Events that are sanctioned for "home play" do not appear in the events calendar, so the only way that someone would end up at this table is if they were invited. If you were invited to a particular game, you probably would know the people involved and know what you are getting into.
Wrong. You might know someone, find out they play DND (or some other RPG), but that does not tell you how they play. The whole point of the orignal thread that spawned this one was that 3e and the OGL was a flaw, because it led to so much diversity in gameplay.
In the words of the OP from the original thread, "It makes the game less portable, as I can't join a different group in my home town, move to a different state and find a new group, or play a game at a convention and expect to find a similar experience as the games I am used to playing with my regular group."
"Therefore, the game is better off with an organized play model like RPGA where some governing body determines how the game is played. This brings us to organized(RPGA or otherwise), tournament and convention play. WotC has stated in plain language that organized/tournament/convention D&D is important to the brand... the organized games don't inherently resemble home games, as the system can be stretched to the point where it doesn't resemble the games being played at these events. "
People were taking issue with the idea that forcing the game into one wayism determined the RPGA or some other organization was best for the game than the diversity resulting from people customizing the game to what best fits them or that organized play, in general, was somehow better than non-RPGA play.
Correct, but in this particular case the group is a closed game to begin with. You can do in a "home" game anything you want. Want to have flying monkeys as a character race, knock yourself out. There is no restriction on "home play" because it would be ridiculous to attempt to enforce. If your group chooses to report it then you get rewards.
My point was that such home games are not organized events. So touting them as an example of RPGA play that allows you to play any way you want is a bit misleading as they are not organized and they are closed groups. It is something the organization deals with, because in your own words "it would be ridiculous to attempt to enforce".
In contrast, every other event (Retail, Gameday, Convention, etc.) do appear on the event calendar and are assumed to be open to all. Some specific events like the Worldwide Gamedays are specifically required to happen at a public venue, and must be open to the public.
Incuding sanctioned home events. However, sanctioned home events must be open, have a minimum (4) and maximum (6) of players or be invalidated (per general rules) and use Method 1 or 2 for character generation. Furthermore, they also have to allow the reward cards regardless of how the DM feels about them or a particular card. So, the requirement of having to include the reward cards alone means the DM cannot truly run how he or she chooses as a DM may not like a particular card or the cards in general and, yet, stll has to include them if a player brings them.
If a particular group is sanctioning games incorrectly, how is this a problem with the entire organization?
I never wrote that a group sanctioned a game incorrectly. My point was that the only game that truly allows one to run the game how they choose is a non-sanctioned home event with a closed group which is not sanctioned or organized play. It really has nothing to even do with RPGA organized play beyond getting bennies and being allowed to use modules so darjr touting it has zero restriction is disengenous.
The actual forms of organized play (including home play) which is the whole point of the RPGA actually place at least some restrictions on how the game is run and by being public means you have to deal with the "douchebag" player (or deal with paperwork as to why you ejected the person and their response sheet and any organizational drama that results).
Again, I understand that other people love the RPGA and get great benefits from it, but is it really so politically incorrect to simply not care for the RPGA and not need it?
