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View Full Version : Disruptive Players [3.5 D&D, but really doesn't matter]



Fortuna
2010-02-06, 12:57 AM
I have a group of 8 or so people IRL, and we meet up to play D&D once a week. We usually get together about an hour before we start play, but 3-4 of us (the same 3-4) consistently muck around.

The exact form that this takes varies from session to session: sometimes it's participating ridiculously ("My badger bites <other party member>'s leg!") and other times it's cracking Chuck Norris jokes.

Bottom line is that these people are fun to play with when they get down to serious play, but that's very hit and miss. They're friends, so I don't want to eject them from the group. How can I get them engaged with the game?

Defiant
2010-02-06, 01:21 AM
Reduce party size. 8 players is nigh-unmanageable. Split it into 2 groups. Do not attempt to DM such a massive party size, otherwise exactly what you're describing will happen. I speak from experience.

AngelisBlack
2010-02-06, 01:26 AM
Also, taking the disruptive member aside after the session for a talk might help. You could also institute rules as to when it would be ok for certain kinds of behavior and when they should hold off.

Defiant
2010-02-06, 01:44 AM
The main problem is that with that many people, players will inevitably get bored. In-combat, once you're done your turn, you'd have to wait a long time until you can do anything. Players will get bored, and few will have a politeness-willpower combination to refrain from entertaining themselves in some way: be it chat up the other players, make random jokes, or even start playing games on their laptop.

The problem is the party size, and the only solution, in my opinion, is reducing party size. Sure, you could ask, in nice and then non-nice ways, the players to straighten up and pay attention... but ultimately the primary problem is boredom. And you want a D&D game to be fun. Find someone within the group that might be interested in DMing. Talk with them about splitting the group up a bit. Maybe even incorporate it into the story.

Fiery Diamond
2010-02-06, 05:23 AM
Well, at one point I ran for 7 players for a little while, but I'll be honest: for quite a while I ran for 6 players, and I think that is probably the most reasonable cap for party size. With 8 players, what you describe is pretty much inevitable. I have a few recommendations:

1) Reduce the size of the party. This can be done in a couple ways:
1A) Kick out some people. This, while the easiest to do, is also the least fun to do, and you've said you don't want to do it.
2B) Split the group into two parties, and have more than one session a week (or potentially have one really long session split into two parts - Party 1 adventures while the players from Party 2 just hang out in the background and play video games/make jokes/offer suggestions/etc. And then vice versa. This could work, or it could cause more problems...it depends)

2) Lighten up. It's going to happen, so learn to live with it.

3) Take breaks for goofing off.

4) Make clear what your expectations are. Do this regardless of what other choices you make.

Math_Mage
2010-02-06, 06:29 AM
Speaking from admittedly limited experience, 8 players --> a couple dominate the conversation, a couple listen, a couple don't, and very little gets done.

Satyr
2010-02-06, 06:42 AM
The sheer size of the group is indeed a problem, but if you do not want to change the constellation, which is understandable (even though I would probably just kick out those who disrupt the game, not because the group is too big, but because they disrupt the game), ask one of your friends in the group if they'd like to co-DM. Using two instead of one gamemaster can solve some of the problems.
And, on the other hand: Reward contributions to the game, punish distractions. Something like XP should depend on the player's input and if someone is more of a distraction than a boon to the game, they plainly don't deserve as many benefits as someone who is highly concentrated and brings the game forward.
Remember, there are little things more unfair than treating everybody the same.

Fiery Diamond
2010-02-06, 06:49 AM
And, on the other hand: Reward contributions to the game, punish distractions. Something like XP should depend on the player's input and if someone is more of a distraction than a boon to the game, they plainly don't deserve as many benefits as someone who is highly concentrated and brings the game forward.
Remember, there are little things more unfair than treating everybody the same.

Hm... That's actually a good suggestion. I do this with my normal-sized group.

DabblerWizard
2010-02-06, 09:19 AM
I have a group of 8 or so people IRL, and we meet up to play D&D once a week. We usually get together about an hour before we start play, but 3-4 of us (the same 3-4) consistently muck around.

The exact form that this takes varies from session to session: sometimes it's participating ridiculously ("My badger bites <other party member>'s leg!") and other times it's cracking Chuck Norris jokes.

Bottom line is that these people are fun to play with when they get down to serious play, but that's very hit and miss. They're friends, so I don't want to eject them from the group. How can I get them engaged with the game?


Here's my input.

- Nothing you have written implies that any of your players are intentionally nefarious. However, it is possible some players just like causing a bit of trouble. These would be the more anti-social in the bunch, presumably. The best thing to do would be to ask them to stop.

- As most people have said, your player are probably bored mid-game. Natural dips in action occur in every game, but the more frequently they occur, and the longer they last, the more frustrated people become. Some people ride out this discomfort quietly, some complain, a few become rude, and others (some of your players) try to solve the lull by entertaining themselves and others.

Either reduce your group size, or find ways to speed past slow parts of the game.
-- Combat is slow, so make it a bit faster by rolling initiative for monsters before the session begins.
-- Don't dwell on monster tactics unless it's important. Monster A doesn't hit, moving on.
-- Engage less responsive players. "So what are you doing while the others are going to the market?"
-- You travel for two weeks and nothing special happens, vs. on your first night, you set up camp, you talk, and nothing attacks you... on your second night, you set up camp, you talk, and nothing attacks you........ etc.


- If your players' shenanigans also occur right around the time you want to start the game, all you have to do is focus their attention.

Tell them that you're ready to begin, and hopefully they'll react with quieting down. I usually just sit there, looking expectantly at my players, and they tend to get my silence as my readiness to begin. - You may want to ask your players whether they're ready to start, but chances are, they're just mucking around anyway, and the only important thing they've got to do is get focused. No matter how ready players are, the game can't really start until the DM is ready.