The Cure for Murderhobos
First we need to define a Murderhobo.
A Murderhobo is someone who has no interest in character development. Their main goal is to kill as many enemies as possible, steal gear off the dead and earn XP to improve their ability to kill more enemies.
I poke fun at Muderhobos all the time. But to be honest there was a time that was me. It was not till I started to game with my then girlfriend Kim (wayyyyy back in 1992) that the concept of having a character with a deeper story took root. I have learned a lot since then. I guess the important part is that everyone has fun.
Here are a few ways to convert Murderhobos in to well developed characters.
Step 1
Get a good idea of what the players actually want. Maybe having a Murderhobo is not a problem. Maybe everyone has really stressful jobs and they just want to blow off some steam. Communication will be key to find out what they want. ASK. I find that if more than half of the party just wants to kill things, it might be time to adjust the plot line a bit and let them do that. Character development can happen at the next session – when they deal with the consequences *insert evil GM grin* - see Step 4.
Step 2
Find out if the players in question ever had well developed characters. At the previously mentioned time, I thought that a killing machine street samurai was the end all be all character till Kim came along with a sexy cat shaman who flirted with everyone in the bar - but only had eyes for me. (Women have always brought the best out in me). So use another character or NPC to get an idea of what the character’s past was like. How did they become a killing machine? Why? See if you can find something deeper than an equipment list.
Step 3
Offer a character development session with huge bonuses for any player who participates. I find that asking about their back-story is always a good place to start. Try to avoid anything about combat or how they learned their skills. (See guided questions to bring out the best character) Role Vs Roll is a good way to do this
Step 4
Increase the points earned for character interaction and reduce points for wanton killing. Or incorporate obvious and natural consequences into the plot. “Yes you technically did the job, but Mr Johnson had to pay for a specialist cleaner crew in your wake and that cost was – per the contract – reduced from your fee. You now owe the Corporation. We will be repossessing those custom weapons now ….”
