I mentioned the elsewhere, but the DM of the first story either needs to get help or get some distance. The toxicity from his wife is off the charts and all over a game. Things can't stay that way if the DM wants to have a life
How in the hell did the OOP in the first story still think anger was “in character?” It doesn’t sound like it was ever in character from the moment she used out of character knowledge about their species?
Yup. She metagamed the entire time. "I know what you are." No, you literally don't. You FAILED the insight check THREE times. That means your character has no clue that OPs character isa tiefling. Someone should have called her out on that BS so that OP could have stopped wasting their time sooner when the Karen inevitably squooze the DMs balls she kept in her purse. OP should have also used their spine to point out how poorly paying customers were being treated by that wife and possibly gotten the DM kicked from the service.
I am honestly tired of actively harmful actions being dismissed as "pranks". Pranks are supposed to be minor inconveniences at best. Once actual harm comes to someone, that should always be considered assault.
Right? Enchanting a party members boots to moan when they walk in them is a prank. Pushing a party member into the gaping jaws of a kraken is not a prank.
@@unluckyone1655 "Its just a Prank bro!" The Prank: *Using Arcane Lock and Magic Mouth, to cause a door to moan "Harder Daddy" when someone eventually gives up and beats it down.* The "Prank": *Casting the Gate Spell underneath someone to send them to the 666th Layer of the Abyss*
Yeah too many people hide their toxic behaviors behind humor or jokes. "I'm just joking! You're too thin skinned!" After insulting you amd obviously knowing it bothers you.
I played my first dnd session ever this week after watching dnd doge for a while and I’m so relieved and happy to have such a sweet group and such an understanding and helpful dm. We had a great first session! Love the video!
I'm partway through my second ever campaign with my very first game group, myself. It's a bit expensive at $35/week, and the DM seems to care more about having the maximum number of players and progressing the plot as quickly as possible than whether or not the players have any non-combat roleplay opportunities, but it's still a great group of people.
I never watched or listened to Critical Role until recently and apparently I was "copying them" like my fighter swimming through acid. Only I wasn't purposefully swimming through acid though, I fell in. I was trying to jump a gap, and failed.
I think the best way to put a stop to critical levels of Critical Role fandom in your game is to put your actual game on pause. Then run a simple scenario with the same PCs, maybe even redo something that happened earlier in the session. But this time, be as demanding that they conform to Critical Role's style as your players are of your DMing. At least half of that show comes from the players so even Matt Mercer himself wouldn't be able to recreate Critical Role for your table. What you all can do is decide to work together to have fun with your friends.
When you force a role of kill tiefling on sight. It brings the worse of people. I remembered one story with a half drow being bullied by his team. To the point where they were ready to kill him. But the dm should of stopped her after she failed. "You believe the him. You have no reason or feeling that he is lying to you."
That is a very unsupportive wife is she is literally threatening to trash additional income to their household over a game meant to be for fun and profit.
Wait firbolgs in CritRole have tails? Since when? I thought Matt created them humanoid and only the fans made them more animal-like Edit: CritRole wiki page for firbolgs only mentions fur, cow like noses and animal ears. No tails. So the CritRole obsessed people in the story didn't even know the lore they were obsessed with
Yeah, CritRole Firbolgs don't actually have tails either. The Nein thought they looked cow-like and the fans decided they were animalistic. Mercer never described them like that. (I'm only halfway through Campaign 2, maybe there's one later...)
@@Graham2777 yep. Going through the CritRole wiki page for firbolgs it says right there that the only animal-like things about them are their cow noses, animal ears and fur. No tails. So the CritRole obsessed people in the story didn't even know the lore they were obsessed with
"Okay, you can play THIS race you love so much, but you're gonna be miserable the entire time." I feel this is becoming a trope in these stories. Like, why bother playing this if the DM told you 'no, but with extra steps'? XD
Main character syndrome. When the player gets bored, they can let themselves get outted. Then they think the party will defend them against those horrible, bigotted NPCs. I remember what that shit is like. As a player most of my PCs will end yours for the bounty rather than let an attention whore derail the game; as a GM, this is why I despise tiefs and their angelic and elemental equivalents, and don't allow them at my table.
@@tenchraven - Dude, really? That could cover any character concealing _anything._ "I have a dangerous secret" is a traditional and versatile character trope, and it's popular for a reason - it makes for good stories and role-playing situations. Not all role play is about "attention." For instance: I thought the tiefling player in that story had come up with a good strategy, which would have worked fine if not for the DM's wife metagaming. They were low-key and did their job. How is _that_ displaying "main character syndrome?"
Because it's not "No" and there are people with favored species they like to play. Plus guy was a paid DM so being totally discouraging would probably be counterintuitive to attracting new players. Of course if you're gonna say the other PCs might turn on you, that does create the expectation you might take precautions against them doing so.
I think that it can be seen as a very fascintating and challenging concept. Why "Merlin" (BBC) was so interesting to watch and not frustrating even if everyone was completely oblivious to the obvious? It's the same gist as any other media that uses fantasy to present anti-discrimination themes (X-Men, Shadow and Bone, Grimm...). Many people love the idea of being in the trope of "Being X is seen as bad because of stereotypes, I am gonna change that/I want to experience some edgyness for myself/I want to outsmart them/...". And it is not alarming by itself, as long as the player and the DM agree on where the line is.
@@tenchraven This is a long shot, but do you use the word "snowflake"? Because the fact that you defended the made-up fantasy bigots in their immoral racism is... somewhat telling.
story 1: i feel like that GM's games are set ups for cash. like his wife always tries to ruin and end the games early...but the husband GM keeps the cash. hope there's a way to leave reviews and reports for bs like that.
That's the problem with paid GM's, there is no regulation opening it up ripe for abuse by unscrupulous people. You could get ripped off and you have no recourse other than to warn others of that GM and hoping it will harm his reputation
The first story reminds me of a story my dad told me about a group he played with in the 80's. The longtime DM wanted his GF to play with them, but she wasn't really into it unless she got special treatment. She'd pout if she got hit which led to more than a few rerolls, and she always got her pick of magic items from dungeon loot. This went on for a few sessions before the rest of the group got sick of it. I believe the final straw was her disputing getting downed during a particularly tough fight, or she wanted a magic item that someone else wanted even though it wouldn't really benefit her class. An argument started, which usually could be defused by the DM, but not this time. the GF stood up, said to the DM, "Mark, we're leaving!" then stormed out of the house. The flabbergasted DM just kinda looked around sheepishly before scampering after her. lol
DM in the first story will never be able to run paid games as long as he allows his wife to participate. The concept of a paid game is odd enough to me without mixing in an unpleasant player who is obviously getting preferential treatment.
TigerW0lf I don't think it is meta knowledge, as their characters would know if firbolgs have tails. It is understandable that the players would think a firbolg without a tail was a clue by the dungeon master. This was a communications problem: The players did not ask out of character if firbolgs have tails and the dungeon master did not correct them on it.
My first D&D experience was being told about what sounded like the best game ever, then being told I couldn't join their campaign because I was a girl. Stopped being friends with the guy after that, and it took me about a decade before I found a group that let me join. My first game ended up not being D&D at all, but Hero System, which is still my favorite.
That sucks. There are still table trolls out there thinking they are still the bullied nerd in highschool. Glad you eventually found a great group. Ttrpgs are such an awesome hobby. My first game system was RIFTS
@@unluckyone1655 I was quite young at the time (junior high I think) so that group probably were still the bullied nerds in school at the time. It was also just after the Satanic Panic was calming down. It actually wasn't a big deal, just frustrating. I think my first experience was better than that one would have been. I had a great group of people to play with who are still friends to this day. I'm starting a new campaign with some of them soon. I've never heard of RIFTS before. I like hearing about new systems, they always have something different to bring to the table.
@SharmClucas I first started when I was in the army and a buddy of mine invited me to his game one time while we were out drinking. I was hooked from then on lol. RIFTS is fun, the setting is interesting, and the system is complicated and adaptable, but it requires a GM that knows what they're doing
@@unluckyone1655 - I was a bullied nerd in high school. So were most of my friends. They didn't exclude me, who was a girl, nor did they exclude anyone that I knew of, from rpgs or anything else. Conclusion: being a bullied nerd doesn't make you a jerk. If you're a jerk, it's just because of you. (Generic "you," of course, not _you_ you.)
@Shiny Aeon exactly. But some people will continue to wear it as a chip on their shoulders after highschool and use that to justify them being jerks to people who remind them of the kids who used to pick on them. I was also bullied throughout school and the nerds I hung out with for the most part were chill and very welcoming. We were more into anime and manga, we even had a sort of network where we'd secretly exchange manga and anime, because liking anime was cause for ridicule when I was in highschool
My first experience with dnd was Curse of Strahd and me and a few new players were at the table. What stopped it from being a shot show was 1. An experienced DM and 2. A couple veteran players to guide us.
In the second story, the DM should implement a Critical Role Rule where every time someone says something about Critical Role that just hinders gameplay, the DM will give the player a negative d4 modifer to their next roll. Of course, it wouldn't stack on one roll cause it'd be unfair. But each time a person mentioned it, it would affect that amount of rolls and would add one if they said something. Though is this a good way to counteract the mercer effect?
That would only end up alienating the players, I think the best way would be to tell the players that this game took place in a different world and they should throw out anything they learned in CR seeing as it wouldn’t be useless information.
I feel that last story. My first time playing I played as a Paladin, and everybody else decided to be Chaotic Neutral and below. Needless to say I had no fun because my DM kept forcing me to stop all of the evil stuff the other players were doing, and it wasn't even supposed to be an "everyone is evil" game.
If you are charging to run a game and you invite your spouse who then ruins the game -- you have no RIGHT to be charging money and should give it back in shame. The players are your *paying customers*, the spouse is your employee (in this scenario) and all that is YOUR responsibility. So, give refunds and fire the spouse one way or another. (stop them from playing or leave them...or quit running DnD games). Your relationship is your problem, keep it out of stranger's faces...they didn't pay to be abused.
Coming from a group that regularly asks eachother "well what would your character do?" In session when making decisions. People weaponizing "What their character would do" to justify absolute nonsense makes me want to cry
That first story really makes me scratch my head. Did the GM never explain to his wife that the people playing are paying for the privilege and that being an antagonisitic (insert derogitory term here) is not going to result in happy players? Part of me really wonders what is going on between the two of them. "Honey, you failed three insight checks and have zero reason to suspect the character of being a Tiefling. What point are you trying to make?" Also, the selfishness over magic items seems excessively petty. I get the impression she was trying to sabotage the campaign for some reason. If she were playing a cleric or a paladin or something, it would make a little more sense, but a one-armed (that by itself seems a strange choice) artificer? Maybe if her back story involved her family being killed by a Tiefling or something, but even so... husband is trying to run a fun campaign here. Why go after a fellow player at all? Murderhobo? Just trolling her husband? Feels like there's a lot of behind the scenes drama going on there.
Story 1 - I feel bad for the DM. He seemed OK-ish, as did the rest of the group. Mrs DM was a horror show. Story 2 - With 20-20 hindsight, the DM should probably have sat down with the Players beforehand, and made it clear that there would be differences to how CR did things. That being said, if they still kept on about it (and this seems plausible), I'd start smacking them down HARD ingame every time it was mentioned. Story 3 - New party, making assumptions and doing all the cliches. Glad it EVENTUALLY worked out for the DM and for OP.
Sleepy kitties are the best and cutest kitties - mainly because that means they are keeping out of trouble. LOL Oh and Doge, you have the best "Valley Girl" voice.
When I first started the dnd hobby I did spend a lot of time watching campaign 2 of critical role. However, I was also reading the phb and other important books like Tasha’s, Xanathars, and the DMG. I was trying to learn the ins and outs of the rules and was mostly, other than being entertained by the story, using critical role to give myself context for some of these rules. Now, I will mention, I did quickly note inconsistencies. But I chalked it down to what I had already heard about, house rules. I spent probably two months or so just researching rules, lore, and common proper etiquette for playing at a dnd table. This meant by the time I finally found myself a game, which I did online and for a module I was interested in at the time, I already had a good idea that each table would have a different style. And that was fine by me. Now, nearly a year later, I am in 6 games with most being weekly but 2 being every other week. I have a different table and a different dm for each game. I have gotten to know a wide variety of styles of dming in that time. I vastly enjoy all the games I am in and the tables I’m part of. But they are all different games with different moods and some have different mechanics. For one we are basically a test group for the dm’s main group (we went in to the campaign with that in mind). For another it’s rather roleplay heavy. I’m another it’s a mostly new player campaign so there is much cross talk and explainations. For yet another it’s more of a high school au with some mechanics adopted from dimension 20. And and then there is my first campaign. It’s the treasure of my heart and the dm, while easy to distract into a tangent, is the most patient and kind dm and the party was the absolute most supportive group to fall in with. They brought me out of my shell, taught me the mechanics, and were open to me testing out how I was most comfortable roleplaying. And, finally, I have a newer game with a newer dm with other experienced players, definitely some far more than I, who I have very much enjoyed the company of. Honestly? The entire campaign is designed around puns for that one. So a lot of different people and styles and I love it. I love collaborating with my parties and playing off each other and helping each other and each dm has something unique to teach me and who’s style I enjoy for different reasons. Some it’s a social game, some it’s a story, and some it’s a hack and slash, and for others it’s a mystery, or a joke campaign. It’s probably speedrunning a bit since I’ve done this in just under a year, but I really don’t regret it one bit and look forward to what more comes from each of these campaigns. Actually I might soon have a 6th game, possibly my first ever in person one. My brother is considering inviting me to his groups game though I have made it clear that I would rather a oneshot to see how I jive with everyone, as I don’t want to intrude on my brother’s space if it doesn’t go well (siblings and I have always given each other space since we know we, even as adults, need to break from accidentally pushing each other’s buttons). The dm has said sure but it will probably be a bit until they get a moment to run one and I said I don’t mind. All my brother’s group are new to dnd and the dms is experienced. I’d rather not intrude on the dm wrangling that (they are all past theater kids after all lol, so some insanity and hijinks are inevitable). But it would be nice to have an in person game. I have the dice and the books and even my own dice bag. At this point I feel comfortable enough in my roleplaying that I feel I can hold my own.
Honestly the first story just makes cringe. My partner and i have been playing ttrpgs together since before we started dating. My last group was mostly comprised of couples. Playing ttrpgs as a couple can be very fun, but these stories make all couples playing games look bad when in my experiece, i have yet to meet such toxic couples at the table *knocks on wood*
I’m going to be joining a new campaign set in the Critical Role world and the dm is already suggesting that we make characters connected to the ones from the show. I’m not counting it as a red flag yet but with all horror stories of the Mercer Effect I’m a bit wary.
If I thought firbolgs had tails, for Critical Role reasons or otherwise, and there was one without, I would think it was a clue by the dungeon master. The story is about another communication issue: The players did not think about asking if firbolgs have tails in the game setting and the dungeon master did not correct them on it.
But the thing is They don’t even have tails in critical roll The only time they’ve ever been depicted with one is through fan art These people are just wrong through and through
First Story:"D&D, Roleplay, Roll20. These were the ingredients chosen for a perfect game night, until DM accidentally introduced Karen Wife. And thus, Divorce Papers were soon to be born." Second Story: So the Criters knew what Firbolgs were, but didn't know they don't have tails in Crit Role...Probably watched Vox Machina, and even then, I don't think Firbolgs have tails there either
So I somewhat understand why people are being empathetic to the DM in the first story, but I kinda disagree with it. Because while Yeah it sucks that his wife is being so toxic towards him, he’s still kinda an asshole. If you know your wife is going to demand to be in every game you runs and you know she’s a problem player who’s going to try to monopolize the loot and story for herself, how the fuck do you justify charging people to join your game? If you’re offering a game that’s going to inevitably be centered around your wife’s character don’t charge people to join
I love the idea of a Druid the seeks to protect all animals but I get why that wouldn't go over well in a newbie group. The best solution for OP and the team is to stand back and let the druid succeed or fail with the wild animals on their own, until they asked for further help.
That last story ... I hate people who play the passive stupid alignment, their like "No we should not hurt them blah blah blah" and I'm like "Dude they literally stabbed you, they're still stabbing you!", Being passive doesn't mean keel over and let npc do whatever they want, being passive simply means not seeking combat or avoiding it when possible, but it comes with acknowledging that combat may be inevitable and the ultimate end goal is survival. Also most druid are hunter so that take is flat out stupid.
That wife is a shrew! What a toxic person. I'll bet that the poor husband is glad when she "ignores" him for several days to have some peace and quiet.
With the wolf encounter, since they were rabid and were attacking because of the disease they had, I would have let the party know that a spell that cures diseases would have ended the encounter peacefully.
When I was playing and DM'ing in the Navy, we didn't have much of a problem with those "It's what my character would do." types. More than once anyways. Our general response, party wide, was "And this is what our characters are going to do about it!"; with a short funeral for that problem character happening shortly thereafter. I know it's not a popular opinion that PvP should be allowed. In situations like this though I believe it not only should, so the party can both give an object lesson about what that kind of consequences that behavior will bring out in dangerous, highly skilled, armed, and far away from the law characters. Adventurers lead a dangerous life. And I do believe that some of these problem players would eventually get tired of their special characters getting humiliatingly beat down and killed over this behavior.
Why in the dice gods names would you let someone run your game that way?! You are the DM and you are letting one person ruin others and your own enjoyment. This sounds like a thing that probably goes beyond the game. Good lord, hell no.
The druid 'protecting' the wolves sounds eerily familiar to me. I had a player like that too, once, but he wasn't quite *this* bad about it. First off, he wasn't a druid but a barbarian, secondly, he had made it a specific point to mention his love for dogs, wolves and generally anything canine in his character's backstory and lastly, when the party did encounter wolves, he didn't hinder the group. He just stood on the sideline and didn't engage in combat. He also once pleaded with the group to avoid combat with the wolves, which I personally felt was a little too much and my response as the DM was to have one of the wolves attack him, stating that: 'Wolves don't care how you feel about them. To them, you're just another target to take down and snack on. Fight back or don't fight back, that's your choice, but don't expect a wolf to show you mercy because you do the same for them. It's a hungry animal and right now you're looking like a tasty snack to them.' He grappled the wolf into submission without killing it, restrained it and it ended up being released into the forest after combat, when it became obvious that training a wild wolf to be his loyal pet would take way too much time and effort. I'll let him make a wolf into his pet, but that stuff isn't easy to do. It's a wild, dangerous, untamed creature of instincts and impulse. To train it into following your commands would require months of carefully training it. He didn't feel like doing that. I told him he'd have a much easier time training a pet like that if he started its training when it was still a pup.
You handled that situation well, that's exactly what I'd do too. There's nothing wrong with giving your character unusual principles, but it doesn't mean other people and beings are going to adhere to them. More importantly, if they directly contradict the party's interests and you make the game a slog to play through by trying to enforce them, they're out the window. In this case, seems like your player was reasonable though and rolled with the punches.
Dm should grow some cajones and keep his players in check, doesn't matter if it's your wife, you are the DM and it is your responsibility to keep your ducks in a row.
I have to disagree on the Firbolg thing. Having not watched CR myself, I would never have taken the tail thing as a hint as the player's obsession. Especially since it would not be the DM's fault the players pay more attention to Matt Mercer's setting than the books that show Firbolgs as being gray humanoids without tails. Weirdly, I always thought potion taking was a bonus action based on what I was told, but I might have to double check it now.
I agree it's great that Critical Role is getting so many into the hobby, myself included, but it does bring to mind a quote I like fro ma movie trailer. "Don't try to be the next me, be the first you."
I want to get into playing dnd but, these days any online groups that have an interesting setting to me are also streamed and you have to have a face cam. I just want like an actual game with people who aren't trying to entertain an audience all the time
The "druid would never harm an animal" trope is kind of dumb. A druid would never let an animal go to waste - that is for sure. So would probably move the bodies to some area where the nutrients from their decomposing bodies would be easier accessible by plants. Maybe even use druidcraft to make some mold grow on the carcasses faster... But in nature animals dying is just a normal order of business.
Wait, since when did Firbolg have a tail in CR? I am not saying that they do not, I just do not remember it ever being mentioned, though there is the joke that they look like cow people. In actuality, in all previous editions a Firbolg is just a type of giant that is famous for being ugly and being in tune with nature. That is what they went for in the original 5e artwork for them as well, it just so happens to kind of resemble a cow man.
I just read that the 2nd story's Party dont even have their Critical Role facts right. Firbolgs dont even have tails in CR either. They must spend too much time reading CR fanfics. XD
Story 1: DM probably needs to consider relationship therapy, or just a straight up divorce. Because if that's all it takes to get the silent treatment for *days* then there's far, far deeper problems, and that's an unhealthy and potentially abusive relationship. If that is NOT the case, then DM needs to put on his big boy pants, put his foot down, and stop being a pussywhipped simp. Also needs to issue a refund to OP, regardless of the situation. Story 2: "This ain't CR, and if you want CR, you can find another table." Look, I love CritRole as much as the next person, and Mercer is a phenomenal GM, but gods above. That shit has got to *stop* and even he's said that. Story 3: I primarily play druids. I've never once had the thought "Save the rabid wolves!" In fact, it would have been "The sanctity of nature is being profaned. They must be cleansed. With *FIRE."*
DMs wife is really fucking abusive omg. If someone basically loses their mind and acts like you 'messed up' for not giving them what they want is really fucking abusive. Just because someone is crying doesn't mean they are innocent.
I just hope the diem in that first story grow some balls and leaves his wife because in all honesty of this dude is trying to make money as a DM by offering his services he's sure going to lose a lot of money because of his wife so if I were him that's exactly what I'd be doing
1st one: all the party is united against the dm's wife and they admit to siding against her to mess with her. No wonder she is acting crazt; she is expecting everyone to screw with her. This is a toxic group, start to finish; even op is doing things they acknowledge go so far they have to apologize for.
It really had its time during the pandemic when players were looking to live vicariously through the cast, but I'm right there with you. Watching someone else play a TTRPG is a little like watching someone else play a video game. I mean, the player(s) might be entertaining, but in the end it would be more fun to play yourself than watch someone else play.
First dm says it’s ok I have an easy fix to this that will allow you the stay in this game. It’s a bit extreme. Honey behave your self our I’ll do what Stellos did to stella at the end of the first episode of season 2 of hell of a boss. You wouldn’t dare. Yes I would do you here that sound you know that is? That is the sound of a fucking divorce! Lol
When the DM's wife tells him to go to hell, he whispers to himself "already there...."
I mentioned the elsewhere, but the DM of the first story either needs to get help or get some distance. The toxicity from his wife is off the charts and all over a game. Things can't stay that way if the DM wants to have a life
She's literally destroying his hobby and his job in one fell swoop.
Not talking to him for days anytime she doesn't get her way. Textbook abusive behavior.
@@adambooth7755 Yup, and yelling at him etc is what she allows others to see, imagine what could be going on behind closed doors.
They need marriage counseling or a divorce
I wonder how the DM expected to keep running pay2play games if his Mrs was going to keep messing them up. Makes me glad I have a never pay policy.
Knowing a couple a lot like this (but chill), it might be their only hope for income
How in the hell did the OOP in the first story still think anger was “in character?” It doesn’t sound like it was ever in character from the moment she used out of character knowledge about their species?
Yup. She metagamed the entire time.
"I know what you are."
No, you literally don't. You FAILED the insight check THREE times. That means your character has no clue that OPs character isa tiefling.
Someone should have called her out on that BS so that OP could have stopped wasting their time sooner when the Karen inevitably squooze the DMs balls she kept in her purse. OP should have also used their spine to point out how poorly paying customers were being treated by that wife and possibly gotten the DM kicked from the service.
I am honestly tired of actively harmful actions being dismissed as "pranks". Pranks are supposed to be minor inconveniences at best. Once actual harm comes to someone, that should always be considered assault.
Right? Enchanting a party members boots to moan when they walk in them is a prank. Pushing a party member into the gaping jaws of a kraken is not a prank.
@@unluckyone1655
"Its just a Prank bro!"
The Prank: *Using Arcane Lock and Magic Mouth, to cause a door to moan "Harder Daddy" when someone eventually gives up and beats it down.*
The "Prank": *Casting the Gate Spell underneath someone to send them to the 666th Layer of the Abyss*
Yeah too many people hide their toxic behaviors behind humor or jokes. "I'm just joking! You're too thin skinned!" After insulting you amd obviously knowing it bothers you.
It's like my friend usually says "CR is to ttrpgs what porn is to sex"
I played my first dnd session ever this week after watching dnd doge for a while and I’m so relieved and happy to have such a sweet group and such an understanding and helpful dm. We had a great first session! Love the video!
Here's to many great sessions to come! Happy to hear that!
That's really wonderful to hear you have found a great group.
Congrats on your first game!
I'm partway through my second ever campaign with my very first game group, myself. It's a bit expensive at $35/week, and the DM seems to care more about having the maximum number of players and progressing the plot as quickly as possible than whether or not the players have any non-combat roleplay opportunities, but it's still a great group of people.
I never watched or listened to Critical Role until recently and apparently I was "copying them" like my fighter swimming through acid. Only I wasn't purposefully swimming through acid though, I fell in. I was trying to jump a gap, and failed.
Anthro Peta? Nah man if those animals were pets she would have ended them without a second thought if she was peta.
Touche
I think the best way to put a stop to critical levels of Critical Role fandom in your game is to put your actual game on pause. Then run a simple scenario with the same PCs, maybe even redo something that happened earlier in the session. But this time, be as demanding that they conform to Critical Role's style as your players are of your DMing. At least half of that show comes from the players so even Matt Mercer himself wouldn't be able to recreate Critical Role for your table. What you all can do is decide to work together to have fun with your friends.
When you force a role of kill tiefling on sight. It brings the worse of people. I remembered one story with a half drow being bullied by his team. To the point where they were ready to kill him. But the dm should of stopped her after she failed. "You believe the him. You have no reason or feeling that he is lying to you."
The moment Critical Role is brought up as a comparison in gameplay, the player gets uninvited from my table. Permanently.
That is a very unsupportive wife is she is literally threatening to trash additional income to their household over a game meant to be for fun and profit.
If that second story's game was in person, I would bring a "Critical Role" jar next session.
Wait firbolgs in CritRole have tails? Since when? I thought Matt created them humanoid and only the fans made them more animal-like
Edit: CritRole wiki page for firbolgs only mentions fur, cow like noses and animal ears. No tails. So the CritRole obsessed people in the story didn't even know the lore they were obsessed with
Yeah, CritRole Firbolgs don't actually have tails either. The Nein thought they looked cow-like and the fans decided they were animalistic. Mercer never described them like that.
(I'm only halfway through Campaign 2, maybe there's one later...)
@@Graham2777 yep. Going through the CritRole wiki page for firbolgs it says right there that the only animal-like things about them are their cow noses, animal ears and fur. No tails. So the CritRole obsessed people in the story didn't even know the lore they were obsessed with
And a lightning bolt comes out of the sky and hits for damage each and every time you say "critical role".
with that group, there would be a TPK in 5 minutes.
@@DnDDoge Not that it would be a bad thing, to teach @$$hats a proper lesson
@@DnDDogeF@#$ 'em! They deserve it
"Okay, you can play THIS race you love so much, but you're gonna be miserable the entire time."
I feel this is becoming a trope in these stories. Like, why bother playing this if the DM told you 'no, but with extra steps'? XD
Main character syndrome. When the player gets bored, they can let themselves get outted. Then they think the party will defend them against those horrible, bigotted NPCs. I remember what that shit is like. As a player most of my PCs will end yours for the bounty rather than let an attention whore derail the game; as a GM, this is why I despise tiefs and their angelic and elemental equivalents, and don't allow them at my table.
@@tenchraven - Dude, really? That could cover any character concealing _anything._ "I have a dangerous secret" is a traditional and versatile character trope, and it's popular for a reason - it makes for good stories and role-playing situations. Not all role play is about "attention." For instance: I thought the tiefling player in that story had come up with a good strategy, which would have worked fine if not for the DM's wife metagaming. They were low-key and did their job. How is _that_ displaying "main character syndrome?"
Because it's not "No" and there are people with favored species they like to play. Plus guy was a paid DM so being totally discouraging would probably be counterintuitive to attracting new players.
Of course if you're gonna say the other PCs might turn on you, that does create the expectation you might take precautions against them doing so.
I think that it can be seen as a very fascintating and challenging concept.
Why "Merlin" (BBC) was so interesting to watch and not frustrating even if everyone was completely oblivious to the obvious? It's the same gist as any other media that uses fantasy to present anti-discrimination themes (X-Men, Shadow and Bone, Grimm...).
Many people love the idea of being in the trope of "Being X is seen as bad because of stereotypes, I am gonna change that/I want to experience some edgyness for myself/I want to outsmart them/...".
And it is not alarming by itself, as long as the player and the DM agree on where the line is.
@@tenchraven This is a long shot, but do you use the word "snowflake"?
Because the fact that you defended the made-up fantasy bigots in their immoral racism is... somewhat telling.
story 1: i feel like that GM's games are set ups for cash. like his wife always tries to ruin and end the games early...but the husband GM keeps the cash. hope there's a way to leave reviews and reports for bs like that.
That's the problem with paid GM's, there is no regulation opening it up ripe for abuse by unscrupulous people. You could get ripped off and you have no recourse other than to warn others of that GM and hoping it will harm his reputation
The first story reminds me of a story my dad told me about a group he played with in the 80's. The longtime DM wanted his GF to play with them, but she wasn't really into it unless she got special treatment. She'd pout if she got hit which led to more than a few rerolls, and she always got her pick of magic items from dungeon loot. This went on for a few sessions before the rest of the group got sick of it. I believe the final straw was her disputing getting downed during a particularly tough fight, or she wanted a magic item that someone else wanted even though it wouldn't really benefit her class. An argument started, which usually could be defused by the DM, but not this time. the GF stood up, said to the DM, "Mark, we're leaving!" then stormed out of the house. The flabbergasted DM just kinda looked around sheepishly before scampering after her. lol
Druid refuses to harm any animals
Me: I throw Druid at the Wolves and yell "RUN! To the rest of the party.
DM in the first story will never be able to run paid games as long as he allows his wife to participate. The concept of a paid game is odd enough to me without mixing in an unpleasant player who is obviously getting preferential treatment.
I don't even think firbolgs have tails in CritRole, all the art of Caduceus having a tail was fan art.
They don't. It was just Critters using meta knowledge from ANOTHER setting
TigerW0lf
I don't think it is meta knowledge, as their characters would know if firbolgs have tails.
It is understandable that the players would think a firbolg without a tail was a clue by the dungeon master. This was a communications problem: The players did not ask out of character if firbolgs have tails and the dungeon master did not correct them on it.
PSA comparing your games to critical roll is like comparing you karaoke night to the X factor
My first D&D experience was being told about what sounded like the best game ever, then being told I couldn't join their campaign because I was a girl. Stopped being friends with the guy after that, and it took me about a decade before I found a group that let me join. My first game ended up not being D&D at all, but Hero System, which is still my favorite.
That sucks. There are still table trolls out there thinking they are still the bullied nerd in highschool. Glad you eventually found a great group. Ttrpgs are such an awesome hobby. My first game system was RIFTS
@@unluckyone1655 I was quite young at the time (junior high I think) so that group probably were still the bullied nerds in school at the time. It was also just after the Satanic Panic was calming down. It actually wasn't a big deal, just frustrating. I think my first experience was better than that one would have been. I had a great group of people to play with who are still friends to this day. I'm starting a new campaign with some of them soon.
I've never heard of RIFTS before. I like hearing about new systems, they always have something different to bring to the table.
@SharmClucas I first started when I was in the army and a buddy of mine invited me to his game one time while we were out drinking. I was hooked from then on lol. RIFTS is fun, the setting is interesting, and the system is complicated and adaptable, but it requires a GM that knows what they're doing
@@unluckyone1655 - I was a bullied nerd in high school. So were most of my friends. They didn't exclude me, who was a girl, nor did they exclude anyone that I knew of, from rpgs or anything else. Conclusion: being a bullied nerd doesn't make you a jerk. If you're a jerk, it's just because of you. (Generic "you," of course, not _you_ you.)
@Shiny Aeon exactly. But some people will continue to wear it as a chip on their shoulders after highschool and use that to justify them being jerks to people who remind them of the kids who used to pick on them. I was also bullied throughout school and the nerds I hung out with for the most part were chill and very welcoming. We were more into anime and manga, we even had a sort of network where we'd secretly exchange manga and anime, because liking anime was cause for ridicule when I was in highschool
My first experience with dnd was Curse of Strahd and me and a few new players were at the table. What stopped it from being a shot show was 1. An experienced DM and 2. A couple veteran players to guide us.
If my wife acted like that I'd file for divorce the next day
Pouring acid on someone's face is a prank? It's medieval internet.
In the second story, the DM should implement a Critical Role Rule where every time someone says something about Critical Role that just hinders gameplay, the DM will give the player a negative d4 modifer to their next roll. Of course, it wouldn't stack on one roll cause it'd be unfair. But each time a person mentioned it, it would affect that amount of rolls and would add one if they said something. Though is this a good way to counteract the mercer effect?
That would only end up alienating the players, I think the best way would be to tell the players that this game took place in a different world and they should throw out anything they learned in CR seeing as it wouldn’t be useless information.
I would be like the DM in the second story. If they kept bringing up CR, then I would go insane.
I feel that last story. My first time playing I played as a Paladin, and everybody else decided to be Chaotic Neutral and below. Needless to say I had no fun because my DM kept forcing me to stop all of the evil stuff the other players were doing, and it wasn't even supposed to be an "everyone is evil" game.
Story 1: the DM is a victim of himself. No one should tolerate that kind of treatment.
If you are charging to run a game and you invite your spouse who then ruins the game -- you have no RIGHT to be charging money and should give it back in shame. The players are your *paying customers*, the spouse is your employee (in this scenario) and all that is YOUR responsibility. So, give refunds and fire the spouse one way or another. (stop them from playing or leave them...or quit running DnD games). Your relationship is your problem, keep it out of stranger's faces...they didn't pay to be abused.
I heard the first story once before, and that why I'll never get into a D&D game where there is a partner involved. No way I'm taking that risk.
Coming from a group that regularly asks eachother "well what would your character do?" In session when making decisions. People weaponizing "What their character would do" to justify absolute nonsense makes me want to cry
That first story really makes me scratch my head. Did the GM never explain to his wife that the people playing are paying for the privilege and that being an antagonisitic (insert derogitory term here) is not going to result in happy players? Part of me really wonders what is going on between the two of them.
"Honey, you failed three insight checks and have zero reason to suspect the character of being a Tiefling. What point are you trying to make?"
Also, the selfishness over magic items seems excessively petty. I get the impression she was trying to sabotage the campaign for some reason. If she were playing a cleric or a paladin or something, it would make a little more sense, but a one-armed (that by itself seems a strange choice) artificer? Maybe if her back story involved her family being killed by a Tiefling or something, but even so... husband is trying to run a fun campaign here. Why go after a fellow player at all? Murderhobo? Just trolling her husband? Feels like there's a lot of behind the scenes drama going on there.
Maybe the original poster was some kind of real-life minority and it was just a convenient way to vent her hatred.
If there's a crown prop on that program you're using, you should def switch your wizard hat to a crown to celebrate the moment you hit 100k subs
Story 1 - I feel bad for the DM. He seemed OK-ish, as did the rest of the group. Mrs DM was a horror show.
Story 2 - With 20-20 hindsight, the DM should probably have sat down with the Players beforehand, and made it clear that there would be differences to how CR did things. That being said, if they still kept on about it (and this seems plausible), I'd start smacking them down HARD ingame every time it was mentioned.
Story 3 - New party, making assumptions and doing all the cliches. Glad it EVENTUALLY worked out for the DM and for OP.
The party: Firbolgs have tails!
Me: *laughs in pinterest*
Sleepy kitties are the best and cutest kitties - mainly because that means they are keeping out of trouble. LOL
Oh and Doge, you have the best "Valley Girl" voice.
Keeping out of trouble and feeling safe and content enough to let their guards down. Peaceful, safe, happy kitties.
When I first started the dnd hobby I did spend a lot of time watching campaign 2 of critical role. However, I was also reading the phb and other important books like Tasha’s, Xanathars, and the DMG. I was trying to learn the ins and outs of the rules and was mostly, other than being entertained by the story, using critical role to give myself context for some of these rules. Now, I will mention, I did quickly note inconsistencies. But I chalked it down to what I had already heard about, house rules. I spent probably two months or so just researching rules, lore, and common proper etiquette for playing at a dnd table. This meant by the time I finally found myself a game, which I did online and for a module I was interested in at the time, I already had a good idea that each table would have a different style. And that was fine by me. Now, nearly a year later, I am in 6 games with most being weekly but 2 being every other week. I have a different table and a different dm for each game. I have gotten to know a wide variety of styles of dming in that time. I vastly enjoy all the games I am in and the tables I’m part of. But they are all different games with different moods and some have different mechanics. For one we are basically a test group for the dm’s main group (we went in to the campaign with that in mind). For another it’s rather roleplay heavy. I’m another it’s a mostly new player campaign so there is much cross talk and explainations. For yet another it’s more of a high school au with some mechanics adopted from dimension 20. And and then there is my first campaign. It’s the treasure of my heart and the dm, while easy to distract into a tangent, is the most patient and kind dm and the party was the absolute most supportive group to fall in with. They brought me out of my shell, taught me the mechanics, and were open to me testing out how I was most comfortable roleplaying. And, finally, I have a newer game with a newer dm with other experienced players, definitely some far more than I, who I have very much enjoyed the company of. Honestly? The entire campaign is designed around puns for that one. So a lot of different people and styles and I love it. I love collaborating with my parties and playing off each other and helping each other and each dm has something unique to teach me and who’s style I enjoy for different reasons. Some it’s a social game, some it’s a story, and some it’s a hack and slash, and for others it’s a mystery, or a joke campaign. It’s probably speedrunning a bit since I’ve done this in just under a year, but I really don’t regret it one bit and look forward to what more comes from each of these campaigns. Actually I might soon have a 6th game, possibly my first ever in person one. My brother is considering inviting me to his groups game though I have made it clear that I would rather a oneshot to see how I jive with everyone, as I don’t want to intrude on my brother’s space if it doesn’t go well (siblings and I have always given each other space since we know we, even as adults, need to break from accidentally pushing each other’s buttons). The dm has said sure but it will probably be a bit until they get a moment to run one and I said I don’t mind. All my brother’s group are new to dnd and the dms is experienced. I’d rather not intrude on the dm wrangling that (they are all past theater kids after all lol, so some insanity and hijinks are inevitable). But it would be nice to have an in person game. I have the dice and the books and even my own dice bag. At this point I feel comfortable enough in my roleplaying that I feel I can hold my own.
Thanks 4 all the hard work.
Honestly the first story just makes cringe. My partner and i have been playing ttrpgs together since before we started dating. My last group was mostly comprised of couples. Playing ttrpgs as a couple can be very fun, but these stories make all couples playing games look bad when in my experiece, i have yet to meet such toxic couples at the table *knocks on wood*
I’m going to be joining a new campaign set in the Critical Role world and the dm is already suggesting that we make characters connected to the ones from the show.
I’m not counting it as a red flag yet but with all horror stories of the Mercer Effect I’m a bit wary.
If I thought firbolgs had tails, for Critical Role reasons or otherwise, and there was one without, I would think it was a clue by the dungeon master.
The story is about another communication issue: The players did not think about asking if firbolgs have tails in the game setting and the dungeon master did not correct them on it.
But the thing is
They don’t even have tails in critical roll
The only time they’ve ever been depicted with one is through fan art
These people are just wrong through and through
First Story:"D&D, Roleplay, Roll20. These were the ingredients chosen for a perfect game night, until DM accidentally introduced Karen Wife. And thus, Divorce Papers were soon to be born."
Second Story: So the Criters knew what Firbolgs were, but didn't know they don't have tails in Crit Role...Probably watched Vox Machina, and even then, I don't think Firbolgs have tails there either
So I somewhat understand why people are being empathetic to the DM in the first story, but I kinda disagree with it.
Because while Yeah it sucks that his wife is being so toxic towards him, he’s still kinda an asshole.
If you know your wife is going to demand to be in every game you runs and you know she’s a problem player who’s going to try to monopolize the loot and story for herself, how the fuck do you justify charging people to join your game?
If you’re offering a game that’s going to inevitably be centered around your wife’s character don’t charge people to join
I love the idea of a Druid the seeks to protect all animals but I get why that wouldn't go over well in a newbie group. The best solution for OP and the team is to stand back and let the druid succeed or fail with the wild animals on their own, until they asked for further help.
If the DM's wife in that first story is like this with her husband in freaking DnD, then I believe it's time for him to seek a divorce.
That last story ... I hate people who play the passive stupid alignment, their like "No we should not hurt them blah blah blah" and I'm like "Dude they literally stabbed you, they're still stabbing you!", Being passive doesn't mean keel over and let npc do whatever they want, being passive simply means not seeking combat or avoiding it when possible, but it comes with acknowledging that combat may be inevitable and the ultimate end goal is survival. Also most druid are hunter so that take is flat out stupid.
That wife is a shrew! What a toxic person. I'll bet that the poor husband is glad when she "ignores" him for several days to have some peace and quiet.
With the wolf encounter, since they were rabid and were attacking because of the disease they had, I would have let the party know that a spell that cures diseases would have ended the encounter peacefully.
When the DM's SO is a player, things often go bad
Evil and ahole characters causing internal conflicts can be fun and interesting, but you really don't want to try or experience them as a new player.
When I was playing and DM'ing in the Navy, we didn't have much of a problem with those "It's what my character would do." types. More than once anyways. Our general response, party wide, was "And this is what our characters are going to do about it!"; with a short funeral for that problem character happening shortly thereafter.
I know it's not a popular opinion that PvP should be allowed. In situations like this though I believe it not only should, so the party can both give an object lesson about what that kind of consequences that behavior will bring out in dangerous, highly skilled, armed, and far away from the law characters. Adventurers lead a dangerous life. And I do believe that some of these problem players would eventually get tired of their special characters getting humiliatingly beat down and killed over this behavior.
Why in the dice gods names would you let someone run your game that way?! You are the DM and you are letting one person ruin others and your own enjoyment.
This sounds like a thing that probably goes beyond the game. Good lord, hell no.
The druid 'protecting' the wolves sounds eerily familiar to me. I had a player like that too, once, but he wasn't quite *this* bad about it. First off, he wasn't a druid but a barbarian, secondly, he had made it a specific point to mention his love for dogs, wolves and generally anything canine in his character's backstory and lastly, when the party did encounter wolves, he didn't hinder the group. He just stood on the sideline and didn't engage in combat. He also once pleaded with the group to avoid combat with the wolves, which I personally felt was a little too much and my response as the DM was to have one of the wolves attack him, stating that: 'Wolves don't care how you feel about them. To them, you're just another target to take down and snack on. Fight back or don't fight back, that's your choice, but don't expect a wolf to show you mercy because you do the same for them. It's a hungry animal and right now you're looking like a tasty snack to them.'
He grappled the wolf into submission without killing it, restrained it and it ended up being released into the forest after combat, when it became obvious that training a wild wolf to be his loyal pet would take way too much time and effort.
I'll let him make a wolf into his pet, but that stuff isn't easy to do. It's a wild, dangerous, untamed creature of instincts and impulse. To train it into following your commands would require months of carefully training it. He didn't feel like doing that. I told him he'd have a much easier time training a pet like that if he started its training when it was still a pup.
You handled that situation well, that's exactly what I'd do too. There's nothing wrong with giving your character unusual principles, but it doesn't mean other people and beings are going to adhere to them. More importantly, if they directly contradict the party's interests and you make the game a slog to play through by trying to enforce them, they're out the window. In this case, seems like your player was reasonable though and rolled with the punches.
op in the first story should've asked for their momey back
First Time: How not to play a Druid, part 368.
Dm should grow some cajones and keep his players in check, doesn't matter if it's your wife, you are the DM and it is your responsibility to keep your ducks in a row.
15:25 Yikes. Why is this so-called 'party' even together?
Willing to bet the farm that in the first story. OP was a women and wife felt threatened by her very existence
I have to disagree on the Firbolg thing. Having not watched CR myself, I would never have taken the tail thing as a hint as the player's obsession. Especially since it would not be the DM's fault the players pay more attention to Matt Mercer's setting than the books that show Firbolgs as being gray humanoids without tails. Weirdly, I always thought potion taking was a bonus action based on what I was told, but I might have to double check it now.
I agree it's great that Critical Role is getting so many into the hobby, myself included, but it does bring to mind a quote I like fro ma movie trailer.
"Don't try to be the next me, be the first you."
I want to get into playing dnd but, these days any online groups that have an interesting setting to me are also streamed and you have to have a face cam. I just want like an actual game with people who aren't trying to entertain an audience all the time
that first story could've not been if the wife wasn't there in the first place.
Where is the background footage from?
The "druid would never harm an animal" trope is kind of dumb.
A druid would never let an animal go to waste - that is for sure. So would probably move the bodies to some area where the nutrients from their decomposing bodies would be easier accessible by plants. Maybe even use druidcraft to make some mold grow on the carcasses faster...
But in nature animals dying is just a normal order of business.
Wait, since when did Firbolg have a tail in CR? I am not saying that they do not, I just do not remember it ever being mentioned, though there is the joke that they look like cow people. In actuality, in all previous editions a Firbolg is just a type of giant that is famous for being ugly and being in tune with nature. That is what they went for in the original 5e artwork for them as well, it just so happens to kind of resemble a cow man.
I just read that the 2nd story's Party dont even have their Critical Role facts right.
Firbolgs dont even have tails in CR either.
They must spend too much time reading CR fanfics. XD
Story 1: DM probably needs to consider relationship therapy, or just a straight up divorce. Because if that's all it takes to get the silent treatment for *days* then there's far, far deeper problems, and that's an unhealthy and potentially abusive relationship. If that is NOT the case, then DM needs to put on his big boy pants, put his foot down, and stop being a pussywhipped simp. Also needs to issue a refund to OP, regardless of the situation.
Story 2: "This ain't CR, and if you want CR, you can find another table." Look, I love CritRole as much as the next person, and Mercer is a phenomenal GM, but gods above. That shit has got to *stop* and even he's said that.
Story 3: I primarily play druids. I've never once had the thought "Save the rabid wolves!" In fact, it would have been "The sanctity of nature is being profaned. They must be cleansed. With *FIRE."*
Managers and Karens 3.5
DMs wife is really fucking abusive omg. If someone basically loses their mind and acts like you 'messed up' for not giving them what they want is really fucking abusive.
Just because someone is crying doesn't mean they are innocent.
2nd one: this is why people get passionate about shared lore :/
10:49 sleepy........
I just hope the diem in that first story grow some balls and leaves his wife because in all honesty of this dude is trying to make money as a DM by offering his services he's sure going to lose a lot of money because of his wife so if I were him that's exactly what I'd be doing
1st one: all the party is united against the dm's wife and they admit to siding against her to mess with her. No wonder she is acting crazt; she is expecting everyone to screw with her. This is a toxic group, start to finish; even op is doing things they acknowledge go so far they have to apologize for.
Never play with couples, especially if one is DM
not necessarily. My Dm is the wife of one of the players, and we've been going strong for 3 years.
Critical Role ruins everything, AGAIN.
They are really good meow meows
I LOLED
I have the best defense against Critical Role. I've never seen it.
I tried to listen to season of crit role couldn't do it. Can't keep track of what's going on.
Watch the crit recaps. It's easier.
It really had its time during the pandemic when players were looking to live vicariously through the cast, but I'm right there with you. Watching someone else play a TTRPG is a little like watching someone else play a video game. I mean, the player(s) might be entertaining, but in the end it would be more fun to play yourself than watch someone else play.
@@jeffdrake5881 I would suggest dice funk, d&d comedy role play. Star with season 2 lol
Critical Role doesn't ruin games but their toxic fans sure do
Tbh I see Paid DnD as a scam.
I’ve tried to watch Critical Role, but I just couldn’t get into it
Critical Role didn't ruin D&D. Wizards of the Coast did with it's too many idiotic editions.
If get to 20k ya need to put you or the kitties on a cake 🎂 to celebrate .
Most people: "You should never hit your partner."
Story 1: *Allow me to introduce myself.*
Dude, I get that was supposed to be a joke, but chill. That isn't something you should even joke about.
@@jeffdrake5881 1: anything and everything is a viable target for a joke.
2: *Who said I was joking?*
Critical role apprently is chaing game systems cos WOTC went after them for monies too over thier created content
First dm says it’s ok I have an easy fix to this that will allow you the stay in this game. It’s a bit extreme. Honey behave your self our I’ll do what Stellos did to stella at the end of the first episode of season 2 of hell of a boss. You wouldn’t dare. Yes I would do you here that sound you know that is? That is the sound of a fucking divorce! Lol
Don't pay for games
Heyoooo
I see it i click it
Crit crab den of the drake blow me. D&D douge you are my number one guy!!!
Yay another dnd doge video I’m so happy keep up the amazing work doge