Greetings All!
Diggin' the podcast Ross/Tom/Cody/et al. Just caught up with the latest one today so thought I'd post my player's silliness for your amusement! This is a example of how player greed can overcome anything resembling common sense...
I run between 6-8 players in a 3.5 game. They are all at 6th level right now. Because of player consensus, that's where we started the campaign. Some of them are not terribly experienced in running mid to high level characters, but they all wanted to try it, so who am I to say no?
In this world, the characters avenged the death of a powerful, good sphinx, so in return they were awarded his treasure; in which was a Deck of Many Things. Some of the players knew what it was at first, some didn't. But, in game, they did research and found out what it could do. They also found out it was created by the god of Chaos and Trickery, Dodeca (very important).
Once the characters discovered what it was I told them out-of-game "If you decide to use it, we will abide by whatever you draw...in other words, if you die or are otherwise fucked, you're fucked" So they
knew the risks. But of course I knew they wouldn't be able to resist drawing at least one card...heh heh!
Sure enough, Krugg, the half-orc barbarian, finally talks the rest of the party into letting him draw. So they lock him in their room at the inn all by himself with the deck and tell him to go ahead, while they cover their asses outside the room!
So I lay out all the cards on the table and he picks one. I turn it over and...it's the Joker (Lose 10,000 XP and must draw again). I describe what happens to him and he's crushed. Then when I say "You watch as your hand moves of it's own volition to the Deck once again and you draw a second card" you should' a seen his eyes bug out!
But, this time, he
totally lucks out and draws the Queen of Diamonds (Gain 1-4 wishes. I rolled in secret and it comes up two wishes). So I caution the other players to say nothing and tell him "You feel as though you can ask for anything and it will be granted to you...what do you say?" He says "Umm...20,000 experience points?"
At this point, I take a little pity on him and decide that even though what he actually said was totally a metagame statement, I'll assume his character worded it properly. So he gets back what he lost and a little more. Now he's totally stoked and feeling great. So when I tell him "The power is still there...what do you say?" He shouts out "I want money!"
All the other players just look at him.
Now remember, all the characters
knew who created the deck. They also know their current quest is to find this dungeon in which is secreted a horribly evil book they must retrieve. Said book is also being guarded by a big bad demon. So there's all sorts of things he could've wished for to help.
So Krugg wishes...and a single, solitary gold piece appears on the floor before him.
The other players give him a rash of shit for about the next hour.
So I guess the moral of the story is...Be Careful What You Wish For...
Sorry...couldn't resist that...heh heh!
Tony(me)