The Fifth Dentist Report: Feedback to Episode 30
I wanna thank Raef for strapping it on and masterfully wielding it when he transformed my shout-out from silver to gold. I am additionally pleased that, for a modest investment, I get to slightly tweak his world and force him to respond accordingly. In rebelling from my dark influence, he has incorporated it into his own being. I've even been assimilated into your shout-out
on shout-outs - and the fact that I remain unacknowledged merely means that I have maintained my cover of darkness. You are not and have never been anyone's stooge - but you now
are my contractual-basis minion.
Mwuaaahhhhhhhahhhahh.
But at the same time, I must differ with the iTunes review that says that you should stop picking on THX. I disagree
not because I believe you are not picking on him - for you are. But I also think that in this way, much like a fine diamond or a steak, when heat and pressure are applied to the subject, it becomes even better - more refined and spicier.
And I know exactly how to deal with such unsettling comments as "Strap it on!" These comments must be taken from their wielders and used repeatedly and without interruption in order to sap them of their power. After all, consider the alternative!
"In a world where semi-lewd entendres go unanswered..."
Craig - Gotcha. NOT hating Shifty. But I will at least inform you that right now, I will have an initial negative first impression of people who earn the nickname 'Shifty'. So I will confirm and agree that it is a no-hate assignation - but I also want to apprise you of the consequences. Should I eventually drive out to New England and meet your friends, I will be at least suspicious.
All: While I (as someone who doesn't play
WH40K) would not be ordering from paintedfigs.com (sowwy), I am inspired by your reference to pink Space Marines with flowers on them - can you tell me what Company Johnny Dangerously would be painted like?
Russ: regarding Space Alert, you used "it's so unique that it's impossible to describe" (paraphrased again), and that's how you didn't describe Peggle last episode. To rip off Oscar Wilde, "To lose one description may be counted a misfortune - to lose two smacks of wordlessness." If you want, I can take a look at the game and describe it for you.
*snicker snicker*
Russ: I also got into the Blood Bowl beta - and I agree that I signed an NDA and therefore can't really say anything else. I can't possibly say how totally awesome it was, or that I'm so getting it when it comes out. Can't tell you that.
Craig: Munchkin is cool, but it is
not CC. It's much lighter, a bit sillier and (
IMHO) is unfortunately a bit vulnerable to gang-up-on-the-leader syndrome. (Which is kinda good, as it means usually nobody can run away with it. But it's kind of annoying to know that as soon as you make a good play and break away from the pack a little bit, you get beaten down. It's the gamer version of how the GOP describes progressive tax rates.) There are many non-gamers I know whose only entry into gaming is Munchkin.
Raef & Russ: I'm still looking forward to my first game of Descent - but my brain rebels at the term "fatigue" as a currency. If I'm
spending fatigue, I should become
more energized. There are enough gamer synonyms for "stamina" that I think they could have found one. I'm just sayin'. (Anybody remember how to make money in the Infocom-Douglas Adams game Bureaucracy?)
Raef & Craig: if you have time to put something up here or talk about it next time you're on, I want to ask you a question. For
RPG games where you've put together the story and enemies yourself, how do you balance the enemies vs. the party? I get completely paralyzed trying to even
consider what would constitute "a fair and interesting fight". I get so stymied I completely chicken out and run talk-and-skill-check games - which
can be cool, but some of my players have been unsatisfied. I'm playing in a Shadowrun Fourth Edition game now, and it's reminding me how cool crunchy-stat
RPGs are. So, in your mind, how do you approach the creation of a fight?
Russ: Regarding the news on Arcane Legions, I seem to recall some sort of historic antipathy on your part for "blind purchase" on constructible games (to wit,
CCGs or CMGs as opposed to regular minis games). With the announcement that they are guaranteeing that if you buy a case, you get one of each type - how do you feel about that? I will say that the last two sets of the Star Wars Miniatures game have basically been packed in this tightly controlled way - a case gets you EXACTLY eight of each common, four of each uncommon, one each of the rares and a smattering of the ultrarares. It feels good as a
COLLECTOR to have this - but as someone in a group with three other gamers all purchasing cases, it completely depletes the fun trading session after a set comes out, and it also sticks us with a full set of duplicate rares when we buy two cases to get more of the ultra-rares. And these rare sets are anvils, because everyone else who plays has them. If you for a moment set aside your antipathy for blind packaging - would it be better if they mixed up the individual boosters more, but then offered a "mega-set" non-blind purchase edition with all the figs? Or does that steal away from the inherent thrill of a collectible game?
And does the addition of Bejeweled and Peggle to WoW suggest that WoW has grown to the point where it attracts users interested in the community aspect of it who don't actually
PLAY the game?
All: The pronunciation issue of "dakka" came up again - whoda thunk it?
But as a note on why people *might* use the o-sound ("dokka") rather than the a-sound, consider one of our generation's earliest influences - the comedy stylings of Fozzie the Bear.
"Wakka wakka wakka."
Now say, in the same rhythm:
"Dakka dakka dakka."
There you go.
To the listeners - do you think anyone can tell which contest entry was mine? I wonder how the audience might know.
But speaking of contests - you made a plea during Rapid Fire for advice on how to increase your number of entrants into contests. Speaking as one who didn't make it to the final four, I would only advise that entering a contest where the result is a die roll is,
even on the
d6 Generation, a little disheartening. If you ask for skill in writing and presentation, it is beholden to you to actually summon the courage to offer a final determination on said creativity. Take that English judge's wig you have on your nightstand - and strap it on.
And to take that wig onto my own head (but as it is not mine, I will NOT be strapping it on) - I might have given it to "No - the LOOT rides shotgun." It lacked some of the glitz and flash of the other entries, but it is succinct and elegant, and is very very intimidating to consider hearing after a long hard road out of a dungeon with the treasure.
But it was VERY weird to hear Raef spice up my
very long betrayal story with a snack reference - seeing as I am personally allergic to peanuts and peanut butter. Just
nutty irony.
And yes, I know it's very long, and thus absolutely needed
HD's spice - but I feel so -helpless- about the issue. If anyone ever saw Sports Night with Jeremy's first baseball feature, they will know that that The Storm Clouds Are Gathering.
Oh, and how to do 1-in-4 with
d6s -
2d6. Check each die for 1-3 vs. 4-6 - that's two 50% distributions.
HD - your commentary on time prioritizing is good and gutsy - you definitely had it strapped on firmly and snugly. However, it was perhaps a little less...um...deliberative than the first part. And the tone was perhaps more combative than recommended by the manufacturer - might not be surprised if thine lifemate chooses to, verbally speaking, strap it on. (Or not.) But still always great to hear your voice unfiltered.
Nicole and Karen: Interesting to hear that Oxford in England is a home to a majority-female boardgaming population. My immediate response, however, is to say that most of the men in that town are probably playing Games Workshop games. While these too are technically "boardgames", I suspect that's not what your respondent was referring to. And while Warhammer
40K is probably a lot less friendly to consider approaching than Pandemic or Puerto Rico.
Oh, and not so old-fashioned to live separately until marriage - my wife and I did it too.
Kudos to both of you for pointing out something I missed - that I
am playing an MMO. (I'm crediting you rather than the boys for this, as I think you treated the subject more seriously.) I've more or less moved on from Vampire Wars to Mafia Wars, but I didn't even really *feel* like either was an MMO, because of the text interface and the limits on energy vs. missions. BUt yes, I *am* online with many many people playing the same game. The critical differences here between these games (which I like) and WoW and other subscription MMOs are A) the ones I like not only don't encourage staying on 24-7, but actually
limit your play time, and B) there's really no raid or instance structure - you never have to worry about when you're online, because the other players you know only assist you passively. In terms of play action, you're always soloing.
And to refer to Raef's earlier question on what the hook is - it's the same hook as most MMOs. It's
RPG stat crack, combined with the abilities to complete quests and talk about the game with your friends. It's just a smaller MMO paradigm, but it's still there.
Raef: You're saying "I don't get it" more often than usual this show. Are you using that to put exposition in context - or did you strap it on in the wrong place?
All: While I don't play
WM, I can appreciate thoughtful analysis on any gaming topic. The review of the
WM-M2 design was obviously the digested intelligence of experienced and thoughtful players. Very interesting.
Great show, gentlemen and ladies - I continue to eagerly await that next episode.
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