Player vs. Player Campaign

[General Pain]

Originally Posted by headquarters

I wouldnt say that it is a player vs player campaign from the outset -but it didnt last long before rivalry turned to infighting ,infighting to feuding and thus - civil war ,among my group of 5 players ..

The allegiances shift ,but normally the most powerful of the pc/warlords has to watch his back from 3 of the other envious plotters who secretly/semiopenly covet his position and connive to take it .one player normally allies himself with the top guy -getting all sorts of land grants,special gear and priveliges for it .

The list of player vs player "crimes" in our campaign list roughly as follows:
- PC-attempted murder by various instruments: probably 10 seperate ones
-PC takes out a contract on fellow player : app. 10 instances
-PC kills other PC outright : 1
-PC ousts PC in a military coup: 2
-PC imprisons PC/PCs family in medieval conditions for longer periods of time:3
-PC sides with NPCs against PC : 5-10 ?
-PC robs PC himself or by NPC : countless
-PC wages regular war on PCs fief forcing concessions: 2
-PC vS PC threats : XXXXXX

This is a top of my head list -many items I am sure have been left out ..

But I dont encourage such actions by my PCs as a GM.
On the contrary I encourage cooperation,honour,compassion,loyalty and esprite de corps-sadly my players dont believe in these values -and sneer at eachother and scramble for their own hides or interests as soon as they face ANY danger or ANY situation where there is profit.

This can make for a good laugh and a good game also-after all-they cant all be paladins can they ? Some are rogues ,cowards and bad men also .

I can usually get some sort of cohesion and team spirit out of the gang if they are alone ,faced with grave danger or /and overwhelming odds and if their resources are depleted.When they are stranded ,out of ammo,hounded and hunted like animals,fighting their enemies for every inch-thats when they will shine -saving eachother,showing courage ( pencil and paper courage -but still..),act with the groups interests in mind..Thats when they know that if one man goes down its one less between them and the same fate -its 20% less fighters on their side -its selfpreservation through team effort .

BTW: I had a just cause for all of my actions - even when it seems incomprahensible to my fellow players---- my conscience is clean and I usually sleep as a baby (u know silence with some intermissions of moodswings and loud screaming)