tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post2905151615422689876..comments2023-10-14T03:58:59.333-06:00Comments on The Tao of D&D: The State of Dungeons & DragonsAlexis Smolenskhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10539170107563075967noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-40561036260927429952013-10-10T23:37:10.593-06:002013-10-10T23:37:10.593-06:00Well, gee, I don't know, Jack.
What was steam...Well, gee, I don't know, Jack.<br /><br />What was steam before it had been, you know, invented?Alexis Smolenskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10539170107563075967noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-70994348426978231022013-10-10T21:14:11.736-06:002013-10-10T21:14:11.736-06:00"designs that purport - somehow, on a budget ..."designs that purport - somehow, on a budget of a few hundred dollars - to produce a gaming experience that millions of dollars cannot."<br /><br />One guy is paid a hundred dollars for a book, another is paid a million. There is no reason to believe that the millionaire will write a better story. Poe died a pauper, Stephanie Myer's rich. You know all this already.<br /><br />Jim made a thing, other people used it in their game and enjoyed it. What more do you want from the D&D community? What else are we meant to be trying to accomplish? What will this steam engine give us?Jackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13576384742168685922noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-38144636180410091162013-10-06T13:01:25.245-06:002013-10-06T13:01:25.245-06:00It really is amazing what we can learn from RPGs, ...It really is amazing what we can learn from RPGs, especially D&D. <br />RPGs have taught me to be a critical thinker and a better <a href="http://desertseadesign.com/category/blog/" rel="nofollow"> writer </a> than I had ever been prior to gaming. <br />No, I don't play D&D, but I respect it. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09439287476734172844noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-56333518251683758062013-10-02T08:16:05.762-06:002013-10-02T08:16:05.762-06:00"Writing is not necessarily something to be a...<i>"Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards."</i><br /><br />-- Robert A. HeinleinAlexis Smolenskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10539170107563075967noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-35015946999365043482013-10-02T07:54:27.048-06:002013-10-02T07:54:27.048-06:00Soul-searching is a good thing...and I think this ...Soul-searching is a good thing...and I think this post is a good kickstart to do that.<br /><br />My most recent publication was exactly what you describe: a reinvention of the wheel. I'm not under any delusions about that. But the act of creation was a direct response to D&D Next: it was done in part to show ANYONE can "reinvent D&D," on a whim, with minor word processing skills...there's no need to wait around on WotC and give them your money. It was kind of a "fuck you" aimed at Hasbro...a waste of time and effort? Yeah, probably...but people do all sorts of petty things for dumber reasons.<br /><br />The exercise turned out to be valuable in a couple-few ways: deconstructing the game gave me some design insights, forced me to examine my own thoughts on the game, gave me practice writing, and improved my discipline in following-through and completing projects. Hopefully these things will help future endeavors. If not, much of the process was still fun.<br /><br />And, yes, there's some ego self-stroking that occurs when one can claim "hey, I'm a game designer." And I DO use my old notes and books and magazines for reference and inspiration...both in writing and in-play (at the table). I enjoy repurposing old stuff in new systems, but maybe I'm just weird (in addition to being a sentimental packrat).<br /><br />Having said THAT, much of what you write has a ring of truth to it...but then I've been accused of cynicism before. People are still designing and buying and playing board games, after all, when folks might have thought those dinosaurs would have disappeared with the invention of XBoxes and networked computer games.JBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08532311924539491087noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-59648218020307608202013-10-01T16:48:34.776-06:002013-10-01T16:48:34.776-06:00If I thought it was worthless I wouldn't do it...If I thought it was worthless I wouldn't do it. This doesn't stop it from being derivative and it certainly doesn't stop it from looking stupid from the perspective of ten years in the future. If there's one thing to take away from your blog is that the game can always be improved, given effort.<br /><br />In the meantime I'm enjoying myself, and it seems like th eplayers are getting something.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04278455754046118073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-16128277963511511592013-10-01T08:42:24.478-06:002013-10-01T08:42:24.478-06:00I wish you the best of luck with all your efforts,...I wish you the best of luck with all your efforts, Issara. I wouldn't worry about your present efforts ... it is a game, after all, and so long as it's enthusiastic and fulfilling, you're gold.<br />Alexis Smolenskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10539170107563075967noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-73986864626641971082013-10-01T05:24:36.068-06:002013-10-01T05:24:36.068-06:00Let me start with saying, this is the first daoist...Let me start with saying, this is the first daoist argument you're making that I'm aware of. Loose all sentiment and get a perspective about yourself (at least that's my interpretation, I'm sure you'll correct me if I'm not getting it right). It's hard to argue against that. Or human nature. Even writing "But it helped me to be a better DM!" would be pointless, because saying isn't proving anything. So it is a tough nut to crack. And I'm not saying you're right. I'm even disagreeing. Also, this will be a long one. Sorry.<br /><br />The first point I think you went wrong, was in stating that the corporate version of D&D matters (or mattered at any point in time, at that). D&D is, in my opinion, an idea with relatively clear parameters, like, say, a table. Ask two different people what a table is and you will get two fitting (but individual) descriptions that would define a table. So how people understand that idea is subjective and depends on their entry point into the hobby/carpentry and their exposure to it. Their perspective, if you will. And there is value in that. Not because it's all true or right, but because communication gives at least the chance of learning something new. And key to making any use of communication is not necessarily to understand, but to get another perspective to what you perceive as your own opinion. With time, it will change you. with luck, it will evolve your position. And that's a process that has to start anew constantly, because different individuals have different entry points and stages of development.<br /><br />So this is the second point I think you went wrong: it's not reinventing the wheel, it's individuals trying to understand it. Of course there are those that stop developing at some point. But even in that is some value. It preserves a perspective, making access so much easier in the process. Grognardia is a very good example for this, I guess. But the same goes for books, as they mirror the perspective of a specific individual at a specific point in time.<br /><br />Which leads to what you wrote about the community. I see the community as a chance. That's why I'm participating. I'll write my own version of D&D and I'll make my own mistakes. I'll keep writing about it, talk with people about it. And hopefully, I'll learn from it, too. Or give someone a new perspective he/she can process for their own good.<br /><br />And finally about keeping books or sorting them out. Reading something produces a personal relation to the content. But, to a degree, that's only valid for some time. People do change, so even if the content in a book never changes, your perspective might. The chance not only to re-evaluate the content, but also your own thinking and understanding back then, is, in my opinion, a worthwhile lesson (if the opportunity is used, that is).<br /><br />Furthermore, asking the wrong question will result in wrong answers. Of course nobody knows if they'll play D&D forever and ever. My answer would be that D&D is a part of my life and will always be that. How that part manifests is not for me to say. But it's the answer to a different question.<br /><br />My two cents, of course.Jens D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/18394303166081684904noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-62374821597458464762013-10-01T02:43:17.085-06:002013-10-01T02:43:17.085-06:00When I read about the way you saw people hoarding ...When I read about the way you saw people hoarding dragon magazine, I (not being from that generation) immediately thought of this blog, yes I read other roleplahying blogs to pass the time but less and less now I have come to realise I take from it. Aswell as keeping up to date with your blog, I refer to it in the way you described people refering to the dragon magazine.<br /><br />So you've inspired my first steps into DMing. And I've never been under the impression that I'm making anything new, I've just started, if I am still roleplaying ten years from now I will probably laugh at all the mistakes I've made in the meantime. But truth be told, if ten year older me met you, and if I opened my mouth about the thing I was continueing the build you would still see it at a poor imitation with a few modifications tacked on. That's what it is, no matter how often I make adjustments based on my personal vision, the seed of that vision is yours and any mistakes I make you will probably have already seen. You are the blueprint for my DMing just as you claim Dragon Magazine and all the supplementary books for whatever system are for others. I'm not sure whether that's negative, it's just a thing. <br /><br />As for talking about it, I don't update any blogs. I talk personally with those who might be players about the philosophy behind the game so they know what might be expected. I'm still shy about it otherwise because it's obviously a mad project and I've not had a long enough term campaign to prove to myself and others that it's worthwhile.<br /><br />Since I haven't discovered this yet, I guess it's the shit that draws me the way I'm going, it just so happens that the shit happens to have been predominately produced by you, oh and a couple of GURPs books, but in terms of time invested your blog is the major influence.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04278455754046118073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-39763778580112415402013-09-30T22:24:57.598-06:002013-09-30T22:24:57.598-06:00Sorry if I haven't responded, Nine-toes. Tryi...Sorry if I haven't responded, Nine-toes. Trying to give you the last word on the subjects you choose.<br /><br />Let's not mix up topics. What I want America to do has nothing with what I want from D&D.<br /><br />Yes, let us agree that I joust. The tilting is not a game. It is life. As long as you return, as long as you read, I will educate you, with or without your will.<br /><br />I am not exiting D&D. Far from it.<br /><br />I am attempting to force the reader not to examine me, but to examine themselves. Why do you keep all that shit while pronouncing it is the GAME that draws you. Is it the game or the shit? If it is the game, they why buy more shit? If it is the shit, then why do you think having more improves the game?<br /><br />If a player dumps a hundred dice on the table, are the dice for the game, or are they for the fetish they're obsessed with <i>instead</i> of the game? And if it is the fetish, what does that say about their REAL purpose there? Do the number of dice improve the game? Does the game justify the fetish for dice?<br /><br />Apply the formula to reading blogs, to arguing in blogs, to attending Cons, and on and on. Don't look at me, look at yourself, and BE TRUE to yourself. Then free yourself of the shit and concentrate on what really matters. We, most of us, spend too much of our lives concentrating only on what <i>seems</i> to matter.<br /><br />Don't be so damn sure you understand everything about why you do what you do. That is the windmill I tilt today.<br /><br />Alexis Smolenskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10539170107563075967noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-42713101141641499222013-09-30T20:51:58.612-06:002013-09-30T20:51:58.612-06:00To me the name 'D&D' is kind of like t...To me the name 'D&D' is kind of like the name 'Kleenex'. When I ask for a Kleenex, I don't actually care what brand it is. I just want to blow my nose.<br /><br />You say there's an amorphous ill-defined concept for D&D that most people have. I suppose that may be true. There may still be a common reference, even if no one using it knows exactly what it is that they are referring. Two savages may discuss the beauty of the moon without understanding that it rotates around the earth and does not actually rise and fall beyond the horizon each day. Geese don't need a compass to know what direction South is. <br /><br />I'm not sure what I'm arguing, or if I'm arguing with you at all. It certainly doesn't feel like an argument, or if it is I'm doing quite badly since you don't respond to me. I doubt you've suddenly had an epiphany after 30+ years of playing that D&D is useless. You're challenging your readers, yes? What poor sport we must always seem. I'm surprised you haven't tired of <i>that</i> game. Or perhaps to you, the windmills of apathy and ignorance really are giants, and you never will stop jousting.<br /><br />I'll give you an honest answer. If you want to address real life problems, I think you're playing with the wrong tool set. I don't think you'll fix a stain-glass wall with your hammer. What is it you really want? You want Americans to wake up, take responsibility for their own actions, set their affairs in order and stop bullying other nations? There's only been one man in history with the integrity to reject the trappings of power and do justice in the world. He's worn many faces, but he's exceedingly rare this day and age. He doesn't have time for games, no matter how intricate or wonderful they may be.<br /><br />I've loved reading your blog and playing in your world. If you are building up to an exit, I wish you well, truly. Actually, I wish you well whether you're quitting or not.Nine-toeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08557340886948730786noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3871409676946408069.post-87309052501689061322013-09-30T20:23:15.809-06:002013-09-30T20:23:15.809-06:00"Has the endless, endless, endless dialogue a..."Has the endless, endless, endless dialogue about this or that actually improved your play..."<br /><br />I find your perspective on the game incredibly accurate and useful. Reinvigorated my interest in the Play of the Game. Keep it up.Jay Murphyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00069789456292604679noreply@blogger.com