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Rule. I'm using them right now, as written. Charisma's effects are nearly meaningless without this system in place. Since the system is almost entirely responsible for providing rules for Charisma at all, it's definitely a core rule, though applying it is at the DM's discretion. Then again, lots...

Uh oh. You've got me out to hold forth. As other folks have mentioned, a "bastard sword" is what was actually called a "longsword," and there's not much debate about this since period texts call it a "longsword" (langschwert). The D&D "long sword" is probably an arming sword, with extra flanges...

The funny thing is that AD&D1e has very detailed rules to determine NPC attitude, loyalty and morale. 2e actually tones down the emphasis on game systems.

They made sense in a setting that assumed that most people were level 0 but could still have useful professional skills from a PC adventurer's point of view. Otherwise, you have a stupid situation where being a high level fighter makes you a better armourer than a professional armourer.

The differences between 1e and 2e in for core rules is minimal when it comes to the rules that people commonly use. It's only when you get to AD&D subsystems that people don't use much and some supplementary ideas in 2e (like kits) that people associate with the game do you get into anything...

Trends seize company cultures all the time, and build up ideologies to defend them. Then there's some kind of regime change and motive for people to look innovative by trashing predecessors. This is understandable because that regime change happens because the current one isn't meeting success...

As far as the wider culture is concerned tabletop RPGs are already dead. What we are all currently participating in is a long tail effect. It's in our nature to dismiss it because of the type of selection that makes us a part of what is, from the larger perspective, a moribund scene. For...

The OA had already honoured AD&D. It's in the Hall of Fame. Personally, I think accusing an annual award of "chronological chauvanism" is self-evidently hilarious.

I ran Adventure! earlier this year for a transhuman SF game. Stands up to the test of time, and leads to some remarkably sophisticated and cool game system interactions between facets, Willpower and Inspiration use. It is better at linking character concept, niche, narrative, and in-character...

When people believe the yardstick for acceptable behaviour is whatever someone can get away with under the law and whoever they need to curry favour with to stay in the game, they've a broken yardstick. This is a general problem with the scene, really.

It seats both friends who live nearby with friends who live far away.

Incidentally, as I recall it Bruce said that way back when because he felt it wasn't good for a set of AD&D1 house/tribute rules to be promoted via an award intended to recognize new RPGs. It had nothing to do with Hackmaster's quality, except perhaps the idea that something that is specifically...

There's nothing ironic about it. This thread exists for that person to do research to fuel attacks on Bruce that would be banned here over in John Tarnowski's RPGSite forum.

I assume we have now done the following in this thread: 1) Taken the idea of a hobby in decline to its most exaggerated, strawmanish extent so that we can claim that it will never die, even though there is a set of outcomes greater than 0 gamers and 0 games that is still awful. 2)...

1) TRPGs have used ARGs are promotions, with mixed results. Hunter: The Reckoning was promoted with a proto-ARG (it said WW has been purchased by libertarian free speech activists, asked you if you'd experienced off things and asked you to join an email list that was Hunter-net) that was...

You seem to be under the impression that your opinion can influence my income, when the truth is I can say whatever the hell I want to you precisely because it doesn't. Get some grounding. Consider that a site choked with contextual advertising, a banner promoting paid membership, and popups...

I really do love gamers and tabletop RPGs. (Running a homebrew supers game tonight!) I don't go to conventions often, but I always meet good people when I do. None of what I said changes that, but I'm not going to back down from my opinion either. I'd like RPG folks to be in the thick of...

Obviously, my post should have been beneath your notice.

I already said that I don't think vocal communities like this are wholly representative of gamers. Draw your own conclusions from there.

That's right. As the post says, I think most gamers are pretty cool. They're also pretty cloistered. It's wrong to interpret what I wrote as an attack on all gamers.