Hallo Forum,


yesterday I played with my group and it was the third time in a row that I thought that it was really, really boring. I had fun from time to time though when we were interacting with one another but that had nothing to do with the story - and the story barely made progress. Our group is set to find out why the cows in the region are all sick and it seems like somebody sickened them somehow (or I guess that's what the DM wants us to find out). We were railroaded to a boy who was traumatized by an attack of wolves. Those wolves killed his company and about 10 cows and he would not want to talk about it. The boy's mother however (she found him I guess) suggested that his wounds seemed to be caused by a dull item (like a club?), so maybe it was not an attack by wolves afterall. The boy on the other hand is traumatized and would not talk at all... This is where we ended the session and... there were not any highlights yesterday or the two evenings before. The DM was basically telling the story as it was lined out by him and to be honest I am really not interested in the outcome of the whole thing.
Another problem I had with the plot were slide inconsistencies like:
Originally we escaped from a city under siege by orcs to get help and travelled for about two week across the mountains to tell the people that the orcs are coming and we need reinforcements. People were all taken by surprise that we would bring news from a such a big orcish attack, but just a few days later people were talking about a big battle that had taken place as the besieged had moved out a fought a bloody battle they lost.
First of all: Why would an outnumbered garrison do that? This is just a stupid thing to do to begin with. Leaving your fortified position and attack the orcish aggressor is just a relly stupid idea - unless you got Gandalf as a backup plan (which we didn't). And second who spread this information? When our characters arrived everyone was upset and totally taken by surprise that the orcs attacked and just a week later news arrived from this big battle. Hallo? How did this information get there? It took a really long and dangerous journey over the snowy mountains to call for reinforcements. Did somebody else escape the besieged city and follow us just a week later? This makes no sense!
In character I would try to find out who spread this false propaganda, but as a player I know that the DM is serious about those events. And why is our group still  investigating this stupid cow-plague when the orcs seems to be gaining the upper hand in the siege? This threat is getting way to long already and I believe you get the idead: I am bored by the plot and this railroaded plot itself does not make any sense.

How would you tell the DM?
The thing is that the DM also prepared a lot of text that he would read out and he also served us chilli and beer! So you cannot blame him that he went into the session unprepared. Quite the opposite! Though I think he does not notice that at least I found the plot really boring.

Thanks for your help in advance!

Find another game.

Determine what you want from a game, then ask questions when you join the new group.

Joining or creating a gaming group is like hiring/firing for a job. Both the GM and Player should be asking questions to size up each other.

What is the MPAA rating of this game? What subjects are you comfortable with? uncomfortable with?

Do you like to run/play in commercial adventures? Sandbox? Something in-between?

What is your mix of combat and non-combat? Why do you GM/Play? What is your favorite thing about gaming?

You are not going to successfully tell the GM "your plot bores me" without hurting someone's feelings. When you meet a GM that likes to read reams of text, you are likely dealing with a wanna-be author who just wants a rapt audience to tell their tales to. I don't like this style of gaming so I can empathize with your frustration. It's just better to wander out and find a new group OR start one yourself. You don't have to a GM to start a group, you can hit Meetup.com or your favorite game's forum and start recruiting noting that you want a GM. Then ask more questions this time so you can a) find gamers with similar wants and b) find a GM who will provide those wants to the group.

Good luck! Happy Gaming!

I'd agree with this advice; I've had guest GMs in the game room who do exactly this kind of 'read the book to the players'. The last one I had, his best friend actually fell asleep during the game session. As has been said, you are not going to be able to tell the GM that you are bored; this is his magnum opus, and he probably will not understand that not everyone else shares his views. Best to find something else, sorry to have to say.

I should add that our group exists since 2,5 years and I don't want to just form a new group. I like the guys playing with me. It's just that this story bores me out and I would aprreciate it if somebody told me how he dealt with similar situations in the past.
How do you formulate critique?

Quote from: MES;926295How do you formulate critique?

Start by telling something you like. Say that you want more of that. Then say what you don't like or what you would change. Don't say "XY sucks!". Say "I didn't enjoy XY." Then tell something else you liked.

Maybe it's just me, but how am I supposed to get excited about investigating the deaths of some cows?

But before you go and try to tell the GM he sucks in the nicest way possible, I think there's something that's worth a shot: Balk at the hook.

See, GMs generally want to run a game that's fun and exciting for everyone. But players have been so programmed to always accept the GM's hooks that the GM gets the same in-play feedback no matter what shit he slings against the wall--players always seem to take an interest in it. And I know players do it to be polite, but understand that by doing so you are a) willingly signing up for something you won't like, and b) robbing the GM of his compass. When you look at it that way, you have to blame yourself before you blame the GM.

In the hero's journey, the hero often initially refuses the call to adventure. Why should this be taboo in the RPG? In fact, I believe players should get in the habit of rejecting the first offer whenever the GM presents a plot hook. Unless the hook nails your character's motivations perfectly. And even then, double-check to see if your character has some flaw that would make him hesitate answering the call. GMs should likewise always be prepared for players to reject the initial plot hook. And, again, maybe it's just me, but my feeling is GMs are far more prepared for such a rejection of the initial hook than most players think. And if he isn't, then he needs to get in the habit of being prepared.

Lunancer, I think that is terrible advice.  I get what you are saying.  And I agree with not doing every dumb fool quest the DM throws out but don't Balk at the Hook.  

That can work in a story because the Author controls both the character and the plot. So the author can just drag the character into the adventure.  In a game there is more than one player, not everyone can be the 'dark and brooding loner' and in my experience the player who plays that guy is struggling for control, of the group, his life, whatever. Don't be that guy.  

Instead of balking at the hook, take it and run with it.  Oh your cows all died, your son is traumatized?  Well you hardly have a farm at all, why don't we by you out.  And you too can work in our keep.  (If you don't have a keep and don't want to buy up all the farm land in the duchy find something else.) maybe offer to guide the Orcs through the impenetrable mountains to the city so they don't get list on the way to sack it.  Then it's up to you whether you steer them true or get them lost.

You say you have been playing for two years? Has he always been dull?  If he isn't interested in your input then you might be stuck.

Quote from: MES;926295I should add that our group exists since 2,5 years and I don't want to just form a new group. I like the guys playing with me. It's just that this story bores me out and I would aprreciate it if somebody told me how he dealt with similar situations in the past.
How do you formulate critique?

Think about what you liked about the session and what you didnt. What was different about this session that was not in others?

Talk to the DM about these things. What you liked, what you didnt. Also see what the other players thought? Were they bored or really into it or neutral?

Wow... that's a lot of feedback in such a short period of time. I read every post and I think all of you gave good advice. I mean it. Even if it was just a few words every post had something. So for now I think I'll take a ride on my bike for the next two hours and think the whole thing through and when I have thought about it enough I will email my friend (the GM) and tell him what I think about the campaign.

I also want to add, that it has not always been this dull. The beginning of the campaign was very good, when we defended "our" city and "our" families against the orkish hordes. That was pretty cool, but now the whole thing got off track. The second part of the campaign started out as getting reinforcements, but... now we find ourselves investigating this dead cow case, which in the end might have something to do with the orcish invasion, but as lumancer mentioned this is not the most thrilling thing to play. The GM inplay and outplay hinted that this dead cow case points towards some dark druidish magical force which also drives the orcs. So there...

I want to point out that, yes I actually did tell the GM, what I liked most about his campaign, which was organising the defense, working out a plan to defend the city and doing reconnaissance patrols. No need for a big plot. Sometimes less is more, you know? I also thought that my suggestions got through to him - which they obviously didn't. I did not talk to the other players about the last sessions yet, so I do not really know what they are thinking and I am not really sure if I should.

I also want to state that we take turns in GM-ing and that I am gm-ing in another group as well and just I enjoy playing with both groups and dropping out of either one is not an option.

Hit him in the head with a bucket.

No wait, that's terrible advice.

Tell him. Instead of saying it's boring, tell him it's slow and railroady and too wordy. GMs can't improve unless they get good feedback.
It's good that you rotate GMs. I think that can encourage friendly competition (as long as it stays friendly) and challenges GMs who might otherwise fall into a rut. When I play, I also pay attention for any techniques or ideas from the GM that I can steal.

Hopefully it's just a bad patch that you'll get through. It sounds like the GM has done well before this.

Lunamancer's right, it takes two to Tango. Gonna play Devil's (or GM's) Advocate here...

1. It's not the GM's style, that's been fine for over two years now.
2. When the story was about, as you put it, defending "your" village and "your" family from the orcish hordes, that was fine.
3. When the story shifts to the broader conflict, you find out this isn't a "normal" orc invasion and there actually might be some Evil Druid behind it, some foul being who is driving the orcs to keep attacking your kingdom, your response is Booooring?
4. Defending your family from an orc sword...cool. Defending your family from a evil druid who has an orc nation and magical plagues...yawn.

Really dude?

You can balk at the hook without being the brooding loner, certainly, and that might be better in the long run...but...just maybe...you might want to pretend you have more attention span than a meth-whore, put some trust in the GM you've liked for two and a half years, and most importantly...use your brain, find your courage, learn where this druid is, and go cut the head off the fucking snake before that bastard destroys all you hold dear.

You see, the other way to respond to railroady hooks isn't to balk, but to Engage.  Jump in with both feet, find something about the hook that gives you motivation, and take it.  Make the hook yours, not the GM's.  The GM might be getting lazy, he might be drifting into StoryTeller mode, snap him out of it, by Seizing the Initiative.

Like balking, seizing the initiative of the plot is important GM feedback.  It tells the GM "We are not sitting here while you spoonfeed us your Magnum Opus". Be proactive, not reactive.  Aggressive, not Passive-Aggressive.

Or, if you actually don't care about the druid, go back to building defenses, dig a moat, it will be a good place to throw the plague-ridden bodies of your family and friends.

Tell the GM that you'd rather play instead of listening to him/her read you a few pages of prose at the start of every game. Tell him/her to send the players the prose BEFORE the session to set things up.

Since there are ALWAYS players who NEVER do anything between sessions, recommend that the GM get one of the players to summarize the prose before the session starts, and offer an XP reward for doing so.

That's what my GM has been doing for the current campaign and we've praised her for it.

(and since I'm the only one who actually reads and engages with the prose, and writes up a game journal, I'm a whole level higher than the rest of the party because of the bonus XP, bwah hah hah)

Quote from: Ratman_tf;926311Hit him in the head with a bucket.

No wait, that's terrible advice.

I think your first instinct was correct.

Both the referee and the player who posted about the campaign could do with a couple of hard shots with the bucket, one with iron-bound oak slats affixed to a sturdy chain.

Ahh yes, here it comes.  The rpg site specially, blaming the player who comes looking for advice for sucking.  

That said I agree with Krugars last three paragraphs.

If the group has been together this long, then I assume the GM has run some adventures you have enjoyed? Maybe allude to those, play to the GM's strengths, or those sessions you thought they were at their best. Maybe initiate in character conversations about why the party is doing whatever it is doing ("Should we really be here, dealing with this, when the orcs are massing?"). Hell, go against the age old wisdom, and split the damned party, make the GM deal with the several things you guys have in mind.

Agree with Ratman's assessment, though. You find this story branch boring. Ride it out maybe and see what happens? All of us have had ideas that fall flat. However...reading long tracts...have to say I did that, decades ago...once. It was pretty obvious folks just wanted to get along with the adventure, so I never did that again.

Maybe your GM will figure that out?

(Curious, though, what system are you guys running?)