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He’s blind as a bat, man.

Which is very common in science fiction, generally. While there is certainly dystopian steampunk fiction, I don’t thinks dystopian tropes are a defining characteristic of the genre.

There is a lot of gatekeeping about genre purity, yes, but also a lot of welcoming of new fans in general.

Ah- yeah, I agree with that. I still think it’s a stretch to consider Verne & Wells to be truly steampunk. Even granting numerous similar elements, what they wrote was speculative of possible futures; modern steampunk creators are imagining a past that never was. Those are very different...

I made 2 mistakes in a small window in my oft-mentioned HERO 1900 supers campaign. A new guy wanted to join, so I told him about the setting and let him design his own PC- a werewolf- without oversight or review. I thought he understood the tone was more heroic and “4 color”. But he didn’t…...

If you’ve ever seen the old B&W series of Batman & Robin, two things stand out as inappropriate to modern sensibilities: 1) there is use of ethnic slurs towards Japanese people (because of WW2) 2) they change into their crime-fighting togs together in the back seats of cars. No tinted...

Personally, I see “steampunk” much like you do, a 1980s-spawned genre inspired by writers like Verne & Wells, akin to how “neoclassical” art, music and architecture aren’t quite the same as classical. But labels on social trends can be pretty muddy. According to people who study such things...

Steampunk as a genre goes back a ways- some claim Verne & Wells as its progenitors and Wild, Wild West as a mainstream manifestation- but it really didn’t hit its stride until the late 80s. And even then, it would be a while longer before it got into the consciousness of fans of mainstream...

In the case of the TX dental practical exam, you could be DQed at any time, but- and this is key- you don’t have to be told WHY you were DQed. The proctors are walking around the room inspecting the work being done. They know who you are, where you’re from, etc. So if you get tapped out...

Then color me clueless. I mean, I know diseases/parasites/etc. can vary by region. But if it’s not something like that, what would Texas be teaching & testing that wouldn’t be taught elsewhere? Maybe a state regulation section?

I don’t know the particulars, but there might be solid reasons for that. Maybe there’s stuff seen frequently down here that isn’t nearly as common elsewhere. Analogously, the state bars of Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana- all major oil-producing/refining states- emphasize Oil & Gas law. You’re...

Texas is that, no question, but it’s not alone. Other states have “courtesy” bars that aren’t exactly what they seem. But Texas is like that across all professional associations. Dating back at least to when I started in law, the lawyers & CPAs in this state have been trading blows over whose...

Honestly? Hard to say. It was the early 1990s, and steampunk was just really starting to show up as a notable fashion style. OTOH, at least half of the group were at least somewhat active in LARPing, SCA, NERO and other forms of live roleplaying.

I can tell you from the standpoint of the history legal profession that the protection of customers was at best a co-equal goal in creating state bars. To this day, bar exams are protectionist. The clearest example I can think of is Texas’ Short Form Bar Exam. Ostensibly, it is a courtesy...

That’s why I noted “informal” safeguards existed. There’s a reason why admission to the practice of law requires passing a “bar” exam. I’ll note, though, that attorneys like me, CPAs and similar fields need only demonstrate proficiency in written exams. The ones in medical/dental fields...

In my case, it wasn’t a spider that emerged from a fan, but a wasp from a heating vent.☹️

I’m surprised there’s never been a WoD take on it.

Before I got into mysteries myself, my Dad loved The Cadfael Chronicles. I’ve never watched them myself, but since my tastes in mysteries strongly resemble his, I’d probably dig it. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cadfael_Chronicles

Re: arachnophobia I don’t think I qualify as phobic. If nothing else, I don’t have a problem with jumping spiders in general. The problem is, I keep having unexpected encounters with venomous or large spiders. That’s NOPE time for me.

Ditto. My personal experience with trying new systems EXPLODED in the 1990s because I was away from home in school. I went from playing 4-5 RPGs (mostly D&D) with my friends back home to learning over 120 while away. When I returned to my permanent residence & my old friends, the gaming...