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  1. M.L. Martin

    D&D General "True Neutral": Bunk or Hogwash

    Same age, similar length of time thinking about it, and I haven't nailed down the ultimate source either. D&D has just enough influence at the right time that it might be to blame, but I think there are other factors. I'm inclined to suspect Morcoock and pop Eastern religion combined with rising...
  2. M.L. Martin

    D&D General "True Neutral": Bunk or Hogwash

    The closest I think we ever get are in two sources. First is the explanation of the Law of Gilean in Dragonlance Adventures; while I don't have my copy to hand at the moment, it talks about a need for contrast and 'unity in diversity.' Second is the material on souls' progession in Holy Orders...
  3. M.L. Martin

    D&D General "True Neutral": Bunk or Hogwash

    I'm afraid I have to go with the 'hogwash' answer to the question of True Neutrality/Active Balancing Between Good and Evil, since it's tied up with another one of D&D's very silly ideas--the moral and ontological equivalence of Good and Evil, which is probably both root and fruit of the game's...
  4. M.L. Martin

    What Geek Media Do You Refuse To Partake In?

    Disney Star Wars (The Last Jedi killed it for me, and it was already on life support after Aftermath, The Force Awakens, and Rogue One.) Amazon's Rings of Power (I have extremely persnickety standards for Tolkien adaptations, so much so that even Jackson's The Two Towers and Return of the King...
  5. M.L. Martin

    Spoilers Stranger Things Season 5 - SPOILERS

    Correct, although a domain named "Markovia" showed up in the 1990 Realm of Terror boxed set. Said boxed set is also where Vallaki was introduced to Barovia.
  6. M.L. Martin

    D&D General The Monsters Know What They're Doing ... Are Unsure on 5e24

    The HR books and the 2E settings come from an older model of D&D, where the game was considered in part a toolkit for running various types of fantasy games. At least one prolific poster on this thread has criticized this as a bad model for D&D, but I think it can be safely said at least that...
  7. M.L. Martin

    D&D General The Monsters Know What They're Doing ... Are Unsure on 5e24

    WotC has been pushing "D&D as its own distinctive genre/game/brand" for a quarter-century now, from the design of 3E to the 'make it more distinctive' redesign of 4E, and even the nostalgia push of early 5E. The toolkit element is a dying older segment at most, IMO.
  8. M.L. Martin

    It's Time to VOTE for your MOST ANTICIPATED TTRPG of 2026!

    I was starting to wonder if I was the only one looking forward to Twilight Sword. :)
  9. M.L. Martin

    I have a Battlecat

    That looks like a collection pretty tightly focused on core characters in both cases (Swindle's the oddball on the TF side).
  10. M.L. Martin

    D&D General The Monsters Know What They're Doing ... Are Unsure on 5e24

    Which is why there's no real point to playing D&D unless you're looking for that specific blend as interpreted through WotC's lens. (Or if you've sold your soul to WotC and are now committed to furthering the dominion of the One Brand to Rule Them All, I suppose ... ;) )
  11. M.L. Martin

    I have a Battlecat

    Unfortunately, they're in storage bins at my parents' house, and show the marks of having been well played with both 40 years ago and now (we've broken them out a few times for my nieces and nephew). There are far more impressive collections and displays online.
  12. M.L. Martin

    I have a Battlecat

    I have two Battle Cats (original and 200X) and two Panthors (ibid.). But then, I have everything released as an official Masters of the Universe toy in the US in the original 1980s line. :)
  13. M.L. Martin

    Will there ever be new editions of the major systems?

    Based on precedent, WotC. :) That's why, when questions of edition come up, I ask if we're using the general hobby's definition of 'edition'--'smooth out the problem spots, fold in the most popular expansion material, maybe tweak a few details'--or the WotC definition--'completely retool the...
  14. M.L. Martin

    Other D&D Variant Castles&Crusades: Codex Exaltum and Codex Infernum

    That is one model for angels, but not the only one. It's not the one I personally prefer, and I'm willing to say it's inaccurate, but that's pushing the limit of board rules.
  15. M.L. Martin

    Other D&D Variant Castles&Crusades: Codex Exaltum and Codex Infernum

    Yes, but are they good? The introduction to the Codex seems to take a very hard-edged and cynical view of Celestials.
  16. M.L. Martin

    Other D&D Variant Castles&Crusades: Codex Exaltum and Codex Infernum

    How does the Codex Exaltum describe Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael?
  17. M.L. Martin

    I made a terrible life decision…

    Yes, but so did everyone else here who got involved with this hobby. ;)
  18. M.L. Martin

    D&D General What Are Dragonlance's Weis & Hickman, and Actor Manganiello Cooking Up?

    You're going to have a tough time avoiding it if you want to adapt Chronicles, as it's pretty foundational to the premise of the first book at least. And Legends introduces its own issues in that regard, although I seem to be one of the only people who notices it and finds it obnoxious.
  19. M.L. Martin

    D&D General Settings of Hope vs Settings of Despair

    True, but you're going to be swimming upstream against the assumed setting and even some of the game's mechanical assumptions, especially if you're playing WotC editions.
  20. M.L. Martin

    D&D General Why Enworld should liberate D&D from Hasbro

    After this thread, I'm convinced that if it were somehow to happen, the results most likely would be "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss." with a possibility of "going from early to mid-Revolution."
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