A scenario: Jake(the GM) is running a
game for his friends Mike, Zak, and Eliza. Eliza just walked into her
apartment to see a whole pile of drugs and illegal weapons sitting in
the center of her living room.
Eliza: Um...What is all this stuff
doing in my living room?
Jake: you don't know, you didn't put
it there as far as you know.
Eliza: Mike, Zak, did you do this?
Mike: Nope
Zak: What? No.
Jake: You here someone knocking at the
door.
Eliza: I stand still and see if they
go away.
Jake: Someone says through the door,
“Its the police open up!”
Eliza: Shit! I jump through the
window.
Jake: you do remember that your
apartment is on the fourth floor right?
Eliza: Well could I make a rope out of
something?
Jake: The cops are at the door, do you
think you have time?
Eliza: Damn...could I make a parachute
out of the sheets?
It goes on like that. The player gets
more and more focused on the one solution they have in their head
rather than deciding to try something else. I have run into this many
times and I am unsure how to deal with it.
Sometimes I have tried to offer
alternative options to the player. I will then be accused of
railroading or attempting to manipulate the players. Other times I
have kept ratcheting up the tension to attempt to cut off the steady
stream of suggestions. I have then seen my players break down under
the stress(it actually happened). I have never felt more like a bully
then on that day. So that is out. I have basically reached the
conclusion that whatever they try I will let it happen. This
works...mostly. When the players realize that I am doing this they
realize that they can abuse this.
I am not sure what to say about this
issue. I am merely pointing out a problem I have had in gaming.
