#gm problems
YO I think we as a DnD community need to address the fact that when PCs flirt with NPCs they put the DM in the position of having to play that NPC and not all DMs are comfortable with that all the time and it shouldn’t be an expectation that the DM is comfortable playing NPCs that are being flirted with
I think that is something that you should talk about as a group before playing. In our group we allow npcs and PCs to have romantic interactions but we have respect for each other.
If someone is not comfortable we don’t push it. We don’t get graphic or cross lines with players or DMs that are not ok with it. If you are in a group that doesn’t respect your boundaries talk to them about it. If they don’t listen it is time to find another group.
I am a female Dm with a group of all males(one is my boyfriend of 10 years) all but 1 player has a romantic interest NPC. None of them have ever crossed my boundaries or made me (or my boyfriend) uncomfortable. Other DMs have no npcs that have romantic interest in the players. If you are clear about what you want from the game and what is allowed I find there is rarely a problem with a good group.
Does anyone else have to deal with your DM punishing you strictly because you beat their combat scene too easily or used a magic item too effectively?
In a game I’m playing we found a magic item that basically let me do blood bending, it was made by a necromancer and we took it as well as a few other fucked up magic items, like a hammer that shatters bones into dust on a nat 20, after we kicked his ass. The DM designed these items knowing we would find and use them and typically my gaming group rewards players for finding creative ways to use magic and solve problems.
Later we came up against this guy who was just the worst type of character, murderer, slaver, kept women as his “personal servants”, and was just in general not a person we wanted alive. We fight the guy and we aren’t doing great so I use the item and I asked to just straight up rip the blood out of his body and it does a lot of damage, this basically changes the direction of the fight.
After we kill the guy, our DM is clearly annoyed because I got two good hits on him with the item. He tells me that me using the item in this way was an evil act because it was so merciless and I had to make a roll for my alignment. I called bullshit because we were there to kill him and none of us were going to spare him regardless. He tried to argue some shit that him being a bad person doesn’t mean I get to do bad things to him.
Ultimately I asked why the fuck he gave us the blood bending item if he didn’t want us to use it in the most effective way possible. He tried to spin some philosophical bullshit about self restraint but he was clearly just mad that we bested his boss fight when he wanted us to flee or for the boss to get away.
He wouldn’t let the alignment thing go, so no my lawful neutral monk is lawful evil for no reason and I’m plotting how to further fuck over his campaign. I’m gonna start with the den of thieves he’s put in our city and see how far he pushes me after that. I will also be using the magic item much more often because obviously I’m evil now so it shouldn’t bother my character to do this now all the time.
Suggest to your DM to write a book instead of DMing. That way no one can ruin his story and all the characters will do what he wants. As a DM you need to prepare for players who will do the unexpected. Personally I love it when my players think outside the box and they are rewarded for being clever/creative.
Maybe it is time to talk to the DM or look for a new group. A DM has to make sure their players are having a good time. If they are not that isn’t a someone who should DM. Maybe consider becoming a DM yourself if you can’t find a new group. I’m sure the others in your party are also frusterated by this.
Best of luck with this. Hope it works out!
