TG July Chat Thread: Practical Transhumanist Roleplaying

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Traditional Games > TG July Chat Thread: Practical Transhumanist Roleplaying

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

gradenko_2000 posted:

Tome of Battle question: I know that the Warblade was intended to be a direct replacement for the Core Fighter, but was the Crusader supposed to replace the Paladin? And was the Swordsage supposed to replace anyone in particular?

I've only gone through two of the disciplines so far, but I don't think anything's going to top Finishing Move and Strike of Perfect Clarity.

Swordsage was supposed to replace the monk, iirc.

# ¿ Jul 8, 2015 18:19

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# ¿ May 13, 2024 20:03

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

Davin Valkri posted:

I've got to agree here. Sorry Plutonis is being...Plutonis in your chat thread, Queen Fiona.

As for what makes a monster in a D&D setting...aren't there a ton of spells that allow one to talk to plants and animals and extradimensional beasties and stuff? And since all these griffins and the like have to cast spells, don't they get high INT scores to do so? So sapience or INT score or ability to communicate in a language don't seem like they get the desired effect.

Creatures with spell-like abilities don't need any particular stat to be high to use them, and usually the stat tied to them is charisma.

# ¿ Jul 16, 2015 19:24

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

frest posted:

That's actually what I was afraid of. They all seem to go out of business around here, some faster than others, but none of them seem to do well or anything.

That's because nerds are embarrassingly bad when it comes to budgeting/finances/economics unless it involves imaginary money to buy something in-game for their character. Then they go through some arcane metamorphosis and channel the collective knowledge of the investment banking industry as a whole to get the absolute highest ROI possible.

# ¿ Jul 16, 2015 20:04

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

Countblanc posted:

This is as opposed to everyone else, who is definitely very good at finances and economics

Most people don't think "I could run a [hobby] store because I like [hobby] a lot!" but for some reason about half the roleplayers I know think they could run a book/comic/card shop all the way to untold riches.

# ¿ Jul 16, 2015 20:57

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

Evil Mastermind posted:

I can't decide if I want the Cyberpapacy's tech to be high-tech based off current understanding of computer technology, or if they're still stuck with the old 80's cyberpunk stuff based off 90's computers.

Malraux comes down his bridge, cybered to the gills, proclaims "BEHOLD MY SUPERIOR DIVINE TECHNOLOGY", doesn't have wifi capability.

Go right in the middle. He has wifi, but it's like 2600 baud. and tubes everywhere. Just randomly placed cathodes.

# ¿ Jul 21, 2015 18:43

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

Helical Nightmares posted:

I think the 3.5 (3?) ed version of Forgotten Realms Players Handbook also had different stat bonuses or backgrounds for humans from different cultures. And a bunch of different starting equipment kits per area which was pretty interesting.

Also there was a weird rear end psionic human variant in the 3rd ed Psionics book iirc. Wilder or something.

FR has a bunch of "regional" feats that you can only take if you're from a specific area. The psionic human I think you're thinking of is the Elan, who are actually aberrations but were once human.

# ¿ Jul 23, 2015 14:03

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

My Lovely Horse posted:

I want this to be a book series and the next big thing on Netflix.

e: not just this, it does need some embellishing

I would watch every single episode of Noir Lord of the Rings.

# ¿ Jul 28, 2015 17:01

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

I want to play that game just to say I did. I mean, it looks absolutely maddening but what if the rules really come together and run smoothly and create this perfect gaming experience that opens your eyes and mind to new vistas of thought and he was right all along!!

# ¿ Jul 28, 2015 23:57

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

Covok posted:

And God bless them for not doing so.

I really hope Spheres are some magical artifact integral to the setting and not how well you know round objects.

I hope it is specifically three dimensional objects whose outer points are all equidistant from the center.

# ¿ Jul 29, 2015 20:58

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

Siivola posted:

This is my bimonthly rant against violence in games.

You sound like that one guy whose name I forget who put a big dumb screed in his game's core book about how everyone who wants combat rules in their RPG is a monster and a psychopath and how dare you!!! then ends it with "but fine, if you need a murder simulator here you go, but by using these rules you agree that you are a terrible person and everything that is wrong with society."

Yes, "dudes get into a situation and have a plot with something at stake" describes a lot of stories. It describes almost every story, in fact! Because if you don't want conflict, or you don't want events that have something at stake, or you don't want goals that require effort/risk, then what do you want? Slice of Life Anime: the RPG? Because you don't really need a system for that.

# ¿ Jul 31, 2015 14:23

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

paradoxGentleman posted:

That seems like a very nice and appropriate passage, given what little I know about Unknown Armies. What's Yawgmoth complaining about?

I think it's really loving sanctimonious and passive aggressive, much in the way I find Siivola's rant about "ugh this whole hobby started out with wargames and now everything is about people going places and doing things and sometimes those people and/or their friends are in mortal danger, :rolleyes:

" to be a rather ridiculous complaint. The point of the game is (generally) to tell an interesting story. For the story to be interesting, you typically need the stakes to be high enough to warrant mention and the goal to be important enough to pursue and the conflict to be big enough to put your protagonists in danger. Getting all up in arms over "well you can have other danger than violence so why don't you, huh? HUH?!" is the kind of poo poo I'd expect out of a zero-tolerance elementary school teacher, not an RPG book.

oriongates posted:

The book isn't judging you for having fun with your "murder simulator", it's just trying to remind you, in a round-about way, that this is a different setting, with a different batch of assumptions. It's sub-title is "a game of power and consequences"...but you aren't Exalted characters ripping up the landscape or becoming president...There doesn't need to be a lot of power for the consequences to get very severe. That's what the passage is trying to remind you of...you've got a gun and an enemy. Ultimately, you have the power of life and death in your small little world and your choice will have consequences. Not because choosing to fight is right or wrong, but because that's what happens when you choose anything.

That's a shame because it could have been worded so much better, but given what I know of UA it sounds like a lot of stuff could have been worded better. I don't want or need the writer assuming I'm already doing everything wrong before putting out the information he wants to convey in the next section.

# ¿ Jul 31, 2015 15:53

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

paradoxGentleman posted:

Just to be absolutely sure, I reread both Siivola's post and the UA text and I feel that you are feeling attacked when there is no reason to, considering that what is being condemned isn't the presence of conflict, but the fact that apparently nothing short the life or death of someone can motivate a character, or at the very least must be put on the line for a game to be played, and he even points out that there is nothing wrong with enjoying that.

Where does Siivola say anything of that sort? All I see is bitching about life & death stakes and being cynical about survival. Which is needless hyperbole since the only game you could even come close to making that assertion about is D&D, and even there it's a rather tough sell. Maybe I'm just reading an entirely different set of books or something, but I doubt it.

quote:

As for UA, like Serf pointed out, it's supposed to take place in a setting very similar to our world, and since most RPG players don't start out in that mental space because they are conditioned by D&D, it makes sense to explain the situation while a the same time providing alternatives for people that maybe didn't think about them in the first place.

Apart from the fact that, as I said, this is not as universal as he says it is, I can sort of see where he's coming from.

I have more issue with the snide tone of it all than the actual content. I think it's poor form to be so resentful of a pretty basic facet of the hobby and not only let it show, but to actively showcase it in a thing you are selling to that hobby's audience. There's a right way and a wrong way to say that sort of stuff, and "well if you tried you could find a way to avoid fighting but since you aren't going to I'll have to tell you. :smug:

" is definitely the wrong way in my opinion.

# ¿ Jul 31, 2015 17:13

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# ¿ May 13, 2024 20:03

Yawgmoth: Sep 10, 2003; This post is cursed!

Lichtenstein posted:

Yawgmoth is a blood frenzied example of satanic conditioning D&D does to our children.

You're just jealous of my :krad:

impala horns.

# ¿ Jul 31, 2015 18:15

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