Suggestions on how to deal with a situation

[Atalas]

My game has stalled the last few months due to a player not showing. This would normally be fixable by just hand-waving them into the background, but they were about to retire their character and bring in a new one. Again, easily done without their input if necessary, but their old character was about to talk to another PC about their possible arranged marriage and some other stuff. so, to resolve I would be needing actual player interaction, but it's been two months. The game's stalled, the other player's are frustrated, but at the same time I don't want to go into DM Override mode to deal with this.

[JoeJ]

Let the other PCs investigate the disappearance of their comrade.

[pwykersotz]

I've dealt with this before. Just get the missing player's input either in person or over email. Go over the basics of the situation and get their full input for how to play it, then play it out in their stead. It's a pain, but it's really the only direct way to stop the deadlock while maintaining integrity of the character.

[Atalas]

I've dealt with this before. Just get the missing player's input either in person or over email. Go over the basics of the situation and get their full input for how to play it, then play it out in their stead. It's a pain, but it's really the only direct way to stop the deadlock while maintaining integrity of the character.

That's the problem, I don't have their contact information. Otherwise this would've been over and done with ages ago. The campaign day is tomorrow and if he's not there, one of the other player's is in the campaign he runs on Monday's at the shop so I can ask him to ask the guy to get hold of me so we can start discussing things. I know what he was thinking about with the old character (returning to the Feywild to gather allies and power to eliminate her necromancer father, and then her necromancer-in-training brother... who is one of the other player's and in fact the one who I would be asking as a contact go-between. Or just have her die in some way. His replacement character is an assassin, sooo possibilities). He just never told me which idea he was gonna go with.

This has annoyed me up until now, but only mildly as I honestly didn't have inspiration on what to have the party do. I have idea's, sure, but only the end situation and not the hooks to get them started on any path.

I have been having fun with the party's Fiendish Bladelock by having his patron visit him in dreams. Put him up against another Warlock (my PC from an old campaign) in a dreamscape fight, gave him 50 rounds to try and kill his superior before retaliation. He almost won. result from that: NPC Warlock was impressed so he went to the Abyss to acquire the rights to the soul of this novice warlock. With full rolling for combat he took on a Balor and 5 Marilith's. end result, I am intimately familiar with how overpowered True Polymorph can be, as well as how debilitating Feeblemind can be on a Balor. And a high level Warlock also now controls a portion of the Abyss in the campaign.

[Zman]

You are the Adam, this is where you put the good of the group over one players character. You NPC them, have the conversation, and retire them. IMO, it's hard to think of a better time than now to do it.