Stop the In-Fighting!

Note: This is about the There's an out of character bit at the end of this, so if you read nothing else, read that.

It is not often that I agree with you, Elrose, but I find that I do in this case. As a team, we have a crippling inability to work together. For that, we are all to blame. I understand that. I apologize to you, Stolig, for times when I have ignored your immense breadth of knowledge on areas I could not begin to comprehend. Elrose, I am sorry if the restrictions on my behavior have been chaffing, at times. I realize that I am the only one in this group that has taken a oath to a Code of Conduct, and should be the only one bound by it. Any alternate agendas that have developed as a result of this are there with the best intentions, for I wish only the best for you, my friends. The same goes for you, Thorik. While I may not share your gusto for violence, I appreciate that you have trained extensivly for it, and my negotiations have forced you to take a passive role in the party. Milo, Cloud, I hope that I have not offended you as well, but if I have or ever do, tell me, and I will do my best to make it right.

We were not forced into each other's company. Each of us chose this life, and chose who to associate with. We came together as friends, and I hope it shall remain this way. I am not advocating leaving each other, but rather seeking out that which brought us together in the first place. We all have our own roles, and we compliment each other well.
Milo; while you're not as durable as Thorik, you seem very good at getting into a beneficial position. You dodge past an enemy, and suddenly strike them from behind. I am always finding myself surprised at how well you manuever on the battlefield. While your opportunistic tactics are beyond rapport, your desire to perform in every area can get you into trouble. Focus on your strengths, the rest of us will have your back, and make up for what you can't do.
Thorik; you're very good with that axe. I'd never want to be your enemy. As good as you are, though, you should still use caution, and think of the group. We should plan each fight that we can, so that we can avoid getting surprised. Also, I'm starting to worry about your drinking. If you need to talk to anyone, you know where I am.
Stolig; we didn't mean to imply that we just associate with you for your healing. While it is a vital service that we will all require at times, we know that there is far more to your abilities than that. I am continually amazed by the sheer volume of information your brain seems to hold. Just when I think we've hit a wall, and that none of could know where to go next, you remember the exact detail we need. I don't know where we'd be without that.
I apologize for generalizing you into the role of the healer. I try to do my part, but our needs are often beyond my capabilities. The reason we come to you for healing is simple; we don't know what else you are capable of. Each day, you hace a new grouping of spells, so unless you tell us, we don't know what you can cast. Also, it is not that we do not appreciate your inventions. I for one, see tham as marvles, but do not know quite what to say to you about them, as I have no experience in such matters. During battle, I trust that you will use your creations, for I do not. Do not take our silence as disinterest, just aprehension over what to say to you.
Cloud; you have a unique viewpoint, in many respects. Whether you are two or twenty feet above the ground, you see things differantly than the rest of us, and that is invaluable. However, having an eye in the sky is less useful if we have no way of learning what you have seen. As long as you keep us informed, we can react properly and keep each other out of harms way.
Elrose; I know that you're not bound in any way by my Oath. I, however, am. I cannot stand by as innocent people are harmed by our actions, and I must try to stop the harm, or repair the damage if it is too late. I mean no disrespect to you, and I don't doubt that you mean well.
I know that we have all at some point angered you, and I wish that could have been avoided. Let's both try and respect each other in the future, even if we disagree.
Hakim; I'm glad to have met you, and glad that you've joined us. I don't know about your skills yet, so I have no suggestions about fitting in, but you seem like you'll do well.



-Out of Character.-
Seriously guys, can we stop the fighting already? It's adding nothing to the game, and I know it's making it harder to play in and run. I don't come to fight with people every week, and I doubt anyone else does. So, unless it's something really important, just let it go while we're playing.

If you don't like one of the players, fine. Don't take it out on all of us in character. We're playing characters that have no knowledge of any of us. It's ridiculous for one character to make fun of another, for no reason other than out of character resentment. Talk to that person away from the game, if that's what it takes.

Aaron, I know that you feel underutilized in the group. Well, what do you think should be done about that? Is pouting in the corner, or switching characetrs going to fix it? If I were feeling ignored, then I'd try and put my skills out there for everyone to see. The point is, none of the other characers are the ones feeling neglected, so it's your problem to work on. I'd be perfectly willing to help, as I'm sure everyone else would, but in the end it's up to you. To help, I'd suggest to everyone to focus on your skills. Let's leave the studying/research up to the expert.
I know that you resent the need for healing, but there's no way around that, usually. In every fight, there's going to be a front line, and someone's going to get hurt. Planning can only do so much. For what it's worth, though, we should all be careful in fights. Play to your strengths. Don, you aren't a front-line fighter. I'm sorry, but you aren't. Monks don't have the HPs, BaB, or AC to go toe-to-toe with most things. I'm not saying that you shouldn't fight, far from it. I'm just saying that you should pick the right moment, and position. As long as we all focus on what we're good at, no one's toes should get stepped on, and everyone can get their moment to shine.

I don't want anyone to take anything I said here as personally offensive. If it sounded like that, I didn't mean for it to. I just think that we all want the game to go smoothly, so we can all enjoy it.

Each of us has something that our character's are quite good at. If we all fugure out what that is, then we can figure out when to use them. Amaren, for example, is a diplomat. Sometimes, that's usefull. At other times, it isn't. Some problems need to be solved through combat, magic, knowledge, stealth, etc. It's varied. That's part of what makes a good campaign, but it also means that not every character gets the spotlight all the time. We just have to make sure that we don't take the spotlight at the wrong time, or take away from everybody elses fun.