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Post by OFTHEHILLPEOPLE on Dec 6, 2017 8:19:12 GMT -8
Regarding the D&D Wrong letter:
I only have one piece of advice and that's "Make consequences matter". Sure, they assume that the mayor of the village is an evil cultist and will act one way or another when they enact their plan. But you as a GM need to be okay with players being wrong just as much as you need to be willing to "yes, and" their ideas. Why? Because sometimes the story is a lot more fun when the players make terrible mistakes.
Is this GM Fiat? I don't think so when my prep blerb for the Mayor just says "City noble, husband, pacifist" and the players make wild leaps in conclusions to paint the person in a light they'd prefer in order to justify murder hoboing him. If it's more fun to go along with the cultist dialogue the players are having then by all means, do it. But if they're driving the boat for the reef despite your clues then strap in for the crash and see who comes out alive.
Them being Teenagers can be a factor in their behavior at the table, sure. These teenagers definitely sound like they're at that phase of teen where they're pushing up against the line of social behavior to see what is and isn't acceptable. So at least to me as a GM it's critical to show them where they've crossed the line, what the consequences are, and sticking to those consequences no matter how much they bitch and scream about it being "unfair".
Again, I'm not a parent and my arm chair logic could be off base.
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Post by ayslyn on Dec 6, 2017 13:38:49 GMT -8
Still listening. However... couple of points.
Stork, you hurt my soul. 😭
Second it seems like often villain and antagonist were getting conflated. While there is overlap, there is a difference.
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Post by chronovore on Dec 7, 2017 3:36:50 GMT -8
OK, this is the episode where stork is playing the Devil's Advocate to the point of speaking UNTRUTHS! First off, as others have noted, the Joker is not a True Neutral. Hell, there has to be a Chaotic in there somewhereabouts because he's a force of chaos nearly inherently, and he does stuff which is inherently transgressive and callous, so let's call a spade a spade, and Chaotic Evil accordingly. ALSO, "Are We the Baddies?" sketch is from That Mitchell and Webb Look, a BBC series that is not Little Britain. Also Mitchell is in Upstart Crow, a currently-airing BBC comedy by half of the Blackadder creative team, where Mitchell plays a struggling Will Shakespeare. It's great. Not done yet, so I'm certain I'll have more to say shortly. PS: I like you a bunch, Stork, but when you're wrong, there are apparently no half-measures.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Dec 7, 2017 15:19:56 GMT -8
I had a thought on Buckaroo Banzai and the Marty Stu (which is the way I've always seen it for a male Mary Sue) factor is...
I was thinking maybe, just maybe, Buckaroo Banzai is the PC in a one-PC game. It makes sense. He has all the requisite skills and connections and everything centers around him.
I chuckle at the people who find a rock star and someone with a doctorate to be two incompatible character traits by themselves. I immediately think of Brian May CBE of Queen (PhD Imperial College) and Greg Graffin from Bad Religion (PhD in zoology from Cornell). Now, all the other stuff like bands of Irregulars to support you? That's a tad much.
Lord John Whorfin: Sealed with a curse as sharp as a knife. Doomed is your soul and damned is your life.
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Post by chronovore on Dec 7, 2017 15:36:40 GMT -8
the-black-hack.jehaisleprintemps.net/english/If someone wants a D&D game without all the difficult rules, HyveMynd introduced me to The Black Hack, a stripped down OSR game which gets it done handily. We only managed a short game, but it seemed like the rules would not get in the way, and simple assumptions allowed extrapolation for any unspecified game need.
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HyveMynd
Supporter
Dirty hippie, PbtA, Fate, & Cortex Prime <3er
Posts: 2,273
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Currently Running: The Sprawl
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Post by HyveMynd on Dec 7, 2017 17:41:29 GMT -8
Yeah, I'm sorry I let that game fall apart chronovore. I thought The Black Hack was pretty cool. It's a simple "roll under" system, is under $5 (or free if you go with text only), and is flexible enough to handle practically any setting. As a PbtA fan, I also liked how all dice rolls in The Black Hack being player facing (meaning the GM doesn't roll dice). What can I say? I'm a lazy GM and like making the players do all the work.
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Post by Probie Tim on Dec 7, 2017 18:32:05 GMT -8
I also liked how all dice rolls in The Black Hack being player facing (meaning the GM doesn't roll dice). "If you come at me with a game where GM's don't roll dice I will stomp you. You have been warned." ... I'm totally kidding. As a player, I really enjoyed The Black Hack.
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Post by chronovore on Dec 7, 2017 19:47:35 GMT -8
Yeah, I'm sorry I let that game fall apart chronovore . I thought The Black Hack was pretty cool. It's a simple "roll under" system, is under $5 (or free if you go with text only), and is flexible enough to handle practically any setting. As a PbtA fan, I also liked how all dice rolls in The Black Hack being player facing (meaning the GM doesn't roll dice). What can I say? I'm a lazy GM and like making the players do all the work. I'd forgotten about that player-facing aspect of the game. Thanks for the reminder! Regarding having the game fall apart, it didn't! You had more important things go tremendously right! We'll pick it up again someday or find something else fun to play together. No harm, no foul!
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HJRP2016
Dec 8, 2017 13:04:50 GMT -8
via mobile
Post by ericfromnj on Dec 8, 2017 13:04:50 GMT -8
I forgot at I also had a creating villain handbook from the mayfair DC Heroes game. It was unfortunately written by Ambush Bug, who divided villains into those who say “Bah” and those who do not say “Bah”.
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fredrix
Master Douchebag
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Preferred Game Systems: Fate, L5R, Pendragon, Gumshoe, Feng Shui
Currently Playing: Pendragon, Song of Ice and Fire, L5R, Feng Shui, Traveller
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Favorite Species of Monkey: 1970's NTV, dubbed by the BBC (though The Water Margin beats it)
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HJRP2016
Dec 8, 2017 14:18:41 GMT -8
via mobile
Post by fredrix on Dec 8, 2017 14:18:41 GMT -8
I forgot at I also had a creating villain handbook from the mayfair DC Heroes game. It was unfortunately written by Ambush Bug, who divided villains into those who say “Bah” and those who do not say “Bah”. Ah, Ambush Bug, I loved him. Deadpool learned everything he knows from AB. My favourite episode was about the scientist trying to distill the essence of cuteness. He became Quantas: The Koala that Walked Like a Man!
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Post by OFTHEHILLPEOPLE on Dec 8, 2017 14:21:15 GMT -8
Did somebody say Black Hack? Who is running a game over discord? Because I will be there.
Also, new version is at editing! Can't wait for version 2.
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HyveMynd
Supporter
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Post by HyveMynd on Dec 8, 2017 23:44:39 GMT -8
Did somebody say Black Hack? Who is running a game over discord? Because I will be there. Also, new version is at editing! Can't wait for version 2. Yeah, that was me. I foolishly thought I could run a text only game of TBH over Discord with an infant at home. "It's only like 15 minutes a day, right? I can manage that." I told myself. Ahh, how wrong you were Past Chris.
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Post by Probie Tim on Dec 9, 2017 8:13:38 GMT -8
I foolishly thought I could run a text only game of TBH over Discord with an infant at home. Running any sort of online game that is not based on scheduled sessions - Discord games where the players can post at any time, PbP games where the players can post at any time - ALWAYS require more time than you think they will.
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Post by Monkeyfun Dave on Dec 9, 2017 11:17:32 GMT -8
To level set, Buckaroo Banzai is intended as a modernization of Doc Savage, so he's always been positioned as a highly advanced polymath. But the difference between BB and a Mary Sue is that despite his deep skill set, very little of his skills are actually what solve crises that are associated with the plot. If anything, one of his skills (the understanding of quantum mechanics) is what *causes* the immediate plot crisis.
In contrast, a Mary Sue is personified as being able to pull out skills and abilities when faced with a plot crisis that even surpasses the experts in the field, wish fulfillment to the Nth degree. But very little of the plot resolution within Buckaroo Banzai is based on that - the Black Lectroids provide him with the electrical formula, warn him about John Worfin, etc. And ultimately, the biggest reveals are done by the other characters - Billy breaking into Yoyodyne's computer system, New Jersey knowing War of the Worlds and making a connection, etc. Even some of his more romantic moments are comically interrupted with the minor electrical jolts he's giving off.
And yeah, I don't think it's impossible to have a brilliant mind being able to perform many interesting things, even in real life - Brian May of Queen, Hedy Lamarr (Not Hedley), even Richard Feynman. Hell, Dexter Holland of the Offspring has a Masters in Molecular Biology.
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Post by Monkeyfun Dave on Dec 9, 2017 11:23:29 GMT -8
Oh one more thing.
I loved Buckaroo Banzai as a kid and still do. As a kid, one of the fundamentals I took from BB as a character is that smart doesn't equate to passive or weak (at least to me). The movie isn't perfect, but it attempts to be more than just a Arnold Schwarzenegger film - it's funny, it pulls from interesting sources, and it consistently swings to get out of the park. Not every swing was a hit, but man... I love movies that actually *try*.
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