General RPG DiscussionDiscussion of all RPGs and non-system-specific topics. DM/GM/player issues, settings, etc. Rules discussion belongs in one the forums below.
I don't have a problem with silly. I really can't stand silly + useless. Sadly, a large portion of the 1e Fiend Folio fits this category.
An example: The Denzelian. It's a creature with no attacks, no special attacks, and no special defenses that eats rocks. And looks like a rock. It quite literally does nothing but slowly eat rocks.
Or the Carbuncle. The carbuncle looks like a pupae of some sort with a gem in its forehead. If you kill it to get the gem, it crumbles to dust. You can, however, persuade it to give you the gem.
The 3.5e campaign I run features an NPC named Glutinous Maximus, a gelatinous cube monk --well, he's really a magical hybrid of a gelatinous cube and a partially-digested human monk-- and former pit-fighter turned political candidate, whose eventual fate was to be killed by the party, resurrected by chaos magic in the Land of the Dead, and then imprisoned --much to his delight-- in the court of a demon lord, where he was made to pioneer new forms of pornography with the help of the demon's 994 succubi daughters.
And then there's our new 4e campaign, where I play a jolly Dragonborn paladin (and slam-poet) who marks his foes with his own semi-divine semen.
I find Paizo's Golarion deity Cayden Cailean to be too silly for D&D for me. He's a former alcoholic adventurer who became a god as a result of a drunken bet. Stranger things exist in real world mythology, sure, but the tongue-in-cheek silliness of this god singlehandedly ruins Golarion for me. I can't be sure of whatever other silly gamer jokes might also be inserted into the setting.
I think he's an interesting god. Instead of some grand high adventure, he became a god on a drunken dare. That's an adventurer there!
Nonsense. It takes many more words to explain exactly how clever and funny I am...
... and those can be found in the STORY HOUR based on the campaign that featured good ole Glutinous Maximus (see .sig #1). Most of it is written by a friend of mine who plays in the campaign, but he does a fair job capturing my charms (he's also pretty funny in his own right).
__________________ "We're pimps and killers, but in a philanthropic way." -- Boyd, Dollhouse.
It all depends on the atmosphere, campaign premise, etc that you're trying to develop and portray. In a campaign themed on a 'realistic' depiction of medieval Europe, almost 90% of D&D is too silly or at the very least inappropriate. Its filled with Rust Monsters, Ropers, Color Cordinated Dragons and all manner of categorized Elves, Dwarves and other assorted species that are broken down by Sun, Moon, Wood, Mountain, Dark and many more. Been wondering what's taking them so long to introduce Cold Bog Elves, Half Moon Dwarves, Whole Halflings and Pumperknickel Gnomes.
At the same time, all those fun things (expect the Pumperknickel Gnomes) and a ton of others are in at least one or more of my campaign worlds. Whatever works I always say.
In addition I love comedic campaigns. Not silly per se but humorous, Sitcom/Dramedy campaigns with great characters, great stories and loads of laughs. Oh it just doesn't get any better!
So go on D&D fans, pile on the Modrons, hoist the Flumphs and ride that crazy hatchbacked Bullete into the sunset!
AD
"Guy, Guy... maybe you're the plucky comic relief. You ever think about that?"
For me, Modrons were converted to stupid-silly in Planescape, and for what reason I could never determine. This is one of many reasons I had trouble accepting Planescape to begin with.
1e MMII Modrons seemed to have an interesting collection of powers, even if they appeared to fit into an limited slice of the Outer Planes. It's been a long time since I've stuck my nose into that book, but I just can't recall anything even remotely like the Planescape flavor/atmosphere for these beings.
As long as I'm a player in a game and there is a logical reason for it, nothing is too silly.
As a GM, I feel exactlyt the same way. I never use a creature, item or place that wouldn't thematically fit with the scenario, even if I'm completely winging it.
Add me to the list. Nothing is too silly for D&D. It's a game for heck's sake, and is supposed to be fun and even whimsical at times. For instance I loved the anime/tokusatsu/kaiju refrences in the Spelljamer MCs.
That said, not everything belongs in every campaign or at every table. It all has a place in D&D though.
__________________ We can lick gravity, but sometimes the paperwork is overwhelming. - Werner von Braun
Right now you have no idea how lucky you are that I am not a sociopath. - A sign seen above my desk.
Never confuse movement with action. - Ernest Hemingway
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