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Talk to him out of game. Explain that what he is doing is hurting the game. If he does love the campaign he will hopefully be willing to koderate his behavoir.
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Uh...honestly, this isn't something that should be fixed in-game. This is an OOC issue, and should be handled OOC. I suggest sitting down and talking to him about exactly why this behavior is inappropriate, and why he might want to change it.
If he's unwilling to start being more of a team player, I'd let the other PCs react appropriately to this behavior (ie: kick the character out of the PC group), and hopefully his next character will be less problematic. This obviously would only occur if the other players felt like doing so, but I really can't imagine why they wouldn't given your description.
G'day!
I've got five PC's, that are all well defined and making great use of their classes, unique items and the roleplay aspects. One of these players however, has a very err.. underdeveloped sense of teamwork.
I need to encourage him to do what is in the favour of the party, not just himself at every possible turn. Here is quick list of what's really s$$!ting me, and the party:
1) Breaks away from combat during the final round or two to loot everything first. Every. Single. Time.
2) Hordes scrolls, wands, potions and anything else. He won't sell them, and only very rarely uses this growing collection. *
3) Refuses to even try out a digital character sheet. Then "forgets" to apply the effects of complex negative effects, and must be reminded to compute his load whenever he stocks up on loot.
4) Has absurdly long turns, partly due to the paper sheet thing, but even in situations where there is only one choice, he will still spend 10 minutes deciding.
5) Whenever another PC asks for a party item he's carrying, it becomes a debate about how much they really need it.
6) Tried to take the The Wizard's Bonded Item., as it was introduced to the game, and everyone was told that item exists for the Wizard (since it was a PC dual classing)
* He was away for a session, and another player controlled his character. The inventory was split evenly between the party, and resulted in the party not being absolutely crushed at Thistletop the next session.
So now you've got an idea of this Nagaji Magus(5)/Bard(1) and the player controlling him, what are some good teamwork building activities I can put him and his party through?
I refuse to apply negative levels, fake rolls in combat or specific cursed items to him, as negative reinforcement is a s~&@ solution. This post is me trying to optimize my game, NOT some earth shattering mega b*#+$%@$ player at my table. The night would suffer if he quit (and he loves this campaign, so that's not at...
Once more with feeling . . . I typed this response once and right when I started to hit submit my power went out. So let me try this again.
1. Looting during combat IS not a DM problem, it is the problem of the other player characters. They need to address his character as their characters and explain why this is bad and should not be done. They will probably get the "this is what my character would do" response. That is fine, they then need to say what "their characters will do" if it continues.
2. Hording loot I also see as a character problem not a player problem (although they are both related). The other players need to address this in character, let the other character they do not find it acceptable. If you were adventuring in real life during a zombie apocalypse and they kept hording the food and ammo, would you in real life stay with them. Why should the other PC's?
3. Do you require a digital character sheet? If so, let him know that it is required to play in your game. I use Hero Lab to do character sheets for my players. They get a new one whenever they level, they get a significant number of new items or whenever they request one.
4. Set a time limit on initiatives. And if the time limit passes, tell him his character is taking the delay action (so he can still do something when he decides what to do) and move on to the next person on the initiative count.
5. Like #1 and #2 this should be done PC to PC, although I feel the "my character would do this" argument will ensue.
6. Can his character use the item in question? If not, this is probably a symptom of what is causing #1, #2, and #5. Have the players talk character to character with him and explain "what their characters will do".
You can try to talk this out DM to player but he may feel you are interfering with "his character." If the players do it as "their characters" he can't argue that as well.
Good luck and I hope these suggestions help.
Talk to him out of game. Explain that what he is doing is hurting the game. If he does love the campaign he will hopefully be willing to koderate his behavoir.I'll be doing that this Monday.
I also want the game itself to encourage team play after that chat, with challenges the require multiple players or combine skillsets to overcome.
I'll make the next door require two people to hold down handles to open, and two people to run through and do the same on the other side, to let the first two through. The fifth guy can defend the first two while they are vulnerable.
What kind of character is he playing? Class, race, alignment?
So now you've got an idea of this Nagaji Magus(5)/Bard(1) and the player controlling him, what are some good teamwork building activities I can put him and his party through?
No alignment was identified.
Sorry missed that sentence. That is what I get for trying to read this early in the morning.
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It's a bit IC and a bit OOC problem.
In some games, there's a bit of backstabbing/competition between PCs going on. In Vampire the Masquerade that's entirely appropriate. In PF you play members of a team who need to have each others' backs in combat; it's usually not so appropriate. So there's an IC reason why this might not be acceptable to the other PCs. If you like some IC tension (without it getting out of hand!) let them bicker a bit about it.
However, it's also a bit of an OOC problem. Some people really don't like playing in a group where basically, you can't trust the other members. I don't know if your group is like that. It does happen now and then in PF. This is a matter of what you like to play; it's good if people know OOC how much IC conniving is acceptable to the other players.
Basically, you need to agree OOC on what the limits are IC.
"But that's what my character would do!" is a BS excuse. Everyone needs to find a balance between the "integrity" of his concept and bending it to fit the whole gaming group, so that all those antisocial backstabbing lone wolves can actually stay in one party. Otherwise, ask him to consider honestly "what the other characters ought to do to your character".
A character that starts looting before the combat ends? He's betraying the party and basically stealing from them. Kicking him out of the party is the nicest thing to do.
"Forgetting" to apply negative status effects: this is basically cheating. Tell him that while making an error now and then is human, systemic error is not acceptable.
Most negative effects in PF aren't all that complex. If you as a GM have to use a really complex negative effect, maybe you should print out a handout and put it in front of the player. (You should probably do this for the other players too, on general principles.) Make sure that you did enough to make it easy to apply the effect.
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Nagaji Magus(5)/Bard(1), Chaotic Good.
Well, much as I above advocate OOC solutions for OOC problems...dropping him to CN also seems appropriate, given that he's repeatedly risking his friends' lives (by not participating in the potentially deadly combat going on) and cheating them (by not sharing the loot fairly) both for personal gain. That's not how being Good works at all.
Had a very simular player in a game I currently play in..
Started looting bodies and etc while combat is still being resolved.
stays out of combats that he feels is of no value to him (limited to no loot)
Tried to hoard items/ info.
I called him on the carpet the point it became apparent what kind of pattern he was falling into (in character of course), and insisted on full treasure disclosure and fair division of loot.
This element of some players playstyle has always been a pain in the butt, and needs to be dealt with by the other characters, in game preferably, or OOc if necessary.
That fixed the looting, and hoarding, but he is still a reluctant nellie to aid other players.
the long turns and CS things are minor compared to the lack of cooperation with his fellow players.
Team building only works if the players want to work together, if this player is a lonewolf, special Diva type, not too much can be done, that wont effect the other players.
Worst comes to worst, the other players can just give the character his walking papers after the next adventure/session concludes...nobody ever said they have to bring this wet blanket person along on adventures....
Even if the sheet is attached to a fleshbag at the table :)
I am a fan of the "aid another" action. It makes the characters seem "in the virtual sense" that they are doing things together to help each other out.
You could ask say, if the fighter is trying to force open a door "does anyone want to help him?". Same thing for disabling devices or heal checks. Make them feel that by working together they are getting something, even if it is just the +2 bonus.
Have a ghost come to each player in the middle of the night and give each one of them one part of a riddle they need. They will have to talk to each other and share information.
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I always find it difficult (not that I won't mind you) to talk to players about character actions that don't affect me "as DM". I prefer to handle those situations PC to PC. If you go to a player and say "look, YOU keep looting during combat, why?" the player will probably get defensive and take it personally even if you are just trying to address an issue for the rest of the group. "That is what my character would do" is the most common response, and I agree it is not the correct answer.
Now imagine if after the battle the paladin or barbarian goes up to you "Excuse me Magus" (well the barbarian wouldn't say excuse me) "Why did you leave Fred's back exposed during that fight to check that body of the fallen mummy?" Harder to say "that is what my character would do" during that conversation.
I always find it difficult (not that I won't mind you) to talk to players about character actions that don't affect me "as DM". I prefer to handle those situations PC to PC. If you go to a player and say "look, YOU keep looting during combat, why?" the player will probably get defensive and take it personally even if you are just trying to address an issue for the rest of the group. "That is what my character would do" is the most common response, and I agree it is not the correct answer.
Now imagine if after the battle the paladin or barbarian goes up to you "Excuse me Magus" (well the barbarian wouldn't say excuse me) "Why did you leave Fred's back exposed during that fight to check that body of the fallen mummy?" Harder to say "that is what my character would do" during that conversation.
I agree wholeheartedly.
If another CHARACTER is screwing over the entire party, why is the entire party accepting that? This is something the players could fix.
Very few of my characters would have accepted a companion who consistently screws over everyone. At some point we would hold him down and take everything he took unfairly and redistribute it, and warn him that next time he screws us over, he loses his thumbs.
As for which character sheets you like your players using, yep, the GM can set those kinds of restrictions in his own game.
Just to add: do you know how the other players feel about her/his behaviour?
If they're OK with it this becomes a whole new thing.
Otherwise I agree with David C Smith and Treantmonk, the characters need to adress her/his behaviour in game.
BTW, have you tried to have one of the opponents fake death and have him attackt the looting character? Or have a trap built into a backpack/pouch/pocket, say a poisoned needle like trap (dunno if that works, but just an idea). Might make for a nice surprise.
Ruyan.
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Even if this is meta gaming what I'd do is: Have the players decide who of them is the "treasurer". After the fight the treasurer gets told what loot can be found and has to manage the distribution. If something does not get distributed he keeps record of it as group treasure.
The "I steal from the party because RP reasons" is among the worst kind of behaviour that can be found unless the party explicitly agrees on PVP beforehand. With PVP allowed I can at least punish the pc who steals from mine should my pc find out.
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A lot of people have suggested that the other players should handle this, but you've indicated that isn't feasible in this case - they're unlikely to do so.
Another option is to tell him (during the conversation you have with him about all this) that you're simply not going to allow him to behave this way anymore. If he doesn't have an action ready on his turn, declare he's delaying his turn. If he says he's going to loot while the fight is still going on, say he's delaying his turn - looting doesn't happen until the fight is over.
And then hand out all the stuff found, as one pile of stuff, to the entire group to distribute. Don't give individual stuff to individual players based on their declaring fastest that they choose to loot the obviously-valuable corpse first.
You've got one anti-social git who is determined to play only for his own satisfaction, in what is supposed to be a group activity. As GM, it is absolutely within your purview to rein in his anti-social behavior.
G'day!
I've got five PC's, that are all well defined and making great use of their classes, unique items and the roleplay aspects. One of these players however, has a very err.. underdeveloped sense of teamwork.
I need to encourage him to do what is in the favour of the party, not just himself at every possible turn. Here is quick list of what's really s%$%ting me, and the party:
1) Breaks away from combat during the final round or two to loot everything first. Every. Single. Time.
2) Hordes scrolls, wands, potions and anything else. He won't sell them, and only very rarely uses this growing collection. *
...
5) Whenever another PC asks for a party item he's carrying, it becomes a debate about how much they really need it.
There's a lot going on here, but I just wanted to comment on this particular behavior. The whole "I got my hands on it first because I started looting bodies while you were still fighting. So it's MINE!" ... No group in the world I've been with would ever agree to this behavior.
There's an easy in-party solution for this particular behavior, though. The group agrees to a policy that loot is tallied up and divided after battle. As the DM, enforce the policy.
It's likely this PC would still try to cause problems. If so, there are other IC solutions when he starts stealing items from other players and keeping his private hoard hidden in camp ... just find a way for the rest of the party to find out, and react appropriately IC.
That being said, I think you'll end up needing an OOC chat with the player about this behavior, as others have said. And you'll probably need more than one chat at more than one time throughout the campaign, as this behavior is just one point on what's likely a whole antisocial spectrum of behavior (in-game at least).
EDIT: Cintra Bristol beat me to it.
Even if this is meta gaming what I'd do is: Have the players decide who of them is the "treasurer". After the fight the treasurer gets told what loot can be found and has to manage the distribution. If something does not get distributed he keeps record of it as group treasure.
I don't find it especially metagame for people to want more regulation of loot distribution. If I was regularly risking life and limb for money, I would be very picky about making sure I got my fair share.
In the last game I GMed, the party drew up a full contract for the group, regulating exactly how wealth would be handled and distributed among the group, all in-character. It was a lot of fun.
4. Set a time limit on initiatives. And if the time limit passes, tell him his character is taking the delay action (so he can still do something when he decides what to do) and move on to the next person on the initiative count.
While I am an advocate of the 6 second rule, it doesn't really punish the player if he can just sit there and weasel the system. "Wait, I'm almost ready, just give me a little bit more!" And then he takes another 10 minutes complaining and debating with himself, making you waste your time because he's "almost ready."
It's easier to say that he becomes Dazed until his next turn due to his (and essentially, his character's) mental inability to conceive activity and apply such to his muscles via nervous signals from the brain. It's a fairly harsher ruling, but it accomplishes the job much better without the prospect of him munchkining the otherwise poorly-enforced system.
Some turns are difficult, sure, but as far as I can tell, he has practically no system mastery, he doesn't play well with others, and wastes half the combat looting bodies. His turns shouldn't even take 5 seconds.
@ the OP: It wouldn't be a bad idea to booby-trap some loot on the bodies, especially for a BBEG. For example, a BBEG who uses Simulacrum and acquires a very powerful scroll (probably a Time Stop scroll or something similar) could jury-rig that powerful item with an Empowered/Maximized Explosive Runes, causing the item to be destroyed and the wounded character to either become unconscious or potentially die. If the BBEG is familiar with the PCs abilities and tactics, he'll know the PC will try to loot in the middle of combat and try and take him down as a last ditch effort.
Similarly, a Contingency spell would also work, popping an Intensified Fireball targeting the scroll if anyone other than the BBEG touched the scroll.
It's important to discourage the behavior in-game, especially if recurring villains are involved, so as to show the PC "Yup, enemies are aware of your misguided tactics and are going to use it against you." Even if a PC other than the problem child (another acronym for PC, imagine that!) triggers the trap and dies, it'll still get the point across.
How a PC behaves has nothing to do with the GM.
That is what NPCs are for.
Not being rude but you seem to have a track record, from your previous posts, regarding player/PC behaviour which doesn't fit into your view on how they should act. Perhaps you should stay out of this and let the players sort it out amongst themselves in character.
EDIT: They are not your PCs, they are the player's.
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1) Breaks away from combat during the final round or two to loot everything first. Every. Single. Time.2) Hordes scrolls, wands, potions and anything else. He won't sell them, and only very rarely uses this growing collection. *
3) Refuses to even try out a digital character sheet. Then "forgets" to apply the effects of complex negative effects, and must be reminded to compute his load whenever he stocks up on loot.
4) Has absurdly long turns, partly due to the paper sheet thing, but even in situations where there is only one choice, he will still spend 10 minutes deciding.
5) Whenever another PC asks for a party item he's carrying, it becomes a debate about how much they really need it.
6) Tried to take the The Wizard's Bonded Item., as it was introduced to the game, and everyone was told that item exists for the Wizard (since it was a PC dual classing) ...
1), 2), 5) and 6) This is possibly 2 different things. If the player is just a selfish jerk about the only thing you can do is attempt an out of game conversation with him.
However, if the player is honestly trying to role play the character personality he has envisioned for this PC... Well it is still an issue but more easily resolved. And best resolved by the other players, not the GM. "But I'm just playing what my character would do." "Yes, but my character would not put up with someone like that because it hurts the team and our odds of survival. He would beat him up, take back the horded stuff, and kick him out of the group. If you really want to play that personality then we will have to play our personalities."One of the things I tell my players is "I will throw out a generous number of campaign hooks. But you as a player have to bring a reason that your PC can and will participate as a member of the team."
2) That actually isn't all that uncommon. I used to do that myself. I might need this later, so I won't use it now. Then suddenly, I've gotten so high in level that it is now worthless. So I saved it for nothing. It has taken me a long time to get to the point where I will use up my consumables rather than save them. Often this just takes some encouragement from the other PC's to use stuff up. The other PC's should also make the point that they will stop giving stuff to him that he is never going to use.
3) Have someone make and update the character sheet for him. Don't give him a choice. There are too many mistakes on the hand written sheets, we're all using these.
If he is not actively attempting to cheat, the condition buff/debuff card decks really help many people. You can make your own with 3x5 cards. Slow gives you these effects - write it on a handful of cards. Set it in front of anyone effected by slow. Etc...
4) Make all turns time limited for everyone. I only give 30 seconds to decide what you are doing. (I allow some leeway for the first guy in initiative in the first round and for anyone new to the game.) It is combat, not an old women's book club debate. If after about 30 seconds you haven't decided, you are on delay or holding your action.
Now it might take longer than that to actually explain what you are doing, move the figurines, roll for casting defensively, make the skill check, roll to beat SR, roll the to hit, roll the damage, do the math, etc... But they have to decide what it will be pretty quick.
5) Why in the world is the party letting him carry any party owned equipment. Completely in-character, none of my PC's would let him carry anything that wasn't clearly his. "No, you can't touch any of the party stuff. Duh, you won't let us use it when needed."
6) This actually would bother me the most. If he wasn't just joking around, this really sounds like he is being a real jack hole.
In the last game I GMed, the party drew up a full contract for the group, regulating exactly how wealth would be handled and distributed among the group, all in-character. It was a lot of fun.HELL YES. THIS IS WHAT I WAS LOOKING FOR!!!!!!!!!1
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Again, this is an excellent idea.
But it is for the players to do through their PC's. It should have nothing to do with the GM (except maybe as a suggestion). When/if they start working on it and especially the enforcement of it, the GM should be completely hands off.
Uh...honestly, this isn't something that should be fixed in-game. This is an OOC issue, and should be handled OOC. I suggest sitting down and talking to him about exactly why this behavior is inappropriate, and why he might want to change it.
I was going to call it an OCD issue. ;)
As a GM, it doesn't bother me when PCs loot early or stay out of combat. That's something for the other characters to address. If they don't want to address it, then no issues.
As a PC, generally having a fellow party member not contributing to ending the fight is going to aggravate me, depending on the character.
In our most recent session, the ninja in the party picked the pockets of an injured person we were in the process of saving. The person was going to reward us with money, but because he didn't have any on him (because it was stolen) he was unable to.
None of us characters saw the pick pocket attempt, so we couldn't react to it. Complaining about the pick pocketing would be metagaming - but if we catch him doing so in the future, one of the characters may have a problem with it.
Wow, a legitimate complaint from Mulet. Cool.
1) Breaks away from combat during the final round or two to loot everything first. Every. Single. Time.
Simplest way to do this is take away the incentive. Don't tell him what he gets, and distribute the loot normally. He'll either stop because it's no longer working or just keep banging his head against that wall, and you'll no longer have a reason to care.
Another way is to keep him from breaking away. If those last enemies are attacking him, he'll be less likely to try to sneak off.
2) Hordes scrolls, wands, potions and anything else. He won't sell them, and only very rarely uses this growing collection. *
This is the classic P-Wing effect. He never uses them because he's worried that a situation where he'll "really need it" is right around the corner. Not much you can do about that but to give him such a situation and hope he's smart enough to use it.
3) Refuses to even try out a digital character sheet. Then "forgets" to apply the effects of complex negative effects, and must be reminded to compute his load whenever he stocks up on loot.
Take him aside and talk about it.
4) Has absurdly long turns, partly due to the paper sheet thing, but even in situations where there is only one choice, he will still spend 10 minutes deciding.
Yeah, give him 30-45 seconds, then assume the indecision has extended to his character. Even in the worst-case scenarios, it shouldn't take more than a minute or two to make your move.
5) Whenever another PC asks for a party item he's carrying, it becomes a debate about how much they really need it.
Let the other players deal with this.
6) Tried to take the The Wizard's Bonded Item., as it was introduced to the game, and everyone was told that item exists for the Wizard (since it was a PC dual classing)
Give him a warning, then let the players deal with it... by whatever means they deem appropriate.
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Everyone has already given you responses that I mostly agree with (OOC problem, discuss how the party feels, etc).
But I can give you another tip:
Mimics. Mimics of all shapes and sizes, including scrolls, wands, and potions.
Edit: Aaaaand now I want to make a villain who is pals with a mimic that becomes his weapon.
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Most of these issues are not the gms to deal with. They are the pcs. If his actions cause death and damage so be it. It is the responsibility of the group to sort that stuff out. Let them play there characters and suffer if they don't want to stand up for themselves.
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1. In a real life fight you finish the enemy or someone may die. If he did this, the other team members would abandon him or kill him, and there is no way he gets all of the loot becaues he saw it first. So once again he would be booted or killed. <--A view at realism when traveling with murder hobos.
2. See 1
3. You will just have to stay on him about this or "uninvite" him.
4. Why is he taking so long?
5. See 1. The party really has no reason to keep him around other than metagame reasons.
6. See 1 and 5
G'day!
I've got five PC's, that are all well defined and making great use of their classes, unique items and the roleplay aspects. One of these players however, has a very err.. underdeveloped sense of teamwork.
I need to encourage him to do what is in the favour of the party, not just himself at every possible turn. Here is quick list of what's really s+$%ting me, and the party:
1) Breaks away from combat during the final round or two to loot everything first. Every. Single. Time.
2) Hordes scrolls, wands, potions and anything else. He won't sell them, and only very rarely uses this growing collection. *
3) Refuses to even try out a digital character sheet. Then "forgets" to apply the effects of complex negative effects, and must be reminded to compute his load whenever he stocks up on loot.
4) Has absurdly long turns, partly due to the paper sheet thing, but even in situations where there is only one choice, he will still spend 10 minutes deciding.
5) Whenever another PC asks for a party item he's carrying, it becomes a debate about how much they really need it.
6) Tried to take the The Wizard's Bonded Item., as it was introduced to the game, and everyone was told that item exists for the Wizard (since it was a PC dual classing)
* He was away for a session, and another player controlled his character. The inventory was split evenly between the party, and resulted in the party not being absolutely crushed at Thistletop the next session.
So now you've got an idea of this Nagaji Magus(5)/Bard(1) and the player controlling him, what are some good teamwork building activities I can put him and his party through?
I refuse to apply negative levels, fake rolls in combat or specific cursed items to him, as negative reinforcement is a s$!% solution. This post is me trying to optimize my game, NOT some earth shattering mega b@$!&#@# player at my table. The night would suffer if he quit (and he loves this campaign, so that's not at...
Hi. A dm should never let 4 fly for long and can easily solve this problem so quickly you would not believe it until you see it.
Everyone gets 20 seconds to say what they are doing and then they get on with it. If 20 seconds pass and they have no declared course of action, they miss their turn. The dm just moves right on and clearly states why they have lost their turn and that they will get to act next round.
Seen it, done it, it is great. Come to the light.
After a few missed turns slow players suddenly find a higher initiative modifier.
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If a PC is playing his character like a total jerk with the excuse of "that's what my character would do," the appropriate response is to ask why that player deliberately made a character that was detrimental to the rest of the party (and the game as a whole). "But that's what my character would do" is used as a Get-Out-Of-Jail-Free card way too often.
If a PC is playing his character like a total jerk with the excuse of "that's what my character would do," the appropriate response is to ask why that player deliberately made a character that was detrimental to the rest of the party (and the game as a whole). "But that's what my character would do" is used as a Get-Out-Of-Jail-Free card way too often.
An easy counter to that is what would the other characters do. :)
Well, this could easily become an IC thing ... since this guy is taking more than his share, and not helping the rest of the team out, the other PCs could just say 'We're tired of your crap. Get lost' to the offending PC.
"Because our characters have gotten tired of this nonsense, and throwing you out is what our characters would do."
"But that's what my character would do"...
I've always loved that line for the implication that, gosh, the player would love to be less of a selfish little wanker, but he's powerless to avoid doing so, because the character he invented is simply too nuanced and realistic to do anything else: behaving politely to multiple well-armed professional killers on whom one's life could depend at any moment would simply be too implausible!
I agree with you that poor players use that line to excuse their poor behavior. For non-poor players, though, that line actually makes a lot of sense. If you want to play a thief that steals from NPCs, then that is your right. If you get caught, you face the consequences.
If other players are complaining about you stealing from NPCs, then they're trying to dictate what kind of character you're allowed to play. Now, if their characters catch your character stealing, they have the right to react based on what their characters would do.
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I've done this more than once ...
"But that's what my character would do!"
"Then you've created an inappropriate character."
I feel its important to remind players this is a game, and the purpose is to have fun. Creating a character that intentionally makes game less fun for others is the player's fault. I've seen "difficult" character that everyone enjoyed interacting with, so it varies by game and the style of players.
If one player has a character that greatly impacts the rest of the game negatively I give them three choices:
1) Change the character's attitude so they are less of a problem to the game. An event or series of them can even be created that justify the changed personality.
2) If 1 is not feasible, make a new character and retire the old one.
3) If player is unwilling I excuse them from game and let other players know that they will not be coming any more and the reasons why.
I know #3 sounds harsh and its a matter of degree. Especially when a player is also a problem player out of game, does this become a real consideration.
Is this the same player as the one in this thread?
If so, does the player still go off on side treks, or have they stopped and picked up this behavior instead?
And do the other players like the behavior or not? If not, why aren't they trying anything to stop it?
Do you allow PvP in your games?
Wow, a legitimate complaint from Mulet. Cool.
1) Breaks away from combat during the final round or two to loot everything first. Every. Single. Time.Simplest way to do this is take away the incentive. Don't tell him what he gets, and distribute the loot normally. He'll either stop because it's no longer working or just keep banging his head against that wall, and you'll no longer have a reason to care.
Another way is to keep him from breaking away. If those last enemies are attacking him, he'll be less likely to try to sneak off.
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4) Has absurdly long turns, partly due to the paper sheet thing, but even in situations where there is only one choice, he will still spend 10 minutes deciding.Yeah, give him 30-45 seconds, then assume the indecision has extended to his character. Even in the worst-case scenarios, it shouldn't take more than a minute or two to make your move.
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Right. Stop giving people extra loot for being a jerk. Simple ignore him, and tell the PC's what they find at the end. Tell him "I'll hand out the loot at the end of the encounter, it's easier to keep track of it that way".
Yep, just give him a minute or so, no longer.
"But that's what my character would do"...
I've always loved that line for the implication that, gosh, the player would love to be less of a selfish little wanker, but he's powerless to avoid doing so, because the character he invented is simply too nuanced and realistic to do anything else: dealing fairly and politely with his teammates - multiple well-armed professional killers on whom his life could depend at any moment - would simply be too implausible!
In all fairness. Usually when I see someone doing this, it is because they have modeled their character off of someone in a novel, comic, legend, or movie that seemed kool.
It never even occurs to them, that the character only works because the author/writer/storyteller insures that it works.
For example: If you've watched the old Conan movies with Arnold, do you remember his sidekick thief? I remember a bunch of people basing their characters off of that guy. Yes, he was a point of comedy relief in the movie that was kinda funny. But he was funny because he was so ineffective and mostly useless. But no one would really want to adventure and depend on him. It only worked because the writer said Conan would keep him around and not beat the tar out of him.
A more extreme example: You old timers remember the Dragon Lance Kender from the book. Yeah they were hilarious in the book because the dwarf put up with his antics and did not kill him or turn him over to the law. But that was only because the author decided it would be so, the personality of the dwarf character should not have put up with it and neither should anyone else in the group.
But still after those books came out, it seemed like every table had someone wanting to play a Kender (because it is hilarious) and everyone else cursing.
So to be fair. This is often a problem of people not realizing that what works in a novel doesn't necessarily transfer well into a team face-to-face RPG.
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Well, this could easily become an IC thing ... since this guy is taking more than his share, and not helping the rest of the team out, the other PCs could just say 'We're tired of your crap. Get lost' to the offending PC.
"Because our characters have gotten tired of this nonsense, and throwing you out is what our characters would do."
Historically groups that were kind of similar to adventuring parties - pirates, mercenary companies and the like - had very strict rules about how loot was divided up.
Breaches of the rules were strictly dealt with. Getting thrown out would be the mild end of the punishment spectrum.
One way of dealing with it in game is the next time the offending character is in trouble in a fight the rest of the party declare they are spending a round looting. Unless the player is completely thick it should only take one or two occurrences before the message sinks in.