Henry
Autoexreginated
My response if I were writing to Tracy Hickman:
Dear Tracy:
I understand where your position is, and where it comes from. You have related the content of the BOVD and the Dragon sealed secton, with a desire to portray a terrorist. You have also expressed your concerns that D&D has lost a "family appeal" that was once beginning to show.
I have to say that I disagree with most of your points. Most, but not all. On a personal levle, I agree with your disgust of profanity, vulgarity, and nudity for its own sake. The moderators of ENWorld do not allow it in their administration of content on the forums.
However, I too lived through the rough times for RPG's in the 1980's. I, too, remember the bad rap that was had, the destruction of materials by concerned parents, and the social stigma of playing a "game that turned you into a minion of Satan." The only thing that was desired by us players in the early 80's was a fun time, and the ability to follow our own direction, without peer pressure. Admittedly, I was not an industry insider, I as merely a teenager trying to find a gaming group to play with. Because of the 1980's "witchhunts", I was unable to find a regular gaming group until 1988 or so.
The BoVD, to be released next month, is not to be elevated and emulated in Players for their characters. It would also be just as wrong to say that "D&D has slidden down its slippery slope" for Wizards producing this product. It is, no more and no less, a tool for DM's to use in their games. And, like the core books that preceded it, and like the pencil and paper and table that we play on, it is no more or less a tool in building a stronger and more varied game.
You are also, I might add, the first Former TSR employee or freelancer who has ever had anything good to say about the "Comics Code" that TSR followed from about 1986 to 1996. Most of the other designers, and MORE than a few fans, have stated absolute disillusionment with the policy which built very little good grace with concerned parents, and alienated almost half of the first edition fan base that existed at the time. Your upholding of this code as a good thing surprised me a little.
I also understand that your religious beliefs strongly influences you opinion in this. Being raised in a similar yet different Christian faith, I hold strong opinions about the ideas that exist in these two products. Yet, I will myself find both of them useable in my games, in the manner that Monte Cook has intimated they were designed to be used: As a supplement to the portrayal of evil in my campaigns, for the PC's to destroy. In my campaigns, evil is a force to be defeated, yet it is a force to be reckoned with; this product will help me spell out the exact allure that evil has on the unsuspecting. My PC's have the option to go down that road, but they also have the understanding that evil will lose in the end. But then, that's what this book represents - understanding why evil is so seductive, so as to be able to overcome it.
I will disagree, on my grounds of individual choice, and also on the idea that the hobby has integrated itself into our culture much more than it was 20 years ago. We do not fear the slings and arrows of the closed minded as we used to; in fact, the closed-minded will never enjoy a hobby such as ours regardless of its image. However, I do not believe it is a good thing to restrict one company's expression because of a group with even less influence than gamers worldwide.
Live long, live well, and game well.
Henry Link
Dear Tracy:
I understand where your position is, and where it comes from. You have related the content of the BOVD and the Dragon sealed secton, with a desire to portray a terrorist. You have also expressed your concerns that D&D has lost a "family appeal" that was once beginning to show.
I have to say that I disagree with most of your points. Most, but not all. On a personal levle, I agree with your disgust of profanity, vulgarity, and nudity for its own sake. The moderators of ENWorld do not allow it in their administration of content on the forums.
However, I too lived through the rough times for RPG's in the 1980's. I, too, remember the bad rap that was had, the destruction of materials by concerned parents, and the social stigma of playing a "game that turned you into a minion of Satan." The only thing that was desired by us players in the early 80's was a fun time, and the ability to follow our own direction, without peer pressure. Admittedly, I was not an industry insider, I as merely a teenager trying to find a gaming group to play with. Because of the 1980's "witchhunts", I was unable to find a regular gaming group until 1988 or so.
The BoVD, to be released next month, is not to be elevated and emulated in Players for their characters. It would also be just as wrong to say that "D&D has slidden down its slippery slope" for Wizards producing this product. It is, no more and no less, a tool for DM's to use in their games. And, like the core books that preceded it, and like the pencil and paper and table that we play on, it is no more or less a tool in building a stronger and more varied game.
You are also, I might add, the first Former TSR employee or freelancer who has ever had anything good to say about the "Comics Code" that TSR followed from about 1986 to 1996. Most of the other designers, and MORE than a few fans, have stated absolute disillusionment with the policy which built very little good grace with concerned parents, and alienated almost half of the first edition fan base that existed at the time. Your upholding of this code as a good thing surprised me a little.
I also understand that your religious beliefs strongly influences you opinion in this. Being raised in a similar yet different Christian faith, I hold strong opinions about the ideas that exist in these two products. Yet, I will myself find both of them useable in my games, in the manner that Monte Cook has intimated they were designed to be used: As a supplement to the portrayal of evil in my campaigns, for the PC's to destroy. In my campaigns, evil is a force to be defeated, yet it is a force to be reckoned with; this product will help me spell out the exact allure that evil has on the unsuspecting. My PC's have the option to go down that road, but they also have the understanding that evil will lose in the end. But then, that's what this book represents - understanding why evil is so seductive, so as to be able to overcome it.
I will disagree, on my grounds of individual choice, and also on the idea that the hobby has integrated itself into our culture much more than it was 20 years ago. We do not fear the slings and arrows of the closed minded as we used to; in fact, the closed-minded will never enjoy a hobby such as ours regardless of its image. However, I do not believe it is a good thing to restrict one company's expression because of a group with even less influence than gamers worldwide.
Live long, live well, and game well.
Henry Link
