The "gish" name must go


3.5/d20/OGL

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Ok rather then derailing another thread I am making yet another Arcane warrior thread (Yay me)

1. Gish does NOT mean any fighter mage..stop using it as such
2. We need a new name for the ideal of a fighter/mage

So far we have seen arcane warrior and spellthane

Anyone got any suggestions?

The Exchange

The class I am working on will be called the Warden. but of the options I have heard mageblade or spellthane are not bad.


my offering is "weirbrand", but mageblade is good, simple, and to the point.

Silver Crusade

I'm still in favor of "g&%~" being coded as profanity so that it gets filtered on the forums.


My question is WHY does it need to go? Who decides what a slang term means? That is essentially what it is now, dnd forum slang. That isnt decided by committee, it is decided by the people who say it. It has to be a cultural descision to stop using it as such.

The Exchange

Kolokotroni wrote:
My question is WHY does it need to go? Who decides what a slang term means? That is essentially what it is now, dnd forum slang. That isnt decided by committee, it is decided by the people who say it. It has to be a cultural descision to stop using it as such.

it doesn't Have to go. Just a lot of us Gragnards don't want to use this term because we are used to it being used in a specific context that it has grown forth from. WIll this change anything? No, but we can hope.


I vote for F/M-U.


Kolokotroni wrote:
My question is WHY does it need to go? Who decides what a slang term means? That is essentially what it is now, dnd forum slang. That isnt decided by committee, it is decided by the people who say it. It has to be a cultural descision to stop using it as such.

Because using it wrong makes you seem foolish mostly. Kinda like kids at the mall that latch onto new terms with no clue what it means

Warden is cool but not sure for general use, mageblade is nice


hogarth wrote:
I vote for F/M-U.

Or Basic Elf, but I can live with Ftr/MU


seekerofshadowlight wrote:
Kolokotroni wrote:
My question is WHY does it need to go? Who decides what a slang term means? That is essentially what it is now, dnd forum slang. That isnt decided by committee, it is decided by the people who say it. It has to be a cultural descision to stop using it as such.

Because using it wrong makes you seem foolish mostly. Kinda like kids at the mall that latch onto new terms with no clue what it means

Warden is cool but not sure for general use, mageblade is nice

First of all for the most part, i dont use the term. I am sure I have in my life, but it is not my prefered term. That said, slang cannot be 'wrong'. Its slang. Sure its a little silly but if its in use, then it no longer just means what it used to mean. Thats how language works. If google can be a verb in the dictionary, gish can mean a fighter mage mix.

Dark Archive Bella Sara Charter Superscriber

If this committee has the power to remove words from the english language, I would propose that we set our sights higher. "Impactful" has long been a scourge upon the language, and should be purged!

Also, if there's some sort of button we can push to ban these words, I'd like everyone to know that I'm available to guard said button and prevent other, less honorable posters from deleting words willy-nilly from the English language...

Grand Lodge

You plan on letting all the various roleplaying forums of the world know that you took it upon yourself to rename a term in common usage?

Good luck with that one ;)

The Exchange

Sebastian wrote:

If this committee has the power to remove words from the english language, I would propose that we set our sights higher. "Impactful" has long been a scourge upon the language, and should be purged!

Also, if there's some sort of button we can push to ban these words, I'd like everyone to know that I'm available to guard said button and prevent other, less honorable posters from deleting words willy-nilly from the English language...

Why may I aks does this sound like a real bad idea?


a guy can dream. I only have control over what I do. Not everyone likes the name, so I was looking to the community for something new in place of what frankly sounds silly


Crimson Jester wrote:

Why may I aks does this sound like a real bad idea?

He is a tree weasel, they are shifty

Liberty's Edge

Player: I want to play a gish.
Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...

Dark Archive

I'm going to go ahead and quote myself from the other thread, because I think this argument is based on really silly assumptions.

I wrote:

This is wrong. The word had a very specific meaning, which people then adapted to a more general meaning, and you know what? That's how language works. Words don't have implicit meanings. They have the meanings they're ascribed. And a game designer (in an open-ended gaming system that encourages the development of custom home-content) deciding that "gish" means "githyanki fighter/wizard" doesn't have the same authority that a legion of players of the game have when they decide that it means "arcane sword-wielder of virtually any sort."

The fact that you know what people intend when they say "gish" means that the definition of the word that they intended has entered the public consciousness within this subculture of language-users, and the public consciousness always has final say on the meaning of a word. Why do you think Webster's prints new editions? New words are born and old words die or change meaning.

Now, let's get one thing straight: I don't like the word either, but I also don't like the words "pimple," "pantaloon," or "bonobo." That doesn't mean I don't know what they mean or that I feel the need to enter into asinine semantics discussions every time I hear or use them. For the sake of practicality I use the words that most directly get me from concept to comprehension. That's how language works.

Can we just end the pointless debate and heckling about the meaning of this word? Those of you who think the word is being misused shouldn't be speaking English anyway. There isn't a word in our language that hasn't evolved from something else.

Sovereign Court

Sebastian wrote:
If this committee has the power to remove words from the english language, I would propose that we set our sights higher. "Impactful" has long been a scourge upon the language, and should be purged!

I love this idea and would like to add the word "beverage" to the list.


seekerofshadowlight wrote:


1. Gish does NOT mean any fighter mage..stop using it as such

count me in for the petition... Not only is the term 'gish' horrible to my ears, but it refers to a particular CASTE of a particular RACE that, to top it all, wasn't designed to be played as PCs...

seekerofshadowlight wrote:


2. We need a new name for the ideal of a fighter/mage

pardon the question but, what's wrong with fighter/mage?

'findel

The Exchange

Callous Jack wrote:
Sebastian wrote:
If this committee has the power to remove words from the english language, I would propose that we set our sights higher. "Impactful" has long been a scourge upon the language, and should be purged!
I love this idea and would like to add the word "beverage" to the list.

I can drink to that.


Laurefindel wrote:


pardon the question but, what's wrong with fighter/mage?

'findel

It is fine, however not all arcane warriors are fighter/mages


houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...

Ok then, see you at level 16th :)

Dark Archive Bella Sara Charter Superscriber

Xabulba wrote:
seekerofshadowlight wrote:
Xabulba wrote:

Gish isn't an offical word so can't be removed but I vote we make iit a word meaning;

Any overly powerful class that upsets game balance and ruins the game for everyone else and is generally played by pussies because they are afraid to lose at anything.

Lol so funny
You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.

Triple secret flagged!!!!!!!!

The Exchange

Sebastian wrote:
Xabulba wrote:
seekerofshadowlight wrote:
Xabulba wrote:

Gish isn't an offical word so can't be removed but I vote we make iit a word meaning;

Any overly powerful class that upsets game balance and ruins the game for everyone else and is generally played by pussies because they are afraid to lose at anything.

Lol so funny
You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.

Triple secret flagged!!!!!!!!

But still funny.


Xabulba wrote:

You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.

I deleted my post go ahead and edit yours

Dark Archive Bella Sara Charter Superscriber

Crimson Jester wrote:
Sebastian wrote:
Xabulba wrote:
seekerofshadowlight wrote:
Xabulba wrote:

Gish isn't an offical word so can't be removed but I vote we make iit a word meaning;

Any overly powerful class that upsets game balance and ruins the game for everyone else and is generally played by pussies because they are afraid to lose at anything.

Lol so funny
You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.

Triple secret flagged!!!!!!!!

But still funny.

Thus, the third flag. Only I get to post funny things.

Liberty's Edge

Laurefindel wrote:
houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...
Ok then, see you at level 16th :)

Just bring your own dice. I'm selfish :)

The Exchange

seekerofshadowlight wrote:
Xabulba wrote:

You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.

I deleted my post go ahead and edit yours

it's been stolen, no give backs.

The Exchange

houstonderek wrote:
Laurefindel wrote:
houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...
Ok then, see you at level 16th :)

Just bring your own dice. I'm selfish :)

What no bucket'odice?


Crimson Jester wrote:
seekerofshadowlight wrote:
Xabulba wrote:

You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.

I deleted my post go ahead and edit yours
it's been stolen, no give backs.

it' still funny

Liberty's Edge

My current DM seems to think my one Crown Royal bag of dice is overkill. I wish he saw my dice collection from before I went to prison...


houstonderek wrote:
Laurefindel wrote:
houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...
Ok then, see you at level 16th :)

Just bring your own dice. I'm selfish :)

At least githyankis had good fluff behind their level cap. Not every race get to be terminated by their paranoid and egocentric queen-goddess!

Sovereign Court

Sebastian wrote:
Thus, the third flag. Only I get to post funny things.

We're still waiting for that...


Now look who you offended, Seeker.


houstonderek wrote:

My current DM seems to think my one Crown Royal bag of dice is overkill. I wish he saw my dice collection from before I went to prison...

I hear ya my current bunch take up a wine bag, but I used to have 2...sigh moving and loosing stuff all random like


The Jade wrote:
Now look who you offended, Seeker.

does not hurt my feelings one bit

RPG Superstar 2009 Top 16, 2012 Top 32

seekerofshadowlight wrote:
Kinda like kids at the mall that latch onto new terms with no clue what it means

Except most of the people I've seen using the word "gish" seem to be using it correctly.

Perhaps I'm just forgetting it, but I can't remember any of my old books saying that githyanki call their fighter/mages "gish" because "gish" is a proper title for a specific group of githyanki. To the best of my recollection, githyanki call their fighter/mages "gish" because "gish" is just a githyanki word that means "fighter/mage." Accordingly, they'd refer to fighter/mages of other races as "gish," as well.

I do find it a bit odd that some people insist on referring to a character build by the name it is given in an invented language. But in as much as they are speaking in Gith, they seem to be using the vocabulary of that language correctly.

(Thanks for moving this topic to its own thread, by the way.)


houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...

Aparently the 'me' in that situation is not capable of connecting two separate thoughts. If you are aware enough to complain about it, you are aware of what the player was saying. Just because you choose to be a snob about it doesnt mean other people have to change they way they say things.

Liberty's Edge

Laurefindel wrote:
houstonderek wrote:
Laurefindel wrote:
houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...
Ok then, see you at level 16th :)

Just bring your own dice. I'm selfish :)

At least githyankis had good fluff behind their level cap. Not every race get to be terminated by their paranoid and egocentric queen-goddess!

Cool, maybe I should just kill off all players who insist on calling themselves "Gish". You know, because the Queen is paranoid.

Liberty's Edge

Kolokotroni wrote:
houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...
Aparently the 'me' in that situation is not capable of connecting two separate thoughts. If you are aware enough to complain about it, you are aware of what the player was saying. Just because you choose to be a snob about it doesnt mean other people have to change they way they say things.

No, the "me" in that situation dislikes people using terms to be cute. Gish meant something once, now it's just a garbage shorthand way of saying "I want to be uber".

Because, it seems, none of the current options seem to fit the arcane warrior bill since none get full spellcasting and full BAB that I know of.

This is based on what I see from quite a few posts in the pro "gish" camp.

Scarab Sages

houstonderek wrote:
My current DM seems to think my one Crown Royal bag of dice is overkill. I wish he saw my dice collection from before I went to prison...

I didn't know they were useful as currency.

What's the exchange rate of dice:cigarettes?

The Exchange

houstonderek wrote:
Kolokotroni wrote:
houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...
Aparently the 'me' in that situation is not capable of connecting two separate thoughts. If you are aware enough to complain about it, you are aware of what the player was saying. Just because you choose to be a snob about it doesnt mean other people have to change they way they say things.

No, the "me" in that situation dislikes people using terms to be cute. Gish meant something once, now it's just a garbage shorthand way of saying "I want to be uber".

Because, it seems, none of the current options seem to fit the arcane warrior bill since none get full spellcasting and full BAB that I know of.

This is based on what I see from quite a few posts in the pro "gish" camp.

Do my posts seem that way?

As an aside we have two large containers for dice. Both old Halloween candy carriers. One darth Vader and one a skull.

Dark Archive Bella Sara Charter Superscriber

Callous Jack wrote:
Sebastian wrote:
Thus, the third flag. Only I get to post funny things.
We're still waiting for that...

I'm...uh...building towards a really big payoff...

Yeah...that's it...

Liberty's Edge

Crimson Jester wrote:
houstonderek wrote:
Kolokotroni wrote:
houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...
Aparently the 'me' in that situation is not capable of connecting two separate thoughts. If you are aware enough to complain about it, you are aware of what the player was saying. Just because you choose to be a snob about it doesnt mean other people have to change they way they say things.

No, the "me" in that situation dislikes people using terms to be cute. Gish meant something once, now it's just a garbage shorthand way of saying "I want to be uber".

Because, it seems, none of the current options seem to fit the arcane warrior bill since none get full spellcasting and full BAB that I know of.

This is based on what I see from quite a few posts in the pro "gish" camp.

Do my posts seem that way?

As an aside we have two large containers for dice. Both old Halloween candy carriers. One darth Vader and one a skull.

I did say "quite a few", not all ;)


I would also like to add any word where "Z" is substituted for "S". Hell, I'll shoot for the sky, any deliberate mispelling of a word...

The Exchange

houstonderek wrote:
Crimson Jester wrote:
houstonderek wrote:
Kolokotroni wrote:
houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...
Aparently the 'me' in that situation is not capable of connecting two separate thoughts. If you are aware enough to complain about it, you are aware of what the player was saying. Just because you choose to be a snob about it doesnt mean other people have to change they way they say things.

No, the "me" in that situation dislikes people using terms to be cute. Gish meant something once, now it's just a garbage shorthand way of saying "I want to be uber".

Because, it seems, none of the current options seem to fit the arcane warrior bill since none get full spellcasting and full BAB that I know of.

This is based on what I see from quite a few posts in the pro "gish" camp.

Do my posts seem that way?

As an aside we have two large containers for dice. Both old Halloween candy carriers. One darth Vader and one a skull.

I did say "quite a few", not all ;)

I am fairly sure I had one of my posts ate by Gary. That being said I did not think it was offensive till James Jacobs called me on it.


Anburaid wrote:
my offering is "weirbrand", but mageblade is good, simple, and to the point.

I dislike 'gish' because it sounds silly. I dislike 'mageblade' also. When you run words together like that, the first noun is close to an adjective--it modifies the second. For example, in 'duskblade,' 'dusk' modifies 'blade.' The idea is blade, and the 'dusk' modifies or restricts its meaning. You're not a 'dusk.' In this case, you want to say that you are both a fighter and a mage, and that they are of roughly equal importance. You're not trying to establish primacy for one or the other. 'Mage-blade' would be more logical, although I don't love it (at least because it is unbalanced: half of it is metonymic, the other direct and literal).

I would probably pick the prosaic 'mage-fighter' or 'fighter-mage.'

The Exchange

Sebastian wrote:
Crimson Jester wrote:
Sebastian wrote:
Xabulba wrote:
seekerofshadowlight wrote:
Xabulba wrote:

Gish isn't an offical word so can't be removed but I vote we make iit a word meaning;

Any overly powerful class that upsets game balance and ruins the game for everyone else and is generally played by pussies because they are afraid to lose at anything.

Lol so funny
You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.

Triple secret flagged!!!!!!!!

But still funny.
Thus, the third flag. Only I get to post funny things.

then why don't you post something funny then? :-P


seekerofshadowlight wrote:

Ok rather then derailing another thread I am making yet another Arcane warrior thread (Yay me)

1. Gish does NOT mean any fighter mage..stop using it as such
2. We need a new name for the ideal of a fighter/mage

So far we have seen arcane warrior and spellthane

Anyone got any suggestions?

Why are you picking on me? I don't even know you.


houstonderek wrote:
Laurefindel wrote:
houstonderek wrote:
Laurefindel wrote:
houstonderek wrote:

Player: I want to play a gish.

Me: Well, githyanki have a pretty hefty LA.
Player: No, I want to play a human.
Me: But I thought you said you wanted to play a gish?
Player: Huh?
Me: ...
Ok then, see you at level 16th :)

Just bring your own dice. I'm selfish :)

At least githyankis had good fluff behind their level cap. Not every race get to be terminated by their paranoid and egocentric queen-goddess!
Cool, maybe I should just kill off all players who insist on calling themselves "Gish". You know, because the Queen is paranoid.

out of a primal paranoia, the lich queen would eat any 16th or higher level character she knows to insist on calling themselves gish. if this happens, there will be no more arcane warriors, or martial arcanists. and the lich queen would be the biggest threat to anyone who plays the concept.

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