Dungeons and Dragons

[Lady Pyro]

Sorry I've been neglecting the forums as of late and for that I apologize. I'm hoping to redeem myself by kick starting a conversation, but if it doesn't catch on I wont be heartbroken.
So does anyone here play D&D (or any D20 game really)? I've been part of three groups over the past few years, but all of them fell apart after a few months. I loved it with a fiery passion, unfortunately getting and keeping a group is clearly beyond me.

[thehawk]

I used to, many long times ago. Some Dragonlance, some Forgotten Realms (from the days when it first appeared comercially), before finally moving on to a home grown place. You are absolutely right, finding and keeping a good group together for very long is rather difficult. However, with all this online stuff that has been invented since then, you might have a few more options than just what is available in your local area.

[Brainiac]

I'm familiar with DnD. Never really played the actually pen-and-paper form much. I dearly loved Planescape: Torment though (and the whole idea of the Planescape setting fascinated me). I do have a friend from my college days whole still is big in the pen-and-paper crowd; he's even designing his own system.

[Lady Pyro]

Hawk: I've only ever played Pen and paper style, how would you play online? I'd be afraid everyone would just cheat at their dice rolls . Unless you mean in an actually 'online game' form, which has never really appealed to me.

Brain: I've noticed that a lot of D&D'ers who are really into it tend to dabble in making their own game as well. Two of my Dungeon Masters were well on their way to ironing out their own system, and one even had us test driving it.
I don't know enough about all of it to ever attempt that myself. In fact, I helped a friend on a basic campaign for her group and the enormous amount of work that was required nearly broke my brain. But I do like some of the things D&D has helped spawn, in particular the card game Munchkin got us through some of those long nights in college.

[Brainiac]

I'd imagine an online-style pen-and-paper would utilize an RNG to generate dice rolls to avoid the cheating you're afraid of, LP. As a matter of fact, I remember a computerized DM program for a DnD-lite board game called HeroQuest that did exactly that.

[Klytos]

I don't play anymore, but I've discovered over the years that although I like the game, I like the concept of the game more. I love how deeply designed a world can be, how there are rules to govern every single thing happening.

What I don't like is 90% of the people who play the game. We used to have some rules, if you weren't employed, you weren't playing. If you grew a beard and didn't keep it groomed, you weren't playing. If you dressed up, you were beaten up, mocked, and then you weren't playing. The only acceptable nerd music being played is the Lord of the Rings soundtrack. If we're playing in an established world and the DM gets something wrong, live with it. We don't care that the blacksmith in the village of Bree is two streets away from where Tolkien had it. Really we don't. And if you bring it up, we will kick you in the nads. Or tit punch you. No-one is allowed to play who weighs more than 100kg. If you need deodorant and someone has to tell you, or we gag on our beer / coke, then you're not coming back.

I'm sure there were more, but they were actual rules we had based on our concept that we only wanted to play with normal people. No nerds allowed. An important thing to note is that people are allowed to have two nerdy activities they participate in, yet they are still a normal person. Any more than two and you're gone. For my group, most of us played WoW as well.

I found my groups have always been very stable, we had one campaign that played out for about 3 years with the same five guys. And it was because of our rules.

[Lady Pyro]

Brainy: Wow that actually sounds pretty cool. I guess I should have figured they'd have something like that already, but I've never looked into it.

Klytos: Wow. That's kind of harsh. I mean, I understand the deodorant thing and not getting uppity about small facts but by your other rules none of my friends or I would have been able to play. In fact, we considered our month of unemployment between contracts prime time to play and we often did so while listening to Jonathan Coulton. Then again, I never considered myself normal, and by your definition, neither would you. But wow, Weight restrictions.
I guess that's great if it worked for you, but D&D seems like a pretty nerdy activity to exclude nerds from. Must have been fun though, if it lasted 3 years!

[Brainiac]

I think Klytos considers all forms of gaming a single nerdy activity which keeps him from falling off the "normal" category. This is why I prefer geeks; we're less elitist.

[Lady Pyro]

Yeah, I wasn't even gonna touch that one. I mean, you'd be pretty hard pressed to find a nerd who only engages in two 'nerdy activities'. How do you even categorize that stuff?
Even if you lump ALL video games together (although I would count MMORPGS seperate from normal games, but that's just getting picky I guess), you'd have to count D&D as one, so you've already reached your limit. Nope, they'd never let me in. I read to many comics, not to mention having season tickets to the theatre, working (most of the time) in animation, and going to the 80's movie night. Drawing would probably get me kicked out too, though who knows? There might be rules that you can still play if you draw but you're not very good at it.
Huh, no wonder I never got into Club Normal. They're quite exclusive.
Unfortunately I'm not smart enough to be a geek, so I'm stuck wallowing in Nerd City, It's a frightening cesspool but I've gotten used to the snobby comic nerds and elitist gamers.

[Lambonius]

I'm pretty sure Klytos was being at least partially sarcastic. And if he wasn't, it was an amusing enough post that I would take it with a grain of salt.

[Brainiac]

Klytos? Sarcastic? Never.

[Lady Pyro]

If this is indeed the case then I would like to reiterate that I am in fact, not that smart. Apologies will be issued and while I look away shamefully.

[Klytos]

I was using a bit of poetic license with the rules there. We don't actually have a hard and fast set of rules like that. What we did have was a basic standard that you needed to have a life outside of D&D to play with us. We found that, because we played in a commercial environment (a games shop) most of the time, we would see those people who just lived and breathed everything "nerdy" and it was really quite scary and sad. That's where I developed my distaste for the nerds of the world. They're not Seth from The OC. They're comic book guy. The two nerd activities is a personal rule I live life by. I refuse to be one of those nerdy people who become so obsessed with everything nerdy they lost grip on reality.

The unemployment rule was a real rule, there was one guy we played with who was unemployed from the start. One of those long-term unemployed people who didn't see the need to shave or shower regularly. He was a good guy mostly, but on the second week he'd come in (after we'd rolled characters in week one) and had a whole back story written about his character (about 3 pages I recall), a language written (actually, the syntax of a language so he could develop his words as we played) and a drawn picture of his character. Yeah, that's too intense. If we'd all been unemployed too we'd have been able to do that sort of thing, really develop our characters, but because we had jobs, girlfriends (husband in Marie's case) and other activities we enjoyed, we didn't have the time / inclination to do so. And really, it's just a game. And he stunk.

Even if you lump ALL video games together (although I would count MMORPGS seperate from normal games, but that's just getting picky I guess), you'd have to count D&D as one, so you've already reached your limit.

Playing video games isn't a nerd activity anymore. Not since the Playstation brought it into the mainstream. I think that World of Warcraft is a nerd activity in it's own right. It just consumes so much of your time that it has to be.

I read to many comics,

I used to read comics, then I took up World of Warcraft so I stopped.

not to mention having season tickets to the theatre,

That's not nerdy. That's culture. It just shows you're more intelligent than your average peon.

working (most of the time) in animation,

Work is work. That's not something that should be catagorised as anything except work.

and going to the 80's movie night.

80's movies rock. Especially "Some Kind of Wonderful". My favorite, at the moment.

Drawing would probably get me kicked out too, though who knows? There might be rules that you can still play if you draw but you're not very good at it.

Drawing is an art. It's that cultural thing again.

[Blackthorne519]

Some Kind of Wonderful is Pretty In Pink only where the nerd gets the "girl" (a guy in this case!) instead of the girl goin' for the popular guy. John Hughes started plagerising himself!

Bt

[rugged]

I found both the rules and the two nerd activities limit very amusing .... Not that I have ever played D&D but surely surely the rules would have to include banning anyone who regulaly quoted monty python.

[Klytos]

There is a need in life to bitch slap anyone who quotes too much of anything. Monty Python, The Simpsons, Family Guy, Futurama. Anything quoted constantly is annoying. This isn't a nerd rule though, just an observation.

[rugged]

Oh so true .... but the monty python quotes is def a sign of being a nerd.

In fact the only thing that should be regulalry repeated is .... NEW ZEALAND ARE THE RUGBY LEAGUE WORLD CHAMPIONS

[Klytos]

I'm sorry, didn't Australia bitchslap the kiwi's a week ago? I may be wrong, (I'm not btw because I was at the game), but I recall the Kiwi's lying on the field crying like little girls. Before the game.

[rugged]

Sorry for draggin this off topic but I had to bait Klytos
But the world cup is still ours!!! I don't care if you beat us in some mid year test, you choked in the big one. I mean really how could you lose the world cup final to a kiwi team without a backline!!

Hmmm which one has more kudos

Anzac test winners

CURRENT WORLD CUP HOLDERS!!!!!!

[Klytos]

We have to let the poorer countries win once in a while, keeps them interested in competing with us.

[Lambonius]

Lol...anyone else getting a Flight of the Conchords vibe in here?

[Blackthorne519]

I love, love, love, love Flight of The Conchords.

I quit playing D&D to devote my life to watching it. It's Business Time.

Bt

[rugged]

Yip they are pretty saweet and probably New Zealands most successful musicians ever!!! LOL (well maybe 2nd to crowded house)

They done an awesome charity concert to fundraise for one of their former schools that was having financial problems. Pretty awesome to have an international act playing in some small NZ school hall

[Klytos]

Isn't Crowded House an Australian act? At the very least, didn't we steal them, like Russell Crowe (who you can have back btw...)

[Lambonius]

I love, love, love, love Flight of The Conchords.

I quit playing D&D to devote my life to watching it. It's Business Time.

Bt

Lol...me too. My fiancee and I have gone out of our way to introduce it to several friends, who have all subsequently become big fans. Murray is my favorite.