tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post847641194961902220..comments2024-03-28T01:53:34.870-04:00Comments on GROGNARDIA: Variance in InterpretationJames Maliszewskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-10987526974868520282021-01-30T12:50:02.685-05:002021-01-30T12:50:02.685-05:00This. 4e is "how much can you change D&D&...This. 4e is "how much can you change D&D's rules before it becomes another game entirely." <br /><br />However, I would say that continuity of design is what makes a product an heir to its predecessors rather than a new thing entirely. 4e was not the fourth edition of anything; it was the first edition of a brand new game that was built from the ground up to emulate MMORPGs and was, at best, vaguely inspired by D&D in the same way that World of Warcraft was.<br /><br />A new game is all well and good, but if there is no continuity of design with a previous game, the new one has no right to bear the older one's name. 4e was Dungeons and Dragons in name only, simply because the trademark holders are legally allowed to slap that brand label on whatever they want.MPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12964329610527410346noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-15013123310973850722021-01-26T01:56:58.308-05:002021-01-26T01:56:58.308-05:00and here I would've guessed that it'd be a...and here I would've guessed that it'd be a sexual thing... Captain Crowbarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11959402382179885595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-21768267245541569002021-01-26T00:52:03.798-05:002021-01-26T00:52:03.798-05:00I’ve been running 3 Black Hack 2E games for almost...I’ve been running 3 Black Hack 2E games for almost a year - they feel like the D&D I played when I was 10 and forgot most of the rules in the 2E books I got at the mall and tried to run games for my friends. Which is to say, loose and fun and focused on what me and my players like. I don’t care much about “immersion” or “narrative” - I leave that to the players. I’m just the referee.Ωmegahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10218017822013052381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-1128162332037684802021-01-25T13:15:42.232-05:002021-01-25T13:15:42.232-05:00If I had to venture at answering "what makes ...If I had to venture at answering "what makes D&D, D&D", I would say it is that the game mechanics always have a credible connection to the fictional narrative. When you start to have abilities and actions that aren't explicable via the narrative, that's when you start to get complaints that it feels like a video game, not D&D. Some writers referred to these as "dissociated mechanics", and the one edition (4e) that leaned into dissociating the mechanics from the narrative is the only edition of D&D to date that had a significant proportion of players say, "This doesn't feel like D&D anymore", even if they were still enjoying the game on its own merits.<br /><br />You can change the specifics of the rules around a lot (although I agree, things like hit points, classes, armor class, saving throws, etc., are fundamental to what I think of as D&D) but if the rules frequently break the suspension of the disbelief or immersion in the narrative, I think that's when it becomes a different game entirely.Jesse Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10802754799848483493noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-20970259145005781592021-01-25T12:52:56.077-05:002021-01-25T12:52:56.077-05:00"I wonder if the rise of the Internet has mad..."I wonder if the rise of the Internet has made such variability more or less common, as it's become easier for people far removed from one another to share their ideas despite the distance between them." <br />It both. To resolve that seemingly contradictory answer keep in mind there are two social trends as work. <br /><br />1) The internet is very efficient at allowing small niches to flourish, share, and communicate. No longer anything needs weight of numbers in order for its fans to find each other. <br /><br />Sure it easier when you are popular but it not like in the old days where there limits of capacity everywhere. Limited print space, limited shelves, and so on.<br /><br />2) Organized Gaming has come of age is another social trend. Basically the weekly games at the game store and semi-regular convention games are an important part of the hobby. As well as being a source of material for independent group. <br /><br />For organized gaming, it is important to be fair and consistent. Hence the trend is towards standardization. <br /><br />As with small niches, the Internet caters to large niches as well. Allow thousands if not tens of thousands of fans of organized play to find support and players.<br /><br />One had to keep in mind that there is a tremendous amount of bias here as one, organized play, is very visible and easily surveyed. While the other, the huge number of small RPG niches, is not as discoverable. <br /><br />The OSR is just the tip of a very large iceberg of independent gamers stretching back decades.Robert Conleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03863009007381185340noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-13663641650119420752021-01-25T12:40:28.228-05:002021-01-25T12:40:28.228-05:00I have thought over the years many misinterpreted ...I have thought over the years many misinterpreted Gygax approach in the DMG. Although he presented ideas in a way that many would say was "Gygaxian" I often wonder if his presentation wasn't a desire to present the rules in the third person. In a way like a wise sage or experienced traveler you would talk to about the game and providing advice from that perspective. I know there was an obvious motivation to standardize the rules for Gencon play, but that has always been present in my mind even back in the day.zowee77https://www.blogger.com/profile/05471702772865012597noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-87163107625209204532021-01-25T12:28:54.128-05:002021-01-25T12:28:54.128-05:00That would explain it. Thanks!That would explain it. Thanks!James Maliszewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-80524414087123827002021-01-25T12:25:04.908-05:002021-01-25T12:25:04.908-05:00Beaver is the Caltech mascot Beaver is the Caltech mascot Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17690743781700166627noreply@blogger.com