TRPG General Chat

BESW

12:55 AM

Don’t mind me, just doing customer service for someone in Antarctica.

Tweeted by fredhicks on September 17, 2018 at 2:59 PM

Sir Cinnamon

@Xirema Haha well thats good enough to see where my mistakes are on that

trogdor

1:17 AM

@BESW Nice

Joshua

3:06 AM

If I polymorph into a lich I don't have a phylactery right?

Miniman

System? Method of polymorphing?

BESW

Windows 7, heat-shrinking.

nitsua60

Strong clubs, apoptosis.

Mike Q

If you polymorph using Windows, you'll need a phylactery and the twenty something patches and libraries to support it

nitsua60

Should be pretty easy to hide the phylactery, though:

Wow, ANIMORPHS-NOVEL.RTF? Just gonna, uh, go through and delete that from all my archives real quick.

(I can tell Randall Munroe and I are within a few years of age by the life-stage of his ZIP-disk usage.)

BESW

3:18 AM

Heh. My dad was an early adopter.

He had five or six daisy-chained devices at a time.

Miniman

Also, wow. Been a long time since I saw a good old-fashioned campaign research question.

One of the purest examples I've ever seen, too.

1

Q: Size of family-owned farms

I’m attempting to draw some maps for a village I’ve dreamt up for a campaign in writing. Many towns and villages I’ve read about in published campaigns are home to a number of family-owned farms. I’m wondering... how big (by acreage and volume) were such farms in medieval times? How many square...

trogdor

3:32 AM

Oh neat

Oh but it's kinda off topic huh?

Whoops

trogdor

4:44 AM

@nitsua60 you fiend, I disappeared down an XKCD hole because you left it lying around

I'll get you gadget

Next time

My equivalent of that excavation is probably the book I tried to write

I didn't hit a full page before I burned it

And not to a CD if you catch my drift

I never liked poetry very much so writing some poetry is just something I have never attempted

It feels like a story the author doesn't want you to know the details of

kviiri

5:12 AM

So we found a cool magic weapon and fought a huge thing in yesterday's CoS

Was fun, although we survived the fight barely and mostly because I figured out the puzzle of the boss

And succeeded in three consecutive Dex saves vs fireballs and such, taking no damage while compleying said puzzle

Mike Q

Was it a weapon to surpass metal gear?

trogdor

Was it a "microwave corridor"?

Wtv that is

I still don't understand the Metal Gear games I actually played

Miniman

Everything I know about Metal Gear, I learned from awkwardzombie.

trogdor

5:27 AM

Lol

That's how I know there is a microwave corridor

Miniman

Including what a microwave corridor is!

awkwardzombie.com/index.php?page=0&comic=120610

trogdor

But I have played a couple of the games

kviiri

@MikeQ Sadly, I don't know yet. It needs attunement

trogdor

@Miniman that doesn't fully explain,... Why it exists though

Which is kinda what I actually meant XD

Miniman

@trogdor Oh! It's a corridor flooded with microwaves. So you're basically getting cooked as you walk through it. Presumably it's a security measure.

kviiri

5:30 AM

@trogdor In-universe, it's a security measure to keep unwanted people out of the server room. Other than that, the designers probably wanted to honor the first game's minigame of button-mashing to survive torture.

trogdor

But that's a dumb security measure

Sooooo dumb

It means you can't put techs on that sub to maintain it and keep everything working until it does what you want

XD

But that being said

kviiri

MGS is a dumb series

trogdor

@kviiri yes

Miniman

Unless they swipe their access pass to switch it off while they walk down it? Or put on their hazard suit?

trogdor

I was going to say it in aore convoluted way but that works

kviiri

5:33 AM

Adorably dumb, but still, it makes very little sense in many places x) and Kojima kept retconning it all the time to make it even less and less sensible

trogdor

@Miniman but that's obviously not a thing because then Snake, or whoever it was, would steal that #_-$#$ immediately

kviiri

A metal box would work against the microwave corridor

trogdor

MGS is dumb

XD

kviiri

And Snake uses boxes all the time

trogdor

@kviiri thankfully I quit playing any of them way before I found out he was returned conning stuff

MGS is dumb

kviiri

5:34 AM

@trogdor But of course the bad guy's plan was for Snake to actually get through so IT MAKES SENSE for the security measure to be a bit daft x)

trogdor

@kviiri then why have it? Aaaasssasdggfhchggh

XD

Miniman

@trogdor If he was that smart, he would've gotten the robot to do it without him. Or at least to scout ahead.

trogdor

M.G.S I.S .D.U.M.B

I had a couple worker who was obsessed with making MGS make sense

kviiri

@trogdor Each installment of MGS makes more and more sense. Not more sense than the one preceding it, though, but definitely more sense than the one following it.

trogdor

It was basically torture having him around

@kviiri looooooooooooool

The first game almost made sense at all

Almost

It was definitely downhill from there

Honestly I almost wish I only knew MGS from awkward zombie

That would be great

kviiri

5:38 AM

MGS 3 is also remarkably sensible, to be honest. Although its sensibility has been retconned away.

trogdor

As is though I do only Know the newer games mostly by awkward zombie so it's fine

@kviiri which one is that? Is it snake eater?

kviiri

@trogdor yep

trogdor

Ok cool

I agree with you then

I don't know about the ret cons, I'll take your word for it on that

kviiri

Original version: A defecting US agent collaborating with a rogue Soviet Colonel causes a diplomatic incident which Snake has to defuse to prevent WWIII.

trogdor

It was definitely still silly but it also almost made sense

kviiri

5:41 AM

Post-retcon, it was all America's plan after all and there were spies everywhere to ensure Snake stayed on rails and completed the mission

trogdor

That is soooo dumb

Repeat after me kids

Mike Q

Speaking of ridiculous writing and over-the-top storytelling, I've been wondering if there's a good JoJo's TTRPG that's easy to pick up. A while ago I suggested using M&M3e because it has some potentially applicable mechanics, but the system (especially character creation) is too cumbersome.

trogdor

MGS is dumb

kviiri

@trogdor MGS is dumb!

trogdor

It is it is!

XD

kviiri

5:43 AM

Although I must admit, MGS made a lot more sense to me after I realized how much anime tropes it uses

trogdor

I'm glad I neglected to play most of those games ater the first one and Snake eater

kviiri

Not the plot, but "why is it like that".

trogdor

Lol

kviiri

@trogdor MGS V is actually a superb game, save for a few annoyances. The plot is still stupid of course.

trogdor

That's,... The newest one right?

The game play looks fine from what I have seen but

kviiri

5:45 AM

Well, there's Metal Gear Survive which I think is a bit different in terms of genre

trogdor

But that's like a spin off or something right?

kviiri

I guess, yuh

trogdor

I mean the newest like main title game I guess

kviiri

MGS V has some stupidities of its own, like forced multiplayer

trogdor

Huh?

Really?

I didn't even hear of that

Mike Q

5:49 AM

It's sort of an indirect multiplayer. IIRC you have a base, and other users can interact with it

kviiri

Yep, you have a Forward Operating Base (FOB) that you can upgrade with security and other players can raid it for resources

trogdor

Oh

X(

That R Dumb

kviiri

MGS V also has an obviously fanservicey sniper partner for Snake

trogdor

At the very least that should be optional

Oh quiet

Believe me I heard the nuclear fallout on that one

kviiri

@trogdor Okay

(just kidding) :)

trogdor

5:52 AM

Apparently she has an MGS is Dumb reason for the fanservice right?

Not that that was not a thing to expect in MGS

kviiri

@trogdor Yes! Kojima made a huge point about her fanservice being important and that once people understand why she's scantly clad, they'll be ashamed. ... turns out she breathes through her skin.

trogdor

One had fanservice character,... As did snake eater I think

Though don't remember nuclear levels of MGS is dumb to justify them ...... Not that that should Matter I guess?

kviiri

Sniper Wolf is about as fanservice as PS1 could produce :>

trogdor

MGS is dumb

Nuff said XD

@kviiri that was it

Has he heard of the thermian argument?

XD

@kviiri fair enough

kviiri

I was going to say MGS 4 doesn't have much fan service but ayayay... now I remembered the bosses of the game.

trogdor

5:55 AM

I think I mean Merle from either two or snake eater

kviiri

@trogdor What's that?

trogdor

Oh god now I have to find that

@BESW help me oh be one besw you are my only hope

XD

BESW

Minisode - The Thermian Argument

►

trogdor

I'll summarise it but the video on it is better

Oh there we go

Miniman

@kviiri That's not quite as dumb as it sounds - absorbing oxygen through your skin would prevent the noise and movement that regular breathing involves, both of which (especially the movement) are problems for snipers. Still pretty absurdly stupid, obviously.

trogdor

5:58 AM

TLDW it's the idea that it's still the authors fault if he made an in universe explanation for his stupid idea

Mike Q

"Quiet is scantily clad because she needs to breathe weird" should be flipped to "Quiet breathes weird because the designers wanted a reason for her to be scantily clad". I think that's the point, yes?

trogdor

The video is very good for explaining it though

BESW

Basically, the Thermian argument (named for the aliens in Galaxy Quest who don't understand fiction and think all TV shows are documentaries) is defending a criticism about how a piece of media interacts with the real world, with a justification that it makes sense within the media's fictional reality.

trogdor

@MikeQ that is a big chunk of it yeah

BESW

That is, defending a choice made by a creator, by treating the fiction as if it were not defined by creator choices.

kviiri

6:01 AM

@trogdor Ok, the concept was familiar to me. The explanation was superb though

@MikeQ Yep. And many fans called Kojima out for it, too, because assuming her condition to be the kind of "oh my, now I feel sorry for objectifying her!" momebt he ostensibly went for was quite the low point for his alleged genius touch for making good characters.

Should be noted that there are dozens of characters in the game who have the same condition as Quiet but who do wear combat suits.

BESW

(The Thermian Argument as a form of criticism/reviewership is also a significant subset of video reviews; see "everything wrong with" lists.)

trogdor

@kviiri Lol

BESW

@kviiri Sometimes I run into an online discussion about theory, criticism, media creation,etc., and I just want to set up a Clockwork Orange style viewing of Dan Olson's and Lindsay Ellis's video essays.

trogdor

6:27 AM

Lol

Kinky

Also horrible but kinky

If you're into wtv that would be called

John Carroll

Hey guys. Just want to throw out there, I just DM'ed my best session ever with TPK encounter.

These players rolled so much nat 20, it's not even funny

And to top it off, the fight ended with our fighter rolling with advantage on a shot into a cloud of darkness where our dragon enemy was hiding waiting for his breath weapon to recharge (black dragons are cowards). The roll for both d20's? Both nat 20's. I had to give him quad damage because that was too cool.

It ended up killing the dragon outright, ending the entire encounter, but that's a good note to go off on.

(so it ended up not being a TPK)

Mike Q

@JohnCarroll That's awesome! I'm glad the game ended in a way that you and yours players enjoyed.

John Carroll

6:43 AM

It ended up being so good with multiple clutch moments. I had the sunsoul monk transported into the Ethereal Plane to fight a shadow monk for a chance to ascend and get game-changing abilities mid-fight. The shadow monk took him down to 1 hp with a nat 20. My player responded with a nat 20 of his own and destroyed the opponent. This session was stupidly lucky.

BESW

Grats!

John Carroll

This level 5 party ended up fighting 11 monsters each at ~CR 3 over the course of 4 hours in one encounter. They halted the god from summoning more and somehow survived the ones that had already been summoned. Truly impressive. They felt it too. The session ended 3 hours ago. Still coming off of the high.

trogdor

7:00 AM

Nice

Mike Q

8:44 AM

@BESW I'm considering switching to Fate for my upcoming games, based on doppelgreener's recommendation from a while ago. But I'm accustomed from DMing more rigid systems like D&D. Do you have suggestions on how to adapt to Fate's style?

It seems to have a very different approach in terms of the DM's and players' roles and how the narrative and gameplay are structured

(This is an open question to anyone experienced with the Fate system)

BESW

Hmm.

Some relephant posts...

38

Q: How do I introduce an inexperienced player to the FATE combat system?

One of the things that I love about the FATE system is how flexible it is; even given the less than crunchy nature of the system, you have options galore. That's given one of my players analysis paralysis: in combat, she can't really function all that effectively and it's not satisfying to her c...

dresden-files fate

35

Q: How Fate games could go wrong and how to prevent that

I'm introducing a few of my friends to the Fate system, and we're using Fate Accelerated for a quick start. Reading answers for some questions on this site I found an interesting paragraph: One of the biggest, IMO, difficulties for traditional players is the proactive creativity that Fate bol...

fate fate-core fate-accelerated

Mike Q

I suppose I'm asking from more of a newbie Fate DM perspective. Based on the srd it seems the players have much more storytelling power in shaping the plot itself

BESW

Yeah, it's definitely got that option.

Groups can scale it back however much they want, but I really like the collaborative play element. [ponders]

Some rules of thumb I've found to be helpful:

- The only scene you have full control over is the opening of the session. If there's something you think "this MUST happen," have it happen first.

Mike Q

(Contrast it to systems where player agency extends to their character's decisions and abilities to resolve challenges; the DM has all the notes and set-pieces, controls the NPCs and world, and communicates the narrative to the players)

BESW

- Ask questions. Open communication channels with the players by asking them for input directly.

This, for me, stems from Fate's principle that you never invoke the randomization mechanic unless you can imagine something interesting happening no matter what outcome it gives you.

So if it seems like the players want to roll the dice and I can't think of interesting outcomes, I ask them what they imagine happening!

If you don't know why a player's doing something, ask 'em.

If you can't choose between two things, tell the players and ask for their input.

Mike Q

8:58 AM

Basically, the DM is expected to be more democratic and less dictatorial?

BESW

I like using Lady Blackbird's "leading questions" principle, too.

Yup.

As for players' ability to directly, mechanically influence play: Fate points and the Create Advantage action are the tools there and they're awesome.

Because you CAN play that Fate points and CA are limited to character agency but really that's boring.

Mike Q

The main appeal, for now, is the separation from character agency and character ability

Looks like the "things do what the mechanics say they do and nothing more" rule doesn't apply in Fate?

As in, I'm hoping for a "things do what they say they do, plus anything that can be justified by a creative explanation" standard

Unless I'm misunderstanding how aspects and actions and fate points work

BESW

Sorry, I'm making dinner and stuff.

> The Golden Rule of Fate: Decide what you’re trying to accomplish first, then consult the rules to help you do it.

> The Silver Rule of Fate: Never let the rules get in the way of what makes narrative sense.

Mike Q

No worries... My goal is to move away from systems where players have a fixed toolset, develop strategy, and react to challenges, and move to a system where players are given a general direction and fill in the rest with creativity

BESW

> The Bronze Rule of Fate: In Fate, you can treat anything in the game world like it’s a character. Anything can have aspects, skills, stunts, stress tracks, and consequences if you need it to.

Mike Q

9:10 AM

How easy is it to introduce external/homebrew subsystems into Fate's architecture

BESW

Super easy. Check out the toolkit!

Mike Q

I'm not seeing too many built-in dice mechanics that use uniform distributions

Seems mostly gaussian/normal per the -1,0,+1 dice

If I introduced a new mechanic that uses uniform distributions, would that break things, or be too incongruous with what the system is trying to achieve?

BESW

I'd ask myself why I wanted to do that.

Mike Q

Let's say randomized character attributes in character generation, e.g. appearance, accessories, personality quirks

BESW

The fudge dice curve has distinct effects on gameplay: because unmodified outcomes drift toward zero, there's less fear of failing at things you're not good at, and even one invoke is a significant advantage.

It shouldn't break things to do that in chargen, no. Though... [rummages]

Mike Q

9:19 AM

So if the subsystems/mechanics are used frequently, they should stick to the drift-toward-zero model?

BESW

Not necessary, but it's more elegant.

The fudge dice curve should be used for resolving the outcomes of significant/interesting choices during gameplay. Character generation is kinda different, I guess.

Mike Q

Alright, I'll keep looking into this. Thanks for the initial suggestions.

BESW

9:39 AM

I suggest that, if possible, you start out using a pre-made setting like one of the Worlds of Adventure for Fate

Helwar

10:46 AM

iep, sorry to interrupt with offtopic, again. May I use this chat as an echo chamber? I have a question on StackOverflow that has no answers. I have offered a bounty on it, so maybe some of you know about the issue and can get those tasty internet points, or know someone who can help and wants to eat the sweet and moist internet points

0

Q: Custom resolution on Raspberry Pi

I have never used a raspberry before, and I am having trouble configuring it. I've been searching for an answer to my problem but I have had no success in finding it. Maybe the answer is there but I have not been able to understand it, which is possible. I have a Raspberry Pi 3 that outputs on a...

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