I'm new to this board and I was hoping you could all help me out. I am a new DM and overall new to D&D. Last night I ran my first session with a one shot I made myself. It was only supposed to take 2 hours max to complete, but instead we spent 2 hours fighting the village folk because one person decided to make his character of the Kender race. He just wanted to stir up trouble. This person, we'll call him Fred, was the only person at the table with any experience in playing the game. Everyone else are complete noobs, including myself. And because of his shenanigans I feel he may have a negative affect on the others. Not to mention they didn't even make it 1/4 through the one shot I had made.
That being said, should i continue to let Fred play as a Kender, or kill his character off? Any advice helps.
Sounds like he is very much an old school gamer. That means you can either talk to him about your expectations for the game and how he fits. It might also work to talk to him about teaching others the game including the basic tropes and so forth. Maybe suggest that as the most experienced player you hoped he might be the one that helps them find their path toward the adventure and that so far he has through his play really put everyone in the mind of getting into trouble and playing in the sandbox.
You are welcome to respond to him in an old school manner. Consequences. He gets caught, call guards, have the victim turn the tables, have him steal something cursed. He is noticed by the local thieves guild and they will find him with overwhelming force drag him to "the boss" force him to kiss the ring or face the consequences.
Talk to the player, tell him he needs to dial it back a notch, and give him a list of specific grievances and WHY his playing his character like he is is disrupting and ruining the game.
Remind him that genetics do not determine personality, and there's nothing stopping him from playing a Kender whose purpose in life isn't to be a gigantic d**khead kleptomaniac communist 8-year-old.
I'll try to reason with him, but he seemes very adamant on playing the "child who just tried sugar for the first time" (his words, not mine). But if that doesnt work. Death Tyrant. Beholder. Cloud Giant. Planetar Angel. Adult Remhoraz. And not one but two. TWO. Mind Flayers. And a crap load of ability checks.
I'll try to reason with him, but he seemes very adamant on playing the "child who just tried sugar for the first time" (his words, not mine). But if that doesnt work. Death Tyrant. Beholder. Cloud Giant. Planetar Angel. Adult Remhoraz. And not one but two. TWO. Mind Flayers. And a crap load of ability checks.
Or just sick the town guard on him. Or put a bounty on him if the town is too small for a decent guard. Maybe an adventure is in town and assists the guards in capturing a lawbreaker.
Does the character "stir up trouble" willingly and consciously? Because if so, you could maybe try to poke him in his pride by making him notice a Kender does not really have the concept of consequence (aside from being unable to recognise personal space or property) and therefore it would not do anything with the specific intent of creating trouble.
That being said, I agree with DxJxC: put him in a situation where he cannot create trouble without immediate consequence. You confronted him and he keeps on doing in-game something that was clearly pointed out to him as troublesome even out of game, then he has to accept the consequences in-game.
I'm new to this board and I was hoping you could all help me out.
I am a new DM and overall new to D&D. Last night I ran my first session with a one shot I made myself. It was only supposed to take 2 hours max to complete, but instead we spent 2 hours fighting the village folk because one person decided to make his character of the Kender race. He just wanted to stir up trouble. This person, we'll call him Fred, was the only person at the table with any experience in playing the game. Everyone else are complete noobs, including myself. And because of his shenanigans I feel he may have a negative affect on the others. Not to mention they didn't even make it 1/4 through the one shot I had made.
That being said, should i continue to let Fred play as a Kender, or kill his character off? Any advice helps.
if his name is anything other than tasslehoff burfoot (cant remember how to spell it) murder him to death.
I did NOT eat those hikers.
Sounds like he is very much an old school gamer. That means you can either talk to him about your expectations for the game and how he fits. It might also work to talk to him about teaching others the game including the basic tropes and so forth. Maybe suggest that as the most experienced player you hoped he might be the one that helps them find their path toward the adventure and that so far he has through his play really put everyone in the mind of getting into trouble and playing in the sandbox.
You are welcome to respond to him in an old school manner. Consequences. He gets caught, call guards, have the victim turn the tables, have him steal something cursed. He is noticed by the local thieves guild and they will find him with overwhelming force drag him to "the boss" force him to kiss the ring or face the consequences.
That reminds me of this post from last week. https://www.dndbeyond.com/forums/d-d-beyond-general/general-discussion/41024-playing-a-kender Hmm...
But seriously, if a character is causing trouble in your game, cause trouble for that character.
So something along the lines of a Death Tyrant coming to "Destroy the last of the Kender bloodline"? Or is that too much?
Talk to the player, tell him he needs to dial it back a notch, and give him a list of specific grievances and WHY his playing his character like he is is disrupting and ruining the game.
Remind him that genetics do not determine personality, and there's nothing stopping him from playing a Kender whose purpose in life isn't to be a gigantic d**khead kleptomaniac communist 8-year-old.
You could also remind him of the racial profiling of Kender from Dragonlance was pretty extreme.
I'll try to reason with him, but he seemes very adamant on playing the "child who just tried sugar for the first time" (his words, not mine). But if that doesnt work. Death Tyrant. Beholder. Cloud Giant. Planetar Angel. Adult Remhoraz. And not one but two. TWO. Mind Flayers. And a crap load of ability checks.
Or just sick the town guard on him. Or put a bounty on him if the town is too small for a decent guard. Maybe an adventure is in town and assists the guards in capturing a lawbreaker.
And I dont mean guards, I mean knights, gladiators, champions, mages, and priests or war priests.
Does the character "stir up trouble" willingly and consciously? Because if so, you could maybe try to poke him in his pride by making him notice a Kender does not really have the concept of consequence (aside from being unable to recognise personal space or property) and therefore it would not do anything with the specific intent of creating trouble.
That being said, I agree with DxJxC: put him in a situation where he cannot create trouble without immediate consequence. You confronted him and he keeps on doing in-game something that was clearly pointed out to him as troublesome even out of game, then he has to accept the consequences in-game.
Born in Italy, moved a bunch, living in Spain, my heart always belonged to Roleplaying Games