Can you do it without ruining the campaign? If so then do it. Usually when I DM, while the players don't decide anything that occurs, I make sure to modify the story to fit the characters' background and objectives. This is why I intentionally leave gaps in my story, so that I can fill them with things that directly relate to the characters. If you can make this player's plot arc and pet chicken connect to the plot, do it.
If their just derailing the story, you need to observe your campaign and ask yourself some questions. Are you restricting your players' creativity for no reason? Never do that, if a player ruins an encounter you've set up, you can just reintroduce it with some minor changes, but you can't get your player's interest back once you squash it.
Do you not have enough intrigue, mystery, cool moments, and funny moments? Your player may be attempting to compensate for something they aren't getting out of the campaign. There's nothing wrong with one-dimensional functional NPCs and quick functional scene transitions, but don't make them flat, do something. Sometimes, I give players random pieces of information. Sometimes they are more intrigued by that, and then I shift my story to make it important or have something there. When it's all done, I can just pretend that I had that cool moment planed as part of the story from the beginning, because they will never know.
Ultimately ask yourself, what does this player actually want? Players won't say what they want specifically out this kind of thing, not because they want you to guess, but because it's usually a deeper desire that they can't express. Observe your players, find what they react positively towards, and what they enjoy. Use the characters, use the flow of the game, and the interest curve:
This is something that takes time, and not something that comes down to pure formula. Your not going to be a master instantly and in the end, these are just rough guidelines.
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Im a newer Dm and one of my players, a Life domain Cleric has now decided that there 2 goals for the game are:
1. Complete their char’s plot arc
2. Awaken their pet chicken they’ve named Crocker
... How should I go about this? He’s really got his mond set on it and I dont know if I should allow it or not.
Can you do it without ruining the campaign? If so then do it. Usually when I DM, while the players don't decide anything that occurs, I make sure to modify the story to fit the characters' background and objectives. This is why I intentionally leave gaps in my story, so that I can fill them with things that directly relate to the characters. If you can make this player's plot arc and pet chicken connect to the plot, do it.
If their just derailing the story, you need to observe your campaign and ask yourself some questions. Are you restricting your players' creativity for no reason? Never do that, if a player ruins an encounter you've set up, you can just reintroduce it with some minor changes, but you can't get your player's interest back once you squash it.
Do you not have enough intrigue, mystery, cool moments, and funny moments? Your player may be attempting to compensate for something they aren't getting out of the campaign. There's nothing wrong with one-dimensional functional NPCs and quick functional scene transitions, but don't make them flat, do something. Sometimes, I give players random pieces of information. Sometimes they are more intrigued by that, and then I shift my story to make it important or have something there. When it's all done, I can just pretend that I had that cool moment planed as part of the story from the beginning, because they will never know.
Ultimately ask yourself, what does this player actually want? Players won't say what they want specifically out this kind of thing, not because they want you to guess, but because it's usually a deeper desire that they can't express. Observe your players, find what they react positively towards, and what they enjoy. Use the characters, use the flow of the game, and the interest curve:
This is something that takes time, and not something that comes down to pure formula. Your not going to be a master instantly and in the end, these are just rough guidelines.