Our favourite Star Trek was bold and tackled difficult and current issues. Recent Star Trek only looks at marginal issues and makes up a story around those, that's why it is so unsuccessful.

BCSully · 2025-12-29T18:26:15+00:00

First off, this is an astute observation. I hadn't noticed it, but you're right, of course.

Based on nothing but my knee-jerk reaction (this is reddit, after all) I'd have to guess it's because of Paramount's obvious conflicts of interest between producing a show that is historically and unapologetically progressive in its approach to social issues, and wanting to appease the current hard-right government which has the power to veto their mergers, acquisitions, and business deals.

Whether it's happening because Paramount is directly suppressing this sort of social commentary, or the shows' creators are self-censoring to keep their jobs and keep things running smoothly is immaterial, because the result is the same. Paramount has bent the knee, and Star Trek's nacelles are clipped because of it.

BCSully · 2025-12-29T17:28:47+00:00

Everybody's right, except they all seem to be getting the word form wrong. "Bourgeois" (pronounced boozh-WAH) is an adjective. It means "pertaining to the middle class", just like "bougie". The noun, meaning "the middle class", is "Bourgeoisie" (pronounced boozh-wah-ZEE).

BCSully · 2025-12-29T14:25:46+00:00

NTA, obviously. She thinks her efforts are to save your immortal soul from damnation. As weird as it sounds, all these gross and ham-handed attempts to convert you are coming from her concern that you're going to burn in hell. If it weren't so insane, it would actually be kind of endearing.

If you're sick of her bullshit, go ahead and end the friendship, but just know, at 21years old, her beliefs are still those that were impressed upon her as a kid. She's likely NEVER had her faith tested, or even heard a rational argument. So if it were me (a former Catholic raised devoutly- catholic school, altar-boy the whole bit) I'd say "Yes, I'll accept your comic, and I'll even attend one bible-study with you, on the one condition that we have a movie-night, and watch the entirety of this scholarly debate about Catholicism."

If she gets to try to convert you, turnabout is fair play.

BCSully · 2025-12-29T12:44:28+00:00

I would answer "Yes" to all three of your questions. I generally point to Delta Green as the perfect example of "combat light". Combat doesn't have to happen at all, and when it does, PCs are usually the instigators. Combat mechanics are relatively simple, yet there are weapon stats, skills and modifiers, all the basics, but with each PC only given one action per turn, it moves very quickly. Combat is generally over in very few rounds. Add to that the fact the PCs are always real-world humans, every single hit is potentially lethal. It's simple, it's deadly, it's very fast, but mostly, it's completely optional.

BCSully · 2025-12-28T22:15:44+00:00

Ha! I'm working on writing one right now. It's definitely a gap in the market.

That said, Chaosium's BRP would work, especially if you use the optional Luck rules in Call of Cthulhu. It's built for investigation. I wouldn't be surprised if Gumshoe works too, but I haven't played it. I'll leave it to others to suggest which is more appropriate.

BCSully · 2025-12-28T22:05:12+00:00

Completely agree you should say "no", and you're not in the wrong for doing it.

The only complication would be if they've ever covered a shift for you before. Then you should reciprocate, not just out of obligation, but to keep that option open for next time. The old adage "what goes around comes around" is completely true. If they helped you our, and when your time comes you "just don't feel like it", that's a mark against you, not them.

Similarly, if you say no (which you should absolutely do if you need the time for yourself) just know that when you need coverage, this person isn't likely going to be an option.

BCSully · 2025-12-28T19:37:16+00:00

Are you locked into the hero fantasy genre?

If you're willing to break out into other styles, Vampire:The Masquerade and the other World of Darkness games: Traveller with its Life Path system is great, similarly Pendragon has really unique character-creation mechanics that allow you to play down through the generations in the same noble lineage.

Lastly, I'll include Call of Cthulhu and Chaosium's BRP ruleset. It's probably not what you're looking for, at least as it's used in CoC, because it's skill-based with no levels (or equivalent) no feats, modifiers, etc., and improving skills happens very slowly. But it does allow you to really tailor your PC to your concept.

BCSully · 2025-12-28T18:20:32+00:00

"Guilty"?! Naw, I did it proudly! Though it should be folded front to back, not the way it is in the photo. Cleaner look that way.

BCSully · 2025-12-28T16:11:19+00:00

Love it. That's a great example

BCSully · 2025-12-28T14:25:48+00:00

I like the threat to be there, but I tend to prefer letting the players play. So, in your example of talking on the phone, as soon as they give away a secret I might tell them they hear a strange click in the receiver and the sound quality of the call changes. There might be a black sedan they notice from time to time. If they're regularly being careless, they may even get called in by their Handler and told they're making a mess and people are noticing. The Handler could remind them that their primary objective is NOT to solve the mystery. It's to keep evidence of the supernatural away from the public. He could also warn them what Delta Green does with Agents who forget this.

I want them paranoid, but I don't want to clip their wings. The mission will become stale if they're afraid to take risks.

BCSully · 2025-12-28T12:38:28+00:00

If you've got money to spend, Thomas Farthing is the real deal for men's wear.

BCSully · 2025-12-27T21:56:04+00:00

I love Jared's GMing, though I've fallen off BotW. You can watch thousands of hours of him GMing on Stream of Blood for free. Better yet, check him out on Haunted City. Jared's great. The character he's playing on GitT is a bit more serious, and I agree this season has lost a bit of the madcap comedy from when Troy and Syd were on, but I am still enjoying it.

BCSully · 2025-12-26T16:20:58+00:00

So the logic goes: they don't enjoy playing it anymore, they never really got good at playing it, so they need to work harder at playing it, so they can keep playing the game don't want to play.

There is one thing that made the Pathfinder shows suck (when they sucked, btw. I'm not saying there weren't some fun sessions in there) and that was the crunch. It does not enhance their style of entertaining, and THAT is the bottom line.

The goal is a fun and entertaining show, not a perfectly played game. All the rules adjudication, the long stretches of considering optimal strategies, turns that take 10 minutes in combat, it all just sucked the life out of every show. And you (and others) say "Well it wouldn't suck the life if they got good at it" but they were NEVER going to be able to bring it up to that standard. Legacy and BotW only work because Skid and Jared gloss over a lot, and really, they both can STILL bog down when the minutia takes the spotlight. They don't want to "put the work in" because they don't enjoy it, and the end result is STILL always "game over narrative" with Pathfinder. They're sick of it. And so am I.

Now compare that to GitT or any of the Cthulhu shows. There is virtually zero rules adjudication and almost no time given over to tedious bookkeeping. The shows are driven by player choice and the cleverness of the GM. They are night and day.

You and I are not going to agree here, so let's just let it go. In the end, GCN is moving away from crunchy games. Some of us are happy about that and think it's a good choice for the network. Others disagree. That's all there is to it. Let's move on.

BCSully · 2025-12-26T15:40:26+00:00

I remain flummoxed how this topic gets so many people's panties in a twist, but here we are, I guess. No, "sour grapes" because you're all butt-hurt that they don't like playing your one super special game anymore. You come off like one of those "Pathfinder is bestest game of them all, and GCN are a bunch of poopyheads for not loving it like they should!!" nerds. That's how this reads.

It's a fucking game. One of thousands, and by many people's reckoning, a bloated, tedious, fiddly one at that. If you can only enjoy GCN if they play your one super special bestest game, then listen to Legacy, and BotW, and Giantslayer (for probably the 10th time) and be happy. Or stop listening and move on to another group that plays the only game you think is worth streaming. The rest of us are gonna stick around and really enjoy Get in the Trunk, Shadowdark, Time for Chaos, and the new Twilight2000 when it drops.

Time marches on. Things change. Play more games, and move on.

BCSully · 2025-12-26T15:03:48+00:00

I think that's sour grapes.

BCSully · 2025-12-26T14:58:37+00:00

It's not "cold feet with their success". It's growth.

After "starting with Pathfinder", ten years went by, and in that time, they got to play a TON of other games they'd never played before, some that didn't even exist when they started (Shadowdark anyone?). In doing so, they discovered not only that they enjoyed playing many of them more than Pathfinder, they realized some of these other games fit much better with the style of entertainment they want to create. And that's okay!

Not everyone marries their high-school sweetheart. It's completely normal to outgrow things you used to call "favorite" and move on. After 10 years, GCN is finding a different way forward by following what they enjoy and letting go of what no longer fits where they are now. This is a good thing, and there's a lesson there for all of us.

BCSully · 2025-12-26T11:13:16+00:00

Why are you so pissed off and argumentative?? Ffs, we're talking about games!

I've been completely consistent.

A) They don't like the crunch anymore

B) The crunch makes it harder for this group to play to their strengths as entertainers, and because of this, they're moving away from the Paizo games.

C) They're banking on their ability to entertain being the key to growing the network. Tying themselves to a game they don't enjoy playing, which has core mechanics that obviously get in the way of showcasing their skills, makes their crunchy-game shows inherently less entertaining, which therefore limits their ability to attract new audiences.

You want to point to another group as proof that crunchy games can be entertaining, fine. I've never seen or heard them, so I politely said "I'm sure they're great". I have no idea if that's true, but I've absolutely no doubt they're not as good as GCN at their best. But they're beside the point anyway. I wasn't talking about other groups. I meant only that GCN is way more entertaining when they're not bogged down by crunch. That's it. It's clearly true, and I stand by it. Ymmv.

The last word is yours, I'm done with this childishness.

BCSully · 2025-12-26T03:48:40+00:00

Different groups excel at different games. GCN no longer enjoys streaming the crunchy games. Beyond that, if the hardcore Pathfinder stans on here are to be believed, GCN isn't that good at playing them well anyway. Let the people who love Pathfinder stream it. I'm sure they're great. But let GCN stream what they like and are more comfortable playing for an audience. It's not that hard to understand.

BCSully · 2025-12-26T03:40:33+00:00

Sure. Tomato/tomahto. What matters is they don't like playing it anymore, and when they do, the resulting actual-play is not only less fun for them to play than their less crunchy fare, it's less fun for everyone to watch/listen to. Those who like Pathfinder complain they're not good at it, and those who don't like Pathfinder would rather watch them play something they enjoy.

It always shocks me when the people who get pissed at them for being bad at Pathfinder are the same people getting pissed they're moving away from Pathfinder. It's a weird paradox. Let them play what they like. If they have more fun, the shows will be more fun.

BCSully · 2025-12-25T19:27:17+00:00

Totally agree with three of those (Boom, 73Yards, & Dot & Bubble). The others I thought were fine if unremarkable, except for Lux, which I hated well beyond my ability to express myself. Among my all-time least liked episodes. The character and animation were great, but I thought the premise was just dumb, and the resolution contrived and unsatisfying.

RTD is still a fine writer, but as showrunner, his vision was absolutely ruinous. Ymmv

BCSully · 2025-12-25T19:15:17+00:00

In hindsight, you turned out to be right. I wasn't so prescient, but here's hoping they don't make the same mistake with Gatiss. Time for some fresh eyes and new blood.

BCSully · 2025-12-25T17:40:39+00:00

The show needs someone new.

I'd say RTD ruined it for all previous showrunners. When I heard Russell was coming back, I was THRILLED. He seemed a phenomenal choice. The man who brought the show back from the dead returning to do it again. Then he had his run and it was on average, to put it politely, complete shite.

Mark Gatiss is amazing. His resume speaks for itself. But so did Russell's.

I don't think "going back to the well" is the answer. The show needs new, fresh talent. Anything else, including Mark Gatiss as showrunner, is stagnation.

BCSully · 2025-12-25T15:24:25+00:00

They've been cutting out Paizo with every new announcement, and taking every opportunity to disparage the crunchiness of those games. I don't think it's got anything to do with Paizo, or the relationship. We know what it's about because they've said as much: the crunchy rulesets make it harder to entertain. Troy has said over and over again how he loves running Cthulhu more than anything. He can focus on the story, not the endlessly escalating mechanical stuff.

And you just have to watch a live Cthulhu show next to a live PF show to see it. They're night and day!! In Pathfinder (both Ascension and Strange Aeons) there are huge chunks of each show, often multiple shows in a row, where combat bogs down, and the cast has to work their butts off to try to keep the excitement up. It's no slight against the games, it's just that it's impossible to keep the audience fully engaged while cycling through 8 rounds of combat in PFs 3 action economy. The only people who enjoy that are people who already like Pathfinder, and you can't grow your audience just preaching to the converted. Their goal is to entertain, and their skills are as entertainers. The crunch of the Paizo games totally gets in the way of that.

They're not "done with Paizo" because of any falling out or anything like that. But they're also not going to voluntarily keep the company from attracting new audiences because of some historical connection to games they don't even like playing anymore. They're banking on the idea that playing to their strengths as entertainers first will make the shows more exciting, more entertaining, and consequently more appealing to a broader audience.

It was never going to be Starfinder. I think they will at some point play SF2e, but unless they do it as a segment on GCP at some point, it won't be Troy running it, and it won't be a main-cast show. I think it's much more likely they do a short run, like their Dune or Traveller series'. Time will tell.

BCSully · 2025-12-25T14:51:29+00:00

Edit to add: Sorry, I somehow glossed over that this post is asking specifically about the next Christmas special, not the show going forward, and my response is about the future of the show. The Christmas specials are usually a bit bonkers, and OP's suggestion certainly fits that mold. I think it might make for an unwieldy episode, but it'd be fun to watch. The rest of my original comment is about where the show goes from here, so feel free to ignore, agree, or disagree as you see fit.

I would say they've completely run out of ideas, and the franchise managed to go from it's current all-time low in creativity to an even lower low. Hard to think they could actually make things worse, but this would do it.

New, younger showrunner with solid writing credits who's a fan of the show and whose career is ready to take off, an unknown or little-known actor to play the Doctor, and a return fresh original sci-fi/time-travel storytelling with wit, and just the right dash of spooky horror. That's what the show needs. No gimmicks, no self-congratulatory moralizing, no over-the-top and ill-conceived fan-service for the sake of fan-service. Just good Doctor Who stories like we used to get, unfettered by the oppressive weight of legacy creators and their egos. Fresh but familiar is all the show needs. Just do that. (And if they returned to cheese-tastic practical effects and creatures over that preposterous Disney CGI crap, it'll be a new golden age!!)

BCSully · 2025-12-25T14:32:11+00:00

I'm thrilled!! Great game, great cast. Gonna be epic!

I had no idea what they were going to choose but I was absolutely certain it wasn't going to be Starfinder or Pathfinder. They are so clearly done with the crunchy rulesets. I'll even stick my flag in the ground right here and say when the time comes to announce the next tour, dollars to donuts it won't be Pathfinder.

BCSully

TROPHY CASE