Author Topic: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.  (Read 170344 times)

Offline Libertad

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 3618
    • View Profile
    • My Fantasy and Gaming Blog
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #320 on: July 04, 2014, 01:20:27 AM »
Pretty miffed that a guy who made a name for himself online as a conspiratorial reactionary and Edition Warrior* is credited with consultation in D&D Next's credits.  Even more so alongside the names of folk like Robin Laws and Jeff Grubb.

* Archive Link
« Last Edit: July 04, 2014, 08:30:08 PM by Libertad »

Offline bhu

  • Uncle Kittie
  • DnD Handbook Writer
  • ****
  • Posts: 16306
  • Fnord bitches
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #321 on: July 04, 2014, 02:25:23 AM »
Nothing I've seen about 5e so far makes me feel good...

Offline Amechra

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 4560
  • Thread Necromancy a specialty
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #322 on: July 04, 2014, 03:22:17 PM »
I'll probably still pick up a copy. If only out of morbid curiosity.
"There is happiness for those who accept their fate, there is glory for those that defy it."

"Now that everyone's so happy, this is probably a good time to tell you I ate your parents."

Offline Libertad

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 3618
    • View Profile
    • My Fantasy and Gaming Blog
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #323 on: July 04, 2014, 09:37:55 PM »
I'll probably still pick up a copy. If only out of morbid curiosity.

It's all the more bizarre with that inclusion in the character sex section.  Pundit and a significant portion of his forum are extremely transphobic (among other things).  It's like a company going out of their way to be gay-friendly, only to mention that they received regular advice from the American Family Association.

The most charitable reading of Wizards I could take away from this is an attempt at a "death by negative publicity" campaign on him for all the grief he gave 4th Edition.  Heaven knows he's said enough bullshit over the years to be unearthed by a casual Google search.
« Last Edit: July 04, 2014, 09:52:24 PM by Libertad »

Offline Kuroimaken

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 5348
  • No obstacle too great for the FLAMES IN MY HEART!!
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #324 on: July 04, 2014, 11:03:06 PM »
To what exactly do you refer, Libertad?
Kami darou ga akuma darou ga, ore no michi ni tateru mono NASHI!!

Give me internets. Now.

Offline Libertad

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 3618
    • View Profile
    • My Fantasy and Gaming Blog
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #325 on: July 04, 2014, 11:57:33 PM »
To what exactly do you refer, Libertad?

RPGPundit is basically the Rush Limbaugh or John Birch Society of the Dungeons & Dragons fandom.  A large portion of his online presence, and his fanbase, is dedicated to setting himself up as a staunch defender of tabletop gaming from some sinister outside threat.  In 2004-2005 it was Green Ronin and their gay-friendly "socialist, feminist propaganda" of the Blue Rose setting.  After that it was White Wolf and "Story Games" which promoted narrativist, plot-driven RPGs, who aren't "real RPGs" and whose designers apparently want to destroy the industry from the inside out by shoving D&D to the sidelines.  Today, his choice of target are "liberals and feminists and Social Justice Warriors in the industry," which tends to translate to "people who get too concerned about players and game designers acting creepy and regressive in the fandom."

RPG.net, in wake of moderator decisions to stamp out negative aspects of bigotry, Edition Warring, and other bad stuff from their site, is a favored target.  RPG.net, while still bad at times, has seen remarkable improvement in the treatment of its women and LGBT members.  A lot of people who end up permabanned over the years migrated to the RPG Site which set itself up as a "free speech haven."  Not in the proper sense of not being jailed by the government for saying stuff, but in the sense of "you can stay stupid and bigoted shit here.  Instead of being banned, we'll shout at you for being stupid."

This has had mixed success, as people who nevertheless have terrible worldviews or trolls come there anyway, and groups which aren't well-liked or understood (trans* people, for example) can be vilified with little repercussion from the community itself or get supported by about half the people there.  It's one of the reasons why I stopped posting over there, when I found that it was too hard to avoid all the odious views.


A few things RPG Pundit has done over the years includes:

Leading a personal vendetta against the creator of Dungeon World for adopting old school D&D tropes but basing the mechanics off of Apocalypse World, a story-game.

Continually freak out at Green Ronin for 2 years for their "socialist" Blue Rose setting and taking credit when they made the True20 system.

Claiming that 4th Edition was an attempt by the "Story-Gaming Swine" trying, once again, to destroy D&D.

Oh, and comparing Monte Cook to a Nazi and saying that his vocal chords should be severed while he was a "paid consultant" for D&D Next, like in the link in my last post.  Which unfortunately, looks true regarding the whole consultant thing.


So basically, he's a toxic odious troll.  But one with legitimacy in the industry, even before the Next shout-out.  Publishers advertise on his website, he has a significant following in OSR circles, and he's published several RPGs of his own.  It would be easy enough to ignore him, if I didn't keep seeing him thanked in retro-clones or mentioned positively in old school communities, or keep hearing about how his fanbase keeps giving no small amount of grief to several of my online acquaintances and friends who I like and respect (several of whom are transgender), again and again and again.  Some of whom did nothing more but tell others "you know, referring to trans* people as depraved freaks is fucked up," or "I'm uncomfortable with all these posters defending the insertion of rape into gaming sessions."
« Last Edit: July 05, 2014, 12:07:42 AM by Libertad »

Offline Kuroimaken

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 5348
  • No obstacle too great for the FLAMES IN MY HEART!!
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #326 on: July 05, 2014, 01:34:47 AM »
I must admit I do not have a personal stake on such a subject, though I have seen incredibly mangled attempts at so-called "improvement" of the trans and LGBT communities representations in a number of media in recent years, which has left me more than a little jaded and biased about the subject. I sometimes feel the perceived need for approaching the subject is bigger than the actual need. That sometimes the subject feels tacked on where it doesn't belong.

With that said, I admit I'm biased on the subject since, as I mentioned before, I don't have a personal stake in it.

Strictly speaking, my motto where RPGs are concerned is "if you're not having fun you're doing something wrong". With that said, one should not impose his or her concept of "fun" upon others. Like any other concept, really.

It's not unusual for some bigots to show some form of charisma, especially in an age that polarizes discussions so much. When people are less willing to accept the possibility of a middle-ground, those who pretend to have some form of tolerance and understanding towards a different way of thinking (provided that way of thinking is similar to their own) are usually hailed. Real tolerance is difficult to exercise, so they try hard to keep up appearances, which isn't difficult when you're working with people who agree with you in the first place.

As far as "Social Justice Warriors" go, I've met my share. Some were sensible, some were not, and the latter kind tends to draw a lot more attention than the former kind. So it's not hard to see how the guy gets his following.

Are any of the books he's written any good at least? You can be a horrible person and yet somehow produce good work. Just ask Tom Cruise.
Kami darou ga akuma darou ga, ore no michi ni tateru mono NASHI!!

Give me internets. Now.

Offline Solo

  • DnD Handbook Writer
  • ****
  • Posts: 1778
  • Sorcelator Supreme
    • View Profile
    • Solo's Compiled Works
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #327 on: July 05, 2014, 05:37:09 AM »
Are any of the books he's written any good at least? You can be a horrible person and yet somehow produce good work. Just ask Tom Cruise.
I think you would have had more luck using Mao Ze Dong as your example.
"I am the Black Mage! I cast the spells that makes the peoples fall down."

Offline Kuroimaken

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 5348
  • No obstacle too great for the FLAMES IN MY HEART!!
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #328 on: July 05, 2014, 09:38:05 AM »
I suppose.
Kami darou ga akuma darou ga, ore no michi ni tateru mono NASHI!!

Give me internets. Now.

Offline awaken_D_M_golem

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 7639
  • classique style , invisible tail
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #329 on: July 05, 2014, 03:14:07 PM »
I vaguely recall in 2e Planescape, a Pit Fiend that was "male" for a while and then "female" for a while ; and in both cases, Pit Fiends don't have any need or reason for gender, it was just fiddling with Human definitions.  I read that as a rather naive youngster, and go:  Of course,duh.  Pit Fiends ~descend(?) from Ice Devils that have been tortured for like ~1000 years, in a similar fashion to Butterfly pupa/larva wtf stage.  And they have Wish.

Heck, Geryon might be a Pit Fiend / Green Dragon cross with something important going really really wrong ; or perhaps Tiamat got drunk one night and had her way with a minor Demon Lord (who probably deserved it ... whatever that It was).  Can you imagine the pick-up lines involved in those ??
Your codpiece is a mimic.

Offline Solo

  • DnD Handbook Writer
  • ****
  • Posts: 1778
  • Sorcelator Supreme
    • View Profile
    • Solo's Compiled Works
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #330 on: July 05, 2014, 03:15:39 PM »
"Wanna check it out, baby? Its dragonwrought."
"I am the Black Mage! I cast the spells that makes the peoples fall down."

Offline Captnq

  • DnD Handbook Writer
  • ****
  • Posts: 1602
  • Haters gonna hate. Dragons gonna drag.
    • View Profile
    • Ask the Captain
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #331 on: July 06, 2014, 11:50:45 PM »
So I got banned from GitP. I assume I offended someone. Turns out if you complain about someone the complaint is always right and you never get a chance to defend yourself.

Oddly enough, I really don't find myself that upset about it. I think I should be, but I'm not. I mean, I am blunt and direct and I never lie, which is bound to offend people. But for every person I offend I find an equal number of people who agree with me and actually give me high praise. I'm certain that I never lied or directly insulted anyone. I know I follow the rules as written by the forum, but they seem to be rather subjective and enforced at the whim of whatever moderator you offend. However, I can't seem to bring myself enough to care.

It's that lack of caring that's bothering me. Shouldn't I be offended? I mean, am I just giving up? I just don't know. I am just being arrogant in saying to myself, "Meh. Their loss." Honestly, the place is far more of a time waster then I would like. I almost never get anything useful out of there anymore. I think I've data mined the place for all it's worth.

Am I bitching? Guess I am. Maybe I'm just too prideful. I guess that's it.

Am I too prideful/arrogant? What animal isn't fascinated with a mirror? Please, I welcome honest character assessments. I'm always willing to re-evaluate my position on anything and I guess this gives me cause to wonder if the problem is them or me. They say it's me. I disagree.

I would give specific examples, except I can't, since I have no idea what I was banned over.

And if it is me, perhaps I should work hard to change how I act here. I will admit, I find GitP to be an annoying place. If I want answers to questions or problems solved, this is by far the better site to go to. I keep finding people over there asking annoying questions and get sucked into conversations.

Maybe this is for the best. I have been wasting far too much time screwing around when I could be getting work done.
If you have questions about 3.5 D&D, you might want to look at the:
Encyclopedia Vinculum Draconis

Currently: Podcasting

Offline Kuroimaken

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 5348
  • No obstacle too great for the FLAMES IN MY HEART!!
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #332 on: July 07, 2014, 12:05:02 AM »
The arbitrary nature of the mods in GitP is legendary. So it should come as no real surprise that when you got the boot, you are feeling the way you do, because you know that your banishment has less to do with what you did and more to do with what they perceive you did.

By being arbitrarily strict they're basically writing a permission slip saying it's not really your fault you got kicked out.

The only reason I'm even involved with GitP anymore is a freeform game I participate in there, so.
Kami darou ga akuma darou ga, ore no michi ni tateru mono NASHI!!

Give me internets. Now.

Offline Kuroimaken

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 5348
  • No obstacle too great for the FLAMES IN MY HEART!!
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #333 on: July 08, 2014, 07:24:17 PM »
I am torn between offering a shoulder in support to my friends who are genuinely sad that Brazil lost 7 x 1 to Germany earlier this evening and laughing my ass off at the various memes posted on the internet right now.
Kami darou ga akuma darou ga, ore no michi ni tateru mono NASHI!!

Give me internets. Now.

Offline Stratovarius

  • Forum Host
  • Administrator
  • *****
  • Posts: 7691
  • Arhosan Emperor
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #334 on: July 08, 2014, 07:26:21 PM »
I am torn between offering a shoulder in support to my friends who are genuinely sad that Brazil lost 7 x 1 to Germany earlier this evening and laughing my ass off at the various memes posted on the internet right now.

Start laughing  :smirk

Offline Raineh Daze

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 10577
  • hi
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #335 on: July 08, 2014, 07:29:35 PM »
Do both!

Offline Amechra

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 4560
  • Thread Necromancy a specialty
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #336 on: July 08, 2014, 08:34:22 PM »
To what exactly do you refer, Libertad?

RPGPundit is basically the Rush Limbaugh or John Birch Society of the Dungeons & Dragons fandom.  A large portion of his online presence, and his fanbase, is dedicated to setting himself up as a staunch defender of tabletop gaming from some sinister outside threat.  In 2004-2005 it was Green Ronin and their gay-friendly "socialist, feminist propaganda" of the Blue Rose setting.  After that it was White Wolf and "Story Games" which promoted narrativist, plot-driven RPGs, who aren't "real RPGs" and whose designers apparently want to destroy the industry from the inside out by shoving D&D to the sidelines.  Today, his choice of target are "liberals and feminists and Social Justice Warriors in the industry," which tends to translate to "people who get too concerned about players and game designers acting creepy and regressive in the fandom."

RPG.net, in wake of moderator decisions to stamp out negative aspects of bigotry, Edition Warring, and other bad stuff from their site, is a favored target.  RPG.net, while still bad at times, has seen remarkable improvement in the treatment of its women and LGBT members.  A lot of people who end up permabanned over the years migrated to the RPG Site which set itself up as a "free speech haven."  Not in the proper sense of not being jailed by the government for saying stuff, but in the sense of "you can stay stupid and bigoted shit here.  Instead of being banned, we'll shout at you for being stupid."

This has had mixed success, as people who nevertheless have terrible worldviews or trolls come there anyway, and groups which aren't well-liked or understood (trans* people, for example) can be vilified with little repercussion from the community itself or get supported by about half the people there.  It's one of the reasons why I stopped posting over there, when I found that it was too hard to avoid all the odious views.


A few things RPG Pundit has done over the years includes:

Leading a personal vendetta against the creator of Dungeon World for adopting old school D&D tropes but basing the mechanics off of Apocalypse World, a story-game.

Continually freak out at Green Ronin for 2 years for their "socialist" Blue Rose setting and taking credit when they made the True20 system.

Claiming that 4th Edition was an attempt by the "Story-Gaming Swine" trying, once again, to destroy D&D.

Oh, and comparing Monte Cook to a Nazi and saying that his vocal chords should be severed while he was a "paid consultant" for D&D Next, like in the link in my last post.  Which unfortunately, looks true regarding the whole consultant thing.


So basically, he's a toxic odious troll.  But one with legitimacy in the industry, even before the Next shout-out.  Publishers advertise on his website, he has a significant following in OSR circles, and he's published several RPGs of his own.  It would be easy enough to ignore him, if I didn't keep seeing him thanked in retro-clones or mentioned positively in old school communities, or keep hearing about how his fanbase keeps giving no small amount of grief to several of my online acquaintances and friends who I like and respect (several of whom are transgender), again and again and again.  Some of whom did nothing more but tell others "you know, referring to trans* people as depraved freaks is fucked up," or "I'm uncomfortable with all these posters defending the insertion of rape into gaming sessions."

I'm amazed he hasn't gone into a bloody froth over this:



Baby steps, WotC, baby steps!

(That's a sidebar in the latest quickstart 5e stuff.)
"There is happiness for those who accept their fate, there is glory for those that defy it."

"Now that everyone's so happy, this is probably a good time to tell you I ate your parents."

Offline Raineh Daze

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 10577
  • hi
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #337 on: July 08, 2014, 08:52:17 PM »


Baby steps, WotC, baby steps!

(That's a sidebar in the latest quickstart 5e stuff.)

I'm not sure I'd call it a sidebar. It's kind of the main block of text.

I find it hilarious that they mentioned elves can be androgynous. And the sky can be blue, the sun bright, and humans EVERYWHERE like some sort of sapient rabbit.

Offline SolEiji

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 3045
  • I am 120% Eiji.
    • View Profile
    • D&D Wiki.org, not .com
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #338 on: July 08, 2014, 08:57:56 PM »


Baby steps, WotC, baby steps!

(That's a sidebar in the latest quickstart 5e stuff.)

I'm not sure I'd call it a sidebar. It's kind of the main block of text.

I find it hilarious that they mentioned elves can be androgynous. And the sky can be blue, the sun bright, and humans EVERYWHERE like some sort of sapient rabbit.

Is it bad that I'm far more shocked that "bearded dwarven ladies" is confirmed?  The long battle has ended, the bearders have claimed victory.  :O
Mudada.

Offline Raineh Daze

  • Epic Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 10577
  • hi
    • View Profile
Re: The Small Rants Thread VIII: Now more bitchin' than ever.
« Reply #339 on: July 08, 2014, 09:01:55 PM »


Baby steps, WotC, baby steps!

(That's a sidebar in the latest quickstart 5e stuff.)

I'm not sure I'd call it a sidebar. It's kind of the main block of text.

I find it hilarious that they mentioned elves can be androgynous. And the sky can be blue, the sun bright, and humans EVERYWHERE like some sort of sapient rabbit.

Is it bad that I'm far more shocked that "bearded dwarven ladies" is confirmed?  The long battle has ended, the bearders have claimed victory.  :O

Incorrect, by specifying 'bearded dwarven lady' rather than just 'dwarven lady' it means that bearded dwarven ladies aren't a necessity. :P