Dishonest but not a hinderance?

[Kvess]

My most recent character has the Charlatan background, along with the trait: “I lie about almost everything, even when there’s no good reason to.” I’ve rationalized this trait as him living in hiding for the past 50 years under an assumed identity. Lying was initially something that kept him alive, and now it’s just what he does reflexively.

Our DM is fairly RP-focused, so I’ve taken this trait as a personal challenge. I want my character to push the buttons of other characters, keep the DM on his toes, and amuse myself and my friends. I don’t want him to be a detriment to our group’s chance of succeeding at our goals. I am planning on bragging and embellishing whenever possible, telling contradictory half-truths about his backstory, and laundering his opinions by claiming that his otherworldly patron is communicating with him about day-to-day events.

Have you played a character who is a pathological liar and a team player? What was your approach to being inconsequentially misleading? How did other party members react?

[Mastikator]

Never played a character like that but I have known people who are like that. Constantly bragging about their accomplishments, most of which are so unbelievable you don't understand how on earth they think you'd believe them. I can see a character doing this while still being a team player. It's stupidly annoying but also harmless.

"Yeah once I saw a dragon shape shift into a beautiful woman, she promised me we'd get married but then I never saw her again".

"Once I was in the biggest vault in the world and could've become the richest man on the continent, but I chose not to steal because of my morals"

"I have a super power, whenever I have a dream it then happens. It's because of my latent psychic powers are changing reality"

[Ogun]

When I watch shows with the wife and kids I like wait until a protagonist does something awesome and then lampshade that by saying " Yeah, I did that once".
Being absolutely certian and clearly wrong about something is another way to go.
Even better, be mostly right.
For example you might track the fearsome sallowknocker to its lair, all the while warning your colleagues about its ability to regenerate and vulnerability to fire.
When your party suggests what you are tracking is a troll, laugh and point out that a troll is fee that you pay to cross a bridge not a fearsome monster.
When they say you are confusing troll with Toll, tell them THEY are the ones confusing the signature cookie of the House of Nestlé with a both an administrative fee and a fearsome monster.
After the beast is dead, and your party has collecting the bounty, you might wonder out loud at thier insistence that you pay the toll with the head of a sallowknocker, especially since they gave you some much change in return.
Lucky for your party, you knew what what was what, since they were so clueless!

So very annoying, yet also helpful.

[JonBeowulf]

I played a Rogue Mastermind for half a campaign**. Actor background and a disguise kit. I was the face of the party and by the time we hit level 6, everyone just assumed everything that came out of my mouth was a lie. The closest I came to being a hindrance was when I occasionally lied about treasure, but they always called me on it so no harm.

It can be done, but don't cross the line into being a jerk. This group of adventurers is helping you stay alive, so it's in your best interest to help keep them alive and not piss them off so much they want to leave you tied to a tree.

** Half a campaign because I actually got bored with him so the DM took him over as an awesome NPC and I took over a minotaur Eagle Barb NPC that was supposed to be a throw-away guy.