On a recent episode of the Order 66 Podcast, we spent some time digging into a specific character type, the Slicer. For those unacquainted with Star Wars lore, a Slicer is not a lightsaber aficionado, nor a lover of sharp cutlery. A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, “slicer” was the term used for “hacker” – and computers are their one and only love. Now, this article isn’t about computers, or hackers, or slicers. This article is going to try very hard to expand on a brief point mentioned during that lonely podcast episode that applies to Slicers – but also to many, many, many other RPG character types, tropes, classes, and careers: the One-Trick Pony, and how to properly GM them.
Regardless of the RPG system or type of game, the One-Trick Pony character is an all-too-common phenomenon. By accident or by design, certain players will craft a character that is absolutely superb – at just one thing, or perhaps a small subset of common things. And usually (due to common inherent balances in most RPGs) this excellence in one area comes at the expense of every other area. World-class hackers who trip over their own feet; master illusionists who can only cast illusion spells and nothing else; champion race-car drivers who don’t wield weapons in a crime game (because they can’t); and high-powered sword-fighters who can’t ride, shoot, or talk worth a flip. I’ve personally GM’d each of these characters in my RPG career.
And not all of the blame falls upon the players. To be fair, most One-Trick Pony builds aren’t the result of min-max glorification and a desire to hyper-expose one facet of a character. They’re the result of a player’s love of a “cool concept;” or perhaps just a function of the system, itself – in the case of FFG’s Star Wars system and the aforementioned Slicer, a player who wants to take that specialization is forced down a path of extremely narrow character advancement.
The point being – as GMs, we don’t want to take things out on our players and decry the system, or their choices within it. It’s our job to roll with it, and give that One-Trick Pony one hell of a ride. But that ride can be rough…so we’re going to spend some time reviewing the biggest problems GMs of One-Trick Ponies face; and then talk about seriously effective strategies to nip those problems in the bud.
The Problems You’ll Frequently Encounter
For GMs who have One-Trick Ponies in their party (of any stripe), there are two common problems you will frequently face as these players unexpectedly face the reality of the character they’ve just created, and the long-term impact of that character on both the game and their enjoyment of it.
PROBLEM 1 – “[BLANK] Fixes Everything!“: The [BLANK] in this case, is whatever specialization the One-Trick Pony has focused on. Computers, Arcane Illusions, Acrobatics, Silver Tongue, Sword-Slinging, or Culinary Creations; the player will work their hardest to find a way to make that [BLANK] be the solution to the party’s current problem or situation. Does this sound familiar?
- GM: “The ancient temple door is made of solid rock that is many millennia old, and appears to have cracked into itself. It will take all of your efforts to move it.” One-Trick Pony Player: “I see. I’d like to use my linkup back to the ship’s computer to research this ancient culture’s masonry techniques and find a weak point in the door.” -OR- “I see. I want to use my inspiring voice to get the party working faster, finishing the job in half the time.” But all the GM really wants is some Endurance or Athletics tests.
- GM: “The King’s retainer has insulted your abilities, and you’ll have to convince him you’re worthy to take this mission.” One-Trick Pony Player: “I see. I pull out my sword and attack a nearby statue, slicing it to ribbons to prove our worth!” -OR- “I see. I want to recall a recent horse race where I gained the upper hand and use my skill in the saddle to impress the retainer.” But all the GM wanted was a Charisma check.
This kind of character “creativity” is not something to discourage. But it can become actively annoying when the player is constantly looking to insert their special one-trick into the solution.
PROBLEM 2 – Buyer’s Remorse: This problem tends to come a few sessions into a campaign with a One-Trick Pony, after the first problem has already reared its ugly head, and the GM has smacked it down. The poor player is now (often subconsciously) in full realization that their “cool idea” of a One-Trick Pony is terribly boring to play. But all too often, pride or strangling hope keeps them from politely asking to roll up a new hero. Instead, they become disjointed players who are frequently distracted at the table.
- GM: “Alright, the caves of the Lich Lord are dark and filled with innumerable traps…how do you all proceed?” One-Trick Pony Player: “I’m… um… staying in the back. Until there’s someone to talk to. Like… I’m just going to stay right behind the meatwall.” Then the book-digging commences, as the player steadfastly ignores the next hour of play time…
- GM: “The Bandit Captain laughs with rancor as the doors to the warehouse split apart and a score of riff-raff thugs saunter in with weapons drawn – they’re intent on your blood. It’s initiative time, guys!” One-Trick Pony Player: “Um… I’m hiding in this crate until the fighting is over.” Then the smart phone comes out, as the player ignores the encounter he’s not specialized in.
At this point, you’ve got a character underutilized, and a player who’s completely disengaged. This kind of behavior leads to players leaving a game or a group. (Seriously, I’ve – sadly – been present for this happening, when I was too novice a GM to recognize it or know better to do anything about it.)
Alright – so I’m fairly sure any semi-experienced GM has seen these problems, or can at least relate to them. They’re inherent dangers for any One-Trick Pony build. But what, oh what, can we DO about it? What solutions are there?
Preventing These Problems
There are three concrete solutions that earnest GMs can follow keep the problems of the One-Trick Pony at bay, without disengaging the player or their idea/concept. Proper preparation tends to be the balm the keeps the burn from happening in the first place (a problem “sun screen,” if you will) and two of our solutions fall into that category – but all three of them will require the GM to be understanding, flexible, and honest with both themselves and the player.
SOLUTION 1 – Make Meaningful Encounters: This is the most straight-forward of the solutions, but it can be one of the most effective. If you, as a GM, know full well you’ve got a One-Trick Pony in your midst, then you should be intimately familiar with their one trick, their [BLANK]. Well… ensure that your encounters and scenes have a way to utilize it! I’m not saying you have to do this for EVERY single encounter, but most of them should have a way for this specialized character to feel useful.
- If you have a Computers specialist in the party, then combat encounter areas should have computer systems that can influence the battle in some way.
- If your master duelist can’t hold his own during the social encounter of intrigue at the Duke’s Grand Ball, then he might have a bodyguard mission on the side, or be responsible for taking out a lone assassin while the party schmoozes the Duke and keeps him unaware.
Simply structuring a session or encounter to allow the One-Trick Pony to have their moment to feel useful and give their trick some exercising, will go a long way to keeping the player happy. Again, you won’t always be able to do this. But try!
SOLUTION 2 – Setting Player Expectation: Truthfully, this goes hand-in-hand with solution 1. If you have an identified One-Trick Pony in the party, then that player must be politely (and with genuine niceness and honesty) be told before the campaign ever starts what the situation will be.
- GM: “Hey – so I know you’ve made this very specialized character – and I think the concept is cool! You need to know that I’m going to try very hard to make sure your character has many moments to shine – but I also need you to be cool with the fact that there will be encounters or scenes where your specialty doesn’t always come into play. You cool with that?”
And honestly, what’s the player going to say? “No, GM! Your honesty is foolish! I won’t play unless my One-Trick Pony has his trick in full swing EVERY ROLL OF EVERY SESSION!” Of course not. Players are people, and people respond to and respect honesty and forethought. As a GM, you’ve just told that player you care about them and their needs. And that newly formed crutch of player support is one you can fall back on when the player get Buyer’s Remorse.
SOLUTION 3 – Be Creatively Reactive and Fight Fire with Fire!: Yeah – that’s a mouthful. There’s a lot to this last solution in practice, but it can honestly be summed up simply as: “Be flexible and GM outside the box.” Not so much in preparation, but in reaction to your One-Trick Pony.
Earlier, I’d outlined several wild and crazy ways that One-Trick Ponies will try and insert their [BLANK] into the scene. Well… LET THEM! And make the difficulty appropriate for the level of crazy! And if they fail, extend the consequences…
- GM: “All right, Neo… you hack the uplink to the download like you wanted, and you can attempt to research the ancient masonry techniques of this long-dead and vanished civilization. If you’re successful, then you just might give your party a major edge. But if you’re wrong – you might completely misinterpret your findings, and bring this structure down on itself completely – alright?” Then watch that One-Trick Pony swallow hard, then make that roll. Because this is “what they do” and they’ll want to do it. BOOM. Instant drama and tension in the game.
Lastly, give your One-Trick Pony a chance to shine by inverting the whole concept on them, and put them on the defensive! (In a good way.) You’ve got a player who’s a specialist? Give them a One-Trick Nemesis. NOTHING will make the master hacker character happier (or more committed) than having to defend his system from another master hacker.
- The hard-nosed duelist bored to tears during the Duke’s Ball will get immediate engagement when he is challenged to a duel!
- The quick words of the orator may come to naught when another silver-tongued foe engages him in a verbal battle of wits!
- Then there’s the actual battle of wits (“For the princess?” “To the DEATH?!” “I accept!”), which is a phenomenal example of the One Trick-Pony having a nemesis duel (having lost, sadly – damn iocane powder…).
- …come to think of it… the entire trio in The Princess Bride are wonderful examples of One-Trick Ponies…
This tact only really works when the GM creates a threat AS specialized as the One-Trick Pony PC, so keep that in mind. But one visit from a One-Trick Nemesis can satiate a lagging One-Trick Pony player for a few sessions! I’ve seen it work, and it’s brilliant. Even more so when they eventually bring the nemesis down.
And if possible (for extra cheese factor) make the One-Trick Nemesis even more specialized than the hero. A One-Trick Pony who focuses on brute athletics as his specialization can be met by a One-Trick Nemesis who specializes in, and challenges the hero to a bout of…traditional Finnish Naval Wrestling.
The bottom line is that all of these potential solutions for tackling the problems outlined here will only work if you as a GM are willing to be flexible, fun, and – above all – respect your player and the fun they want to have.
If you try… you might even have fun with it, too.
Latest posts by GM Chris (see all)
- New “Edge Studio” Will Take Over FFG RPGs - March 11, 2020
This is great stuff. I’d add to the last point about the Nemesis, I like to create a nemesis that does the same kind of trick as the pony, but in a different style.
If the pony in question is a hulking musclebound bruiser, his nemesis is a deadly artist with a flashing blade. And vice versa; an artful duelist will find his nemesis is a massive tower of a man with a sword as wide as his vast hands.
If the player is a silver-tongued scoundrel, his nemesis is a noble with an unimpeachable reputation, a clarion voice, and iron-clad belief in his rightness.
And so on.
You can’t always do an ironic nemesis, but I like ’em.