The Revolving Door of Endless Characters

[PrincessCupcake]

I've got a player. we'll call him Revolving Door. He doesn't stick with a character for more than two sessions. It's making things very frustrating for me (as I have to keep hand-waving characters in and out) and the other players (because a new party member joins every other week at the same time one leaves).

There was a point in time where he stuck to a character for about ten sessions, but that was about a year ago. Ever since that character died, he has been doing this. It's gotten worse over the past 4 months (and not just with me. He does this to all the DMs he plays under.) It's not like he only writes down class/race/stats/levels either. He writes full backstories (many a page or more) for each one of his characters. And then abandons them two sessions later for a new idea.

He does realize this is a problem, and in fact asked me for advice in dealing with it. I didn't really have an answer (or rather I only had one piece of advice he has heard more than once already), so I turn to the hive mind. How do I deal with the root of this problem? What advice do I give the player other than "try to build a character you feel you will really enjoy"? How do I elaborate on "think of your character as a living person in this world?"

For reference, I am not against forcing R.D. to stick with a character. I've already given him a moratorium on switching (although there is still a loophole because the current campaign has no NPCs who can/will revive readily available. Basically if he dies, he has to bring in a new character.)

Spoiler: Evil DM Impulse

Show

I have considered imposing the moratorium and leaving the loophole intact. I've got two heavy RPers in the group (Let's call them El Dramatico and Morbid Mary) whose characters would react very realistically to seeing multiple random suicides. It might give R.D. quite a shock, although I don't want to squick El Dramatico by accident.

[GrayDeath]

What System are you playing?

If PF, you might let him build a Changelingesque Race (ergo switching to different Attribute bonuses, SKill bonuses, looks, etc) and allow him Retraining, giving him the "Fickle" Flaw requiring he does so every d6+3 Days (inGame). And no other switches. ^^
Cant be more disruptive than now, and maybe he`ll be cured. ;)

[PrincessCupcake]

What System are you playing?

If PF, you might let him build a Changelingesque Race (ergo switching to different Attribute bonuses, SKill bonuses, looks, etc) and allow him Retraining, giving him the "Fickle" Flaw requiring he does so every d6+3 Days (inGame). And no other switches. ^^
Cant be more disruptive than now, and maybe he`ll be cured. ;)

Well, we are playing Pathfinder. And even if we weren't, this might be worth testing.

[GrayDeath]

You`re welcome.

Please tell me how it went, ok?

And if you need further help, just ask.

I am eager to know how this pans out. :)

[Thrudd]

My gut reaction is that this is a symptom of the instant gratification culture we are living in. He thinks of a new character idea, and can't wait to play it.
My solution would simply be to forbid this. If he isn't a disruptive player and knows that this behavior is not good, then perhaps he just lacks the self discipline to stick to one character. So force it. He's got a new character this week? Too bad, he can't use it until the next campaign starts (or the original dies a natural death).

If all the players want to try different characters , that's a different story. Every once in a while, run a one shot adventure or a short (2-3 sessions) adventure with a completely different set of characters. Then go back to the main campaign for a few weeks. The mini campaigns could affect the main game, or they could be completely unrelated, whichever you prefer.

Alternatively, allow the players to each have a "stable" of two or three or four characters which they can rotate in and out. Each week, they pick one of their characters for the adventure while the others "stay home" or go on a different journey. This requires that the game consists of short episodic adventures which allow the party to return to their home base afterwards. If the player wants to bring in more characters beyond the three that everyone is allowed, this is where you draw the line. No new characters unless one of the others dies a natural death. So there is a limit, but maybe switching every couple weeks will sate whatever is driving him to want to change all the time.

[Demidos]

There's several solutions I can think of off the top of my head --

• One was the changeling idea. If you allow him to play a Changeling Factotum rogue, he'll basically be able to fit any concept he wants
• Second is if the group is part of the military or a guild of some sort, make the party consist of the "main PCs" and then have him act as a handler or a series of other characters travelling with them.
• Third is let him play a ghost who can possess people, so he can swap abilities that way
• Lastly, if nothing else is working, you could either offer him the DM chair or let him Co-DM to run the Villain NPCs. If he really puts so much work into his characters and creates them regularly, then he sounds like a great aid to helping you prep every week with 1-2 important characters. Then he can run those and not have to worry about swapping in and out.

Show him this list, ask him if he likes any of these or if he has any different ideas, and talk it out. You don't want to ruin his fun, and he in all likelihood doesn't want to ruin yours. So the problem has nothing to do with either of you. Approach it that way.

Good luck!

[PrincessCupcake]

So many good ideas! Thanks! I will make sure to let you all know how it goes.

-changeling factotum rogue would be a solid choice for someone who wants to try everything. I'll make sure he knows it exists.

-if he'd like to run/create villains, I'll be more than happy to make him the designated player for a couple.

The following two made me laugh pretty hard, because they tie into other PCs as well as the larger plot.

-the group is part of an order of Knights, so there's there's the military angle. And they were thinking about picking up hirelings. (El Dramatico in particular will like this one.)

-Possessor Ghost? Morbid Mary plays a Necromancer, who specializes in communion with spirits. You don't get an easier explanation than that.

......At this rate I am going to create a campaign log just to explain myself. lol

[OldTrees1]

Step 2: Ask the player why they frequently change characters. Get specific information on what part changing is important. If they like to change backstories frequently that requires a different solution than changing personalities or changing abilities.

Changing backstories: ???

Changing personalities: Make there be a chance per in game day of a personality shift. Frequently there would be no change, sometimes it would change back to an older personality, often it would be a new personality. This maintains continuity.

Changing abilities: Changeling Chameleon 20(there was a good 3.5 homebrew on this forum, relatively easy to port to Pathfinder)

[PrincessCupcake]

Step 2: Ask the player why they frequently change characters. Get specific information on what part changing is important. If they like to change backstories frequently that requires a different solution than changing personalities or changing abilities.

Changing backstories: ???

Changing personalities: Make there be a chance per in game day of a personality shift. Frequently there would be no change, sometimes it would change back to an older personality, often it would be a new personality. This maintains continuity.

Changing abilities: Changeling Chameleon 20(there was a good 3.5 homebrew on this forum, relatively easy to port to Pathfinder)

R.D. has clarified that the main draw to changing characters was trying new abilities and personalities. So we are currently looking at options which allow him the freedom he wants (to switch personality and abilities) but gives me and the rest of the group what they want (something consistent out of him).

[Vitruviansquid]

I suspect your "problem" is that Revolving Door is having a lot of fun making characters. This is a *feature* of Pathfinder, not a bug. Honestly, I don't see a problem in it. Why not just tell Revolving Door that it's his responsibility to come up with a plausible way and reason for his new character to be in the game at this or that juncture of the plot?

Alternately, I would also try telling your player to stop writing extensive backstories for his next character and instead make a quick and simple summary of the character's main "schtick" - maybe like the top three important facts about the character. The key for getting attached to one's characters, I have found, is to have those characters develop in-game. The character cannot develop in-game when everything about them is determined out-of-game, like during the character creation process. A simply created character has room to develop and acquire new personality while being played, which helps grow attachment to that character.

[OldTrees1]

R.D. has clarified that the main draw to changing characters was trying new abilities and personalities. So we are currently looking at options which allow him the freedom he wants (to switch personality and abilities) but gives me and the rest of the group what they want (something consistent out of him).

Whew.
Chameleon as a Base Class is a great resource just like the PrC it was based off.

[PrincessCupcake]

I suspect your "problem" is that Revolving Door is having a lot of fun making characters. This is a *feature* of Pathfinder, not a bug. Honestly, I don't see a problem in it. Why not just tell Revolving Door that it's his responsibility to come up with a plausible way and reason for his new character to be in the game at this or that juncture of the plot?

Alternately, I would also try telling your player to stop writing extensive backstories for his next character and instead make a quick and simple summary of the character's main "schtick" - maybe like the top three important facts about the character. The key for getting attached to one's characters, I have found, is to have those characters develop in-game. The character cannot develop in-game when everything about them is determined out-of-game, like during the character creation process. A simply created character has room to develop and acquire new personality while being played, which helps grow attachment to that character.

the problem isn't that he's making a bunch of characters, it's that he's doing the Revolving Door thing in a campaign that wasn't really suited for it originally and I needed to find a way to make everyone happy.

but I'll give him the suggestion about maintaining a more open backstory. Since he's using the backstory aspect as supporting fluff for what he wants to do with the character, I think it will help him in the long run.

-----
And after some consideration, R.D. has chosen to go with a Changeling Chameleon, and adding a curse that causes his personality to shift with his face. Though several other suggestions in the thread are probably going to come up in the future. (I had more than one player express interest in a campaign where they build a pool of characters and select from it for missions. So I think i know what to do after this campaign ends.) Thanks for the advice!

[BWR]

I wouldn't allow this sort of behavior in my game. Backstories are usually unnecessary except in the broadest strokes and at any time subject to alteration or excision based on how it fits in with the setting and the game I intend to run. Making characters and all is fine but it should always be understood that every PC is subordinate to the good of the group. You make something that works with everyone else, you do not expect everyone else to work with you.
You enjoy making characters, fine. You do not get to just get rid of old ones and bring in new ones simply because some new shiny has caught your eye. If there are good story reasons for the PC to leave, fine, bring in a new one. If you simply cannot get any enjoyment out of the one you have, fine, bring in a new one. Your current character doesn't work with the group or the story, fine, bring in a new one. If you cannot get invested in any character you create long enough to keep playing them as long as the game allows, you don't play in my games. Continual replacement of characters is jarring enough when you are replacing dead PCs, and doubly so when it happens on a whim.