Aug 27, 2026 · 25 min · 9 segments
Every TTRPG group faces conflict eventually, but how do you handle in-game drama without ruining out-of-game friendships? ⚔️ In episode 16 of the Heroic Roundtable, Zach, Brandon, Jon, and our…
So I'm going to set this premise, and I'm going to say a statement, and I want everybody to give their take of whether or not it's true.
Characters can and should have conflict.
Players should never have conflict.
False.
Why?
I think players can have conflict.
They can or should have conflict.
Can? You don't have to, but I think it enriches the experience.
That being said, I think there should also be guardrails and a layer of trust that's always there.
Chad?
Yeah, I agree.
I say false.
I think that you should be able to have conflict in both places.
In both places? Yeah.
Both as players and as characters.
Okay.
Brandon, what about you? I think if you're invested in the game, the story, your characters, then there will be conflict that comes up.
If you did your damn
research, there's going to be conflict.
There should be, and I think it's healthy.
Honestly, I think... part of that conflict that we experienced from playing so long helped.
I know between Zach, you and I, like it genuinely helped us with conflict resolution in the real world and
like
opening like communication opportunities with our partners, which is not the same as having an open relationship because phrasing.
Yet.
So I'm going to set this premise, and I'm going to say a statement, and I want everybody to give their take of whether or not it's true.
Characters can and should have conflict.
Players should never have conflict.
False.
Why?
I think players can have conflict.
They can or should have conflict.
Can? You don't have to, but I think it enriches the experience.
That being said, I think there should also be guardrails and a layer of trust that's always there.
Chad?
Yeah, I agree.
I say false.
I think that you should be able to have conflict in both places.
In both places? Yeah.
Both as players and as characters.
Okay.
Brandon, what about you? I think if you're invested in the game, the story, your characters, then there will be conflict that comes up.
If you did your damn
research, there's going to be conflict.
There should be, and I think it's healthy.
Honestly, I think... part of that conflict that we experienced from playing so long helped.
I know between Zach, you and I, like it genuinely helped us with conflict resolution in the real world and
like
opening like communication opportunities with our partners, which is not the same as having an open relationship because phrasing.
Yet.
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