1. Best: - A player that can stay true to character knowledge and not ruin an exchange with player knowledge - A player that considers the fun and character fulfillment of others at the table. - A player who can accept a ruling or wait until after a session to discuss it further. - An active and reliable member. Worst - Poor reasoning skills, acts rashly, or doesn't think before making decisions that affect more than one's own character. - Inability to separate real world morality from D&D and racial cultural morality. - Characters who build their characters with antagonistic qualities in mind. An example of this would not be a character which has political stances that oppose the party, but rather designing a character as a shape-shifter under the pretense of the party not knowing. - Players that detour the entire party through chatter, or with objectives the character would not have an earnest interest in. 2. Best - Someone who makes time for players to resolve side quests or personal motivations outside of the session. - Someone who respects party direction and doesn't get upset if the party's interest leads the game in a direction other than what the Gm intended. Shoehorn/linear campaigns feel awkward and unimmersive. - Someone who puts a lot of time and effort towards writing and creating a vast world with characters that feel 3 dimensional. - Someone who understands that it's ok that players don't all agree, and it's ok for players to think differently. And one should not incentivise or reward players for thinking like the GM, but rather for the effort they put into the campaign and the variety/diversity and fun they bring to the table. Worst - Superiority complex. Being able to decide rulings does not mean you get to be a cunt while doing it. - One dimensional campaign morality. Writes characters in black or white means. D&D has nine alignments for a reason. All of them can be played without creating a campaign problem, and it falls on the PC to figure out how. - Stale and poorly designed combat encounters. This also includes unfair mechanics or combat encounters tailored towards trying to limit PC abilities instead of adjusting the combat so that PCs should use their abilities in unique or creative ways. - Being afraid to kill PCs. Holding hands makes for a boring time. 3. Yes. 4. KennyWebber 1 on Skype. 5. As a GM I spent much time building a wide branching storyline. The characters were on a self driven journey to save the human race from the scorn of the gods which they were convinced were misguided. After a few months of them busting their ass to stay alive and convince others of the value of human existence they encountered some ancient relics that out of campaign they later identified as modern military hand grenades, college books, and a pistol. While the characters had no idea what these items were, it allowed for the players to realize that this was in fact not the first time humanity had been wiped away by the gods, but that this had happened before. The name of the campaign "The Tenth Crusade" finally held meaning to them, and after months of buildup it was a great pay off. 6. Veteran player. I enjoy role playing characters which think differently than I do because it breeds interesting games and scenarios. I'm a strong mechanics player that normally plays as a GM. I very strictly stick to character actions, meaning I do not sacrifice character integrity for convenience in the campaign. A character that has dedicated their life to abolishing slavery does not decide that over night that some slavery is ok just because a party member recently bought a slave. Nor do they relinquish that belief because it helps move the plot forward. A proper Gm understands this before trying to force a party down their narrow plot point. What is the point in roleplay if it only lasts up until we disagree with the character? 7. Goblins are overused and cliched. And they are those things because they perfectly encapsulate what a fodder enemy is. They also provide an easy to believe alternative culture generally one based on economic wealth over social status. I'm a kobold/gnoll guy myself for those early levels. But then again my gnolls talk with a New York accent and kobolds make everything light hearted. 8. Did you know that viagra dissolved in water can make a cut flower stand erect for up to a week?
