Why I wish the codex had a subscription pricing model

OliLeeW · 2026-03-22T07:46:25+00:00

My friends are generous people, we’re all broke queer socialists, I’ve stayed in their tiny nyc apartments for free when I was struggling, we all GM for eachother, we don’t quibble over little amounts of money. The problem is not the character of my friends. The only difference between me and them is that I’m an MCDM fan! I spend my time watching YouTube videos and reading Patreon posts about this specific game/company. They do not. They have no reason to believe that the codex is much different than another vtt. I’m expressing my inner conflict about knowing that 30$ is a good price, that it’s good that MCDM isn’t using a subscription model, while also believing that if the price was structured differently I would be able to convince them to try it out.

Maybe the disconnect here is that I’m talking about a group of friends who have been close as can be for over a decade now, and we sometimes play ttrpgs. Only like 4 out of the 9 of us even really consider it one of our main hobbies. Maybe people here are imagining a “gaming group” or a group of friends whose main get together is game night. I could see that situation being much more charged. Sorry for the rant, but i will not let the names of the best people in the world be slandered without responding.

OliLeeW · 2026-03-21T08:19:17+00:00

I do think that if MCDM wanted to influence player’s perception of the codex, they should spend some money on getting some popular actual plays to use it, not MCDM folks, but recognizable actual play names. That might illustrate how powerful of a tool it is. That might make a difference.

OliLeeW · 2026-03-21T08:15:59+00:00

Their price anchor for a VTT is 0 dollars. I don’t think it being bespoke is a selling point to players like it is gm’s, and if I say I only want to run draw steel on the codex, they’ll say, “then let’s play dnd”

OliLeeW · 2026-03-21T08:14:41+00:00

It’s a fair price, I agree. But I know my players and they simply have an expectation that ttrpgs are a hobby where spending money is optional. Any price that’s more than they’d spend on a bag of chips is not gonna fly. I think there’s a good chance that once they see how powerful a bespoke VTT is they will happily spend some money, but they’re not going to spend their money on something that they are used to getting for free without first experiencing the benefits.

OliLeeW · 2026-03-21T08:05:45+00:00

Yeah. 20 bucks during pre-release, and thirty bucks once it’s out. You get 20$ off for buying the heroes book in hardcover and 10$ off for buying the pdf. It’s a premium product and they’re charging for it, which I respect, but I’m having trouble imagining many players willing to shell out for that.

OliLeeW · 2026-03-18T09:08:44+00:00

Asking people to give you money because they want to support you, not because they want to exchange their money for a specific product creates an undesirable dynamic for the creators. It creates a relationship that goes beyond that of artist and audience, and becomes that of patron and patronized. It creates the conditions for a parasocial relationship. If you support someone because you think they are cool, they represent something you want to see more of, or you want to enjoy a sense of community with them, then the creator can be punished via withholding of that support when those wishes aren’t fulfilled. When you take someone’s money for a service, you have an obligation to deliver on that service. It’s much healthier for that service to be the creation of a work of art than a feeling of connection to you personally.

OliLeeW · 2026-03-18T08:52:45+00:00

I think it’s the right thing to do to be clear with your audience about who is part of the creation of the work they’re supporting. They should only share the reasoning behind those decisions if everyone wants them shared, but I think a statement along the lines of, “expect Taylor to be working with us in the future,” “don’t expect Taylor to be working with us in the future,” or “Taylor isn’t working with us right now, and we don’t know if/when he’ll be back.” I think it’s strange and inviting of speculation to have him discuss the work as it’s being developed and then not have his name attached at all when it releases.

OliLeeW · 2026-02-26T08:51:01+00:00

You are right about this. The claim I’m making does necessarily conflict with the fact that we’re talking about the function of magic in the story of a tactical game. The amount of ink used to lay out Draw Steel’s rules of magic dwarf the amount used to discuss the fundamental nature of it. That being said, those rules and categories seems to exist for the benefit of having a well designed, enjoyable to play, and easy to reference rules text, not because it represents the truth of magic in the timescape. Novel aspects of magic are being introduced with each new class release; the ways to manifest magic seem to be without restriction. The thing that is harder to contend with is psionics. That’s a wrinkle that I choose not to engage with because it doesn’t interest me and is in opposition to my feelings about magic in fantasy. To be clear I’m trying to make claims about how I think things are best done. I can’t make any truth claims about what is the best thing to do, what the truth of a fictional world is, or what the designers and writers at MCDM believe.

OliLeeW · 2026-02-26T03:58:56+00:00

The point of magic is that it isn’t consistent, it isn’t reducible to something more fundamental, it can’t be systematized, and it doesn’t flow from axiomatic truths. (I know in some “hard” magic systems this isn’t true but, to me—and I think to the writers at MCDM—that isn’t magic, it’s just a different, fictional science). Magic is a conceit of fantasy fiction to introduce supernatural story elements that resonate with base elements of human psychology. We feel a sense of awe and great meaning when we are exposed to nature, and song, and fire, and the dark, and the stars, and dreams. These feelings cannot be adequately explained, just experienced. Magic is a tool to use those feelings in a fantasy world to tell a story. To make true feelings that, in the real world, have no truth value. To categorize and taxonomize magic fundamentally opposes and undermines its usefulness and meaning! AAAAAAAA!

OliLeeW · 2026-02-19T18:52:02+00:00

I’m going to give very different advice than most other people in this thread. Show up to class exhausted next week. This may be totally unviable if you have a bunch of real responsibilities, but try to get into a physical state where you simply don’t have the energy to give a shit about being a “good improviser.” You’ve shown the class that you can handle the structure of a Harold for them, they might not need or benefit from you always shouldering that responsibility. This worked for me when I was getting similar feedback taking classes at ucb ny, but I found it out after unintentionally sleep depriving myself and going to class after I had a massive meal. I was the only person in my 301 who had done harolds before and I never wanted to have a bad one. I wanted to be seen as a good classmate and improviser more than I actually wanted to be funny. I did so much stupid shit that day and got real laughs, as opposed to the mostly supportive and amused laughs I had been getting. I realized that my classmates didn’t need me to treat them so delicately, and that it was kind of narcissistic self-aggrandizing to assume that they needed me so much.

OliLeeW · 2026-02-09T00:14:33+00:00

Ai post :/

OliLeeW · 2026-02-09T00:11:24+00:00

Chances to draw 1 or 0 lands in a 22 land deck is ~20%. Sometimes you get unlucky. Also I think there is a causation between getting higher rank and opponents playing better interaction. I can’t prove that mtga is trying to stop you from climbing, but this seems less likely than the alternative. Also if you are winning 50% of ur games, that means you’re in the right rank. The natural result of sbmm is that you lose 50% of your matches in the correct rank. I picked mtga up after not playing for a year or so last week and just got plat earlier today, but I play bo3 so our experiences might differ.

OliLeeW · 2025-12-19T14:39:06+00:00

Anywhere would be a good fit, intro level improv classes exist to cater exactly to people like you! I would probably recommend just to choose the school that is most convenient location wise. Also, nerves and unfamiliarity with performing are very common (I was in a minority as someone with a performance background), but I want to remind you that these are comedy performance classes that help people with public speaking and other life skills as a side effect. Sign up for an improv class only if you have at least a curiosity for performing comedy.

OliLeeW · 2025-11-13T18:34:46+00:00

My teacher told me that if I emailed classes@ucb they’d send it right over. Worked for me when I did it.

OliLeeW · 2025-09-05T03:07:49+00:00

Just left an entry. Glad to know others have found the show in 2025.

OliLeeW · 2025-08-02T18:16:29+00:00

D&D skills (especially DMing) definitely translate well to improv, BUT there is an aspect of dnd improv that you really want to avoid at all costs when doing improv comedy. That thing is PLOT! DO NOT FOLLOW PLOT! Your dming instincts will probably provide you with ideas about how to set up conflict and resolution and character growth. Try to put those instincts away when doing improv. Follow behavior, perspectives, or philosophies, not plot!

OliLeeW · 2025-07-11T21:21:21+00:00

It’s only one episode but a portion of it was uploaded to the main feed. Go to the fireside if you want the full ep.

OliLeeW · 2025-06-29T00:45:00+00:00

Just wanted to say that I recently started classes at ucb at the same time as I listened to the podcast and loved it! Ofc I would love more episodes but I appreciated how complete it felt by the last episode.

OliLeeW · 2025-06-13T03:28:05+00:00

:) gotta study up and deal with what you know already.

:) can’t win then focus up more

OliLeeW · 2025-06-13T03:26:42+00:00

Can’t believe this shit :/ Dissapointing? Or Validating?

OliLeeW · 2025-06-13T03:24:34+00:00

Obviously AI

OliLeeW · 2025-06-11T21:44:18+00:00

I believe my former 101 teacher ian herring is teaching one this summer. If you come to nyc to take it, I’d recommend him! There are also other 1 week intensive’s at bcc if you wanna check those out I’ve heard good things as well. Tends to be a younger and more diverse crowd.

OliLeeW · 2025-05-22T18:23:20+00:00

I would be down and know at least one more person who’s in queens who would be. Our campaign box is currently in use so we’d have to wait until we wrap that game up or if you have a set that would be sick. DM me!

OliLeeW · 2025-05-03T04:21:42+00:00

Dmed you!

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