u/DankepusVulgaris

note: i dont want you to bash the DM, its like kicking a puppy when he's down, and everyone involved, me included, will feel awful shitty if this appeared in, say, a rpghorrorstory vid or smth, but i NEED to vent because this is ridiculous. also, not looking for advice. i know what i have to do. i've tried hard to make the best of a shitty situation for far too long.

i recently did the math and realized we've been playing the same game for 7 years. no one still has had their character backstories addressed. the vast majority of those years have been spent on a surprise pirate arc - because the DM was really really really into Sea of Thieves and wanted to get us to play it one way or another - and made an in game reason for us all to be stuck there, forever, with no way out unless we do the impossible and kill a demigod. no, we had no idea we'd be stuck there. yes, the campaign was sold to us as a chance to explore the world and our backstories. apparently, the best part of the whole campaign by the majority opinion was when I had to wrangle the DM into letting us pursue a plot hook outside of the damn inescapable sea (you see, we're cursed, so we cant leave) by sticking to a plot thread with all my might.

we've talked about this, everyones aware. The DM regrets it. he's confessed that he's fucked up. he says so frequently, and it feels bad to see him feel bad. according to him and his efforts, we'll finish this arc soon, prommy prommy. that promise was made two years ago. last year he said he'll have to break it bcs he can only run a session once per month now. by now, most of the players are frequently making bitter jokes about "once we leave the sea, we'll FINALLY start the actual game" and "cant wait to be done with this arc", and, after inquiring, no one - NO ONE in the group - actually gives a damn about this pirate lord we're facing, on an ooc level, when our backstory hooks are more engaging to us.

the DM is joining in with depressing, self-deprecating jokes. he doesnt want to skip ahead. it wouldnt make sense, you see. and he's considering stopping the game altogether after we've escaped the sea. the arc we didnt want and dont care for.

ive suggested just... skipping ahead, since we're playing this like a chore. at first, i was reassured it'll only take a few months for that to happen naturally. by now it feels like we've sunk so much time, we might as well persevere. ive been called an asshole for doubting the DM. my doubts have been proven right by now.

i sometimes feel like im the only sane person left in the group by not finding any of this normal. i think some other players feel so, too. many people have left the game over the years. the only people still playing must be those without a better game to play, his gf-turned-wife, and me, because i feel like an asshole kicking a puppy every time i try to speak up about this.

when we started, one of our players was a teen with a curfew. she's married now. she has a kid.

the biggest problem? the DM isnt even bad. it'd be way easier to leave a bad game. when he commits to the game, it's actually decent. great, even. the problem is committing in the first place. we vote and then keep a weekend free in case we get the game, but then he skips, and skips again, and sure, every time its for a decent reason, but....... its been years...... we've had 3 sessions this year...........

this must the true meaning of the "no dnd is better than wasted-nearly-a-decade-of-your-lives dnd" saying.

anyways. im going to leave the game soon and I'll try and take the best players with me. ill try to talk some sense in them, pointing out that its wayyyy unlikely they'll ever get their stories resolved w a pace like this (he's promised to lead us to an end to this arc one way or another, but by now im tired of waiting for that to happen) and instead of committing that weekend to this game, they could come over to mine. i might lose my friendship with the DM over this, though. if he finds this post, i might lose it early. sigh....

just a few more sessions, he promises. definitely. just a few more. ah, i cant make it this month, nor the next one. just a few more sessions. just a little bit more. just hold on out. what if we finish this fall. this spring. summer. what if.

7 fucking years...

i really loved my character, too. the DM once made fun of me for feeling that way, for wanting to see her story resolved, her backstory issues faced, her revenge achieved. he's already apologized, he knows its his fault for feeding us crumbs. i wish he'd have actually done something about it.

wish me luck.