Just wanna say: Anti-Paladins are never okay. They never work. Not unless you completely ignore the 'they lose their powers if they commit any good or lawful actions' rule. Because at that point they are trapped as 'stupid evil'.

Also the fact that my character was knocked unconscious after being critically hit three times in a row by goblins and this guy said he was going to coup de grace me. He said he was joking but I don't entirely believe him. He also tried setting fire to the loot we had obtained and when we wouldn't let him burn it he burned down the only shelter on the island instead...

You all gang up on his character and issue an ultimatum, then kill him if he refuses to comply. If he gets mad you explain why you did it. In fact you explain beforehand, but then again when he gets mad. And that's it. No more, because it is his problem, not yours.

If he is a friend then he should be able to take "sometimes the characters you play are real dicks and deserve to be put down" without throwing a hissy fit.

Dear lord yes...but make sure the GM knows this is coming.

This.

Oh, yeah? Well ,for rebuttal, how about...wait, where the hell is the youtube vid for Alan Moore's Beard?!?!

BEST SONG EVER!!!

Well it seems that this might be a common problem.

Fear the challenge or are your boots too small?

Over the coarse of 2011 & 2012 FTB has some great pod casts that derived from some great campaigning. We heard stories of running multiple pcs at one time, many stories and plots and storyline hooks and finally the controversial Gnarl  gate.

Among some of the  past discussions covered were how the holidays puts a damper on game play and ultimately ends what was a good gaming session. Dan has confessed many times that Gnarl is among one of his favorite characters. Many of you Booter's roll back to this particular gaming session during conversation topics.

You have given us all advise on how to keep our games going by creating a strong character by using a template.  A long list of Tools  within the Player or DM/GM toolbox. Ideas for perpetration  or lack of prep time and still pulling gaming session out of our magic sphincters. Here is what I propose.... Use this as an effort to Resurrect a long dormant gaming session. What techniques can you try? What works ? Are the characters still as enjoyable to play. What will or can you do to pull everyone back in? 

I know many of us have faced a game that ended or stopped for what ever reasons. As a challenge what can you do to pull this old campaign back to life.

Truly,
DragonAstik

Hi,

I have been listening to the cast for the last 6 mo. or so. and have really enjoyed it.

My group is starting a new campaign and I can tell they want to be very combat oriented. I obviously want to cater to their needs/wants, but I am also very interested in story and character development. Combats are easy to generate, but I would like to hear suggestions on how to make combats more connected to the development of the player characters and creating a dynamic story that makes each encounter critical to the narrative.

This maybe gamemastering 101, but I am just returning to the hobby after 20+ years. I would appreciate any help going forward.

Thanks for listening,
MaverickG

As a player I love when my character gets (benevolently) put through the ringer. I think adversity is the fuel for better stories and a more enjoyable campaign. Cutting off my hand, destroying my ship, killing an NPC I like, or any number of lose-lose situations are all welcomed additions that will enhance a campaign in my opinion.

The caveat is that such adversity needs to be presented with good intentions, to make a more interesting story. I've requested more adversity in our current game from my friend/GM but he's concerned that putting us through the ringer will make him come off as a jerk.

Where's the line between a jerk GM and a fun, adversity-throwing GM? How do you present it so the players don't think you're just being a jerk? Is there any way to handle players who aren't like me and dislike getting thrown under the bus?

Personally my love of adversity is tied to how much I trust my GM. If I trust them to tell a good story, I'm on board with the adversity that they pit against me. But what do you do for players who don't have that trust or similar perspective?

To give an example, in our last session we were rescued a prince who got lost in the forest. We found him tied up at a troll village with some other villagers and a skirmish ensued so we could free him. The GM worried that if the troll leader held the boy hostage and demanded our surrender, the general reaction from the players would be negative. He worried that we would feel like he was being a jerk GM instead of seeing it as a difficult but interesting situation.