A character made great by having or not having tact

Our forever GM on a Sunday- well, it is a shame he is a forever GM, because his characters are always in your face and have a variety of UK accents.

Their character may start quiet, even timid, with no inkling of what is to come. They work well within the party, performing their designated role, stepping forward into danger as required.

BUT

It tends to change whenever another player suggests they do something: “OK XXX, your character needs to heal me. I’m down to three hit points. XXX, come on.”

A brooding silence, then a broad Brummy accent explodes into life.

“Oi woan’t be ’elpin’ yow see. Oi doe loik elves. Oi’m a dwarf, see. Me an’ elves, we doen get on, loik.”

Shock and horror with the rest of the group, tinged with barely suppressed giggles. Now the previously inanimate player is at the heart of everything, tact thrown out of the window; he’s going for it.

“In fact, I’m leavin’ this battle. Yow lot can do one. I ay bein’ pushed abaht by a bunch o’ snooty elves. Tell yow what, it’s the manticore I feel sorry for. Ta ra!”

In some groups this comes in waves, but woe betide the other player who decides to take on the Brummy Dwarf with logic and the “right way to play”, in this case, D&D5e.

The more the shackles are tightened on our West Midlands warrior, the more tact and diplomacy are replaced with a louder, thicker, more impenetrable accent, a penchant for Bovril and faggots¹ with onions and an in-your-face, “I’m considerably better than yow!” I exaggerate, but sometimes, all you need is a little prompt or touch of antagonism to find the heart of a character.

Fun times!

¹Note to American readers: faggots are a traditional meal made from minced pork offal, typically liver and heart, mixed with herbs and breadcrumbs.

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