You hate "munchkin"? Here's the term *I* hate!

Psion

Adventurer
Some people have said how they dislike the term munchkin, as it typically has little meaning beyond "people who play in a style I don't like." Fair enough, but I think that some people perceive it in the same sense that I do (i.e., someone who sacrifices character concept, beleivability, and teamwork to optimize the character in survival situations).

Now for my pet peeve:

Roll-player.

Gak! How I hate that term. It's thoroughly stupid. First off, people who use it think they are being oh-so-clever by invocing a homonymn, when in reality it strikes me as about as clever as country music lyrics like "I'm in luv with a capital you..."

Further, rolling the dice is a perfectly pedestrian activity for RPGs in general and D&D in particular. For those who play in a somewhat simulationist style, the system is the eyes and ears of the players and rolling the dice is something that happens a lot -- and has ZERO impact on roleplaying. None. But whenever I see "roll-play", I seethe, bucause it implies that because I resolve things by rolling dice, we aren't role-playing. What a pile of crap! By making the chances of success representative of a characters ability vice how much of a drama queen the player is, you are better approximating the role you are portraying!

It is perfectly 100% possible to integrate role-playing and rolling the dice. Especially in the d20 system. Just use the GMs impressions of how beleivable the portrayal is and use that as a modifier to the dice roll.

I finally got d20 CoC, a game that I daresay is a bit more roleplay oriented than D&D. I found it extremely interesting the way that the bluff check modifiers seem to encourage this sort of play. Hmmm.
 

log in or register to remove this ad



To all it may concern...

To be honest I don't give a rat's ass how people play their games. If you want to call it roll-play, roleplay or whatever is fine with me, because what normal people call roleplay is nothing of the sorts we do. Roleplay for us is to game in a fiction world, with fictious characters, to various ends and needs, making up stories as we go, having rules and dices to help us out. Normal people call other people like alchoholics, who are knee deep in their problems roleplayers because of their constant denial and attempts to be someone they aren't.

If you prefer rolling lot of dice, getting your stats higher, and dig out gold in a dungeon filled with all kinds of make-no-sense, do so. If you are like me who prefers to see the players act more, discuss more, and solve murder mysteries to name some, let me do that. In either case we are portraiting other characters either heroes or mundane in feel or style. This is roleplay in the gaming sense either way. Roll-play to me sounds like something we elitists make up because we disapprove of others gaming styles.

Elitists, munchkins, roll-players etc. makes no difference, we are all roleplaying the RPGames. The terms has been set on the game, the business and the flow of the RPG community. Some like to act more, others to gain stats, but in the end they are all roleplayers no matter what we/they say. In my eyes your gaming style, whatever it may be, is not worth crap, but neither is mine in yours probably. However we should be better off helping each other out with stuff that we might find useful no matter what the challenges, instead of calling this that or that this.

At least that is how I troll... :rolleyes:

Psion I am with you even if we might have different styles (or not).
 
Last edited:

CoC

Psion said:
I finally got d20 CoC, a game that I daresay is a bit more roleplay oriented than D&D. I found it extremely interesting the way that the bluff check modifiers seem to encourage this sort of play. Hmmm.
Can we expect a review of d20 Call of Cthulhu anytime soon?

Peace and smiles :)

j.
 


I used to be an elitest roleplayer until I read PCat's & Sagiro's story hour. Now I am humbled. Of course, it helps to have a decade of campaign history under your belt :D
 

Psion said:
Some people have said how they dislike the term munchkin, as it typically has little meaning beyond "people who play in a style I don't like." Fair enough, but I think that some people perceive it in the same sense that I do (i.e., someone who sacrifices character concept, beleivability, and teamwork to optimize the character in survival situations).

My problem with the whole munchkin issue is that there are some people stupid enough to believe that you actually HAVE to sacrifice character concept, believability, and teamwork to optimize the character in survival situations.


It's normal for a character in any situation to do the best he can to survive, it's called self-preservation, it's an instinct and in fact it's almost impossible to counteract.

Therefore logic should dictate that a player playing his PC to the best fo it's ability IS being more of a roleplayer then the people who think they are "roleplayers" and just kind of layz through the game not making any real attempts to improve themselves.
 

You think you have it bad Psion, a fellow player uses roll-player and actually means roleplayer: he just can't spell. Perhaps not coincidently, he's the worst roleplayer in the group.
 


Remove ads

Top