Debating if I want to ask for Riot Point cards for Christmas or not (the in game currency for league of legends). It would probably be the easiest way for me to get RP, and it would be easy for my folks to ship (you can do it in an envelope) but it is a bit of a lame gift in a way and I am afraid I may lose interest in the game (but having more RP would certainly help me stay interested).
My friend certainly seemed to enjoy the $75 of RP I got him for his birthday. He was super diligent and only picked up stuff he wanted when it got on sale, so he really stretched it out into a ton of stuff.
Dug out my copy of Battlefield 2142 after talking about it today, put the serial in Origin thinking I'd be able to download it, like with Steam.
How foolish of me. Of course I can't.
On the upside, 4 years ago when we moved I put a ziploc bag in the case with a $20 and $10 bill from 1950 in it, and a silver certificate from 1957, that I'd been looking for for four years.
Origin should be prosecuted by the Hague.
I'm sure there will be business classes using it as an example of how not to launch a content delivery service in the future. Or, how if you have a big enough stable of whores, I mean developers, you can launch a terrible service and still succeed.
I recognize that I'm not exactly their target demographic, but I would have bought both Kingdoms of Amalur and Battlefield 3 by now if they weren't on Origin.
Instead, I'll probably just end up borrowing Amalur for the 360 from one of my buddies, and never play Battlefield 3.
Make a fantasy setting where both science and magic exist side by side, only really consider the way that the two would evolve together. What would be easy with magic and therefore be underdeveloped as technology. What would be easy with tech and impossible with magic.
Be sure to include lots of mechanical golems.
eeeeh.
Kind of sick of D&D magic.
D&D magic wouldn't work for that kind of mix because it would suck like D&D.
not literally d&d magic. Like, magic in TES, or... well every other fantasy RPG.
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SarksusATTACK AND DETHRONE GODRegistered Userregular
edited November 2012
Also the elves in LOTR are not plagued by D&D's omnipresent magic. They are more subtle.
Make a fantasy setting where both science and magic exist side by side, only really consider the way that the two would evolve together. What would be easy with magic and therefore be underdeveloped as technology. What would be easy with tech and impossible with magic.
Be sure to include lots of mechanical golems.
I think when you try that you usually end up with magitech, rather than magic things and tech things. Like, FFVI had magitek, which really seems how things'd be. Magic is powerful but obviously technology never makes anything worse, so fuse them and you get robots that shoot lasers.
I am strongly convinced that the best way to write fantasy is to have a strong grasp of a real historical setting and then to draw on that for inspiration (everyone has noticed, after all, that the Shire sure looks like an agricultural English village). If the setting isn't tethered to actual human history, in all its surprising complexity, it runs the risk of drifting into bland cliche.
The best D&D campaign I ran according to my players was developed very much around some of the Reconquista and the Moors. I mean altered. Added a lot of Italian style houses and power plays. We ran multiple sessions with 0 combat but things like balls, plotting, decor breaches, and talking in general. It was pretty cool.
+1
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TavIrish Minister for DefenceRegistered Userregular
Dug out my copy of Battlefield 2142 after talking about it today, put the serial in Origin thinking I'd be able to download it, like with Steam.
How foolish of me. Of course I can't.
On the upside, 4 years ago when we moved I put a ziploc bag in the case with a $20 and $10 bill from 1950 in it, and a silver certificate from 1957, that I'd been looking for for four years.
Origin should be prosecuted by the Hague.
I'm sure there will be business classes using it as an example of how not to launch a content delivery service in the future. Or, how if you have a big enough stable of whores, I mean developers, you can launch a terrible service and still succeed.
I recognize that I'm not exactly their target demographic, but I would have bought both Kingdoms of Amalur and Battlefield 3 by now if they weren't on Origin.
Instead, I'll probably just end up borrowing Amalur for the 360 from one of my buddies, and never play Battlefield 3.
I got a free copy of BF3 with my computer which I haven't used because of Origin.
Dug out my copy of Battlefield 2142 after talking about it today, put the serial in Origin thinking I'd be able to download it, like with Steam.
How foolish of me. Of course I can't.
On the upside, 4 years ago when we moved I put a ziploc bag in the case with a $20 and $10 bill from 1950 in it, and a silver certificate from 1957, that I'd been looking for for four years.
Origin should be prosecuted by the Hague.
I'm sure there will be business classes using it as an example of how not to launch a content delivery service in the future. Or, how if you have a big enough stable of whores, I mean developers, you can launch a terrible service and still succeed.
I recognize that I'm not exactly their target demographic, but I would have bought both Kingdoms of Amalur and Battlefield 3 by now if they weren't on Origin.
Instead, I'll probably just end up borrowing Amalur for the 360 from one of my buddies, and never play Battlefield 3.
Origin is (at least 7/8ths of) the reason why I haven't played Mass Effect 3.
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TavIrish Minister for DefenceRegistered Userregular
That is one of the things I do love about the Final Fantasy settings, even if they have a bad tendency to drift towards the superficial, they are all extremely unique from the perspective of a fantasy world.
I also really hate magic the way it is used in most modern fantasy, and could do with less magic.
If I see magic I want to see Tolkein-esque or traditional-folklore-esque magic.
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ShivahnUnaware of her barrel shifter privilegeWestern coastal temptressRegistered User, Moderatormod
Make a fantasy setting where both science and magic exist side by side, only really consider the way that the two would evolve together. What would be easy with magic and therefore be underdeveloped as technology. What would be easy with tech and impossible with magic.
Be sure to include lots of mechanical golems.
I think when you try that you usually end up with magitech, rather than magic things and tech things. Like, FFVI had magitek, which really seems how things'd be. Magic is powerful but obviously technology never makes anything worse, so fuse them and you get robots that shoot lasers.
yeah magic just is technology in that case
which is a really fucking boring kind of magic.
Otherwise don't you just end up with a ton of arbitrary rules? Like "ok for some reason fire won't work in a small compartment so we can't use it for a steam engine, but you can still use it in a bigger one like a cave when it comes to that."
For like every possible thing.
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SarksusATTACK AND DETHRONE GODRegistered Userregular
Origin never got in the way of me playing Battlefield 3. As in it didn't crash or hang or do anything to impede me.
I guess if you had a problem and you had to use customer service that would be a reason to avoid Origin but I haven't ever needed to do that.
It is a really poorly thought out and slap-shod setting, yes.
Though I don't really know how much you can expect of a setting derived from some dudes' DnD campaigns that includes a province called "Elsewhere".
I like "Elsewhere" better than [hackneyed fantasy name #5]
has character
but the map is like, a parody of the fantasy way of making maps.
I agree, I think in general I am sick of everyone making up their own dumb fantasy world that is the same as everyone else's.
I want to see more, like, historical fantasy and shit.
Like I would not be sad if no one ever made another thing with an elf in it.
this is so silly
if people actually made Tolkienesqe elves (instead of D&D elves) that would be pretty fresh and different. Or look at Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrel or Terry Pratchett evles.
how the hell would it be fresh and different if someone aped after tolkien
because almost no one actually has in time since his stuff was published
and the huge difference beetween someone making d&d-ish elves and tolkien-ish elves would be?
Elves in D&D always came off as fetishized, powerful and too perfect.
tolkien's elves were kind of like that too
they were wankers
EDIT: LOTR elves far more than the hobbit/silmarillion elves
I already explained why I don't think that's the case. D&D elves are perpetually in their prime and have a lot of influence. Elves in LOTR are leaving the world, their time is over, they hardly even deal with the ring. They're not the same type of race at all.
"at all" is an overstatement. That's not really a huge difference; not when they're so extremely superficially similar.
at this point I don't give a shit how cool the twist on the not-elves is. Make them something completely not elves, for the love of god.
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ShivahnUnaware of her barrel shifter privilegeWestern coastal temptressRegistered User, Moderatormod
Make a fantasy setting where both science and magic exist side by side, only really consider the way that the two would evolve together. What would be easy with magic and therefore be underdeveloped as technology. What would be easy with tech and impossible with magic.
Be sure to include lots of mechanical golems.
Full Metal Alchemist?
I have to admit that the setting of FMA is pretty incredible.
Which is kind of the direction I see technology in a magic rich world moving.
Certain areas of science won't be explored, because it'll be redundant. But others should move forward at an amazing rate.
Energy production and chemistry (in the conventional sense, not alchemy) can be replaced with magic. Which opens up the door for incredible mechanical advancements.
That is one of the things I do love about the Final Fantasy settings, even if they have a bad tendency to drift towards the superficial, they are all extremely unique from the perspective of a fantasy world.
I also really hate magic the way it is used in most modern fantasy, and could do with less magic.
If I see magic I want to see Tolkein-esque or traditional-folklore-esque magic.
It is a really poorly thought out and slap-shod setting, yes.
Though I don't really know how much you can expect of a setting derived from some dudes' DnD campaigns that includes a province called "Elsewhere".
I like "Elsewhere" better than [hackneyed fantasy name #5]
has character
but the map is like, a parody of the fantasy way of making maps.
I agree, I think in general I am sick of everyone making up their own dumb fantasy world that is the same as everyone else's.
I want to see more, like, historical fantasy and shit.
Like I would not be sad if no one ever made another thing with an elf in it.
this is so silly
if people actually made Tolkienesqe elves (instead of D&D elves) that would be pretty fresh and different. Or look at Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrel or Terry Pratchett evles.
how the hell would it be fresh and different if someone aped after tolkien
because almost no one actually has in time since his stuff was published
and the huge difference beetween someone making d&d-ish elves and tolkien-ish elves would be?
Elves in D&D always came off as fetishized, powerful and too perfect.
tolkien's elves were kind of like that too
they were wankers
EDIT: LOTR elves far more than the hobbit/silmarillion elves
I already explained why I don't think that's the case. D&D elves are perpetually in their prime and have a lot of influence. Elves in LOTR are leaving the world, their time is over, they hardly even deal with the ring. They're not the same type of race at all.
"at all" is an overstatement. That's not really a huge difference; not when they're so extremely superficially similar.
at this point I don't give a shit how cool the twist on the not-elves is. Make them something completely not elves, for the love of god.
Well besides physical appearance how do you think they are similar? I don't think some similarities are going to ruin Tolkien elves. Humans aren't exactly unique in their every iteration.
Rather than "magic", I prefer it when there are just fantastical elements worked into the mechanics of the world itself. No one recognizes that the ability to levitate is strange, it's just a thing people do.
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Podlyyou unzipped me! it's all coming back! i don't like it!Registered Userregular
Rather than "magic", I prefer it when there are just fantastical elements worked into the mechanics of the world itself. No one recognizes that the ability to levitate is strange, it's just a thing people do.
The Avatar: The Last Airbender franchise is pretty good about this.
Tav I liked it. Podly is just a cranking old man now.
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MrMisterJesus dying on the cross in pain? Morally better than us. One has to go "all in".Registered Userregular
edited November 2012
In short: I think if we want to talk about 'fixing' grist mill fantasy, or what would be exciting in new fantasy, the answer isn't that the magic or the creatures are stale and need to be updated. Rather, the stories need to better represent human relations of love, power, respect, and everything else that fiction can show us about ourselves better than we otherwise could see it. A fantasy story that does those things will be a good story, regardless of whether it's elves or coyote-tricksters playing the role of supernatural critters, and regardless of whether its magic is based in the four elements, grammar of the old tongue, or medieval alchemy. Indeed, in a great fantasy story the choice of magical critters and feats will directly tie into the human themes explored, such that it makes sense to have a coyote-trickster spirit precisely because the central theme is infidelity and its corrosive effect on trust within a relationship, and so on.
Avatar is a fantastic example of what I want more fantasy worlds to be like: drawing from entirely different cultures and time periods than traditional fantasy.
It is a really poorly thought out and slap-shod setting, yes.
Though I don't really know how much you can expect of a setting derived from some dudes' DnD campaigns that includes a province called "Elsewhere".
I like "Elsewhere" better than [hackneyed fantasy name #5]
has character
but the map is like, a parody of the fantasy way of making maps.
I agree, I think in general I am sick of everyone making up their own dumb fantasy world that is the same as everyone else's.
I want to see more, like, historical fantasy and shit.
Like I would not be sad if no one ever made another thing with an elf in it.
this is so silly
if people actually made Tolkienesqe elves (instead of D&D elves) that would be pretty fresh and different. Or look at Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrel or Terry Pratchett evles.
how the hell would it be fresh and different if someone aped after tolkien
because almost no one actually has in time since his stuff was published
and the huge difference beetween someone making d&d-ish elves and tolkien-ish elves would be?
Elves in D&D always came off as fetishized, powerful and too perfect.
tolkien's elves were kind of like that too
they were wankers
EDIT: LOTR elves far more than the hobbit/silmarillion elves
I already explained why I don't think that's the case. D&D elves are perpetually in their prime and have a lot of influence. Elves in LOTR are leaving the world, their time is over, they hardly even deal with the ring. They're not the same type of race at all.
"at all" is an overstatement. That's not really a huge difference; not when they're so extremely superficially similar.
at this point I don't give a shit how cool the twist on the not-elves is. Make them something completely not elves, for the love of god.
Well besides physical appearance how do you think they are similar? I don't think some similarities are going to ruin Tolkien elves. Humans aren't exactly unique in their every iteration.
they're called elves
is one thing
and they always fall into two generic camps: wood elves, who are like humans but better and more treehuggy, or high elves, who are like humans but better and especially in urban planning.
I accidentally killed him but when you've got two guys left at the end of the map you kind of go with whatever you get >.>
I didn't think you were going to kill him with one shot!
He had a lot of hitpoints! I thought you'd just, you know, rough him up a little and then I could have you taze him!
I bet it would have done something cool if I could have captured him.
Actually, you didn't miss out on much. You get some research credits, but it's for like two or three things you can research. I always try to capture him, but it's not actually as important as it feels.
I'm glad to know that I'm literally accidentally killing things too hard though.
I think part of the issue is Fantasy has turned very much into the romance genre of nerds. Formulaic with a few authors who produce the same thing over and over. This isn't bad, it drives sales and makes it easy for people to get into with little background info.
But I think fantasy is much like sci-fi, it is at its best exploring the human experience. Has anyone else read Wraethu by Storm Constantine? Because I think is a unique bit of fantasy that much of [chat] would enjoy. It is just such a wonderful piece of creative writing.
I think part of the issue is Fantasy has turned very much into the romance genre of nerds. Formulaic with a few authors who produce the same thing over and over. This isn't bad, it drives sales and makes it easy for people to get into with little background info.
But I think fantasy is much like sci-fi, it is at its best exploring the human experience. Has anyone else read Wraethu by Storm Constantine? Because I think is a unique bit of fantasy that much of [chat] would enjoy. It is just such a wonderful piece of creative writing.
there is a fair amount of interesting fantasy out there
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Podlyyou unzipped me! it's all coming back! i don't like it!Registered Userregular
Posts
My friend certainly seemed to enjoy the $75 of RP I got him for his birthday. He was super diligent and only picked up stuff he wanted when it got on sale, so he really stretched it out into a ton of stuff.
Hmmm.
Instead, I'll probably just end up borrowing Amalur for the 360 from one of my buddies, and never play Battlefield 3.
not literally d&d magic. Like, magic in TES, or... well every other fantasy RPG.
yeah magic just is technology in that case
which is a really fucking boring kind of magic.
The best D&D campaign I ran according to my players was developed very much around some of the Reconquista and the Moors. I mean altered. Added a lot of Italian style houses and power plays. We ran multiple sessions with 0 combat but things like balls, plotting, decor breaches, and talking in general. It was pretty cool.
I got a free copy of BF3 with my computer which I haven't used because of Origin.
now get it below 2200 cycles :rotate:
Origin is (at least 7/8ths of) the reason why I haven't played Mass Effect 3.
I really like this.
I also really hate magic the way it is used in most modern fantasy, and could do with less magic.
If I see magic I want to see Tolkein-esque or traditional-folklore-esque magic.
Otherwise don't you just end up with a ton of arbitrary rules? Like "ok for some reason fire won't work in a small compartment so we can't use it for a steam engine, but you can still use it in a bigger one like a cave when it comes to that."
For like every possible thing.
I guess if you had a problem and you had to use customer service that would be a reason to avoid Origin but I haven't ever needed to do that.
"at all" is an overstatement. That's not really a huge difference; not when they're so extremely superficially similar.
at this point I don't give a shit how cool the twist on the not-elves is. Make them something completely not elves, for the love of god.
I accidentally killed him but when you've got two guys left at the end of the map you kind of go with whatever you get >.>
Which is kind of the direction I see technology in a magic rich world moving.
Certain areas of science won't be explored, because it'll be redundant. But others should move forward at an amazing rate.
Energy production and chemistry (in the conventional sense, not alchemy) can be replaced with magic. Which opens up the door for incredible mechanical advancements.
And then we end up with the Dwemer from TES.
It’s not a very important country most of the time
http://steamcommunity.com/id/mortious
exactly!
reheated, it is probably better than any bbq you can get
/foodie hipster
Well besides physical appearance how do you think they are similar? I don't think some similarities are going to ruin Tolkien elves. Humans aren't exactly unique in their every iteration.
Tav one day you're actually going to bang a really hot tumblr goth and you'll stop idealizing all their terrible music
The Avatar: The Last Airbender franchise is pretty good about this.
I didn't think you were going to kill him with one shot!
He had a lot of hitpoints! I thought you'd just, you know, rough him up a little and then I could have you taze him!
I bet it would have done something cool if I could have captured him.
gone back to norwegian black metal
what's that? I can't hear you over PANZERFAUST \m/
they're called elves
is one thing
and they always fall into two generic camps: wood elves, who are like humans but better and more treehuggy, or high elves, who are like humans but better and especially in urban planning.
Wear the dragon scales with pride
I did laugh far too hard when, after the interrogation was complete, the option to autopsy him popped up.
this will be amazing in the cold weather
Actually, you didn't miss out on much. You get some research credits, but it's for like two or three things you can research. I always try to capture him, but it's not actually as important as it feels.
I'm glad to know that I'm literally accidentally killing things too hard though.
AW SHIT YEAH SON
But I think fantasy is much like sci-fi, it is at its best exploring the human experience. Has anyone else read Wraethu by Storm Constantine? Because I think is a unique bit of fantasy that much of [chat] would enjoy. It is just such a wonderful piece of creative writing.
I SWEAR TO GOD IF MY NEW ARMOR GETS SCRATCHED I AM GOING TO TAKE A SHIT IN ALL THE BUNKS
there is a fair amount of interesting fantasy out there