Of gishes and arcane defencers and whatnot: Is 4th ed. language for everyone?

[Rechan]

I think of a gish as a physical fighter who buffs himself with magic. A cleric, for example. But the recent WotC article seems to think self-buffers are not gishes.

Odd. I always thought a Gish was a 'Sometimes I stab people, sometimes I blow them up' fighter/mage.

 

[ThirdWizard]

This thread confused me at first because I use Greasemonkey to replace all instances of "gish" with "fighter/mage." It saves a lot of eye twitching and blood pressure medication.

 

[Wolfspider]

Using the word "gish" to refer to anything other than a githyanki fighter/mage is an abomination to all that is holy and good in this world.

 

[Michael Silverbane]

Using the word "gish" to refer to anything other than a githyanki fighter/mage is an abomination to all that is holy and good in this world.

I disagree. I bet that the githyanki feel quite superior in the knowledge that their language is seeing use not only throughout the planes, but in entirely different multiverses.

Later
silver

 

[pawsplay]

I don't like the term "gish" used in this way. I objected to it on the Wizards CO board, and I object to it everywhere it has spread. It sounds silly, it adds nothing to the conversation not already covered by fighter-mage (or FM-U), it provokes confusion with the original term, and has to be explained all the time. It's a pointless shibboleth.

 

[Wolfspider]

I don't like the term "gish" used in this way. I objected to it on the Wizards CO board, and I object to it everywhere it has spread. It sounds silly, it adds nothing to the conversation not already covered by fighter-mage (or FM-U), it provokes confusion with the original term, and has to be explained all the time. It's a pointless shibboleth.

Well said.

 

[Hussar]

I don't like the term "gish" used in this way. I objected to it on the Wizards CO board, and I object to it everywhere it has spread. It sounds silly, it adds nothing to the conversation not already covered by fighter-mage (or FM-U), it provokes confusion with the original term, and has to be explained all the time. It's a pointless shibboleth.

FM-U? And you think Gish is confusing. Let's see, it's been years since wizards were called a magic-user, Gish can also refer to a fighter/sorcerer, or any other combination of combat class and arcane spell user.

Meh, I don't like Gish either, but, trying to say that your jargon is superior to someone else's is a bit strange.

 

[Gloombunny]

I don't like the term "gish" used in this way. I objected to it on the Wizards CO board, and I object to it everywhere it has spread. It sounds silly, it adds nothing to the conversation not already covered by fighter-mage (or FM-U), it provokes confusion with the original term, and has to be explained all the time. It's a pointless shibboleth.

It sounds much better than "fighter-mage", if you ask me.

 

[Reaper Steve]

I don't like the term "gish" used in this way. I objected to it on the Wizards CO board, and I object to it everywhere it has spread. It sounds silly, it adds nothing to the conversation not already covered by fighter-mage (or FM-U), it provokes confusion with the original term, and has to be explained all the time. It's a pointless shibboleth.

Love it or loathe it, the word's not going away. In this case, the best thing that could happen would be for WotC to formalize it in a 4E product as a real and important term.
For instance:
"Swordmages, also called Gish, blend arcane magic with swordplay..."
"Some cultures refer to a Swordmage as a Gish."
"Some say swordmages are an attempt to emulate the combined melee and magic prowess of the Githyanki Gish."

 

[kennew142]

I'm just a grumpy old fart, trying to wrap my brain around this newfangled "Fourth Edition" game that all the young kids are chattering about these days. They tell me it's supposed to be easier to get into than earlier versions of D&D, but a lot of the terms I see bandied about don't seem to make a lick of sense. They sound kind of trendy and exclusive, and I'm afraid I'll never catch up to the trend. Should I keep trying to understand 4th ed lingo, or just go dig my grave and jump in already?

D&D has always included jargon that excludes the uninitiated. THAC0, saving throw, hit dice and armor class are all terms that mean little to the outsider. I'm not saying that I like the term 'gish', but I don't see its use as an issue. New terms are introduced with each iteration of the game.