I have an unusual problem and an even more unusual player. He came to me and said he wanted to create Bob Ross as a character. I am thinking, "okay, a character based off of Bob Ross. Could be interesting." So, he created a ranger that can paint and has the personality of Bob Ross...or so I thought. Apparently, what he meant was, "I'm creating Bob Ross". Here is what he described (with out my knowledge) to the other players; "I'm the Bob Ross from earth. When I died I received a 2nd chance at life, but was sent to the forgotten realms. My knowledge is based on what was known before my death and is my actual knowledge." I'm trying to figure out the best way to tell him that will not work in this realm without sounding like a complete jerk. The problem is that he has already told the entire group this and started playing him that way in the last session.
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‘A’OHE PU’U KI’EKI’E KE HO’A’O ‘IA E PI’I – (No cliff is so tall it cannot be climbed.)
I think you just have to say that look, on careful consideration, you are not comfortable as a DM having someone RP an actual person from history, let alone having that person be in the FR world. Please make a different character.
If no... well I guess he won't be in your game.
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WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
You're allowed to say no to the player without being a jerk. Be friendly and casual, don't make a big deal of it, but go, "hey man, your character can't actually be Bob Ross. You can play a guy based off him, but not actually him." If he asks why, just tell him it's not that silly a game and you have more fun when people take it seriously. If he gets defensive, don't engage, just say that it's not fun for you (he can't say what is and isn't fun, after all). Hopefully he realizes that it's everyone's job to make sure everyone else is having fun.
And if it creates a continuity issue, just don't worry about it. Rosseth the ranger has now been Rosseth all along. Remember, it's a game!
I'm thinking of telling him, "Hey, I've been thinking of your character concept and after careful consideration, I don't think that having Bob be the actual Bob Ross translates well in this setting. I have no problem with him being modeled after Bob Ross, but he can not be the same Bob Ross from earth."
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‘A’OHE PU’U KI’EKI’E KE HO’A’O ‘IA E PI’I – (No cliff is so tall it cannot be climbed.)
Also you could try saying something like, "Well actually, in MY cosmology, there is no 'earth' as we know it. So you can't be from here because it doesn't exist in my campaign."
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WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
Also, if he asks, "Why didn't you say that before?" just explain what you have told us. You thought he mean "inspired by" Bob Ross, not actually being him, and that you were so thrown by it that you didn't even know how to respond that first session.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
You could let them go ahead with it, but make clear that in the reality of the story's world, their character is just delusional. Then you could work with the player to see if they want to just leave it there with a weird character who thinks they are the reincarnation of a man from another world, or if they trust you to piece together some backstory that led them to fall into such a deep rejection of reality.
Then their Bob Ross can struggle with who they think they are, who they were, and who they will be going forward.
I'm just not sure what the problem rally is. I mean, Bob Ross as far as your player is aware has painting skills and a soothing voice. He'll have to dip into at least a level of Bard to let that voice actually work as inspiration for his PC. Bob Ross didn't have any particular skills or knowledge of the modern world that would be really disruptive to the Forgotten Realms. Dude knows paint and has an uplifting perhaps overly simplified worldview.
If you want to be hard on him, let him know that the dominant styles of painting in the FR just don't have a place for Bob Ross's work, so he's constantly belittled and ridiculed by the Forgotten Realms art world and equivalent of Public Broadcasting audience.
Let Bob Ross be Bob Ross.
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Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
I'm just not sure what the problem rally is. I mean, Bob Ross as far as your player is aware has painting skills and a soothing voice. He'll have to dip into at least a level of Bard to let that voice actually work as inspiration for his PC. Bob Ross didn't have any particular skills or knowledge of the modern world that would be really disruptive to the Forgotten Realms. Dude knows paint and has an uplifting perhaps overly simplified worldview.
Surely this is not the only issue. If the player regularly tries to RP about "earth" things, discussing microwaves and television and talking about his "TV show" and "the internet" in a classically run FR world, the RP alone would be disruptive to any attempt at seriousness that the GM and rest of the players are making.
Also, let's remember that the real Bob Ross came from a world in which D&D and the Forgotten Realms were gaming materials... the real Bob Ross would probably be talking about how he is now "living" the game of D&D (even if he was not a player he'd have heard of it -- everyone had by the time of his death). He would be making references to all kinds of things the other PCs don't know anything about.
If he's NOT going to RP that, then why "be" Bob Ross?
No one is arguing against a Bob Ross inspired character. What we are saying is that it can be problematic to RP that you are that actual person, having world-switched in a way the DM might not want to have going on in his world.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
His concept is fine, it's when he tries to bring in "earth" things and uses it as an excuse to metagame that is the problem (like trying to paint a T-Rex, that doesn't exist in my campaign setting, so the wizard can polymorph into it). We have talked and it is settled though...I hope lol.
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‘A’OHE PU’U KI’EKI’E KE HO’A’O ‘IA E PI’I – (No cliff is so tall it cannot be climbed.)
While I do like the idea of painterly magic, and I want to say I've seen something like somewhere, you're ruling sounds fine. Or if you wanted to mess with him, let him paint and then the wizard can polymorph into a painting of a T-Rex.
Bob Ross I don't think painted dinosaurs, known for landscapes ... which if you wanted to go there, there is the aforementioned MtG hooks. You could have his nemesis be infused with the soul of Thomas Kincaid who is sorta of the antitheses of Bob Ross personality-wise and definitely a different painting style. Sometimes it's funny to _own_ a player doing something like this for lulz by out subject mastering them. Bob Ross and painting isn't hard.
But seriously, wasn't there some sort of UA about maybe a Bard college that works with visual art? Reminded me of the children's book The Purple Crayon.
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Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
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I have an unusual problem and an even more unusual player. He came to me and said he wanted to create Bob Ross as a character. I am thinking, "okay, a character based off of Bob Ross. Could be interesting." So, he created a ranger that can paint and has the personality of Bob Ross...or so I thought. Apparently, what he meant was, "I'm creating Bob Ross". Here is what he described (with out my knowledge) to the other players; "I'm the Bob Ross from earth. When I died I received a 2nd chance at life, but was sent to the forgotten realms. My knowledge is based on what was known before my death and is my actual knowledge." I'm trying to figure out the best way to tell him that will not work in this realm without sounding like a complete jerk. The problem is that he has already told the entire group this and started playing him that way in the last session.
‘A’OHE PU’U KI’EKI’E KE HO’A’O ‘IA E PI’I – (No cliff is so tall it cannot be climbed.)
Just thinking Death might be Peeved.
Itinerant Deputy Shire-reave Tomas Burrfoot - world walker, Raft-captain, speaker to his dead
Toddy Shelfungus- Rider of the Order of Ill Luck, Speaker to Friends of Friends, and Horribly big nosed
Jarl Archi of Jenisis Glade Fee- Noble Knight of the Dragonborn Goldcrest Clan, Sorcerer of the Noble Investigator;y; Knightly order of the Wolfhound
I think you just have to say that look, on careful consideration, you are not comfortable as a DM having someone RP an actual person from history, let alone having that person be in the FR world. Please make a different character.
If no... well I guess he won't be in your game.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
You're allowed to say no to the player without being a jerk. Be friendly and casual, don't make a big deal of it, but go, "hey man, your character can't actually be Bob Ross. You can play a guy based off him, but not actually him." If he asks why, just tell him it's not that silly a game and you have more fun when people take it seriously. If he gets defensive, don't engage, just say that it's not fun for you (he can't say what is and isn't fun, after all). Hopefully he realizes that it's everyone's job to make sure everyone else is having fun.
And if it creates a continuity issue, just don't worry about it. Rosseth the ranger has now been Rosseth all along. Remember, it's a game!
Wizard (Gandalf) of the Tolkien Club
I'm thinking of telling him, "Hey, I've been thinking of your character concept and after careful consideration, I don't think that having Bob be the actual Bob Ross translates well in this setting. I have no problem with him being modeled after Bob Ross, but he can not be the same Bob Ross from earth."
‘A’OHE PU’U KI’EKI’E KE HO’A’O ‘IA E PI’I – (No cliff is so tall it cannot be climbed.)
I think that is a very fair statement.
Also you could try saying something like, "Well actually, in MY cosmology, there is no 'earth' as we know it. So you can't be from here because it doesn't exist in my campaign."
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
I like that! I’m using it.
‘A’OHE PU’U KI’EKI’E KE HO’A’O ‘IA E PI’I – (No cliff is so tall it cannot be climbed.)
I love Bob Ross and can't believe this meme exists:
Also, if he asks, "Why didn't you say that before?" just explain what you have told us. You thought he mean "inspired by" Bob Ross, not actually being him, and that you were so thrown by it that you didn't even know how to respond that first session.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
You could let them go ahead with it, but make clear that in the reality of the story's world, their character is just delusional. Then you could work with the player to see if they want to just leave it there with a weird character who thinks they are the reincarnation of a man from another world, or if they trust you to piece together some backstory that led them to fall into such a deep rejection of reality.
Then their Bob Ross can struggle with who they think they are, who they were, and who they will be going forward.
I'm just not sure what the problem rally is. I mean, Bob Ross as far as your player is aware has painting skills and a soothing voice. He'll have to dip into at least a level of Bard to let that voice actually work as inspiration for his PC. Bob Ross didn't have any particular skills or knowledge of the modern world that would be really disruptive to the Forgotten Realms. Dude knows paint and has an uplifting perhaps overly simplified worldview.
If you want to be hard on him, let him know that the dominant styles of painting in the FR just don't have a place for Bob Ross's work, so he's constantly belittled and ridiculed by the Forgotten Realms art world and equivalent of Public Broadcasting audience.
Let Bob Ross be Bob Ross.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
Surely this is not the only issue. If the player regularly tries to RP about "earth" things, discussing microwaves and television and talking about his "TV show" and "the internet" in a classically run FR world, the RP alone would be disruptive to any attempt at seriousness that the GM and rest of the players are making.
Also, let's remember that the real Bob Ross came from a world in which D&D and the Forgotten Realms were gaming materials... the real Bob Ross would probably be talking about how he is now "living" the game of D&D (even if he was not a player he'd have heard of it -- everyone had by the time of his death). He would be making references to all kinds of things the other PCs don't know anything about.
If he's NOT going to RP that, then why "be" Bob Ross?
No one is arguing against a Bob Ross inspired character. What we are saying is that it can be problematic to RP that you are that actual person, having world-switched in a way the DM might not want to have going on in his world.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
I just don't see what you all have against Magic the Gathering crossovers.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
What if he plays the Forgotten Realms Bob Ross as a chaotic good warlock, whose patron is the Earth Bob Ross.
If the DM wants to do this, it's fine.
If I'm the DM, no way. This is just too goofy a concept for me. No real-world characters in my game. Sorry.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
His concept is fine, it's when he tries to bring in "earth" things and uses it as an excuse to metagame that is the problem (like trying to paint a T-Rex, that doesn't exist in my campaign setting, so the wizard can polymorph into it). We have talked and it is settled though...I hope lol.
‘A’OHE PU’U KI’EKI’E KE HO’A’O ‘IA E PI’I – (No cliff is so tall it cannot be climbed.)
While I do like the idea of painterly magic, and I want to say I've seen something like somewhere, you're ruling sounds fine. Or if you wanted to mess with him, let him paint and then the wizard can polymorph into a painting of a T-Rex.
Bob Ross I don't think painted dinosaurs, known for landscapes ... which if you wanted to go there, there is the aforementioned MtG hooks. You could have his nemesis be infused with the soul of Thomas Kincaid who is sorta of the antitheses of Bob Ross personality-wise and definitely a different painting style. Sometimes it's funny to _own_ a player doing something like this for lulz by out subject mastering them. Bob Ross and painting isn't hard.
But seriously, wasn't there some sort of UA about maybe a Bard college that works with visual art? Reminded me of the children's book The Purple Crayon.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.