Minor game stuff from around the web for commentary...

tussock · Post by **tussock** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 8:12 am

Well, you only last fixed it in 1970, when NZ's still used "decendancy" with quarters and sixteenths and so on (I think there might have still been laws that said you had to be 1/16 Māori to continue owning customary title land, otherwise it forfeited to the crown, to "protect" Māori you understand). By the 80's we'd gotten to "ethnicity" and you could tick as many boxes as you felt like.

http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/interactive ... -questions

zugschef · Post by **zugschef** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 9:19 am

DSMatticus wrote:While '99.9% identical' and '3.2 million bases' sound like big claims with big numbers, they're both basically meaningless. There's no benchmark being set here for what quantity of genetic material constitutes a meaningful biological distinction, and so all quantities are basically pointless. I don't even think you could set such a benchmark, because sometimes DNA spends a lot of bases doing very little and sometimes DNA spends very few bases doing a great deal.

That's the whole point: There is no meaningful biological difference between what some stupid motherfuckers call the white and the black "race".

Now everyone who keeps talking about "human races" can suck a barrel full of cock of mixed human heritage and tell me if s/he can taste the difference between the black and white cocks in it.

Prak · Post by **Prak** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 9:33 am

I don't keep talking about human races, but I wouldn't mind taking that test

fectin · Post by **fectin** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 1:05 pm

Very nicely done, Voss. I fell for it at first, and even started composing snarky replies. You went too heavy on well-poisoning huffiness though, especially for this thread.

Prak · Post by **Prak** » Wed Jul 23, 2014 9:09 pm

So, new subject.

I wrote a (utterly shite) quiz for my players so I can throw them into an Origin Story After Sundown game and have transformations prepped for them. Figured people might be interested, and some might want to take it, so the first spoiler block is the quiz, the second is the quiz with key. Honestly curious about feedback.

1. How do you feel about animals?
-I love animals! Honestly sometimes I feel more like an animal than a person.
-Eh. Give me people, I prefer conversation.
-Pets are good, especially when have a job.

2. How do you feel you got where you are in life?
-Honestly, it kind of came out of nowhere.
-I feel like my past was a lie, or a dream, and that where I am now is real.
-I worked to get where I am, chiseling away everything that wasn’t the goal.

3. What is your philosophy on home and family?
-My home is far away, and my family feels alien to me.
-The best family is the one that started as strangers who fell into one another’s lives.
-Families and home must be built like a machine or tended like a garden.

4. What is your biggest flaw?
-I get angry or afraid easily.
-I always want more, whether food or stuff.
-I’m bad with people.

5. Which season do you like most?
-Spring
-Fall/Winter
-Summer

6. Which would you rather study?
-Entomology
-Anthropology
-Botony

7. What do you think holds the most power?
-Fire
-Nature
-Death

8. Which of these kinds of movies do you like most?
-Horror
-Sci Fi or Fantasy
-Psychological Thriller

9. Other than “Nothing” (damn us atheists), what do you picture awaiting us after death?
-An Endless plane of featureless blackness
-A Verdant paradise
-A catalogue of human history, where civilization goes when it ends

10. What’s your favourite conflict in stories?
-Man against Nature
-Man against God/Other Men
-Man against The System/Society

11. Which would you be least bothered by?
-Too hot
-Too cold
-Too remote

Splat
How do you feel about animals?
-I love animals! Honestly sometimes I feel more like an animal than a person. (Lyc/Lev)
-Eh. Give me people, I prefer conversation. (Tra/Wit)
-Pets are good, especially when have a job. (Vam/Ani)

How do you feel you got where you are in life?
-Honestly, it kind of came out of nowhere. (Vam/Lyc)
-I feel like my past was a lie, or a dream, and that where I am now is real (Ani/Lev)
-I worked to get where I am, chiseling away everything that wasn’t the goal (Wit/Tra)

What is your philosophy on home and family?
-My home is far away, and my family feels alien to me (Tra/Lev)
-The best family is the one that started as strangers who fell into one another’s lives (Vam/Lyc)
-Families and home must be built like a machine or tended like a garden (Ani/Wit)

What is your biggest flaw?
-I get angry or afraid easily (Lyc/Lev)
-I always want more, whether food or stuff (Vam/Wit)
-I’m bad with people (Ani/Tra)

Power Source
Which season do you like most?
-Spring (Astral)
-Fall/Winter (Orphic)
-Summer (Infernal)

Which would you rather study?
-Arthropods (Infernal)
-Ancient People (Orphic)
-Plants (Astral)

What do you think holds the most power?
-Fire (Infernal)
-Nature (Astral)
-Death (Orphic)

Which of these kinds of movies do you like most?
-Horror (Infernal)
-Sci Fi or Fantasy (Astral)
-Psychological Thriller (Orphic)

Other than “Nothing” (damn us atheists), what do you picture awaiting us after death?
-An Endless plane of featureless blackness (Orphic)
-A Verdant paradise (Astral)
-A catalogue of human history, where civilization goes when it ends (Infernal)

What’s your favourite conflict in stories?
-Man against Nature (Astral)
-Man against God/Other Men (Infernal)
-Man against The System/Society (Orphic)

Which would you be least bothered by?
-Too hot (Infernal)
-Too cold (Orphic)
-Too remote (Astral)

So far I've figured out that apparently asking people about afterlives is a fucking can of goddamned worms. Also that this doesn't really account for people who would, in all likelihood, turn themselves into something their answers don't point to or die in the process (ie, taking the quiz myself, it fairly strongly points to a werewolf, where, knowing me, if there were actual demons to draw power from, I'd be a Fallen or Baali way before any lycanthrope got a chance to maul me)

tussock · Post by **tussock** » Thu Jul 24, 2014 9:26 am

1. How do you feel about animals?
Amundsen. You start with 52 sled dogs, and as you go you can feed the sled dogs to the other sled dogs, and also eat them yourself, so they're basically food that carries itself around until you need it. Invaluable, really, couldn't be done without them.

2. How do you feel you got where you are in life?
Most folk end up exactly where everyone expects them to. I'm a bit of a surprise for people, but they did expect rather a lot.

3. What is your philosophy on home and family?
People have some of the most messed up relationships with family. Counselling can help.

4. What is your biggest flaw?
Mortality beats them all in the long run, and it doesn't matter either.

5. Which season do you like most?
Living in a cold country, I like summer.

6. Which would you rather study?
Nope.

7. What do you think holds the most power?
Fire, duh, power's measured in kW. Wait, trick? Do supernovas count as Nature?

8. Which of these kinds of movies do you like most?
I should probably try to enjoy movies more often. Up was nice.

9. Other than “Nothing” (damn us atheists), what do you picture awaiting us after death?
Nothing? We get recycled, dude. Well, "we" are an illusion, but the meat sack does.

10. What’s your favourite conflict in stories?
What was Up? Man against ... isolationism? How you can't really shut out the world and that's a good thing, even when it's against you?

11. Which would you be least bothered by?
For what purpose? They all need dealt with, and could all kill me at various rates if sufficiently "too". If they're all mild and unfixable, you just learn to deal, it's fine.

Roald Amundsen wrote:I may say that this is the greatest factor—the way in which the expedition is equipped—the way in which every difficulty is foreseen, and precautions taken for meeting or avoiding it. Victory awaits him who has everything in order — luck, people call it. Defeat is certain for him who has neglected to take the necessary precautions in time; this is called bad luck.

I am not that man, but I do like to play him in RPGs. The failures that ensue by my attempts are always hilarious in retrospect.

Prak · Post by **Prak** » Thu Jul 24, 2014 9:46 am

...thankfully my players stuck to the spirit of the thing and actually selected given options. ...mostly.

Longes · Post by **Longes** » Sat Jul 26, 2014 5:55 am

Mark Rein*Hagen answers various questions

Voss · Post by **Voss** » Sat Jul 26, 2014 6:39 am

Prak, why the fucking fuck would Fall and Winter be one thing? Fall is awesome, and winter is hellish.

-------
Rein dot Hagen. Still an utter asshole.

I do love the idea that he's 'coming back' to the game industry with a kickstarted board game that was such an utter disaster that he pawned it off onto someone else.

Other things I didn't know: Masquerade, Apocalypse, Awakening, Dreaming and Oblivion are 'unique' words.

Prak · Post by **Prak** » Sat Jul 26, 2014 9:14 am

Because questions 5-11 are about determining the character's power source, and Spring=Maya, Summer=Limbo, and Fall and Winter are both emblematic of death and thus=Mictlan.

Desdan_Mervolam · Post by **Desdan_Mervolam** » Sun Jul 27, 2014 2:19 am

Longes wrote:Mark Rein*Hagen answers various questions

Right off the bat, he gets the subtitle of one of his own games wrong.

Voss · Post by **Voss** » Sun Jul 27, 2014 2:24 am

Prak_Anima wrote:Because questions 5-11 are about determining the character's power source, and Spring=Maya, Summer=Limbo, and Fall and Winter are both emblematic of death and thus=Mictlan.

That makes even less sense.

I know personality quizzes are often designed on the principle that unrelated concept = whatever the quiz is trying to 'prove,' but you're making those MtG 'what color are you?!?' quizzes look coherent.

Prak · Post by **Prak** » Sun Jul 27, 2014 2:38 am

I didn't want to tip my hand to my players what we were playing (because then I'd have to suffer a huge argument based in fear of trying a new game and fear of the den), I did what I could.

Username17 · Post by **Username17** » Sun Jul 27, 2014 9:31 am

Don't keep bananas with other fruit. Don't put them in the fridge or in a mixed fruit bowl.

Bananas are shipped green and cold and then gassed with ethylene to speed the ripening process on arrival. While this does work, it also means that they are slowly outgassing a ripening agent when you get them. Just as one bad apple will spoil the bunch (by emitting ethylene and inducing the other apples to turn soft), one bunch of bananas will spoil everything else they are stored with.

-Username17

TiaC · Post by **TiaC** » Sun Jul 27, 2014 10:43 am

What if you bought under-ripe fruit? Would there be any problem with using the banana to ripen it?

Prak · Post by **Prak** » Sun Jul 27, 2014 11:27 am

some guy wrote:Now here's the one that's sure to twist some panties. Which is better, oWoD or nWoD?

some other guy wrote:nWoD for system, oWoD for setting. This is common knowledge!

The Dot wrote:Well, I obviously prefer the world as I left it, but the rules are clearly more evolved and playtested in nWOD. I do think its a shame the fan base seems to be existentially torn assunder.

Longes · Post by **Longes** » Sun Jul 27, 2014 12:49 pm

Prak_Anima wrote:
some guy wrote:Now here's the one that's sure to twist some panties. Which is better, oWoD or nWoD?

some other guy wrote:nWoD for system, oWoD for setting. This is common knowledge!

The Dot wrote:Well, I obviously prefer the world as I left it, but the rules are clearly more evolved and playtested in nWOD. I do think its a shame the fan base seems to be existentially torn assunder.

You'd be surprised at how many people actualy think this is true.

TheFlatline · Post by **TheFlatline** » Wed Jul 30, 2014 5:19 pm

Longes wrote:
Prak_Anima wrote:
some guy wrote:Now here's the one that's sure to twist some panties. Which is better, oWoD or nWoD?

some other guy wrote:nWoD for system, oWoD for setting. This is common knowledge!

The Dot wrote:Well, I obviously prefer the world as I left it, but the rules are clearly more evolved and playtested in nWOD. I do think its a shame the fan base seems to be existentially torn assunder.

You'd be surprised at how many people actualy think this is true.

WoD is dead in all it's incarnations. Let's relegate it to our memories.

brized · Post by **brized** » Wed Jul 30, 2014 6:32 pm

Prak, your quiz is probably best left to its own thread...That said,

Other than “Nothing” (damn us atheists), what do you picture awaiting us after death?
-An Endless plane of featureless blackness (Orphic)

I see "An Endless plane of featureless blackness" and "nothing" functionally the same. To me the question could just be "What do you picture awaiting us after death?", or "What is the closest to what you picture awaiting us after death?"

Prak · Post by **Prak** » Wed Jul 30, 2014 6:50 pm

At the time it didn't seem worth it's own thread. And I hadn't made a thread for the game yet (though I did write up the session here and the quiz is posted there).

The difference between "nothing" and "an endless plane of featureless blackness" is that it's implied that you can experience the latter. Clearly this wasn't conveyed, but I meant for the split between the two to be "absolutely nothing, you cease to exist, and there's nothing for you to experience/experience things with" and "Your consciousness persists, but there seems to be nothing to interact with."

I didn't want to put just "nothing" because, seriously, I have two players I know to be atheists, and newbie might be an atheist, I don't know.

Cynic · Post by **Cynic** » Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:28 pm

I wish to call Beetlejuice.... We all know how that works.

Z** *, ZA* *, Zak *,

I wonder if he'll come with just that.

http://www.gamer-xp.com/how-dungeons-dr ... the-hobby/

fectin · Post by **fectin** » Thu Jul 31, 2014 11:42 pm

Started reading this and didn't finish. I'll come back later, but the opening was so spot on that I didn't want to lose it.

JigokuBosatsu · Post by **JigokuBosatsu** » Fri Aug 01, 2014 12:18 am

Just saw someone post that on FB. I noticed that shit-demodand and I had a couple of mutual friends so I blocked him preemptively before I started talking shit about him.

Ancient History · Post by **Ancient History** » Fri Aug 01, 2014 12:19 am

I sort of poked the bear again on Google+. I'm a terrible person.

Koumei · Post by **Koumei** » Fri Aug 01, 2014 12:40 am

AH: you spelled "awesome" wrong.

Prak: so apparently I'm 50/50 on Vam/Ani, and very much Astral. I skipped the family question because I live with my biological family and we get along well without having had to build it, so I had to say "none of the above".

Which are the Astral Vampires, and the Astral... Ani?