[D&D-5e] Lost Mines of Phandelver

[Onward]

Wait, so how does Hammer fit Ed/Eve in that category, they're male and female in mind. And their physical form is, Uhm, both of their gender combined.

[RossN]

Originally Posted by Onward

Wait, so how does Hammer fit Ed/Eve in that category, they're male and female in mind. And their physical form is, Uhm, both of their gender combined.

Also Tavara who is trans thanks to a reincarnation spell (male human -> female halfling.)

Though I think that could make for some fun interactions actually. I also feel that Hammer, being mad, rather fits our collection of different drummers.

[morgantha]

@Alemar & Drifter I definitely hear what you're saying, Alemar, but I think that starting from a place of suspicion or fear offers a lot of opportunity for growth. We have a lot of positive vibes going around (which I also love), but I am not against characters who start off less than friends.

That said, I do expect that anyone starting off with misanthropic characters be open to their character warming up to others eventually and maintaining good ooc communication with players so we don't end up with any hard feelings. As well as making sure their character has enough of a reason to stay and work with the group, of course.

Hopefully this all makes good sense! I'm open to a wide variety of characters, even if that means we have some grumpy, surly, working-through-their-issues pcs among us.

[Runetide]

Originally Posted by morgantha

@Alemar & Drifter I definitely hear what you're saying, Alemar, but I think that starting from a place of suspicion or fear offers a lot of opportunity for growth. We have a lot of positive vibes going around (which I also love), but I am not against characters who start off less than friends.

That said, I do expect that anyone starting off with misanthropic characters be open to their character warming up to others eventually and maintaining good ooc communication with players so we don't end up with any hard feelings. As well as making sure their character has enough of a reason to stay and work with the group, of course.

Hopefully this all makes good sense! I'm open to a wide variety of characters, even if that means we have some grumpy, surly, working-through-their-issues pcs among us.

The great thing about Play By Post game admissions is that you get to have a 'session zero' during the recruitment. You get a chance to see what kind of players you have and also make sure it's blatantly clear what kind of things are okay and not okay in your game!

I also believe that PBP games allow for an unprecedented level of player transparency and separation of in character and out of character knowledge. It's a lot easier to have the 'my character is acting like this because X but will warm up in a little while' conversation in PBP that way. Not everyone wants to do that stuff in IRL games, but I find it really beneficial to have those conversations.

[BlackDragon0]

So basically Beast probably guided everyone to then at some point. And at least has passing knowledge of them. Totally unclear on if any have decided they'd be his friend. It's cool though he did get raised by a old ranger hermit... so.

Might see it as he doesn't know the one ch us a dragonborn. But at least the life he lived taught him not to judge a book by its cover, as many do him.

[Drifter One]

Whoooaaaaa......

@Alemar Ok, thats reign those horses in before they bolt!

Firstly, this is a game, so lets not just be judgemental from the outset, huh?

Secondly - Personalities - whether you like it or not, not everyone is going to get on (Characters I mean), It is very one dimensional, and frankly, dull, if everyone got on and were best buddies. It stifles creativity.

Also, did you read Hammers' back story? He has more than enough reasons for his views - i never stated they were not subject to change - that is what building relationships is all about. Or is that too much work?

in a sentence. No. You are not hearing me correctly.

You also need to remember, these characters are pretty much strangers - unless they have history together, why would they all be best of Friends.

Morgantha - i agree with you, the reason is to provide so many opportunities. It is no slight on anyone or their characters.

@Onward/RossN - Hammer would have no reason to dislike either of your characters (unless you gave him reason to )

[Admin Choc]

Goodmorning,

Finally, some rain after a couple of days of tropical heat (very, very rare for our silly country) so time to finish my application #done.

My character would really share her view on the question; 'why would they all be best of Friends' (so many roleplay is going on in my head right now ;-) but let's show some hinting towards my character's deity ;-)temperance to wait and see if she gets chosen :-)

[Alemar]

Originally Posted by Drifter One

Whoooaaaaa......

@Alemar Ok, that's reign those horses in before they bolt!

Firstly, this is a game, so lets not just be judgmental from the outset, huh?

I hope you realize I don't have anything against you per se, I was just confused. You're the one who went out of your way to point out that Hammer doesn't like dragons of any kind when there are dragonborn and kobold (dragonkin) PC applications. You put out a post directed at those applicants and called attention to it. Then you called attention to the fact that he thinks all nobles are poison, and that he has reasons to be distrustful of magic in a high-fantasy setting... So he's racist against Goblins and Dragons, Sexist, Classist, and just feels like a strange fit for a cooperative game. Again, I didn't say any of those things about him, you did in your second post.

Originally Posted by Drifter One

Secondly - Personalities - whether you like it or not, not everyone is going to get on (Characters I mean), It is very one dimensional, and frankly, dull, if everyone got on and were best buddies. It stifles creativity.

While I agree not everyone has to get along right off the bat, working together is essential in D&D, and it seemed that you were setting up extra challenges for everybody to do that (for no reason other than your own enjoyment) and that was worrying to me, that's all

Originally Posted by Drifter One

Also, did you read Hammers' back story? He has more than enough reasons for his views - i never stated they were not subject to change - that is what building relationships is all about. Or is that too much work?

Yes I did, I don't remember having an opinion one way or the other when I first read it; So I went back to re-read it this morning to refresh my memory. From my understanding his sister was kidnapped to be sacrificed to an unnamed cult by a local Baron (Who had up until that point been a close family friend) Hammer couldn't understand the betrayal, and went to the Baron to search for, and rescue his sister. When he learned of what had happened he was forced to watch the ceremonial sacrifice. And he ended up killed the baron in a righteous rage with his father's sword. I think Hammer was then blinded by some sort of magical backlash from disrupting the ritual for his trouble? Then in your personality and sample posts you say he has trouble with authority, and that he is talking to his sister's spirit? I didn't read anything about Goblins and Dragons anywhere though?

That's partly why I commented, to check if those additional clarifications were what you actually wanted to apply with? Since I didn't remember seeing any of that in the Backstory. And I was wondering why you would choose to add all these extra challenges, and work required, when there are a dozen characters that have less prejudices coded into them. I mean, there are great characters here that all have great RP potential and their own personalities, without going out of their way to come across as troublesome.

Originally Posted by Drifter One

in a sentence. No. You are not hearing me correctly.

You also need to remember, these characters are pretty much strangers - unless they have history together, why would they all be best of Friends.

OK, I'm glad to hear I was wrong about my concerns, and Alestair wouldn't know about any of this until his first interactions anyways. Like I said we don't have to be best friends right away... we just need to be able to work together towards a goal. I didn't really have an opinion on Hammer one way or the other, until I read words like "prejudiced towards you" , "your character is poison", and "no respect for your character at all", directed at hopeful candidates. That was surprising to me, to say the least...

[Drifter One]

I know these thoughts are not aimed at me, I am just a stranger on the internet.

Relationships grow and are not like microwave meals.

Of potentially 12 other characters (currently) Hammer may have issue with 6 - does not seem excessive, I was just trying to find ways, as requested by the DM, to provide reasonings for relationships, good or ill. The point is, the characters, unless explicitly mentioned, will no know each other, so these are 1st impressions. And we all know as human beings that 1st impressions can very often be wrong. Is it really a challenge to develop relationships between characters? Isnt this the core dynamic of roleplaying?

Have you ever played in a team or fulfilled a task in a group? (Not being patronising - genuine question) Not every personality are compatible, but for the good f the goal, these things are overcome. It does not make a goal less achievable just because someone does not like someone else.

And I draw on the old adage: respect is earned, not commanded. Opinions can, and often do change.

But anyway, I have said my piece and will not continue to comment and just will await the outcome of the application. So I bid you good luck on your app.

[Alemar]

Originally Posted by Drifter One

And I draw on the old adage: respect is earned, not commanded. Opinions can, and often do change.

But anyway, I have said my piece and will not continue to comment and just will await the outcome of the application. So I bid you good luck on your app.

Thanks, you too

[briar]

Just dipping in to confirm that Petra is indeed 'complete'. Race-wise, I almost always end up playing a human because I'm boring awesome like that, but yes, class-wise, I'm quite flexible. I'll even turn her into a mage if it comes down to it.

As for relationships, I'm still perfectly open to them, but I think given that Petra is still kind of a new arrival in this location (since she doesn't stay in any one place for too long), a lot of any encounters she would have had with characters prior to this will have been brief and fleeting, so I'm looking forward to a lot of first and second impressions when we narrow down whose on the team. I see her getting on easily enough with most people, though, provided they don't actively dislike her timid nature or choose to be immediately affected by her curse (I'm leaving that up to each individual player to decide if, when and how it does).

Anyway, this is a good looking lot, and I'm not just saying that because I know at least a handful of the other applicants. Plus I already know Morgantha is a more than capable storyteller, and thus early though it may be, you all have my best in the trials ahead, whether I'm a part of them or not! ^_^

[Runetide]

Originally Posted by Drifter One

Of potentially 12 other characters (currently) Hammer may have issue with 6 - does not seem excessive

Okay, I was going to stay out of this, but I've experienced people trying to play a game with this 'reasoning' (on this site mind you). It was an outright terrible experience and I quit that game rather than deal with the player. "It’s what my character would do" is not a reason to be abusive to other players or their characters.

From personal experience, no one who is openly racist/classist is even tolerable to work with, and so your statements basically told me that if we were to get selected I'd have to deal with you trying to creat a lot of excess drama aimed at me, and I would rather not play with you if youre going to do that.

Now it could be that your character HAS redeeming values, but when you open with "Im going to hate half of you" right off the bat, I don't care to stick around to find out.

[girlplay]

ALL: I'm definitely to forming character relationships with you. That said, I think they need to be more significant than "we met once", otherwise they don't carry much weight. So, connections like doing something memorable together, they've been friends for years, or a romance, or bailing somebody out of trouble would be preferable. So, if we worked together or ran into each other for some reason, what was significant about that interaction?

[briar]

Originally Posted by girlplay

ALL: I'm definitely to forming character relationships with you. That said, I think they need to be more significant than "we met once", otherwise they don't carry much weight. So, connections like doing something memorable together, they've been friends for years, or a romance, or bailing somebody out of trouble would be preferable. So, if we worked together or ran into each other for some reason, what was significant about that interaction?

Yeah, this makes perfect sense to me. Just because characters only meet once doesn't mean it has to be a simple interaction. I think the one we have is already pretty significant, at least where Petra is concerned, and she'll not only be able to recognize Tia, but also have an immediate emotional reaction to her as well that will color their interactions. Is that what you're mostly getting at?

Though at the same time, I've seen characters that have zero connections develop a fun dynamic, too, especially when the players actively want to learn about one another. I think there is always that stage where people want to explore their own characters a little more at first to settle in, but as we all get used to each other, branching out is bound to happen. Or at least, I do (or I've learned to be better at it)! So I don't think every single connection has to be significant, but it is nice to have some!

But in the interest of facilitating connections with anyone else that wants a more significant and unusual interaction with my character: Petra being a healer by trade, its all the more likely that someone came to her with a serious injury. Doesn't have to be your own wound, could be a close family member or a good friend. The more dire, the better, and they probably would've gotten a good look at her matronly side as she tries to quell fears and allay anxieties while simultaneously seeing to the wounds. I bet she's the type to accidentally say something sagely in moments like that, maybe quote poetry?

Alternatively, Petra is prone to wandering, but not the best when it comes to directions, so misadventures ensuing from her stopping to ask someone are also plausible. She's also very gullible, so it stands to reason that if she meets a well-mannered kobold/orc/other classically 'monstrous' race in a city and has a good impression, she's equally as likely to assume all kobolds are that way and maybe accidently ask a not so nice one and need help getting out of her debacle. I'm fine playing the damsel in distress when the need suits.

[Runetide]

Originally Posted by briar

Alternatively, Petra is prone to wandering, but not the best when it comes to directions, so misadventures ensuing from her stopping to ask someone are also plausible. She's also very gullible, so it stands to reason that if she meets a well-mannered kobold/orc/other classically 'monstrous' race in a city and has a good impression, she's equally as likely to assume all kobolds are that way and maybe accidently ask a not so nice one and need help getting out of her debacle.

In this instance, Komak would likely be the cause of both getting lost and also giving the wrong impression of kobolds in general! :P

Komak is an outlier for some of the kobolds mentality. Not that he thinks greatly differently than most kobolds, but that he basically includes all intelligent creatures at the same social level as him. Like how humans can relate to cats or dogs as people, except not in any kind condescending way. On that note, he'd probably be found talking with a housecat if it seemed to be responding to him appropriately, thinking that he just doesn't understand its language. Who knows, it might be someone's familiar?

He's also generally polite because it's in his nature to be supportive of the 'nest', and he learned early on that being cooperative and 'nice' is a simple way to be supportive without taking much effort (most of the time). That said, he's a little hyperactive and "ADHD suffers from him" would be the best way to describe his thought processes.

As for getting lost... well, he tries hard, he really does.