I know some people avoid romances in campaigns, but my current group almost always ends up in relationships. I'm mostly just curious what other people think about relationships and love interests in campaigns and how you handle them.
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Crops up every game in my large group; thankfully, we're all mostly mature adults and it isn't a focus of a campaign. The relation ship deal is mostly sidelined and responses are somewhat descriptive* as opposed to direct role play. I'm almost 40, and roleplaying out a romantic scenario with an overweight tattooed biker looking guy with a Duck Dynasty beard is not happening (who also happens to be a physics professor). Additionally, role playing the same sort of encounter with my best friends attractive wife is not happening, either. Mature or not, weird things happen at a table if this element isn't handled properly.
You might take a look at Kismet Rose's site. She has a lot more experience with this sort of thing outside of the clear boundaries we use in our group.
* Bobgoblin might tell me he's sending gifts and beginning a courtship. After a time, he'll receive information on the response and so on.
I've tried GMing a romances before but as Da'arth said it can be incredibly awkward and I failed to do it well, the whole thing fell apart and I think it contributed to that whole campaign failing. Since then I never do anything more than have the occasional flirty NPC.
Fade to black with very scant details about any courtship is what I generally do.
One of my players took the blacksmith lady on a date once and I basically just told him she had a good time and would like to go again sometime. He seemed satisfied.
I've tried GMing a romances before but as Da'arth said it can be incredibly awkward and I failed to do it well, the whole thing fell apart and I think it contributed to that whole campaign failing. Since then I never do anything more than have the occasional flirty NPC.
Yep, it can be a game, group, and friendship ender. Before I got my current group and started GMing exclusively, I saw many a group and friendship fall apart over this sort of thing. I do not recommend going more than general, vague, and off-camera with this sort of thing unless your one on one with your with your significant other - which can be quite fun, I assure you.
Edit: Scavion has it right.
Yeah, I know it's different for just about every group. My group actually enjoys it, we try to avoid getting graphic but we've had a few campaigns (Superheroes) were we spent about the first half of the time fighting villians, the second half sitting around our flat laughing, roleplaying, and spending time with our SOs.
And amusingly it was one of our better campaigns.
Now, recently we've moved away from that and more into conversational romances. I know I like to have a romance as a way to deeper explore my character and how he reacts to things, often sleeping together is a footnote. I try to focus on the characters and more of them and their personalities.
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Tackled it for the first time in Kingmaker. Sort of. It only made sense that a wealthy adventurer who lives in one place would attract lots of attention, romantic and otherwise. After about two years my half-orc barbarian Noe simply announced that he had a wife in the capitol of Tuskini, and she eventually gave birth to five children (she stopped at fivve). When we expanded, he also had wives in Tatzlford and Varnhold, and they had more kids. The wife in Tatzlford was killed when it was attacked, along with an unborn child. He brought the two surviving children with him to be raised by the first wife. After the loss, he decided not to marry again, so just had some lady friends in Drelev. When we went to Pitax, he brought along along his oldest kid, daughter Jahzua, who was named after her godfather the kingdom magister Joshua. Turns out bringing half-orc children to official events is a bad idea. We founded another town, Olegsandria, but I didn't get around to any romance there.
That was quite a ramble. I didn't RP anything with the GM though. I just said what happened every year or so, and he didn't have a problem with that. Anyways, I was surprised that no one else in my group started a family. But, on the other hand, they were all longer lived races.
As a GM and as a player, I don't have any problem with romance or soft sexuality in a campaign. Most of my players are in couple, as I am, and the only girl at my table is usually my own girlfriend, so the potential awkwardness is greatly reduced.
As a GM, I use romance to build attachment toward a character, create plot twist and also stab my players in the back. I also use NPC characters to follow the players in their adventures (as a 4th or 5th party member) and a lot of relationship started like that.
Personally, I use a lot the romance / seduction tool in my own games, but however, I won't recommend it on any table. It depends of the players and their level of involvement in their character. I don't want to see any player making fun of rape or this kind of s*~$ on my table. However, I won't hesitate to use this theme to put the emphasis on the evilness of the villain. Romance and sexuality is a serious thing when used around a role-playing table, it requires maturity.