My Brother My Brother and Me is part of the barely edited comedy hangout podcast industrial complex, and The Adventure Zone is a D&D podcast where none of them have bothered to learn the rules of D&D but it was briefly more popular than Critical Role.
My Brother My Brother and Me is part of the barely edited comedy hangout podcast industrial complex, and The Adventure Zone is a D&D podcast where none of them have bothered to learn the rules of D&D but it was briefly more popular than Critical Role.
Also Justin has a medical history (and indirectly a science advocacy) podcast with his wife Sydney, who is a doctor and health educator and is EXTREMELY good at her job. They do a lot of silly episodes about weird stuff from the past, but also educate on important stuff like vaccinations, pop culture charlatans like Dr. Phil, homeopathy, stuff like that.
Honestly that's probably the most meaningful thing the McElroy family does as a whole, in my opinion.
Houk the Namebringer on
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Indie Winterdie KräheRudi Hurzlmeier (German, b. 1952)Registered Userregular
people should care less about the entertainment they consume imo
not stop caring at all, nobody should give louis ck or bill maher any slack
but the mcelroys are despite everything and in the grand scheme of things essentially harmless, why get bent out of shape about them
Yeah, for a time, TAZ: Balance's fandom was compared to Homestuck's. Its fervor died off on later seasons, but they still out out a bestselling graphic novel every year.
Speaking of which, leaping right from Homestuck to TAZ? Cripes, Sarah Z.
You know what? Nanowrimo's cancelled on account of the world is stupid.
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MrMonroepassed outon the floor nowRegistered Userregular
My Brother My Brother and Me is part of the barely edited comedy hangout podcast industrial complex, and The Adventure Zone is a D&D podcast where none of them have bothered to learn the rules of D&D but it was briefly more popular than Critical Role.
I actually feel like this is... a selling point, and I'm surprised (well ok, not surprised, actually, I just find it tedious) that anyone's really miffed at them about that. 5e is frankly not a game that translates super well to a radio format and if they were all 100% experts with the rules I would expect they would still play fast and loose with them to make the format work. They use DnD as a forum for telling stories. If the rules of DnD get in the way of the story they want to tell, they discard them.
Which is what you should do at your own table, frankly!
You want to say fuck it, it gets in the way so it's out then go right ahead, but the intent is you follow these in full as they are written
They're framed as rules because it helps people, especially new players, understand the framework and intent of the game, but if as a group you can decide to follow or ignore them and there's no consequence or punishment for doing so, they're not actually rules.
Your group determines the actual rules, not the playbook. The fact that you can say fuck it, it gets in the way so it's out literally shows how they're not rules the same way that video games or competitive sports have rules.
Houk the Namebringer on
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Indie Winterdie KräheRudi Hurzlmeier (German, b. 1952)Registered Userregular
ah so is a rule determined by enforcement or by the framework of legitimacy in which it is presented
I'm pretty sure 5E has good ol D&D Rule Zero in there
which is, paraphrased: "What The DM Says Goes"
All D&D rule arguments can be diffused with that unless you wanna talk about RAW, which has its place
But fuckin, if the DM says this is how we are gonna do this and the players are chill with it the peanut gallery doesn't get a vote
This has been Tabletop Thoughts with MechMantis
Yup, this. It's only a rule once your group/DM has decided it is. I don't think the word "rule" has much value without the presence of some force or power that can compel you to follow it, or punish you if you don't. That's part of the nature of it being a rule in my mind. Otherwise it's just a suggested/preferred framework for behavior.
Although that being said, I'm fine with calling it a rulebook just as a shorthand for "this is how we think the game should be played, it's extremely detailed and specific and should answer any questions you might have" so what the fuck do I know
I'm pretty sure 5E has good ol D&D Rule Zero in there
which is, paraphrased: "What The DM Says Goes"
All D&D rule arguments can be diffused with that unless you wanna talk about RAW, which has its place
But fuckin, if the DM says this is how we are gonna do this and the players are chill with it the peanut gallery doesn't get a vote
This has been Tabletop Thoughts with MechMantis
Yup, this. It's only a rule once your group/DM has decided it is. I don't think the word "rule" has much value without the presence of some force or power that can compel you to follow it, or punish you if you don't. That's part of the nature of it being a rule in my mind. Otherwise it's just a suggested/preferred framework for behavior.
Although that being said, I'm fine with calling it a rulebook just as a shorthand for "this is how we think the game should be played, it's extremely detailed and specific and should answer any questions you might have" so what the fuck do I know
actually I'm sorry Houk because you fudged that roll as a DM awhile ago I have to report you to the D&D Police who will break your kneecaps for violating the sanctity of the game
Rules (that have proven advantageous to follow, in the opinion of this book's author, for the purpose of imagining a shared world of fantasy with a reasonably sized group of creatively inclined individuals, likely to provide many hours of thrilling adventure stories told in alternating first and second-person perspective)
My Brother My Brother and Me is part of the barely edited comedy hangout podcast industrial complex, and The Adventure Zone is a D&D podcast where none of them have bothered to learn the rules of D&D but it was briefly more popular than Critical Role.
I actually feel like this is... a selling point, and I'm surprised (well ok, not surprised, actually, I just find it tedious) that anyone's really miffed at them about that. 5e is frankly not a game that translates super well to a radio format and if they were all 100% experts with the rules I would expect they would still play fast and loose with them to make the format work. They use DnD as a forum for telling stories. If the rules of DnD get in the way of the story they want to tell, they discard them.
Which is what you should do at your own table, frankly!
Following all of 5e would be terrible, but nobody is complaining they aren't tracking inventory weight or they misread the details of some spell in episode 24. One of the most well known moments of Balance is Taako doing something that doesn't even remotely match the descriptions of the spells he's saying, but it is not what people complain about in TAZcirclejerk because it was cool. Their version of "rules-lite" is actually just bad because:
1) They get extremely basic rules wrong. It would be better if you were making Mission to Zyxx (listen to Mission to Zyxx), but you're not, supposedly, and you don't even care enough about this podcast to read your character sheet at some point in the last 7 years!
2) They get rules wrong, and it sucks. An example of this is in Graduation they cast hold person on an NPC and he fails, and you can't speak while in hold person. But excuse me sweaty, this is Travis's story, so the NPC manages to barely speak the spell to summon the demon prince to rescue him. And you better believe the PCs can't contest the demon prince in combat even a little bit.
3) The rules getting in the way of the story you want to tell is good. Yes, rule of cool should apply, but players having to get around obstacles to what they want to do is what makes it an actual play podcast and not a book. Handling failure is what makes the game interesting, but at almost no point in Balance or Graduation was it ever plausible the PCs could actually lose.
Rude Tales of Magic is great because it is true to the spirit of D&D even though it is not especially concerned with the details. And it's actually edited so they don't spend half of the damn episodes on table talk for what is essentially calvinball.
My Brother My Brother and Me is part of the barely edited comedy hangout podcast industrial complex, and The Adventure Zone is a D&D podcast where none of them have bothered to learn the rules of D&D but it was briefly more popular than Critical Role.
I actually feel like this is... a selling point, and I'm surprised (well ok, not surprised, actually, I just find it tedious) that anyone's really miffed at them about that. 5e is frankly not a game that translates super well to a radio format and if they were all 100% experts with the rules I would expect they would still play fast and loose with them to make the format work. They use DnD as a forum for telling stories. If the rules of DnD get in the way of the story they want to tell, they discard them.
Which is what you should do at your own table, frankly!
Following all of 5e would be terrible, but nobody is complaining they aren't tracking inventory weight or they misread the details of some spell in episode 24. One of the most well known moments of Balance is Taako doing something that doesn't even remotely match the descriptions of the spells he's saying, but it is not what people complain about in TAZcirclejerk because it was cool. Their version of "rules-lite" is actually just bad because:
1) They get extremely basic rules wrong. It would be better if you were making Mission to Zyxx (listen to Mission to Zyxx), but you're not, supposedly, and you don't even care enough about this podcast to read your character sheet at some point in the last 7 years!
2) They get rules wrong, and it sucks. An example of this is in Graduation they cast hold person on an NPC and he fails, and you can't speak while in hold person. But excuse me sweaty, this is Travis's story, so the NPC manages to barely speak the spell to summon the demon prince to rescue him. And you better believe the PCs can't contest the demon prince in combat even a little bit.
3) The rules getting in the way of the story you want to tell is good. Yes, rule of cool should apply, but players having to get around obstacles to what they want to do is what makes it an actual play podcast and not a book. Handling failure is what makes the game interesting, but at almost no point in Balance or Graduation was it ever plausible the PCs could actually lose.
Rude Tales of Magic is great because it is true to the spirit of D&D even though it is not especially concerned with the details. And it's actually edited so they don't spend half of the damn episodes on table talk for what is essentially calvinball.
A trap is for fish: when you've got the fish, you can forget the trap. A snare is for rabbits: when you've got the rabbit, you can forget the snare. Words are for meaning: when you've got the meaning, you can forget the words.
As someone who powered through hundreds of episodes of CritRole as a distraction to deal with an onset of tinnitus... TAZ is a much more entertaining listen than CR. Each self contained episode is around an hour, they edit out long pauses and referencing, the focus is primarily on telling a good story and not following the rules for the sake of it, etc.
CritRole is a better example of how to play D&D, sure, but TAZ is a better piece of entertainment. It also made all the failings of D&D as a roleplaying system more apparent to me and directly lead me to other good stuff like Friends at the Table.
I'm like 80 episodes behind CR at this point, primarily because each episode is like ~4 hours long and time, however I will say that compared to our parties' sessions, 4 hours is nothing. If my friends' games were as efficient with how much gets done during a session as Matt Mercer's games I would be over the moon.
No no, please, let us double and triple discuss every single possible contingent that we may need in the next encounter, it's only been two hours so far.
Yeah, like I recognise the immense talent of everyone involved in Critical Role, but I bounced off it pretty hard.
Now if someone were to cut CR down to just the in-character dialogue and narration (and some choice out of character moments)? And pair that with even a very basic, one-frame-per-five-seconds animation of the action? I would eat that up.
I've ended up gravitating to the style of Friends at the Table a lot, they start from the top with non-D&D systems that are more conducive to storytelling (and, as seen in Counter/Weight, can and will switch systems if the one they're using isn't working for the story they want to tell)
Still fairly long and occasionally slow, but the rules discussion and story crafting end up doing a pretty neat handshake. Plus the editing is at that sweet spot for me of removing dead air and the most tangential rules discourse, while keeping in the more interesting or relevant asides
I'm like 80 episodes behind CR at this point, primarily because each episode is like ~4 hours long and time, however I will say that compared to our parties' sessions, 4 hours is nothing. If my friends' games were as efficient with how much gets done during a session as Matt Mercer's games I would be over the moon.
No no, please, let us double and triple discuss every single possible contingent that we may need in the next encounter, it's only been two hours so far.
Get your party some Blades in the Dark. Contingency planning in advance is basically verboten and is handled entirely through a flashback mechanic.
I'm like 80 episodes behind CR at this point, primarily because each episode is like ~4 hours long and time, however I will say that compared to our parties' sessions, 4 hours is nothing. If my friends' games were as efficient with how much gets done during a session as Matt Mercer's games I would be over the moon.
No no, please, let us double and triple discuss every single possible contingent that we may need in the next encounter, it's only been two hours so far.
Get your party some Blades in the Dark. Contingency planning in advance is basically verboten and is handled entirely through a flashback mechanic.
The one time we did a train heist session in 5e Eberron, we used a pinched version of the flashback mechanic, so it's possible to weave into 5e if the party is absolutely hung up on using the d20 system but
Blades in the Dark is very good and has a whole ton of setting-adjustable hacks out there (often referred to as Forged in the Dark games) so it's worth a switch if y'all like the mechanics
I am pretty much always willing to defend long video essays being necessary in their length, but Sarah Z has been really bad about editing her videos down for a bit. Between extreme redundancy (was I insane, or did she just do two versions of the same opening statement?), disclaimers about points longer than the points themselves, and kind of indulgent transition editing (why have VHS style transition imagery), and just generally uninteresting subject matter, this feels like what people mean when they say youtubers are too long-winded for no reason
Posts
Frightening!
Rock Band DLC | GW:OttW - arrcd | WLD - Thortar
Also Justin has a medical history (and indirectly a science advocacy) podcast with his wife Sydney, who is a doctor and health educator and is EXTREMELY good at her job. They do a lot of silly episodes about weird stuff from the past, but also educate on important stuff like vaccinations, pop culture charlatans like Dr. Phil, homeopathy, stuff like that.
Honestly that's probably the most meaningful thing the McElroy family does as a whole, in my opinion.
not stop caring at all, nobody should give louis ck or bill maher any slack
but the mcelroys are despite everything and in the grand scheme of things essentially harmless, why get bent out of shape about them
please enjoy 2 of the mcelroys "enjoying" Spore
Speaking of which, leaping right from Homestuck to TAZ? Cripes, Sarah Z.
I actually feel like this is... a selling point, and I'm surprised (well ok, not surprised, actually, I just find it tedious) that anyone's really miffed at them about that. 5e is frankly not a game that translates super well to a radio format and if they were all 100% experts with the rules I would expect they would still play fast and loose with them to make the format work. They use DnD as a forum for telling stories. If the rules of DnD get in the way of the story they want to tell, they discard them.
Which is what you should do at your own table, frankly!
the rules are just a framework, it's not the fucking law!
but they are rules, not guidelines
You want to say fuck it, it gets in the way so it's out then go right ahead, but the intent is you follow these in full as they are written
They're framed as rules because it helps people, especially new players, understand the framework and intent of the game, but if as a group you can decide to follow or ignore them and there's no consequence or punishment for doing so, they're not actually rules.
Your group determines the actual rules, not the playbook. The fact that you can say fuck it, it gets in the way so it's out literally shows how they're not rules the same way that video games or competitive sports have rules.
yes this is now the philosophy thread
which is, paraphrased: "What The DM Says Goes"
All D&D rule arguments can be diffused with that unless you wanna talk about RAW, which has its place
But fuckin, if the DM says this is how we are gonna do this and the players are chill with it the peanut gallery doesn't get a vote
This has been Tabletop Thoughts with MechMantis
Yup, this. It's only a rule once your group/DM has decided it is. I don't think the word "rule" has much value without the presence of some force or power that can compel you to follow it, or punish you if you don't. That's part of the nature of it being a rule in my mind. Otherwise it's just a suggested/preferred framework for behavior.
Although that being said, I'm fine with calling it a rulebook just as a shorthand for "this is how we think the game should be played, it's extremely detailed and specific and should answer any questions you might have" so what the fuck do I know
actually I'm sorry Houk because you fudged that roll as a DM awhile ago I have to report you to the D&D Police who will break your kneecaps for violating the sanctity of the game
It's
the rules
1) They get extremely basic rules wrong. It would be better if you were making Mission to Zyxx (listen to Mission to Zyxx), but you're not, supposedly, and you don't even care enough about this podcast to read your character sheet at some point in the last 7 years!
2) They get rules wrong, and it sucks. An example of this is in Graduation they cast hold person on an NPC and he fails, and you can't speak while in hold person. But excuse me sweaty, this is Travis's story, so the NPC manages to barely speak the spell to summon the demon prince to rescue him. And you better believe the PCs can't contest the demon prince in combat even a little bit.
3) The rules getting in the way of the story you want to tell is good. Yes, rule of cool should apply, but players having to get around obstacles to what they want to do is what makes it an actual play podcast and not a book. Handling failure is what makes the game interesting, but at almost no point in Balance or Graduation was it ever plausible the PCs could actually lose.
Rude Tales of Magic is great because it is true to the spirit of D&D even though it is not especially concerned with the details. And it's actually edited so they don't spend half of the damn episodes on table talk for what is essentially calvinball.
CritRole is a better example of how to play D&D, sure, but TAZ is a better piece of entertainment. It also made all the failings of D&D as a roleplaying system more apparent to me and directly lead me to other good stuff like Friends at the Table.
Mostly because it just seems so freaking long
the players are very very good with their characters
unfortunately they are still playing D&D which is a fantasy flavored excel chart
I once made an excel sheet for d&d because my party refused to track the treasure we got...
No no, please, let us double and triple discuss every single possible contingent that we may need in the next encounter, it's only been two hours so far.
Now if someone were to cut CR down to just the in-character dialogue and narration (and some choice out of character moments)? And pair that with even a very basic, one-frame-per-five-seconds animation of the action? I would eat that up.
Still fairly long and occasionally slow, but the rules discussion and story crafting end up doing a pretty neat handshake. Plus the editing is at that sweet spot for me of removing dead air and the most tangential rules discourse, while keeping in the more interesting or relevant asides
Get your party some Blades in the Dark. Contingency planning in advance is basically verboten and is handled entirely through a flashback mechanic.
Dreamcatcher plays IRL Among Us (no actual killing involved)
The one time we did a train heist session in 5e Eberron, we used a pinched version of the flashback mechanic, so it's possible to weave into 5e if the party is absolutely hung up on using the d20 system but
Blades in the Dark is very good and has a whole ton of setting-adjustable hacks out there (often referred to as Forged in the Dark games) so it's worth a switch if y'all like the mechanics
Saaarrrgge, my trench sucks now can I get a new one
i'm blasting you
get blasted
ballblazer.
Trench warfare loses a lot of its glamour up close.
I am pretty much always willing to defend long video essays being necessary in their length, but Sarah Z has been really bad about editing her videos down for a bit. Between extreme redundancy (was I insane, or did she just do two versions of the same opening statement?), disclaimers about points longer than the points themselves, and kind of indulgent transition editing (why have VHS style transition imagery), and just generally uninteresting subject matter, this feels like what people mean when they say youtubers are too long-winded for no reason