First time DM here! I’m running a play-by-post game for some friends and some strangers, and I’m dealing with a player situation I didn’t think to prepare for.
So my players’ PCs have some pretty in-depth backstories, and when I started this campaign I was really eager to use them to shape some of the homebrew world I’d created.
One notable PC (warlock) wrote in their backstory that they have dreams, in which their patron feeds them tasks, and they have to complete them. (I have it so that their patron is actually the BBEG, although no one knows that yet.) So far they’ve only taken a couple of long rests— the first time, I described a dream to the warlock. When he woke up, he said (in-character) that he was frustrated because the dream he had was different than any he’d had before. I was confused, since I thought I’d written the dream in the same flavor as their backstory had said. I shrugged it off.
Next night, they leveled up. Each of the spellcasters (paladin, cleric, druid, warlock) got a dream described to them, each one tailored to the characters’ goals (The cleric, wishing for forgiveness from his god, received guiding words, etc.) Everyone seemed fine.
Cue the next night. I didn’t have anything to say to the warlock, and I was busy dealing with setting up some stuff for the next day. So I didn’t specify that he’d had a dream. When the characters woke, he again says (in character) that he was frustrated he didn’t receive any dreams, when he has ALWAYS gotten a dream every night.
This is also a character who frequently interrupts my NPCs with a “f*** you!! [Spell]” or “yeah, that’s nice, whatever” even though a number of the villains are hinted at being connected to him (he has crystals growing on his arms, and the boss of the first arc had those same crystals and shifted into a crystal monster).
I’m a DM, not a slave. I’m also not the best at confronting people. How do I deal with this players’ expectations going forward?
Dont deal with it. Talk to the player and move on. If he/she dont like it then he/she can leave or you can drop them. Players are easy to replace if you are playing online. I try to make it as clear as I can in my games. Its not about the character but the characters as a whole. Yeah, I have had issues like this but simply would not put up with it. Another thing is that when a player comes up with a background have them keep it simple, very simple. There are far to many players out there who have these insanely elaborate backgrounds. Like they have lived a full life yet they want to start a character at a young age.
Being presumptuous, this player is trying to force you to use a mechanic they created so they have an acceptable meta-gaming excuse and are irritated that you're not adhering to how they feel you should be progressing? Compromise aside, this will create more issues than might be worth it for a homebrew vision you have created. Their interpretation should fit into the confines of your world, not the other way around.
Dont deal with it. Talk to the player and move on. If he/she dont like it then he/she can leave or you can drop them. Players are easy to replace if you are playing online. I try to make it as clear as I can in my games. Its not about the character but the characters as a whole. Yeah, I have had issues like this but simply would not put up with it. Another thing is that when a player comes up with a background have them keep it simple, very simple. There are far to many players out there who have these insanely elaborate backgrounds. Like they have lived a full life yet they want to start a character at a young age.
Usually I don't take such a cut-and-dry approach but I make exceptions versus players whose only motivation is moving their own story forward regardless of what is built around them.
First time DM here! I’m running a play-by-post game for some friends and some strangers, and I’m dealing with a player situation I didn’t think to prepare for.
So my players’ PCs have some pretty in-depth backstories, and when I started this campaign I was really eager to use them to shape some of the homebrew world I’d created.
One notable PC (warlock) wrote in their backstory that they have dreams, in which their patron feeds them tasks, and they have to complete them. (I have it so that their patron is actually the BBEG, although no one knows that yet.) So far they’ve only taken a couple of long rests— the first time, I described a dream to the warlock. When he woke up, he said (in-character) that he was frustrated because the dream he had was different than any he’d had before. I was confused, since I thought I’d written the dream in the same flavor as their backstory had said. I shrugged it off.
Next night, they leveled up. Each of the spellcasters (paladin, cleric, druid, warlock) got a dream described to them, each one tailored to the characters’ goals (The cleric, wishing for forgiveness from his god, received guiding words, etc.) Everyone seemed fine.
Cue the next night. I didn’t have anything to say to the warlock, and I was busy dealing with setting up some stuff for the next day. So I didn’t specify that he’d had a dream. When the characters woke, he again says (in character) that he was frustrated he didn’t receive any dreams, when he has ALWAYS gotten a dream every night.
This is also a character who frequently interrupts my NPCs with a “f*** you!! [Spell]” or “yeah, that’s nice, whatever” even though a number of the villains are hinted at being connected to him (he has crystals growing on his arms, and the boss of the first arc had those same crystals and shifted into a crystal monster).
I’m a DM, not a slave. I’m also not the best at confronting people. How do I deal with this players’ expectations going forward?
Dont deal with it. Talk to the player and move on. If he/she dont like it then he/she can leave or you can drop them. Players are easy to replace if you are playing online. I try to make it as clear as I can in my games. Its not about the character but the characters as a whole. Yeah, I have had issues like this but simply would not put up with it. Another thing is that when a player comes up with a background have them keep it simple, very simple. There are far to many players out there who have these insanely elaborate backgrounds. Like they have lived a full life yet they want to start a character at a young age.
Being presumptuous, this player is trying to force you to use a mechanic they created so they have an acceptable meta-gaming excuse and are irritated that you're not adhering to how they feel you should be progressing? Compromise aside, this will create more issues than might be worth it for a homebrew vision you have created. Their interpretation should fit into the confines of your world, not the other way around.
BrokenDM said it best
Usually I don't take such a cut-and-dry approach but I make exceptions versus players whose only motivation is moving their own story forward regardless of what is built around them.
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