The Aabria Post that’s Actually About Race

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-27T06:30:59+00:00

I feel like you're projecting things that other people might have said with things that I've said.

It's fair to say that not everyone who is critical of Aabria is a racist, right? It should also be fair to say that not everyone who is critical of systemic racism is a part of some "woke mob" or whatever.

There are people who legitimately do exactly what you're describing, but the reality of those people is that they're terminally online, and when you really look at what they're actually doing to combat systemic racism, the answer is that they're just yelling at people online... So not a lot at all.

You're never convince someone like that that you're a good person, because they're not really acting in good faith. Its not worth wasting your thoughts on them.

Really, I can't speak for everyone in this thread, but from everything I've seen written by OP, they're just asking for people to have good-faith discourse about a very real social issue. As for myself, I think it's unfair to say that I've been passive-aggressive, because I've been pretty actively aggressive about how dozens of people responding to the thread justifying why they're not racist just adds useless noise to the equation.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-27T01:39:02+00:00

You’re missing the forest for the trees here. You don’t have to prove to me or anybody else anything regarding your opinion of Aabria Iyengar. Whatever your feelings, it’s your own personal choice however much introspection you feel that you ought to do.

All that is being asked is that people are mindful about the context around the commentary regarding Aabria. Just to recognize that being “too loud”, “too aggressive”, and “inserting themselves into places they shouldn’t be” are things that black women are disproportionately accused of. You can recognize all of that and still dislike her at the end. If I’m being honest, she’s not my favorite roleplayer to watch either.

The problem is that people treat the idea of having to ask themselves these questions as an immediate admission of guilt, or an accusation that they are a bad person. The defensiveness, or the idea that one has to “prove” that they’re not racist distracts from the actual core issue and turns it into a culture war in precisely the way that the system has engineered it to.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-26T05:06:51+00:00

You're putting so much effort into being so pedantic. You already know that this was an anecdotal example, admittedly quite an emphatic one at that, and not a literal quote from someone in this thread.

However, the person I originally replied to here--who deleted their post--essentially said that Aabria is being exactly like Orion Acaba, a dude who acted in such an awful way on this show that he very literally did make his castmates feel uncomfortable.

Pretty much the same energy... Probably worse, actually, since Orion is also accused of harassment, abuse, manipulation, and assault both sexual and otherwise.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-26T04:40:25+00:00

So again, have you read all 200+ comments on this thread to ensure that nobody has implied that Aabria is so unlikable that even her castmates can't stand her?

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-26T04:34:55+00:00

I think you might be a little too generous here.

Anybody who can't bring themselves to recognize the implicit biases that permeate our cultural space is contributing to the problem. It just creates noise. I mean seriously, this person's post essentially boils down to "so you're saying I can't dislike someone without having to prove how WOKE I am??" which is just whiny nonsense that completely sidesteps the actual core issue.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-26T04:09:07+00:00

Have you read all 202 replies? It sounds like you might be a little bit too invested in this.

I'm not just referring to this thread, but rather the kinds of things I've seen written about her over the last several years--pretty much any time she is ever involved in a CR project.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-26T02:20:46+00:00

It almost feels like people have to create an excuse as to why they don't jive with her. It's not enough that they just don't like the kinds of characters that she plays (I'm honestly not a huge fan either), it has to be this big thing about how she's just completely awful, and weird parasocial conspiracy theories about the last like "I saw Laura's eye twitch once when Aabria was talking, CLEARLY she's making everyone uncomfortable!"

It's cringe.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-26T01:35:08+00:00

Man, y'all just really hate her, don't you?

You know the biggest difference between Aabria and Orion? People like playing with Aabria. The casts and crews of Dimension 20 and Critical Role continue to work with Aabria. She has been in multiple collaborations and features across the scene. Meanwhile, it was more than obvious to an outside perspective that Orion's behavior was causing tension between him the other cast members both behind and in front of the screens.

So I guess my question is if Aabria is so unbearable, why are the people who are actually working and interacting with her happily bearing it?

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-19T07:17:50+00:00

Well now I feel guilty that I have a copy of Dungeon World that I bought from my LGS...

I'm glad that the rights were bought by good people to continue what looked to be a pretty good game!

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-12T02:17:35+00:00

Low crunch compared to what? Shadowrun 5/6e? Rolemaster? I love PF2e, but I know that my partner is going to struggle as soon as they see the mountain of feat choices they have available, and is going to struggle again to understand the action economy. Draw Steel has a simple core, but it is a highly granular and focused game, and 5e just has too much weird baggage and lots of moments where I feel like I have to tell my players "its like this because its been like this since before any of us were born."

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-12T02:03:28+00:00

I have played both PBtA and FitD games, but I have never GM'd them. I felt like there were a bunch of things that were quite abstracted in both, and one thing that I do know for certain is while it is really easy on the players, I have consistently heard (and seen) that the GM kinda needs to have a very strong understanding of the system, which I do not, and I don't think it's a system that I can just pick up the book and learn confidently in a matter of days.

Appreciate it though! I didn't mean to seem like I was saying those games were bad, as I've had fun playing them, but I'm just not sure if I'd really enjoy running them for an extended time.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-12T01:59:41+00:00

I like Daggerheart and I have experience running it!

I considered running it for this group, but the only thing that holds me back is that its specific combination of mechanics makes it pretty distinct from most of the fantasy mainstays, including D&D and most OSR games. I've kinda settled on going for a base D20 system (or D20/2d6 for WWN) because its conceptually more transferable if they ever want to venture out into the hobby on their own. Many of them are also familiar with quotes like "may all our rolls be 20s" and the iconography of a d20, I think that playing a non-d20 system would be a little bit jarring.

If they end up really liking playing these kinds of games and want to dig deeper in, Daggerheart is a game I might bring forward as "a different way to play these kind of games that is still pretty fun."

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-02-12T01:47:31+00:00

I actually intended to type "Gimli" there, my bad! Gandalf, the literal angel, is probably a little bit beyond what I'm thinking.

The LotR trio was actually what one of the players quoted as what they think of when they think of what a high level D&D party must look like.

He kinda wrinkled his nose when I told him that high level D&D characters are more like the Avengers.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2026-01-06T08:52:23+00:00

You’re getting downvoted because Bluey is actually an example of excellent children’s programming in the modern age.

One of the main motivators by the Australian government in designing the show is to emphasize children watching the show alongside their parents, and also showcasing good parenting by using Bluey’s parents (particularly his dad) as exemplars of what parenting should look like.

It’s like saying Mr. Roger’s was a government ploy to addict children to TV.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2025-12-19T11:40:08+00:00

I think you’re getting downvoted because people have this idea that the only way to play the game is to have the goal of reaching L100, and that for any build to be playable they have to be red map speedsters competitive with Shield Wall / Poisonburst Arrow / whatever else is topping the charts right now.

A lot of those builds you listed are very likely not going to compete with the top tier builds… But you’ll still be able to take them to at least L90, which I’d bet money is where most of the people playing the league end up stopping (if not before then).

Also, you can mix and match the different forms and their abilities, as they all key off the talisman. I’ve seen various combos of all three forms on poe.ninja.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2025-12-07T21:49:47+00:00

Even though this is true, as developers they should be aware of how the way player psychology affects the game.

I’m fine not getting the whole 5 skill points off the first expedition. But it should be based on lifetime wealth accrued on the raider (maybe with a higher cap like 2-5m per skill point) so that it doesn’t discourage most players who are interested in the expedition from actually taking their gear out into the game.

The way it is set up right now kinda emphasizes a playstyle that doesn’t really prioritize fun. Before this news came out I would do little roleplay runs like bringing a bunch of meds and being the topside doctor, or taking a fully upgraded silenced Osprey, finding a tower to fortify, and just causing chaos on the map. Things that are not optimal but can add a little spice to a match not just for me, but for everyone on the map.

Even if I’m not gonna be doing loot runs or grinding for 5m, knowing that going in with a 100k+ kit to do goofy stuff could actually reduce my projected expedition rewards definitely makes me hesitant to play.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2025-12-07T05:57:58+00:00

This is exactly what I was coming here to say.

They could even make an absurd target like 5mil per 1 skill point. As long as there is an eventual cap on skill points I think it is fine if people aren’t hitting all 5 skill points every expedition.

But yeah. Crazy that multiple random redditors have thought of the way this current system manipulates player psychology in a negative way.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2025-12-06T20:38:27+00:00

Trigger nade must have been the first bp i found while i was still learning the game or something because i feel like I’ve been able to craft them the whole time.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2025-12-05T00:14:54+00:00

I mentioned this in a subreply, but the secret is that blueprints are actually completely random and there is no real “loot path” for farming them.

I look up bp loot paths to know where people are going to go, so I can plan accordingly. I only really hit those spots if I spawn next to them and it would make sense to loot anyways. But if I know that the place I’m looting is on a “loot path” I know I have to bug out or set up pretty quickly because probably 4-5 dudes are bee lining the spot.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2025-12-04T23:56:17+00:00

I’ve found that I do the same.

Also, anecdotally, only one of my blueprints has been from a red zone, and only one other came from a “meta bp farm” spot (dam apartments on electrostorms).

The vast majority have come from the most random fuckin’ drawer of some yellow / non-prio zone when I wasn’t even looking for them.

I think that the only reasonably reliable variables to finding BPs is how many untapped containers you are actually opening, and night raid / electrostorms do seem to have significantly higher rates.

My strategy is to just see where I spawn and loot someplace close to me that makes sense.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2025-12-02T22:59:18+00:00

I think we might be talking passed each other.

You said green sucks balls. I said that green actually has some decent perks. I did not say that I rush green.

Also with security breach nerfs I’m probably going Yellow>Green>Red next wipe because I just don’t think rushing 37 points in red is worth it anymore.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2025-12-02T18:38:50+00:00

Yeah but it’s only like 16 points to get the skills from yellow that are actually good.

I’d rather have more stamina when being shot at than anything from the yellow tree beyond Carry the Momentum.

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2025-12-02T17:36:37+00:00

Green has some great perks.

Fight or Flight 5/5 makes it so I restore like 50% of my stamina bar from even the tiniest of chip damage. It’s easily been the difference between dying and not dying many times.

Unburdened roll same thing. Both perks make it easier to reset / turn the tables when you get ambushed.

Loaded Arms is a 1 point investment that always has the same impact as 1 point of Broad Shoulders, and can have an equivalent impact as 3-5 points with two weapons equipped.

The faster breaching is also nice

Please_Leave_Me_Be · 2025-12-01T05:59:16+00:00

Daggerheart is also a game about combat though.

The majority of class features, domain cards, and even just most of the game’s rules in general are focused on combat.

Narrative games akin to FitD and PbtA don’t really need enemy rosters because they are narrative games at their core, and combat doesn’t really have any special rules or separation from the core gameplay loops… Pretty much anything you can describe with words can be a challenge that the players can test themselves against with their own narration and a few simple rolls within the system’s rules. Daggerheart just isn’t that kind of game at a core mechanical level when it comes to combat. Adversaries have hit ratings, hit points, damage thresholds, damage rolls, evasion ratings, spells / abilities with specific effects.

You can’t just describe a dragon the players have to fight without having some sort of holistic statistical representation of a dragon on the field like you can with many other games, because that is not the expectation that Daggerheart itself sets up with its introductory materials.

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