theacemu's page

Um...I haven't been on the boards in quite some time, so this may have been discussed elsewhere but if it hasn't i'll throw it out here again.

If Paizo needs any help running demos or manning a booth, let me know!

As ever,
ACE

Thought this may be interesting to note, but i couldn't find a forum to post it in, so it winds up here!

Hasbro News

As ever,
ACE

RPGamers are in the business of constructing stories as a part of the game they play.

Consider this question carefully: What's the use in telling stories that aren't even true?

As ever,
ACE

Just curious as to others would handle this basic situation:

If one of your best friends has a wife or husband who is rumored to be cheating on your friend - sex cheating. You are told this by an individual who is one step removed from the cheating spouse (claims to have heard it directly from cheating spouse). What do you do if anything?

Assume that friend and spouse have and still appear to love each other, be stable in their relationship, otherwise function as if no cheating has occurred, and the source has no apparent reason for confiding such horrible things other than concern for the well-being of the couple in question.

As ever,
ACE

Well, I'm pretty well bored out of my noggin here in Durham, NC. If anyone wants to hang out for this coming up weekend, I'll consider all reasonable suggestions within 8 hours drive (i think that gets me to NYC). Anyone feel like going out with the one, the only: theacemu? :)

As bored as ever,
ACE

On Gaming Gusto

It occurred to me late this particular evening that there is presently a lack of
gusto in our gaming community. It is a conclusion that I have drawn from my own disinterest in many of the topics generated as of late in this community and I am now forwarding this idea only to the degree that William Hazlitt explains in his essay "On Gusto,"(hopefully correctly) link above.

How is the game itself crafted? Is it something like the sculptors and painters that Hazlitt describes? No. The "power or passion" that Hazlett suggests are the components of gusto are created in a community setting and with multiple authors (artists?) simultineously contributing to construct the piece. All this means is that comparing gaming gusto with any other kind of gusto is like comparing apples to oranges.

What we must strive to understand is how the truth of character relates to the truth of feeling in a fantasy setting (Wrap your brain around that one). It is possible for Hazlett to identify the gusto in the art of his time because the objects of art are physical manifestations of the individiual artist's mind.

I would sumbit that one will never find that gusto between the binding of any rules book. Numbers are the tools by which we collaboratively create...like a chisel or a paintbrush. When we talk about our favorite spells, we admire different methods of brushstrokes. When we swap stories, we step back and look upon those collective brushstrokes.

Perhaps gaming gusto is in the published stories that come out of great gaming campaigns or adventures...to the tune of Weis/Hickman or Terry Brooks or Raymond Feist. Perhaps it is in the construction of a supersplat character by a kid in his/her basement. And perhaps it is in the number of Mountain Dews that your buddy consumed at last week's gaming session... But we, as gamers, don't have a cannon like Hazlett had (and has even now) to refer to. Our common reference points are only in the tools that we all use to game.

My questions to all gamers, then, is: Where do you turn to admire, study, and emulate the "expression of character of power" in gaming?Where is your gaming gusto?

After considering this topic and writing on it, i can only postulate that it may not be possible to construct a RPG with the kind of gusto that Hazlett describes in his essay. It is a distrubing conclusion to draw, considering my enthusiasm for the game as a hobby and the obvious enjoyment that the game itself brings to all RPG fans. It is also, for the reasons that i query you all about above, a confounding topic to ponder because to my knowledge it has not been a topic formulated or presented before (at least not on these boards).

As ever,
ACE

I'm typing from my laptop at the hospital. We had a little boy early yesterday morning. Happy, healthy, and crying a lot already. God, what did we get ourselves in to?

Heh, just kidding, i love the little bugger. Oh, and Elliot got 51% of the votes, just edging out Sebastian at 49%.

Just thought i'd share!

As happy as ever,
ACE

What printing companies do you typically use when you ship files to the press for printing? I received issue #354 the other day and i see that there is a very nocible blue ink smear vertically from top to bottom of page 64. I undersand if you dont want to name names but i thought i'd bring up the topic. In only 5 years in the publishing industry, we've shipped many of our large print run titles overseas and while cheaper, i've noticed a decrease in the quality of the printing from the advanced copies to major pantone changes and press problems from print run to print run. Just curious if you've had similar experiences and or problems after copy files have been shipped to your print vendors.

As ever,
ACE

This is a kind of continuation of another thread, but it's a bit off topic so i thought i'd start this one. Specifically, for all those who are, will be, or could possibly be supervising or running after-school gaming programs you may find the advice and opinions on this thread useful.

Firstly, let me tell you that i am an advocate of RPGaming for learning. Whenever we game, we should take something away from story creation, player interaction, self-reflection, etc. I write this more as a disclaimer than for any other reason here because i have to preface this thread by acknowledging that many people game for different reasons and many of those reasons don't include anything about personal or community growth and development. It also must be noted that RPGaming is very different than playing chess or battleship...it is a social game and should be considered a community event every time a group sits around a table to role play.

I believe that a club sponsored by a school or other educational setting provides an execllent opportunity for the moderator (GM perhaps?) to heighten the learning aspects of the game that we enjoy by targeting curriculum learning strategies and intertwining them with the game. To this end, I encourage all to offer their suggestions on how a teacher or educator may take parts of classroom curriculum and expand on them in an RPG envoronment.

I believe that the strongest opportunities can be found in the humanities, specifically in:
1. English/Language/Literature
2. Social sciences/history/religion.

Off the top of my head for point 1, I would recommend tying some of the following cannonized works in with RPGaming depending on the student's curriculum: Beowulf, Grimm's Fairy Tales, The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Day (Arabian Nights), The Metapmophoses of Ovid, Bulfinch's Mythology (This would be REALLY ineresting), Gulliver's Travels, and Shakespeare's complete works. I would also recommend exercises in poetic composition, campaign journal assignments, extensive use of vocabulary and linguistics (you educators brush up on your Latin), and use of different dialects.

For point 2, texts i would recommend for tying religion in with gaming are: Catnerbury Tales, Pilgrim's Progress, Leviathan, Book of Martyrs and Dante's works (Inferno, Paradiso, Purgatorio)...keep in mind that even religious writers used fantastically allegorical to further their religious and secular opinions! RPGaming is also ripe with opportunities for gamers to interact with different cultures, races, religions, languages, philosophies, etc...make the monks in one adventure taoist, have elves speak spanish (or english if you're teaching ESL students) etc...

My point is there are endless possiblities to segue targeted learing into fun gaming and it not feel forced.

I hope this helps somehow and please offer up your opinions or suggestions on the topic.

As ever,
ACE

Heh, ok, i'm usually a pretty calm and rational guy but I found out yesterday that my wife and I are going to have a little boy in about four months. He's our first. For some reason, when I actually saw the little one on that ultrasound screen, I became a nervous ball of energy and i was up almost all night stewing about things. So, i'll decompress by typing a query to all D&D dads and moms out there. How did your gaming habits change when you had your first child? Especially through their infancy...

A bit more nervous than ever,
ACE

There is an idea that has been forwarded in Linguistics that, over time, the meaning of a word can change as it's use is apropriated for use by a group. It stems from the Foucoultian relationship between sign and signifier. And for those who don't know, the short of it is that any word in any language only exists in meaning with the attached significance(s) that are and have been, arbitrarily set throughout the course of human history and the development of language. But I digress...

The process of how a word has changed in meaning and is currently changing has been coined a "meme" by those forwarding this theory, and functions just like a gene does in genetics insofar that it has the capability of mutating and creating something different. An easy and contemporary example of this that even old folks, like me, can identify with is the word "cool." Anyone remember when the gist of it only meant something like "chilly"? It is still identified as slang by Webster as "great, fine, or excellent", but it will become cannonized into the english language as such some day in the future.

What's the point? you may ask...

The point is that there are a great many words in the D&D and gaming subculture that are either not adequately defined, or they are commonly misused or misrepresented by our own members. I'll toss out a few off the top of my head: campaign, scinario, party, role playing...not to mention some of the slang like noob and power gamer.

I'd like to see an autoritative gaming or D&D dictionary published somewhere either on the web or as a print product so when we are all discussing the mechanics or art of gaming, we can all speak with the same understanding of common terminology, keep up with how that terminology changes, and point to a reference to clear up misuse of the words.

As ever,
ACE

Interesting...I think this thread was closed by the Paizo folks in another forum due to the content. Hum...

"In certain, extremely rare instances in this community, topics of conversation have deviated from the germane, spiriling toward far flung and oft-unintnended directions. Perhaps this phenomenon is implicit within all of us...actions and reactions that are bound to spill over the reasonable ramblings of contiguous conversations. To the end of curbing those tendancies, the threadjacked thread may serve this community as not only an outlet for those unintentional, yet necessary, deviations, asides, addendums, supurfulations, ramblings, and other off-topic verbiage; not only that, but a repository for such posts.

Carry on."

As ever,
ACE

In certain, extremely rare instances in this community, topics of conversation have deviated from the germane, spiriling toward far flung and oft-unintnended directions. Perhaps this phenomenon is implicit within all of us...actions and reactions that are bound to spill over the reasonable ramblings of contiguous conversations. To the end of curbing those tendancies, the threadjacked thread may serve this community as not only an outlet for those unintentional, yet necessary, deviations, asides, addendums, supurfulations, ramblings, and other off-topic verbiage; not only that, but a repository for such posts.

Carry on.

As ever,
ACE

Preface to the Etiquette (ACE)
Indeed, message boards are now commonplace throughout the internet community. Perhaps not growing up in my primary schooling with the internet has led me to both acknowledge and consider how message boards are both used and abused. Every message board community is different specifically because the "rules" of the boards are enforced differently by moderators (or the lack thereof). I would suggest that in this particular community, the moderators (to the credit of Paizo and the staff), give great latitude as to the censorship applied to these boards. I, for one, appreciate that. The caveot, however, is that ownership for what is posted here typically falls squarely on the individual poster. It may be useful for many reasons to periodically assess what we are posting and how it is being posted in a broader sense of this community. To this end, i've simply gone to a general "Message Board Etiquette" website and provided us all here with some ideas to consider while posting here. I hope you find these useful.

Here are two key points:

Be kind and honest
Don't issue personal attacks, use profanity, or post threatening, abusive, harassing, or otherwise offensive language or images. You also may not impersonate another individual or communicate under a name that you are not entitled to use.

Do not post chain letters or advertisements
Chain letters are never appreciated in the online community, and they're a violation of your membership agreement with {blah}. Advertisements are just about as unwelcome, though there are a few boards just for this purpose at Keyword: Classifieds, under the "Using {blah blah blah} Classifieds" button.

Suggested Guidelines

In addition to your TOS commitments, there are some suggested guidelines for polite and responsible interaction on message boards A message board is an online discussion group where members can read and write messages to each other.:

Read the message board for a while before participating
It's best to browse a board for a while -- just reading -- before you post your first message. Read a couple week's worth of messages the first time you visit a board, and then read new messages for another couple of days. You'll see what topics are hot and which are cold, you'll get to know some of the key participants, and you'll become familiar with the demeanor of the board. Each one is different.

Communicate clearly
Write clearly when you compose a message. Review your message carefully before clicking Send; typos are confusing. Remember, if your message can be misunderstood, it will be.

Refrain from using ALL CAPS
Typing in all capital letters is frowned upon; it's the equivalent of screaming at everyone. It also makes your message more difficult to read.

Don't post meaningless messages
Posting messages that say nothing more than "Me too" is a quick way to irritate other members. If you agree with a posting, either enjoy your consent by yourself or reply with an informative comment about why you agree. Imagine how dull a board would get if it contained nothing but hundreds of "me too's."

Consider sending a reply by e-mail E-mail is typically a one-to-one communications system. With an AOL screen name, you can e-mail with other {blah blah} and Internet users.
Some replies are better sent as e-mail, rather than posted to a board. Personal messages and especially critical comments are more appropriate when sent directly and privately. There's an E-mail to Author option on every Post Response form; don't forget this option.

Refrain from crossposting
Crossposting means posting a single message to several different message boards, and it is almost never appropriate. Such posts tend to reduce the quality of the discussion and needlessly increase the traffic on the board. Find the best place for your post, and please confine your message to one board.

Quote from the post you're replying to
Include a small section of text from the post you're replying to, so others will have a quick reminder of the topic.

Be careful when posting personal information
Be careful about including private information about yourself, such as phone numbers and street addresses. Private information of that nature may be better sent by e-mail.

Follow the forum guidelines
Check the message board area for specific Forum Guidelines, such as rules concerning which topics should be posted in which folders, and answers to Frequently Asked Questions. These guidelines are often labeled READ THIS FIRST or GUIDELINES.

As ever,
ACE

There seems to be a shortage of interesting threads lately, so i'll generate one that should at least stir up some debate. I don't know how to copy a link to the boards, but here is the one that i'll be referring to in this thread (maybe someone else can link it later):

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dd/20060901a

One of my very good friends pointed out this article to me a few weeks ago and i'm glad he brought it to my attention. In sum, here's Andrew Finch's idea for starting every adventure in a campaign:

"The idea was simple: start every game session with those magical words, “Roll Initiative”. Yes, that’s it. No matter what happened last week, last month (or however long ago it was) you start the new session with a fight." (Finch, 2006)

Consider that Wizard's Design and Development department has chosen to post this to their site (i don't know if Andrew works there or not). I find this article, the idea itself, and the impitus to be able to forward it to be at the very heart of what the core rules of D&D 3.x caters to. Chiefly, a mineatures wargame.

Make no mistake about what the rules set for D&D applies to even from the origins of the game...it is common knowledge that the game is based on mineatures wargaming (Holmes, 1981, Praxton 1971). Even for the novice DM and group who are marginally interested in role playing, the push to stat block out every detail of the game in the 3.x versions of D&D further draw distinct lines of seperation between tabletop mineatures gaming and role playing games, making it increasingly difficult to merge the two in a campaign setting.

If what attracts you to the hobby of role playing games is (in fact) role playing, than the ideas that this article forwards should be considered rediculous. Pay particular attention to the four main points that Andrew makes in his arguement for this idea: Focus, Love, Preparation, and Broadening.

What? If you read and consider the descriptions of these four points set forth by Finch, what he is really saying boils down to:
1. Focus: The players won't remember crap from the last game and can't bring dice or their character in from the car.
2. Love: The players want to fight (minis game).
3. Preparation: You, as the DM, are never prepared enough.
4. Broadening: You, as the DM, need battle action to drive a campaign.

Because tabletop gaming is experienced in a social setting and(Fine, 1983) (which, by the way, is a touchstone sociological study on RPGers) regardless of if your group is interested in playing a minis wargame, a role playing game, or a combination of the two; it is imperitive that the group recognizes the mode of game that he/she is playing in with the group.

Just understand that a strict adhearation to the core rules of D&D generate a game that is much more akin to tabletop wargaming (minis) than role playing games. This article by Andrew Finch further encourages that tabletop minis mode of gaming.

To the avid role player or one who enjoys a mix of both kinds of gaming, the ideas forwarded by Finch in this article will make them cringe. I would encourage all to recognize the published 3.x game mechanics for what they are - an excellent mode of mineature wargaming. I would also encourage all role players to either search for a better system (because they are out there) or appropriate only those D&D rules that forward their role playing experience and drop the rest (whatever is appropriated must be clearly outlined from the beginning of a game or campaign).

References:
Finch, Andrew: Roll Initiative, http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dd/20060901a Wizards of the Coast Website, 2006.
Fine, Gary Allen: Shared Fantasy: Role-Playing Games as Social Worlds, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 1983.
Holmes, John Eric: Fantasy Role-Playing Games. New York, Hipporcrene Books, 1981.
Praxton, E.W. "War Gaming" Pp. 278-301 in Elliott M. Avedon and Brian Sutton-Smith (Eds.): The Study of Games. New York, Wiley, 1971.

As Ever,
ACE

Just wondering if it is possible to close a thread, effectively not allowing any further posts to go to that thread. Can this currently be done and if so, how can i request that a thread be closed?

As ever,
ACE

Wow, the place your rant thread has really gotten dull as of late just to read much less consider responding to. I'll be in Indy in a couple of weeks for my first Gen Con. What should I expect? What D&D materials should I bring? Are there any good pubs in Indy worth visiting? Etc.

As ever,
ACE

I'm not sure about your policies on selling items on the boards so i thought i'd ask...what are your policies on selling items on these boards? If there are regulations, you might want to jump on a general D&D messagboard thread that is leaning in that direction and give some guidence or warnings...

Just a suggestion.

As ever,
ACE

Why is it that often times posters on these boards feel that the phrase "...but the game is really about having fun." or something like it, is appropriate to be tacked on to the end of a post? In my experience, the function of this phrase seems to smack of some kind of qualifier...a statment that lessens how absolute a generalized statement is. There aren't any qualifiers in the phrase, nor does it in itself qualify any previous thought or idea that is expressed before this statment. In short, the use of this phrase in no way changes the authorotative tone of a post.

If, indeed, this is the case, the phrase is either bing misused or used for another purpose. Is there an obligation to make such a statment within the community...like saying "hello" to someone you meet to be polite? It can certainly be dismissive in nature...a catch-all or an excuse. We all know that one of the functions of playing a game (any game) is to relax, take your mind off of real world problems, and "just have fun." It's like pointing out that putting on clothing keeps you warm. Why, then, does such a phrase bear repeating in a post? How do you use your "...but the game is really about having fun"?

As ever,
ACE

I always get a kick out of reading threads about stat block related questions or issues. Inverriably, the term "munchkin" gets tossed into the discussion at some point. Are there really any self-admitted munchkins out there? If so, i've never seen a poster claim to be one on these boards...but i've seen many been accused of and/or implicated as being a munchkin.

Where are the munchkins?

As ever,
ACE

The structure of the game of D&D (and most tabletop RPGs) necessitates the designation of a DM (or GM) to perform many critical game functions as outlined in the core textbooks. The duities of that designation are open to interpretation in a multiplicity of ways, otherwise known generally as the "style" of the DM. How a DM perceives his or her role in the game is often the driving force behind how the individual group game is experienced by the community of players at the tabletop. In short, a DM's ego often times presides as the chief impitus for how the game is played *for* the community. This kind of mentality suggests individual ownership of a great many things within the game: establising and enforcing rules; creating settings and encounters; and mediating game play among the players - this is otherwise known as project management.
Like those other governing bodies in our lives, there is a spectrum of objective qualities that foster either enhanced community experiences or marginal ones. This thread should serve as a repository of DM qualities - place what a good DM is and is not here.

A DM is: A mediator and moderator. A good DM takes the interests of the community into account for all aspects of the game to the end goal of every single person at the table having fun. The group as a whole makes general decisions regarding the major facets of the game system and the DM will try to the best of his/her ability to run the game based on the input of the community. A DM that is unwilling to make concessions, acknowledge group changes in play, accomodate every member of the group to the best of his/her ability IS NOT DMing FOR THE PCs...they are DMing for themselves.
A DM is not: a Dictator. While many campaigns and sessions are run by dictitorial DMs, do not confuse this style of play with the style of play based in a truely community setting. If your DM displays dictatorial tendencies, he/she is possibly suggesting any number of these qualities about him/herself: selfishess, narrow-mindedness, laziness, incompetence, ignorance, or any number of a multitude of community detrimental qualities. Much like a poor boss or a bad teacher, glaring deficiencies in management character can detract from working with or learning from an exceptional boss or teacher.

As ever,
ACE

This is a continuation of a different thread...please see Irritation with the Skill Point System thread for history.

I'll reiterate my point here and respond to the Scribe.
This discussion is about how an individual or group approaches the game of D&D. (correct me if i'm wrong) Scribe suggests that the mindset of each player and DM should be that the PCs that adventure in the DM's world need be suited to overcome any challenge that could be set forth for the party. This would typically be addressed by creating a traditional "power party" ... whatever you think the makeup of that party should be (another discussion).

My contention, to the smaller point of the skill point system but the broader aspect of how one (and a group) approaches the game, is that tabletop gaming is not set up like a video game that dictates a power party to achieve success. That it doesn't matter what the makeup of PCs is in a tabletop game, because the DM should be either creating or modifying an adventure to challenge his/her specific party.

Scribe asks: "Why would a group want to limit the options for types of encounters a DM can throw at them? If a DM doesn't have time to restructure a module for an unbalanced party, I would also hate to see the results, so why would they do that?"

I'm suggesting that these are the wrong questions that gamers should be asking about their game. It doesn't matter what the PC makeup of the party is, their individual adventures should be designed or modified to reflect challenges that are fair and reasonable (this is being a "fair referee" as Scribe has indicated in other post) for them.

My point is that tabletop gaming is designed to be customized AROUND the players and PCs. It is not a game that players must customize their PCs FOR.

As ever,
ACE

Having the ability to communicate on messageboards (such as this one) via the medium of the internet have broadened the spectrum of social interaction to people and locales that have traditionally been exempt from individual interactions. The medium of the internet and identity/personality issuses that can be problematic in society are well documented and perhaps should not be brought up in this forum. What is of particular interest and germaine to this site is our understanding of those who post here in relation to the values, beliefs, and practice that we, as indidual gamers, perceive. In short, if you could put together a group of six other gamers to game with based only on the posts that you have read in this forum, who would your group consist of and why?

As ever,
ACE

In a mid-level campaign setting, my PCs have started accumulating feats that allow them to maximize and empower one spell and breath weapon per day. I believe the feats are found in the Complete Book of the Arcane and the Dragonomicon (sp?). Anyway, consider this as a DM (me)... At any given encounter, the PCs are capable of delivering over 200 points of fire damage in one round to a fireball sized raidus of NPCs (if missed save) and even more with a "lingering breath weapon feat". I am finding it difficult to create encounters in the campaign setting that counter this kind of mass damage on a consistant basis. Before you go into ECL, multiple encounters (i.e. a crawl), and specialized monsters; I understand the logistics of creating tougher encounters, but it is beginning to become difficult to balance beefed up combat encounters with the scope of the campaign without overtly compensating for this kind of damage. Some might say what's good for the PCs is good for NPCs too, but in this case, you are talking about campaign-ending mass damage should NPCs bully back with these kinds of feats. Any thoughts or suggestions?

As ever,
ACE