D&D General Rant: Sometimes I Hate the D&D Community

[GMforPowergamers]

I am going to disagree with this one because of one specific thing.... Adventurer's League.

For people that only play in home games, I agree there is no reason to get caught up in a lot of this, you can always ignore it/change it. However, for those who play Adventurer's league, they are often bound to the changes that WOTC releases.... and so I feel have a legitimate right to criticize changes they feel will detract from the games they are currently involved in.

you don't even need to be "just" adventure league (although that alone is a thing) but some games just don't allow for too many house rules...

I know plenty of DMs who do not have the time/energy to sift through whole class/spell list from DMsguild/3rd party stuff.

I just started a new campaign this week. At session 0 2 players sprung 3rd party stuff on me. 1 was from someone I have never heard of, the other was a warforged modification to druid by keith baker. I did not even entertain the 1st. I did not have time to trouble shoot something from someone (who may or may not be professional and great as a dev) I did have time to look over something from a game dev I trust and okay it.

my Saturday night campaign I play in is going strong. We wont be restarting for months maybe a year... but if I too either 3rd party to the DM he would just say "NO" because he doesn't want to open the flood gates to everyone asking for him to review 3rd party things.

 

[LordEntrails]

TLDR

I . . . I don't understand certain people in the D&D community, and it's quite frustrating. We constantly fight over nothing, write thousands of words in huge posts about why someone else's style of play is badwrongfun, and whine about minor changes in the game as if they're the end of the hobby.

Then don't.

And I hold myself to this standard, too. If I ever forget this and act like any part of this post isn't true, remind me. And if you feel that I've acted differently in the past, PM me.

Seems you failed this time. Given your thousands of words you wrote in this post.

Just like every post on the internet/social media, if it's not going to bring you joy, don't read it. And if you thought it was going to bring you joy but didn't, don't reply to it.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Why shouldn't people be able to play the game the way they want to?

Session 0 is the best way to find out if a group is for you or not.

in the case of things that are seen (weather right or wrong) as raciest adjacent things like race stat mods it isn't just us playing... it's the company. WotC doesn't WANT to be associated with it so they are not supporting it going forward right or wrong

 

[Reynard]

I'm not sure if you're serious or not. Many people believe these mechanics are inherently racist, and that their presence in a rules set is problematic. This means discussions about them shifts from just "what you like in a game" to "what is non-inclusive in a game". Many arguments take a very different tone once that line is crossed.

Emphasis mine.

There's the rub. it's an opinion that is very often treated as a fact, which gets everyone up in arms immediately. And it is not the only example of such, either. Many opinions are wielded like cudgels, and so folks find themselves on the defensive. The appropriate response is something like, "I don't like racial ASIs in my games because they are suggestive of real world racism," (or similar) countered by "I don't see it that way," (or similar) and then -- and this is crucial -- "let's agree to disagree." That's it. Discussion over and problem solved. But that is not what usually happens. usually folks dig in their heels and try and convince others of their argument. Or someone feels they are misunderstood and just talks harder to get through to people.

If the subject is sensitive, it is best, I think, to express your opinion politely once and then drop it.

 

[BookTenTiger]

Emphasis mine.

There's the rub. it's an opinion that is very often treated as a fact, which gets everyone up in arms immediately. And it is not the only example of such, either. Many opinions are wielded like cudgels, and so folks find themselves on the defensive. The appropriate response is something like, "I don't like racial ASIs in my games because they are suggestive of real world racism," (or similar) countered by "I don't see it that way," (or similar) and then -- and this is crucial -- "let's agree to disagree." That's it. Discussion over and problem solved. But that is not what usually happens. usually folks dig in their heels and try and convince others of their argument. Or someone feels they are misunderstood and just talks harder to get through to people.

If the subject is sensitive, it is best, I think, to express your opinion politely once and then drop it.

I tend to enjoy these discussions when each post (even the ones I don't agree with) is new, or shows that the poster is continuing to develop their thoughts. I immediately disengage when it's just the same posts over and over, especially when they are carried over from other threads. If I find myself typing out the same idea, it's usually a sign for me to delete it and disengage.

It makes me think of a truism in human interaction: people tend to see their own mindsets as flexible, and others as set in place. I wonder if this makes online discussion more difficult... If i see my own posts as just my current ideas that could change, but other people's posts as examples of their actual, intractable selves.

Then again, ever since I started repeating to myself the mantra "You can't change anyone's mind on the internet" I've felt a lot calmer about walking away from upsetting discussions.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Then again, ever since I started repeating to myself the mantra "You can't change anyone's mind on the internet" I've felt a lot calmer about walking away from upsetting discussions.

Oh ... that's the saying! I guess that makes sense.

I always thought it was, You can't eat anyone's mind on the internet. Because of the Shadow Proclamation banning Mind Flayers from the internet.

Wait ... they're still banned, right?

 

[BookTenTiger]

Oh ... that's the saying! I guess that makes sense.

I always thought it was, You can't eat anyone's mind on the internet. Because of the Shadow Proclamation banning Mind Flayers from the internet.

Wait ... they're still banned, right?

This is actually all a psychically-induced dream you are having in the moment before a mind flayer eats your brain.

 

[Deset Gled]

Emphasis mine.

There's the rub. it's an opinion that is very often treated as a fact, which gets everyone up in arms immediately. And it is not the only example of such, either. Many opinions are wielded like cudgels, and so folks find themselves on the defensive.

You're correct that it's an opinion. But there is a difference between "I don't believe robots should be in medieval fantasy" and "I believe this game promotes racial stereotypes". One is an opinion about something inside a world of make believe, and the other is an opinion about the real world. One is a preference, the other may be an actual problem for the community.

Alignment and racial ASIs seem to be a crossover point between these different types of opinions.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

This is actually all a psychically-induced dream you are having in the moment before a mind flayer eats your brain.

I would run ... but my brain is in a vat!

 

[Reynard]

You're correct that it's an opinion. But there is a difference between "I don't believe robots should be in medieval fantasy" and "I believe this game promotes racial stereotypes". One is an opinion about something inside a world of make believe, and the other is an opinion about the real world. One is a preference, the other may be an actual problem for the community.

Alignment and racial ASIs seem to be a crossover point between these different types of opinions.

This is a good example of how someone can treat an opinion or interpretation as a fact, and in so doing cultivate the kinds of responses that are likely to lead to long, painful and ultimately closed threads littered with the corpses of the banned.

Because everyone KNOWS robots have been a part of medieval fantasy since Talos.

Philistine.