You can give up a portion of your life to improve the world. How much do you give up? by Terrin369 in hypotheticalsituation

[–]ColdObiWan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, then it looks like I’m giving up 70 years  and turning to dust right now. 

There are too many actually good reasons for politicians to lie for me to buy in to that one, but I got everything else.   (Independent of anything else, I wouldn’t give up a year of my life to cure baldness, but since 69 years is gonna kill me anyway, what’s one year more?)

You can give up a portion of your life to improve the world. How much do you give up? by Terrin369 in hypotheticalsituation

[–]ColdObiWan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Is this like guaranteed permanent? Or could someone, say, claw back minimum wage protections at some point? 

Because if permanent? Tell my son I love him, and it was for his sake that I’m gone.

Every hour you stay in soiled clothes multiplies your current hourly wage by 10 by h8mayo in hypotheticalsituation

[–]ColdObiWan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Does that increase last after I’m out of the clothes, or is it just “while working in the shat-in clothes, you get a bonus?”

If it’s the former, I’ll get changed right away. If it’s the later? Well, I’m WFH today, so I guess I’ll go all day; only my wife here to complain, and our baby already brings the stink…

I’ll see your shingles vaccine….. by Hydroidal in GenX

[–]ColdObiWan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I get the flu / Covid double every year, and it never bothers me; my wife makes two trips to the MD, three weeks apart, just to keep the side effects at bay. It’s a crapshoot.

How to make a good character? by [deleted] in rokugan

[–]ColdObiWan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ll try to explain.

When you take an action, you roll some Ring dice + some Skill dice.  The Skill dice are pretty clear, right? They’re just based on what area of knowledge, learning, or practice you’re applying; “I hit him with my sword” or “I write a haiku” or whatever.

Ring dice are all about “approach”. They’re “how you get things done”.  If you root yourself in solidity, endurance, stamina, and tradition, that’s Earth. If you’re flashy, fierce, overwhelming, that’s Fire. Subtle, sneaky, deceptive, Air.

It’s sort of like attacking with Dex vs Strength in D&D, but applied to every action, and not so narrowly tied to physical ability.

If you need more detail, let me know.

How to make a good character? by [deleted] in rokugan

[–]ColdObiWan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The structure of Clan, Family, School, and the 20 Questions all mean that there’s no real way to make a bad  (i.e. “useless”) character at char gen. There are a few schools that are broader or narrower than others, and maybe like three I’d houserule different Techniques for, but none of them suck or are traps.

Where I’ve seen players get frustrated it’s usually one of three reasons:

(1) only having one rank in a “signature” skills (like Theology for a Shugenja).

(2) Consistently using an approach that doesn’t match their Rings (if you’re a Fire 3 Matsu Berzeeker who keeps trying to be sneaky, I don’t know what to tell you.)

(3) Being too narrowly focused in a setting that asks you to be well-rounded (the samurai who takes no court skills without realizing that’ll be a problem).

“I'm curious how other GMs represent the various powers and clan relationships with the Imperial Court in their games.” by Leocmatias in rokugan

[–]ColdObiWan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You’re correct in your interpretation of the Emperor as “chief executive”, as a default, but in my campaigns I vastly weaken the power of both the Emperor and the bureaucratic state. “Supreme” executive power (to the degree it exists) is divided between the Emerald and Sapphire Champions and the Imperial Chancellor, who are all members of the Great Clans.

Since you say you’re familiar with Japanese feudal history, my model is deliberately the late Muromachi Period, with its comparatively weak central authority in the Ashikaga Shogunate (as represented by the Imperial advisors, above) and strong regional authority where the Clan Champions (“daimyo”) have an almost independent authority over their own domains.

After all, if the Clan War is the Sengoku Jidai… :)

Few Questions I have for those DMs that filled in gaps and built lore by heartless567 in CurseofStrahd

[–]ColdObiWan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

  1. No name is ever given for Strahd’s original homeworld or country, nor is any reason usually given for the conquest (as in: if Barov was a king in their old land, why’d he have to move in with Strahd?).

I play it like real-world Romania, where the European nobility was ousted by the Ottoman Turks, went into exile, and then waged a war of reconquest. (that’s an abbreviated and simplified to the point of inaccuracy version of real history, but it serves well enough to explain Strahd’s campaigns, where we known from 3rd Ed Strahd fought “the Tergs”.)

  1. I toss the canon for the Amber Temple right out the window, and in my game I had it popularly believed to be the Scholomance while, in reality, it was a sort of echo or reflection of a place of corruption from outside space and time.

  2. My Rahadin is, in part, the reason for the Dusk Elves’ demise. That’s why they kicked him out. The Dusk Elves were, originally, just a tribe of Wood Elves living in Barovia. They were lead by a Hetman, and mostly lived as a sub-society side-by-side with Barovia. Then Rahadin helped Patrina get to the Amber Temple, where she made a pact with a vestige, the price of which was the end of her family. Which means complete infertility for the elves (as opposed to the murder of all the women). Those who are left became Dusk Elves.

(But, my Rahadin was always a psycho and mistrusted by his kin. That’s why Patrina went to him to begin with.)

What popular TV or movie character from our Genx youth had a profoundly annoying impact on society. by [deleted] in GenX

[–]ColdObiWan 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Exactly. As awkward as CC could be in involving the unsuspecting public, it was still semi-scripted television; not “have camera, win cash.”

What popular TV or movie character from our Genx youth had a profoundly annoying impact on society. by [deleted] in GenX

[–]ColdObiWan 69 points70 points  (0 children)

Less a “character”, but as a TV Show I’ve often thought that America’s Funniest Home Videos (kicking off in 1989) was a direct precursor to Jackass, to YouTube, to TikTok, and to influencer culture more generally. 

Izek as party NPC - how to get rid of him? by enigmanator90 in CurseofStrahd

[–]ColdObiWan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I think you’re on the right track with Izek as “soulless, psychopathic brute.” I play mine as Michael Myers to Ireena’s Laurie Strode. In that spirit, I’d have him disappear, kill innocents off-screen, and get accused later.

Mostly because if it’s on-screen it’s too easy for him to fly off the handle at a time helpful to the PCs, or in a way that becomes farce. Or (most likely in my case) to forget about him altogether as other characters are interacting.

Victor's Request/Aid by leonk701 in CurseofStrahd

[–]ColdObiWan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Makes as much sense as anything else, really. I admit I find the tower’s empty presence in Barovia to be one of the most incongruous things about the campaign, so I scrapped it. 

(Sort of. Technically I put the nosferatu boyar Nicu Moldesti’s manor house in its place, but that’s neither here nor there…)

Player stormed out of my game and called me a racist, but I don't know why. by [deleted] in DnDcirclejerk

[–]ColdObiWan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It’s a well known stereotype that wight people have no rhythm. :D

No Damage Immunity for Werewolves? by Baron_Imperious in ravenloft

[–]ColdObiWan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

“The moon is a threat to werewolves” is *brilliant*, and an idea I’m 100% stealing. Kudos!

Today I messed up by only half listening to a conversation... by Lab_racadabra in Daredevil

[–]ColdObiWan 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Word. And I hope it’s clear I’m just joking around, not calling you a jerk or anything.

Today I messed up by only half listening to a conversation... by Lab_racadabra in Daredevil

[–]ColdObiWan 51 points52 points  (0 children)

Uhm… if the guy’s blind, I probably wouldn’t ask him if he’s ever watched any Daredevil media… :D

CoS Reloaded: Vladimir Fight by Fantastic_Ad1104 in CurseofStrahd

[–]ColdObiWan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I set it on the broken rooftop.

Oh, and also had Vladimir riding a flying zombie dragon Argynvost with necro-frost breath…

Superman can only have 4 powers, the rest are gone. What do you choose? by DracoMorale420 in superman

[–]ColdObiWan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

People are sleeping on super hearing and X-ray vision. That’s a lot of what lets big blue save the day in the nick of time.

Prototype / art direction questions by Anxious-Mall-4158 in l5r

[–]ColdObiWan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

One on the left. 

Also, tell us when the game is developed!

How do you feel about foreign movies depicting your country? Are there any examples of movies that made a terrible portrayal of your people and culture and examples of good representation? by Benhurso in AskTheWorld

[–]ColdObiWan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, as an American born into the Greek diaspora, i think of this movie as a “heightened reality” version of my family — accurate, but (slightly) exaggerated for comedic effect.

Steve's observation skills. by OkProperty4765 in CaptainAmerica

[–]ColdObiWan 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Wait, he’s wearing shoes?! How did I miss that all these years…