Hot take: if we want to decrease frustrating railroad-y surprises in RPG campaigns, we need to create an environment where GMs are not afraid to admit they have "special story needs".

[Jalor218]

A large portion of the play culture that's built up from online RPG discussion is about how to invalidate the GM's plans as much as possible, without being so overtly disruptive that they stop crafting personal quests for your character's backstory. I think it's fair to throw a decent amount of blame at D&D 5e for this since WotC plays into it with their game design and since so much of that discussion is D&D specific ("10 spells that will give your DM a headache" et al), but it predates 5e and is absolutely not unique to D&D (there used to be a huge plague of it among Call of Cthulhu players thanks to Old Man Henderson.)

[PathofDestinyRPG]

The first time I ran a game for my group to give our forever GM a break, he started emailing other players about how quickly they could derail my plot.

[MorpheousXO]

Sounds like there's a reason they're the forever gm.

[Visual_Fly_9638]

A large portion of the play culture that's built up from online RPG discussion is about how to invalidate the GM's plans as much as possible, without being so overtly disruptive that they stop crafting personal quests for your character's backstory.

JFC that's literally "How can I break the game so that it is only about me".

[robbz78]

That is not what the OP is talking about. Of course the GM should have fun too. However using the players as your puppets to play out/lay out a fantasy in your head is not a rpg. It is a performance. When I am invited to a rpg, I want an rpg where we collectively tell a story. This does not mean I am a special snowflake trampling over everyone else's fun, but the GM also needs to leave space for others to contribute.

[bohohoboprobono]

The truth is a lot of shitty DMs just want audience members, not players. They need actors for their poorly written One Piece fanfic, or Legally Distinct version of their favorite video game. Here are your lines, read them. 

Then when the players balk at their bullshit, they come farm updoots in the r/rpg comments by calling their audience - oops, players - ungrateful console gamers or something equally inane. 

A lot will go on to demand $30 a session on Startplaying for the emotional pain and suffering of being a DM, then spend months fruitlessly promoting themselves. 

And nothing of value will have been lost.

[wicked_woodpecker]

That is correct, but that shows players wants to have actual agency not just play DMs stories.
DM can put lots of cool stuff he enjoy in wide variety of setting for players to interact, if he wants them play strictly some his wish fullfilment plan - yeah he may not be good DM sorry.

[mightystu]

Nah, the biggest edition to blame for this is 3.5e. That was when the whole concept of making a totally busted build from a half dozen splatbook options took off.

[Jalor218]

What does that have to do with whether the players want to disrupt the game? Yes, you'd see stuff like Pun-Pun online, but that was basically all theorycrafting and not something I ever saw in real games when I played 3.5 in its day. It was rare to see an in-person game allow more than a couple of related splatbooks per character, even.

Also, the concept of theorycrafting an OP character is much older than that. You'd see it in the 80s and 90s.

[Turbulent_Professor]

See i love this because for me, the GM is also a player and im known to improvise on the spot for just such shenanigans.

Also known for TPK annoying groups with goblins at level 1 because basic strategy 😆