Trust is a rare thing in D&D Campaigns. Well, at least with Team Mayhem. Our merry band of misfits don’t believe in trust. They are suspicious of everyone, including each other. Personally, I believe that burning level of distrust to everyone and everything is part of what is getting us into so much trouble and almost killed.
A few examples:
One of our rogues, Tess, got flowers from an NPC. They were left in front of her room door in the inn. They had a nice vase and were just innocently sitting there. Tess stabbed the flowers. Stabbed them. With her dagger.
Another example is our sorcerer/elf mage Pharen. He spoke in broken common for much of the campaign until just recently. Now he speaks quite eloquently and in fluent common. He didn’t trust his own part enough to communicate beyond a five year old’s vocabulary.
This level of general distrust for each other and those around us have caused us to miss or just generally refuse quite a few plot hooks and campaign adventures that probably would have built the trust up in each other a little more. Example; our troop returned to Waterdeep to find it overrun by enemy forces, elementals, and a red dragon. We didn’t even get into the city. All we did was look at the devastation and chaos and said “F- that!” and we went in the opposite direction. There are several more scenarios like that where we as a team were all “eh. Too far.” And so the cycle continues.
The problem is, a band that doesn’t trust each other, doesn’t stay together. It’s caused a split in the party and a few close calls of everyone just saying “see ya!” and going off on their own. This would, generally speaking, stop the game.
So, my character (Dis, if you recall), has made a conscientious effort to start trusting her fellow team mates and therefore keep the party together. She’s done her best to befriend Tess by being her back up for a clandestine meeting (this did split the party, but we are in two groups, not 5). She has also gone out of her way to retrieve Pharen from a prison while the others partied with a certain silver dragon. This also split the party, but come on! We couldn’t just let him rot in prison. Wait a minute... I think I am seeing a pattern here.
Am I sure Dis is trying to keep the party together? Am I so certain that she’s trying to sow trust in the group? Or maybe she’s trying to separate everyone for a reason? She doesn’t tell me what she’s planning most times. I am just as surprised by everyone else. Maybe she doesn’t trust me... Maybe she’s out to make me suffer as a player (I have a weird anxiety/guilt where I don’t like to be in trouble or do things I “shouldn’t” do). Maybe Dis is trying to break me. Maybe she knows my weakness and my discomfort and is going to exploit it for her own gain.
Help! I don’t know if I can trust my character!