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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.

seekerofshadowlight |

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

Kolokotroni |

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.

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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...

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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?

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

Laurefindel |

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...
2. We need a new name for the ideal of a fighter/mage
pardon the question but, what's wrong with fighter/mage?
'findel

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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.

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seekerofshadowlight wrote:You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.Xabulba wrote:Lol so funnyGish 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.
Triple secret flagged!!!!!!!!

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Xabulba wrote:seekerofshadowlight wrote:You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.Xabulba wrote:Lol so funnyGish 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.
Triple secret flagged!!!!!!!!
But still funny.

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Sebastian wrote:But still funny.Xabulba wrote:seekerofshadowlight wrote:You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.Xabulba wrote:Lol so funnyGish 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.
Triple secret flagged!!!!!!!!
Thus, the third flag. Only I get to post funny things.

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Laurefindel wrote:houstonderek wrote:Ok then, see you at level 16th :)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: ...Just bring your own dice. I'm selfish :)
What no bucket'odice?

Laurefindel |

Laurefindel wrote:houstonderek wrote:Ok then, see you at level 16th :)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: ...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!

Epic Meepo RPG Superstar 2009 Top 16, 2012 Top 32 |
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.)

Kolokotroni |

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.

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houstonderek wrote:At least githyankis had good fluff behind their level cap. Not every race get to be terminated by their paranoid and egocentric queen-goddess!Laurefindel wrote:houstonderek wrote:Ok then, see you at level 16th :)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: ...Just bring your own dice. I'm selfish :)
Cool, maybe I should just kill off all players who insist on calling themselves "Gish". You know, because the Queen is paranoid.

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houstonderek wrote: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.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: ...
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.

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Kolokotroni wrote:houstonderek wrote: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.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: ...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.

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houstonderek wrote:Kolokotroni wrote:houstonderek wrote: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.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: ...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 ;)

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Crimson Jester wrote:I did say "quite a few", not all ;)houstonderek wrote:Kolokotroni wrote:houstonderek wrote: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.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: ...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 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.

jocundthejolly |

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.'

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Crimson Jester wrote:Thus, the third flag. Only I get to post funny things.Sebastian wrote:But still funny.Xabulba wrote:seekerofshadowlight wrote:You ninja'd my delete. No insult intended.Xabulba wrote:Lol so funnyGish 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.
Triple secret flagged!!!!!!!!
then why don't you post something funny then? :-P

The Gish |

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/mageSo far we have seen arcane warrior and spellthane
Anyone got any suggestions?
Why are you picking on me? I don't even know you.

Shuriken Nekogami |

Laurefindel wrote:Cool, maybe I should just kill off all players who insist on calling themselves "Gish". You know, because the Queen is paranoid.houstonderek wrote:At least githyankis had good fluff behind their level cap. Not every race get to be terminated by their paranoid and egocentric queen-goddess!Laurefindel wrote:houstonderek wrote:Ok then, see you at level 16th :)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: ...Just bring your own dice. I'm selfish :)
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.