Dintiradan

Heh, I picked up the Companion a couple of days ago, so I'm good. And don't get me wrong, all the playsets looks like they have oodles of potential. It's just that I haven't actually played a game yet, so I'm fine with doing something straightforward and saving bells and whistles, even minor ones, for another day. Just me being my usual risk-adverse self... which is probably a bad thing to be when playing an improv-heavy RPG. And again, this is a mild preference, so if my gang wants to do something differnt, I'm game.

Filled in the calendar, but I can make one of my own if need be. I'm basically available Mondays - Thursdays and Saturdays. As for playset: It's funny, because my reaction when reading The Ice was "wow, this looks extra restrictive and hard to pull off." I misread the poll when I first filled it out, assuming I had to check the options I was willing to play, rather than wanted to play (and thus dutifully selected every option). Tried to delete my vote, but it didn't seem to work. Most of the playsets from the companion recommend using extra elements like the alternate tilt/aftermath tables or stunt dice. Obviously not a requirement to use these elements, but my weak preference is to play one of the other three playsets from the first book, at least for our first game.

The analogy that springs to my mind is music. There are many genres of music that are rejections of the mainstream melodies of the time, or perhaps meant to make you think about what music or melody really is. Free jazz, punk, John Cage's experimentations, what have you. But that's different from saying that melody cannot exist.

I'm in, obviously. As for AIM alternatives, I was going to recommend AIM Express, but apparently AOL discontinued it earlier this year. You can still chat one-on-one in-browser at mail.aol.com, but I dunno if you can use chatrooms. AIM, Skype, and Ligrev are all options. We'll be losing people no matter what option we go with, but the benefit of having multiple groups is that different groups can use different software.

I read it as "I am only probably the strongest vahnatai mage of all." As in "I can't say for sure that I'm the biggest and the baddest, I am only most likely the biggest and the baddest."

@Duck: Fiasco can definitely be played with Google Docs plus chat plus a dice roller. I just wanted to have something that would streamline play a bit (keep track of each player's dice, etc.). Setting up a custom Google Docs template would probably be enough. Something like Spyfall would be a better example for what I had in mind. It's one of the simplest games imaginable, but unlike playing face to face it would be impossible to play online without having someone sit out each round to PM everyone the cards. A more ambitious example would be me wanting to write a Dixit variant that pulls pictures from Flickr or whatever. @BJ: At this point, AIMhack is a generic trademark.

As a card-carrying member of My Meatspace Friends Don't Play RPGs Anymore, I feel your pain. I actually bought the rulebooks for Fiasco and Microscope a while back, with the intention of starting monthly-ish game nights here. But I also wanted to set up some web services to streamline play, which is why nothing has come of that plan (yet). You'd still be able to play those sorts of games on chat/Google Docs/wiki/whatever, it would just be a bit messier. Adding voice chat with Mumble or Skype or whatever would add a different dynamic to games. Not necessarily better or worse, just different. I've thought about throwing in voice chat the next time we play something like The Resistance.

Guess what we forgot to do this July? This thing! Again! And not only do I have this year's results, I also have all my results ever graphed here, so you can more easily witness my descent into madness! Was writing this a productive use of my time? Will anyone here enjoy me bumping a year old topic? Will I end a single sentence in this post with a period? The answer to all three of these questions are a convenient "No!"

I should finish that scenario one of these days...

Regarding the interview itself: my reading of the "glyphs on the screen" comment was less "these things are harmless" and more "there's nothing you or I can do about these things, so you better develop a thicker hide if you want to survive". Remember that Dear Leader might very well be the most pessimistic person ever to walk this earth. Regarding the harassment discussion: There's a large divide of opinions regarding free speech vs. anti-harassment on the Internet at large, but once you just look at the opinions of content creators themselves, I find there's a clear consensus. And if I had to craft a policy to support one group, they would be the one I'd choose. I get a lot of the arguments that have been posted. That in order to protect free speech, you have to include speech you don't like. That anti-harassment policies are hard to craft and harder to implement. Maybe the only realistic thing to do is to view the entire situation as inevitable, grow a thicker skin, and move on. Glyphs on a screen. But just because "harmless and sometimes fun" facetious death threats are an ingrained part of Internet culture does not mean I have to accept them, or defend them. I don't accept or defend them over any other means of communication; I don't see why an exception for the Internet needs to be made.

Ooh, look at Jerakeen and her fancy-pants name for kay-dee. (Try substituting ketchup with salsa sometime. In fact, using salsa instead of ketchup is pretty much a strict upgrade. Never make meatloaf with boring ketchup again.) (Some friends recommended having KD with seasoning salt. Your mileage may vary.) (This has been a gourmet edition of Fod with Dintiradan.)

So when can we call you Doctor Aloraelicus?

Indeed. I start each day with a prayer of gratitude for Adolf Hitler. Without him, there would have been no post-WW2 emigration, my parents would never have met, and I wouldn't exist! And why stop at a death toll of fifty to eighty million? Think about how many people would owe their existence to us if we started World War Three!

Update: I've succeeded with my first life goal, but failed miserably with the second. On the other hand, the leftover broccoli salad I had instead was delicious. I'd offer you some, but, well, I ate it all.

I was going to make a post earlier, but then Slarty popped up and stole most of my points. I'm going to post anyway, just to spite him. The goal of an argument is to convince other people to accept your point of view (or occasionally to be convinced of the point of view of other people). As such, it's in your best interest to make yourself understood. There is no universal, definitive, unbiased vocabulary to use. Issues with dictionaries aside, words will have multiples connotations depending on the audience. Instead, you've got to make do with the intersection of your vocabulary and your audience's vocabulary, and clarify things whenever something might be unclear. Protip: race is one of those topics where you'll need to do a lot of clarification. For what it's worth, I'm on board with using 'racism' to refer to systemic oppression on the basis of race, and using a word like 'prejudice' to refer to other aspects of racial bias. But like Nalyd and Slarty are saying, this isn't universal usage, and it probably isn't even the usage of the majority. Using shorthand within a community with shared definitions is fine, but (re)defining terminology during an argument will just make you come across as moving the goalposts or reframing the narrative. I don't think you lose anything by using unambiguous terms from the get-go. In fact, I'll go one step further. I think it's worth knowing when to use certain shibboleths and when to avoid them. Knowing which dogwhistles might come up, and being aware when you are using them yourself. For instance, some people will instinctively reject what you're saying if you use a term like 'patriarchy', but in my (very limited) experience I've had better luck describing the concept without using the term, talking about 'pressures' and 'expectations'. That way, you circumvent bringing up the concept of that shadowy cabal of sinister men that those crazy feminists believe in. On the other hand, using shorthand when you're amongst feminists is totally fine. (I suppose there's a good argument to be made for collectively trying to change language so that it better addresses things that are ignored or poorly described. I try make an effort to learn whatever local 'dialects' pop up, but I'm not sure it's worth it introducing controversial terminology within the scope of a single argument.) Making a post about clarity in arguments at this hour was probably a mistake.

Make a post in the racism topic. Eat an apple.

Wow, dunno how I missed that link. Sorry. Calender filled out, and yes, the 3rd works for me.

How did it come to this? After a decade of rule, my father passed away. And thus I, the king of Lotharinga and Greece, inherited his kingdom of Frisia, and was elected Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. I granted the crown of Greece to my firstborn son Diederik (and shortly afterwards, the crown of Lotharinga to his half-brother Niclaes), and began my rule. And the empire itself is strong. My father extended our borders during his reign, and I've made a few conquests of my own during the several years I've held the throne. Yes, the empire is secure... but my family's place in it is not. I have dutifully done what the realm required of me, siring eight children between the four wives I've had (my current wife is one of the few remaining Christian rulers in Abyssinia, the previous three have passed away -- my second was executed by my grandfather, for she was an infidel who plotted my death, don't ask). But despite all my marriages, I have always desired something... different. For years I resisted these shameful urges, but eventually my resolve broke, and I began a twice-damned affair. For a while I tried to convince myself that this was like any other dalliance that any other ruler would have, and that I did not care if my wife discovered it. But the guilt of my actions has been slowly overwhelming me. In my youth I had a reputation for renewed piety after my second wife's execution, even becoming known as Diederik the Apostle, and I deluded myself into believing that I could stand resolute against all temptation. But I now know the truth: I am irredeemable. My unnatural urges have not escaped the notice of my court. Nor have rumours of my involvement in certain deaths outside the realm. I confess, they are true; I have ordered the deaths of men when their deaths would be convenient. All in service to the realm, but my hands are bloody nonetheless. And so my actions have not only damned myself but also doomed my sons, for the electors in my empire have made it clear that upon my death, they would bestow the crown upon another. A count, but no mere count: a Salian, the son of Theodorich who ruled as Kaiser for but a few short weeks before surrendering the crown to my grandfather. I don't doubt the resourcefulness of my sons, nor the allegiance of the many vassal kings who now share our blood. But I would prefer a peaceful transition, like the ones my father and I had. But what could possibly win the favour of my electors after all I have d- Wait. Yes... this could work. A crusade to restore the Pisans, now part of the empire, to the Holy Land? It might be enough to not only win back the trust of my electors, but also win back my immortal soul. -------------------- Yes, I am aware of that humourous bug in that one pop-up. Another neat event from my previous character's rule that I couldn't work into the narrative of the post: Someone from my dynasty inherited the Duchy of Lancaster (and remained part of my empire, because he was also a duke in North Africa). I then pressed his claim to the throne of England... and the king at the time was also the Duke of York. Course, he's since lost the throne, and the current king is fighting five dukes who are all pressing their claims to the throne. Such is life in Crusader Kings 2.

You don't get in-depth charop threads for BoA like you do for other games because instead of one long game being made by one person, it's a collection of many small scenarios all made by different people, and each designer will favour different styles of play. I can think of a few threads where people talked about character builds, like Imban's Avatar and Pariah, or Ephesos's Never Say Die, or Ash Lael making a sling-only party. But those were less "this is how you make the best possible BoA party" and more "I'm going to try something non-conventional and see if it works." My typical party is a Nephil archer with some melee, a Slith pole fighter who went for melee and the Blademaster skill chain at higher levels, a Human priest, and a Human mage. But I play parties like that not because they're the most powerful, but because they let me interact with any given scenario. I'm able to use any magic weapon the scenario has, pick up any new spells, trigger events that only happen if you have a specific race in the party. Besides, playing fully optimized parties isn't necessarily what you want to do when you're testing combat balance, and most of my recent plays have been for beta testing. The only concession I've made for optimization recently is giving my priest a few points in mage and my mage a few points in priest. It just seems to make more sense to pump both magic skills rather than one and intelligence. I know a few players give every character in the party points in priest, which would probably help a lot.

I have given my promise, pledge, and guarantee to be the protector and defender of the holy Roman Church, and the Pope himself has placed the imperial crown upon my head. Now, I, Diederik Flamens, continue my father's work as elected ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. Perhaps I should start at the beginning. Around the time Harald Hardrada's and William the Bastard's ill-fated invasions of England, my great grandfather Diederik was ruler of but one county, Gelre. But he dreamed of being more than merely an inconsequential count under the Duke of Lower Lorraine. He wanted to strengthen his family's position, to rule a duchy of his own, perhaps even to reclaim the lands held by the Frisians before Frankish domination. The Flamens dynasty is of modest size today, but back then it was relatively weak. Still, my great grandfather had a couple allies he could depend on: his uncle Willem was Prince-Bishop of Sticht, and his cousin (once removed) Rutger was Count of Kleves. He was shortly able to install his nephew Gerard as Prince-Bishop of Koeln. Then, unfortunately for Count Rutger but fortunately for my great grandfather, Rutger's line died out, and the county of Kleves passed to him. Now, I must point out that there is absolutely no reason to believe that my great grandfather was involved in the deaths of Rutger's son and granddaughter. As for the infamous rumour that my great grandfather had Rutger's grandson smothered in the cradle, well, I assure that is nothing more than historical revisionism engineered by one of my family's many envious rivals. After the county of Friesland was seized, my great grandfather decided it was time to free himself from the yoke of his liege duke. Kaiser Heinrich, his focus on dealing with the traitorous faction lead by Matilda of Tuscany, was unwilling to have strife between his vassals, and so he granted the Duchy of Gelre to my great grandfather. My great grandfather's dream of claiming a duchy and securing his family's place on this earth had been achieved, and about a year after being made duke the Lord called him up to heavenly glory. He was succeeded by his son Gozewijn. My grandfather was a master of intrigue, one who recognized how the family's position could be advanced through marriage (in the present day, about a third of England is controlled by dukes and duchesses of my line, thanks to the marriages he arranged). He himself had married Princess Maria of Hungary. His cunning was recognized by Kaiser Heinrich, and he was employed as his spymaster. A position of great importance and power, to be sure, but it was also his downfall. My grandfather was murdered while investigating one of the kaiser's treasonous vassals, a mere five years into his rule as duke. And so my father, Diederik, came into power. He became known as "the Noble" later on, but even upon his ascent he would have deserved the epithet (once again, I must point out that the rumours of my father murdering my uncle Gozewijn, who had inherited the County of Kleves, are completely unfounded). The first portion of my father's reign was personal conquest. Taking territory controlled by the Duke of Lower Lorraine, our former masters, seizing control of the Duchy of Holland, reclaiming counties that had broken away from France. All with the eventual goal of uniting all our Dutch brethren under one Dutch ruler. Then finally the day came when my father announced he would be serving the kaiser not as a mere duke, but as a king. A king of Frisia, united once again, but this time as part of Christendom and under the Holy Roman Empire. Relations between my father and Kaiser Heinrich were good. My father served on the council as spymaster, like his father before him, and had even married my sister Maria to the Kaiser's son, Theodorich. But Theodorich was not the man Heinrich was, and when Heinrich finally passed away, my father requested that he be made Emperor instead, for the good of the Empire. Theodorich, unable to consolidate power so quickly after his father's death, acquiesced. And so my father became Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. One of his first acts as Emperor was to press his claim as King of Hungary, as he was the grandson of a Hungarian king. And so that proud nation was incorporated under the empire. More kingdoms would be added in the same way during his reign: Poland, Norway, Sicily, Aquitaine, France, Aragon, Navarra, Portugal, Leon. But the most famous conquest during my father's reign would of course be the Crusade for Greece. Greece had been the centre of the once great Byzantine Empire, but over time the infidel Turks had chipped away at their holdings, until eventually they conquered all of Greece. But it was not the will of God for Constantinople to be ruled by the Mahometans. The Pope in his wisdom called for a crusade, and my father answered. Dealing with his burgeoning empire was trying for my father. He dealt with his workload by entrusting me with the kingdoms of Hungary and Greece, as well as a recreated Bavaria. Eventually, he also recreated the kingdom of Lotharinga and entrusted it to my son, Diederik. A division of duty was necessary: even aside from my father's conquests, he had to deal with disloyal vassals. Most disliked an upstart dynasty from seizing control of the empire, and the prince electors were constantly falling behind one duke or another, instead of supporting me. My father would have these heirs apparent investigated by the Pope, and inevitably they would be found to be deeply immoral, and thus excommunicated. Most rebelled once the depths of their sins were uncovered, and thus they were removed from power. My father inherited the Duchy of Gelre at the age of 21. He created the kingdom of Frisia at 37, and became emperor at 44. And then he ruled as emperor for 33 years, the second longest anyone has held that office after Kaiser Heinrich. Now, with his death, his duties fall to me. Dividing up my vassals, making my empire more manageable, was my first priority. I granted Greece to my son, and granted Hungary, along with the newly created kingdoms of Burgundy and Italy, to other members of my dynasty. But having done so, what shall I do next? What shall my legacy be? To the northwest lie the British Isles. My vassals have a few scattered holdings here, but all Christian rules should bow to the emperor. England is united and strong, difficult to take at once unless a succession crisis occurs. Ireland would likewise be difficult to conquer at once, but because it is still hopelessly divided. But Scotland... the Queen of Scotland has been fighting revolution after revolution. I could easily install one of my claimants there. In the southwest, my armies are already fighting to claim Galicia. Soon, it will fall. But what next? Over the past century, the great kingdom of Castille has been fighting tirelessly to reclaim Iberia in the name of Christianity. But all Christian kings must serve one emperor. I would add this jewel to my crown, save for one consideration: the Shiite Caliph in Egypt has declared Jihad for Andalusia. And unlike the infidels in the west, who squabble amongst themselves more than anything else, the Shiites of the east are strong, united. Should I repel the infidel first, before pressing a claim on Castille? To the southeast lie the Shiite realms. Christianity has been nearly expunged. Abyssinia has fallen under infidel rule. And the short lived Republic of Jerusalem, created after a Pisan victory in the First Crusade, has long since fallen. Could it be brought back one day? Who knows. But the insidious power of the Mahometans cannot be understated. Did you know my son's second wife was a Greek convert to that horrible religion? Now, my son's faith does not burn nearly as strongly as mine, and his romantic tastes are... odd... but even then, the marriage came as a shock. Thankfully, my father was able to deal with the problem. To the east... not much. Aside from the kingdom of Ruthenia, most realms are either inconsequential or pagan. The only moderate threat is Lithuania, a kingdom of unusually united pagans. They need to be dealt with eventually. ---------------------------- Stuff like this always ends up being way longer than I expect it to be. But anyway. Where to next? I'm still upset about how Paradox does updates, but at least this time I'm prepared.

Most entertaining thread? I have no idea. But most entertaining post? That's obvious.

Youpi for chat logs! http://www.scribblemaps.com/create/#id=dintiradan2015

I don't mind watching Bekora and Leila try to be useful, and I certainly wouldn't want to deprive anyone the chance of watching Jered and the Wireldi be awesome. Yeah, that's right. I said it. Team Ammat-Xan is better than Team Hyperborea. It's on. Also, hate to pester again, but any chance of logs being posted? Even if they're just raw logs from MapTool, my converter should be able do most of the work. What I'm most afraid of is that no one will believe us when we say that last session we sent someone into the Matrix to convince Viking Space Hitler to fire his Orbital Space Cannon on the Eldritch Abomination The Size Of A Small Moon.