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October 16, 2004

Heart of Dorkness: D&D at 30

Even CNN lowers itself to cover the anniversary:

ATLANTA, Georgia (AP) -- Dungeons & Dragons players gathered in game stores around the country Saturday to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the grandfather of fantasy role-playing games -- a pop culture phenomenon that has influenced myriad video games, books and movies.
An estimated 25,000 fans in 1,200 stores celebrated the anniversary Saturday, said Charles Ryan, brand manager for role-playing games at Wizards of the Coast, a Renton, Washington, company that owns Dungeons & Dragons.

...

Dungeons & Dragons went on to become one of the best-selling games of all time, inspiring fan devotion so great that some travel thousands of miles to play in tournaments.

There have been Dungeons & Dragons books, movies, puzzles, even a Saturday-morning cartoon show.

All quality entertainments, too.

The game peaked in the 1980s, but there are plenty of fans left. Some 4 million people play D&D regularly. Many of them laugh at a common suggestion that fantasy gamers are geeks: Of course they are, they say.
"I think a lot of people who get drawn to this game are loners, but here's a real opportunity to come out of that shell and feel safe about it," said fan Mitch Hamburger, 32.

Yes. There's something empowering about having a nicely-statted character sheet and smiting a couple of kobolds.

Look at me! I just rolled the shit out of that d4! Man, I'm fuckin' cool!

Related Dorkiness: Just on the phone with Son of Nixon.

Me: "I went to a blog party last month."

SoN (perfectly serious): "You mean like physically at a party, or just 'partying' in a chatroom?"

Me: "Give me some credit, for crying out loud."

Blog-party.

Me and bunch of dudes sitting around in a chatroom, telling each other how "freakin' wasted" we are.

That's me. Such a fucking dork that even a "friend" thinks that I'm "partying" on-line-- and then bragging about it.

posted by Ace at 07:50 PM

Comments

Snort, Ace ... too funny. I mean, I'm a loser, but at least I can blame my five kids (5 kids under 9 y/o.) I have NO life. Before kids, I got my "out" by being a bartender. Just a thought.

Posted by: Carin on October 16, 2004 08:04 PM

Five kids under 9? That's like 9 months and 15 minutes apart.

Posted by: Joe R. the Unabrewer on October 16, 2004 09:05 PM

Former dorks are the best people later on.

Posted by: lauraw on October 16, 2004 09:35 PM

True, lauraw, in a sense, but I would add that there are no "former dorks." It's like being a former marine -- no such animal.

But they have grown up to rule the world.

Posted by: George on October 16, 2004 10:47 PM

Shut up George, LOOSE LIPS...

Posted by: lauraw on October 16, 2004 11:43 PM

"I wanna cast - MAGIC MISSILE!"

Please tell me I'm not the only one who loves that Dead Alewives D&D routine :).

Posted by: on October 17, 2004 12:50 AM

Above comment was me - wasn't trying to be *that* mysterious.

Posted by: Sonetka on October 17, 2004 12:51 AM

I have some links you'll appreciate, Ace. They're at the end of the post.

Posted by: ccwbass on October 17, 2004 01:36 AM

Ace, if this is your way of announcing to the blogosphere that you're looking to DM a campaign and need players... Well, you have a funny way of doing it.

Posted by: someone on October 17, 2004 04:44 AM

--Ace, if this is your way of announcing to the blogosphere that you're looking to DM a campaign and need players... Well, you have a funny way of doing it.--

LOL, Ace does have a way of showing it.

But to be fair, Wizards of the Coast found a damn good way of modernizing the system. They latched onto Neverwinter Nights by Bioware and will never ever let go. The player created worlds have fared well, financial model or not. The greatest test will be the next online incarnation of D&D Online, to be specific, based in the world Eberron, which will be coming out in the next year. NWN2 is being developed, but will Eberron overcome it? Who knows. It's wizards vs Bioware.

Their competition is Middle Earth Online by Turbine. I fully expect MEO to whomp D&D, but we'll see. Wizards have been pushing Forgotten Realms for so long with so much detail, no one gives a shit. They've broken the D&D system into two camps. You either know FR, or you don't. Most of us don't. (I saw that Ravenloft comment in the other thread, damnit!). I give a shit about Forgotten Realms. What a generic asshat of a world. I want new, different, better. Which is what led me to all those other different worlds in the first place. Wizards never got that. That people wanted something different. So, they've been advertising to a different audience with Eberron. They hope to capture the player-base they fucked all these years by concentrating on FR.

My bet is, people abondon FR in droves for Middle Earth Online and Turbine sees numbers that were only wet dreams when they were building the Asheron worlds.

/geek

Posted by: on October 17, 2004 07:38 AM

Oh, the above comment is mine, btw. And I have an axe to grind. TSR, when they were still TSR, had a contest. The best fantasy writer could get a job with them. Submit your stories. I did. I won the contests, and then they merged, and my idea of pumping out D&D material went to hell, so they can all fuck themselves.

/bitterness

Posted by: Rob on October 17, 2004 07:43 AM

Joe - actually the closest they come is 13.5 months apart in age. I got the 2-year-gap thing DOWN after that mishap.

Posted by: Carin on October 17, 2004 07:56 AM

Hey, at this so-called "blog party", do you get to 'talk' to people or do you post comments in a thread...curious

heh.

Posted by: sonofnixon on October 17, 2004 11:16 AM

I'm with you Son of Nixon, I think this "blog-party" was probably something where Ace and company figured out how to use "roger Wilco" and all ended up on a channel (probably password protected: "wonketteass")talking about D&D and miami vice. We'll know for sure later if Ace puts up a post in which he compares Crockett and Tubbs to a chaotic good Paladan and a neutral Dark Elven Ranger.

Posted by: senator philabuster on October 17, 2004 11:47 AM

Where are the cheetos?

Posted by: Brock on October 17, 2004 06:37 PM

Amazon.com Widgets

Now Available!
The Deplorable Gourmet
A Horde-sourced Cookbook
[All profits go to charity]

Top Headlines

TJM definitively ranks the films of David Lean

Mayor Karen is so stung by fan-made AI ads that she's resorting to the shitlibs' go-to demand for an end to criticism -- these ads are "violent" and "hateful" and making me feel unsafe because one video showed AI cartoons throwing tomatoes at me and the tomatoes looked like blood when they squished
This was her actual complaint. The mushed-up tomato looked like blood so it's a death threat and these violent attacks on me must stop. What is dis bitch, CNN?

Podcast: Sefton and CBD are joined by Jeff Carter, candidate for NV treasurer, and seasoned finance professional, for a discussion of the issues facing Nevadans, and the larger financial challenges in America.

TJM explores the movies of David Lean, director of Lawrence of Arabia

Few people remember that Norm MacDonald began his career as a ventriloquist
MacDonald's old partner Adam Egot revealed that MacDonald repurposed a bit with one of his ventriloquist dolls -- that he was a "bad guy" who "didn't believe the Holocaust happened" -- for the Norm MacDonald show, in which he claimed Egot didn't believe in the Holocaust.

Funniest thing I've read about the Virginia mess. Back when they were hustling the referendum through the assembly both Senators, Warner and Kaine, advised them to go slow and play by the rules. Louise Lucas said she respected them but didn't need advice from the "cuck chair" in the corner. The gerrymandering was overturned and Louise is heading for the big house. Edward G. Robinson voice "where's your cuck now?"
Posted by: Smell the Glove

I posted his post on twitter and it's gotten 25K views so far. Thanks, Smell the Glove

Chris
@chriswithans

"Ahhhhh ahh I put my career on the line for Louise Lucas and Jay Jones thinking they'd vault me into presidential contention and we ended up costing Democrats 20 House seats and unleashing a Reverse Dobbs ahhhhh ahhh"

Forgotten 80s Mystery Click That Sums Up the Democrat Communist Party Today
Something is wrong as I hold you near
Somebody else holds your heart, yeah
You turn to me with your icy tears
And then it's raining, feels like it's raining

TJM wonders about world building in stories, mostly The Hunger Games

"It's f**king f**ked."
-- reportedly a genuine comment offered by a "senior Labour source"
Correction: I wrote that Labour is losing 88% (now 87%) of the seats it is "defending." I think that's wrong. The right way to say it is the seats they are contesting -- that is, they don't necessarily already hold these seats, but they have put up a candidate to run for the seat. It's still very bad but not as bad as losing 87% of the seats they already held.

Basil the Great
@BasilTheGreat

🚨ED MILIBAND [a Minister in Starmer's government] SAYS KEIR STARMER WILL RESIGN AS PRIME MINISTER

He has reportedly reassured Labour MP's that Starmer will be resigning following the disastrous results tonight

It's over

"The end of the two party system in the UK" as first the Fake Conservatives and now Labour chooses political suicide rather than simply STOPPING THE INVASION
Incidentally, the only reason this didn't already happen in the US is because of the Very Bad Orange Man (who is right on 85% of all policy calls and extremely, existentially right on 15% of them)

No political party that is NOT also a doomsday religious cult would EVER choose a cataclysmic loss -- and possible extinction as a party -- to support a toxically unpopular favoritism of NON-CITIZEN ILLEGAL MIGRANTS over actual citizen voters.

Only a cult does this.

Now they've lost 84%.

Annunziata Rees-Mogg
@zatzi
If this continues Labour loses 2,148 seats tonight.

That is much worse than the worst case predictions I’ve seen.

Cataclysmic

Update: They've now lost 88% of the seats they're defending. As I mentioned earlier, I think I heard that London will not bail them out, as many of those Labour seats will probably flip to "Muslim Independent" or Green. Detroit's 5am vote will not save them.

Yup, Labour is losing 80% of its seats...

The British Patriot
@TheBritLad

🚨 BREAKING: Labour have lost 80% of all seats contested as of 2:25 AM.<
br> If this continues, Keir Starmer will be out of office next week.

Reform has surged and projected to pick up between 1700-2100 seats.

Wow, up to 1700-2100 seats. It's not incredible that this is happening. It's incredible that the Davos crowd is so absolutely determined to privilege Muslim "migrants" over the actual native population who elects them, no matter how loudly the natives scream that they want to be prioritized, that they will gladly self-extinguish as a party rather than simply representing the interests of their own voters. Astonishing.
Remember, when they call other people "cultists" -- they are the ones so imprisoned in their social reinforcement and discipline bubbles that they will choose political death rather than dare upset the Karen Enforcement Officers of their cult.
Update: Now they've lost 83% of the seats they were defending.

(((Dan Hodges)))
@DPJHodges

Reform are basically wiping Labour out in the North. It's not a defeat. It's not even a rout. Labour are simply ceasing to exist.

Nick Lowles
@lowles_nick

Tonight’s results are calamitous for Labour. Not just for Keir Starmer's leadership, but for the very future of the party

STARMERGEDDON: In early returns, Reform gains 135 seats, Labour loses 90, the Fake Conservatives lose 36 (and I didn't even know they could fall any further), the Lib Dems lose 4, and the Greens gain 6. Note that the only other party gaining seats is the Greens and they're only gaining a handful of seats.
Update: Reform now up 145, Labour down 98.
Labour projected to lose Wales -- where they've ruled for 27 years.
Fulton County Georgia just discovered 400 boxes of ballots for Labour
Update: REF +156, LAB -107, CON -45
Brutal: In four out of five council seats where Labour is defending, they've lost. 80%.
I'm sure it's not this simple, but Reform is straight taking Labour's and the "Conservatives'" seats. They've lost almost exactly what Reform gained. If understand this right (and warning, I probably don't), all of London's council seats are up for election, and Labour might lose hugely there, as their old voters abandon them for Reform, Muslim Indenpendents, and the Greens.
REF +190, LAB -134, CON -56.

Updates on the Labour collapse in council elections -- which wags are calling #Starmergeddon -- from Beege Welborne. There are about 5000 seats up for grabs, Labour is expected to lose 1,800, Reform will probably gain 1,580, up from... zero. So this would be more than that.
People claim that while Labour has adopted the Sharia Agenda to appeal to the million Muslims it allowed to migrate to the country, those voters are ditching Labour to vote for the Muslim Independent Party or the Greens. Delicious. This shadenfreude is going straight to my thighs.
Oh, and if Starmer loses about as badly as expected, Labour will toss him out of a window Braveheart style and replace him. He will announce he is resigning to spend more time with his Gay Ukrainian Male Prostitutes.

Media bias and senationalism are as old as, well, the media:

That was written by Denny O'Neill and illustrated by, get this, Frank Miller. Editor to the Stars Jim Shooter was in charge at the time.
I always thought the gag was original to the comic book, but in fact the "Threat or Menace" headline was a satirical joke about media bias and sensationalism for a long while. The Harvard Lampoon used it in a parody of Life magazine: "Flying Saucers: Threat or Menace?"

Hamas is Humiliating Trump's 'Board of Peace'
[Hat Tip: TC] [CBD]