy bitch who would rather collect interesting items than anything else.
It doesn't even have to be valuable loot. Anything that the DM describes that I find interesting grabs my kender-like attention and refuses to let go. Pirate captain's fancy hat, shiny piece of bandit armor, unicorn skull, et cetera.
I have no plans to fix this, I fully accept my curse. Now gimme the fancy silverware and no-body gets hurt!
>>45744861
It makes you limited, not bad. There's nothing wrong with always playing within a certain alignment as long as you still have some variation in the personalities and motivations of your characters. And since you are aware of it, it's probably not a problem.
What's much worse is when a player is totally unable to do anything but one very specific alignment, but doesn't understand that about themselves, and so keeps trying to do other stuff. Like the player who literally cannot stop himself from insane murder hoboing, but still tries to play cops and paladins, and is just confused and frustrated by any consequences to his actions, or any backlash from the GM or other players.
Giving up.
>>45744650
>When describing a room I have a tendency to only focus on things that are important to the immediate problem the PCs are facing, letting the players fill in the blanks by simply saying what kind of room they're in. It really kills investigative games.
>I'm trying to fix this by making lists of miscellaneous items that would reasonably be in the rooms in whatever building the PCs are in when I prep for games. Sometimes if I'm out and not really doing anything I think about how I would describe wherever I am as I would if I were describing it to my players. It's difficult to be consistently mindful of smaller details while keeping track of everything else that goes into running a game but I think I'm getting better, my players seem to find investigation heavy games more rewarding lately.
Here you can talk to your players about this. Tell them you're only going to broadly describe a room and they'll have to ask questions about more specific things.
>>45744861
You are a good player. If your GM tolerates murderhoboing then he's either a shit GM or a jaded GM used to running games for shit players.
>>45747242
That's not a bad thing. As a GM I can use this, either for you or against you. Typically I'd try to come up with situations where you could use the shit you gathered, and sometimes make an item turn out to be more than you bargained for.
>>45748803
>What's much worse is when a player is totally unable to do anything but one very specific alignment, but doesn't understand that about themselves, and so keeps trying to do other stuff. Like the player who literally cannot stop himself from insane murder hoboing, but still tries to play cops and paladins, and is just confused and frustrated by any consequences to his actions, or any backlash from the GM or other players.
These players are cancer. I don't know how someone could be like this without brain damage, but apparently it's possible. The reasonable ones can be taught to do better, at least.
>>45744650
>wasting time and confusing the narrative focussing on meaningless clutter
Now that would be a bad habit, you're doing fine OP.
Sometimes I try to play Evil Mastermind in my head, setting up plans to manipulate NPCs, and/or player characters even though I suck at it when I'm not the DM.
It gets to the point where I sometimes have half a plan in my head before realizing that would be a super dick move and dropping it and kicking myself. Unless I'm the DM, in which case I just tell myself I'll do it later or change it so it's not so much of a dick move, or the players actually enjoy it.
I never refuse being the DM because of this, unless it's a system I despise.
I know I'm a shitter, but the opportunity just seems too good to pass up at times, because it lets me set up cunning traps and watch players overcome them with wit, which is always nice.
>>45748993
>"You're standing in a hospital morgue. You see [clues]"
I can see how that would make for a less than thrilling mystery game.
>>45749088
I bet you complain your players are braindead morons when they spend multiple sessions investigating superfluous bullshit that has nothing to do with the mystery.
>>45744650
Had some bad GMs when I first started out who thought the point of the game was to kill the players so you can "win".
Now I assume this of all my new GMs and whenever they throw something unexpected or particularly nasty at me, I tend to take it personally. I say nothing, but the thought remains.
I just want to be able to relax and enjoy their games, but I'm too much of a shitty person.
>>45749424
Players who do this are. They're approaching PnP like it's a point-and-click vidya adventure.
>this random thing the DM happened to mention? MUST BE SUPER IMPORTANT OR IT WOULD NEVER HAVE EVEN APPEARED!
That's you. Stay mad at being stupid.
I have a list:
>Give up too quickly due to lack of patience
>Tend to shush players outside the game after a long OOC distraction takes place.
>General complaining about shit that only I seem to care about.
>Beeing too clingy when scheduling a game and making sure everyone is arriving on time.
>I have a temperament when it comes to strategic board game and OOC bickering has caused someone to be targeted by all other players, regardless of board state.
>>45749424
>"You're standing in the morgue. The ground is littered with various medical instruments spilling out from an overturned cart. The fluorescent lighting reflects off the blade of a scalpel, catching your eye for a moment. A half eaten sandwich sits on a gurney next to a fresh looking corpse. The corpse, male, mid to late 30s, has a fist sized hole in its chest where the heart would be. Immediate examination reveals bones from the ribcage pushing outward. You see a small trail of blood leading from the corpse to an AC duct in the ceiling. It is closed."
Yeah I would call them braindead morons if they spent multiple sessions investigating the sandwich.
>>45749816
>not investigating sandwiches with your mouth
have fun starving
>>45749851
>Spending multiple sessions describing how a PC eats a sandwich
>>45749784
>Give up too quickly due to lack of patience
This is something I highly suggest you work on.
>Tend to shush players outside the game after a long OOC distraction takes place.
Each group needs one person, besides the GM, to help tangle the rowdy players in. You're fine in this regard as long as you aren't overdoing it.
>General complaining about shit that only I seem to care about.
This is annoying as hell for a GM and probably irritating your friends. Stop that shit now.
>Beeing too clingy when scheduling a game and making sure everyone is arriving on time.
Calling once to see if they're on the road is fine. Calling ten times within an hour is kinda too much.
>I have a temperament when it comes to strategic board game and OOC bickering has caused someone to be targeted by all other players, regardless of board state.
Completely justified, especially if it is yourself being targeted or if someone is just being bullied.
>>45744650
My bad habit as a GM is my utter lack of a poker face.
Whenever something awesome is about to happen, I get a shit-eating grin on my face.
The only saving grace is that I react the same to awesomely good things or awesomely bad.
Clever plans or random twist of fate, doesn't matter.
But my players always know when something about to happen before I even say a word.
>>45749911
>>Spending multiple sessions describing how a PC eats a sandwich
Mutual mastication? Now that's a bad habit.
>>45744650
Sometimes I don't wash my hands after touching dice
>>45744650
I have a bad case of the M Knight Shamalamadingdongs.
Virtually every campaign I have ever run has a twist or surprise. My favorite kind of encounter is an ambush. I'm like some sort of shitty plot twist addict.
Decorative pile of skulls? NOPE MONSTER
Heroes journey, starting off as mere farmboys bound for the capital? Oh, what a shame you've been shot to death by bandits. . . . SURPRISE MOTHERFUCKER, CAMPAIGN IN THE AFTERLIFE.
Creepy mysterious snowstorm with negative energy blowing on the wind? HAHA, IT WAS JUST A NORMAL SNOW STORM AND THE NEGATIVE ENERGY WAS ALWAYS THERE.
Ah, at last, a peaceful night of rest. . . . NOPE GOLEM SMASHES THROUGH YOUR WINDOW.
Whoa, look at this amazing class related magical artifact at the bottom of this totally not blatantly evil dungeon, congrats on the loot I definitely randomly roll. JK ITS CURSED.
Yay, you saved the poor little girl crying out for help. NOPE CHUCK-- I MEAN THE LITTLE GIRL WAS ACTUALLY SOMEHOW THE MAMA MONSTER ALL ALONG.
Good work guys, you now have a groveling servile kobold informant. . . . . NOPE, 9th LEVEL ASSASSIN LULLING YOU INTO A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY.
Nice job clearing out all the monsters, now you just have to find the missing children. . . . HAHA, THE MONSTERS WERE THE CHILDREN THE WHOLE TIME! (I'm a big fable fan. Well. Of the first game).
Ok, you roll to seduce the bard. (PC rolls nat 1, bard rolls nat 20). HAHA, THE BARD SEDUCES YOU!
I have a problem.
>>45751733
Are these just examples or actual personal experiences?
>>45751733
I have a similar problem. I enjoy GMing horror games (had a blast with Don't Rest Your Head a few years back) and so I tend to include horror elements in most of my campaigns. It's gotten to the point where my players trust no-one and expect everything to kill them... even when I'm running something lighthearted and fun.
I managed to solve my problem by running a few quests which SEEMED like they'd have dark and horrific twists, and instead playing them straight. The kids lost in the woods really are just some kids lost in the woods, no eldritch monsters involved. The nice old woman letting you stay with her while you're in town is just that. Then, when I've regained their trust, I spring a twist on them.
So, yeah. Try planning a session with no twists, just a few legitimate and straightforward challenges, and stick to your notes. Find a simple module if you want some more explicit guidelines to stick by. Good luck!
>>45751841
They are all things I have actually done in games.
>>45751884
Yeah I'm going to try and make myself do something super straight forward for the next game. I'm considering something like airship merchants or something. Fly around, deal in a little smuggling and political intrigue, get hassled by bandits, etc. My players are pretty into being merchants in DnD for whatever reason.
>>45752193
You are a really, really bad DM and holy shit am I sorry for everyone who's ever met you.
>>45752193
You are my favourite kind of person
>>45752568
>>45752300
Hahaha, apparently there are two kinds of people on /tg/
>>45751733
>Creepy mysterious snowstorm with negative energy blowing on the wind?
I think I remember you posting something about that quite a while ago.
>>45753482
Yep. Noooot my best session. Actually possibly my second worst ever. It did mindfuck my players pretty good though as they'd gotten used to something being up anytime the slightest hair was out of place.
>>45744861
I agree with you.
No, you are not wrong in thinking this and no, you also aren't a bad player: I think that you are right and people shouldn't just kill people in the game because they "can" and, because they "can", they "have to" to see what happens if they do.
>>45744650
I have this bad habit that is pretty much opposed to what >>45744861 said.
When I play, I really have to get into it, to get empathic with my PC, otherwise I will play him as a cold war machine with no concept of mercy or human emotions: one example I have for this is when I played my superhero character and we were investigating the disappearance of an important weapon and I decided that, since my character is shit at persuading but awesome in intimidating, I should just intimidate all the civilians into telling me what I needed to know.
Threatening innocent people with violence, however, is not very good. Or heroic. I really regret doing it: I wasn't thinking straight that session.
I usually have more fun bantering with the enemy mid-combat, rather than investigating, looking for clues and asking witnesses anything.
>>45744861
self-righteous humblebrag, begging /tg/ to suck your dick and tell you you're a good player
kill yourself faggot
1) If my character is in a situation where he is of no use (such as: the party wizards are doing some extensive magic shit) I get really frustrated and antsy.
2) I find it hard to stay in character when I'm playing with voice or in-person, but I'm sick of how damn slow text roleplay is.
3) I really dislike reading core books and can never push myself to read up, even when I really want to GM.
Help me /adv/, uh I mean /tg/.
>>45755187
>I really dislike reading core books and can never push myself to read up, even when I really want to GM.
Play a rules-light game. And even then just learn the important parts, skimming over the rest. You don't need to know all the setting details as you can make up shit yourself.
>I find it hard to stay in character when I'm playing with voice or in-person, but I'm sick of how damn slow text roleplay is.
Practice makes perfect. Don't sweat it, and don't worry about doing funny voices. Also, make a character that's easy for you to identify with / natural for you to play. Being ambitious is nice and theory, but you can end up with a character that's really difficult to play, especially if you have to wrestle with other aspects of the game. I only ever play ambitious characters when I know the GM and group, and I click with them and the type of game it is, allowing me to handle interactions with them instinctively and thus letting me focus on doing my character justice.
>If my character is in a situation where he is of no use (such as: the party wizards are doing some extensive magic shit) I get really frustrated and antsy.
Chances are, you're only partly to blame. Your GM and fellow players should do their best not do things that exclude you for extended periods of time. Still, there are going to be times when such things are unavoidable. I try to view such times as "breaks", and kind of sit back and think over my character and their motivations and future plans and so forth (while keeping an ear open for important information in the on-going game).
>>45755187
>I really dislike reading core books and can never push myself to read up, even when I really want to GM.
My players do this and it gets to be a real pain in the ass. We tried out the new Delta Green quickstart a while ago and all of the rules are covered in like five or six pages that they absolutely couldn't be bothered to even look at. I know it's dull reading over rules but at the very least skim them so you aren't asking a bunch of basic questions all the time and killing the momentum of the game.
