Thread: Questioning chirine ba kal

Originally Posted by AsenRG

That surprises me, frankly.
But then I wasn't there for impossibility reasons, so I must take your word on it.

Well, a lot of people at the really wanted to cash in on the bubble. Everybody thought that if two guys like Gary and Dave could do it, then they could - and do it better, too! Just ask them!

Originally Posted by AsenRG

I'll pass on asking anyone, it's not like I care whether they wrote for love, for money or for love of money. Personally, I've never heard that from a publisher, that's all.
Then again, I simply wasn't around during said bubble, so I can believe it was different back then.

Remember that the "Gold Rush Days" were already fading by 1984 or 1985, to the point were GAMA meetings were about "how can we get the industry to recover."

Also, this was back when a lot of shit was still produced at the local Insty-Prints with black and white art. Production values weren't nearly as high, and a LOT of stuff back then is, quite frankly, shit.

D&D went from "so famous it was in the #1 box office hit movie of all history" to "whut?" in about 3 or 4 years. Sic transit gloria mundi.

Originally Posted by Greentongue

Piling into the same bed can cause some awkward situations in the morning (without being pornographic). Generating "connections" gives helpful game hooks without them being forced on characters.
=

...you DO realize this is exactly what most of the human race has done throughout most of history?

Originally Posted by Greentongue

Hummm...
I think that the priests are the "professionals" and ensure that a "good word" is put in for you in the daily prayers when you give an offering.
What I meant by "enforced" was preventing the offerings from being stolen before being accepted by a priest.
Having your offering stolen before a priest can acknowledge it, would be a concern.

Preventing it from being stolen afterwards should be what temple guards are for.

Which brings up the question. Must offerings be made at a shrine or temple "to count" or at least by a priest (or magic user")?

If you consider Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny, then shrines and temple are critical connection points.


Absolutely.

Simple little things can easily be added to a game but give a lot of flavor.
Picking the right ones for the "right" flavor is helpful.

Piling into the same bed can cause some awkward situations in the morning (without being pornographic). Generating "connections" gives helpful game hooks without them being forced on characters.
=

Right, gotcha!

Yes, very much so. The clergy will always mention you in the daily services, after you offer something up.

Generally, offerings are pretty safe; that's why you have clan guards, retainers, servants, etc. to get you to and from the temple. Poorer people tend to go in groups, so they are pretty safe as well. And the temple guards can interpret their jurisdiction pretty liberally, too.

Yes, usually offerings 'count' when made at a shrine or temple; My habit as a GM is to make a Divine Intervention roll otherwise, usually with humorous results. I should note that a family will have a little shrine to their deity at home, as well, and this will also 'count'; the local temple will be happy to send around a junior priest or priestess to officiate at private ceremonies at home.

"Lord of Light" was one of Phil's favorites; he introduced me to it.

Agreed about the little things making all the difference!!!

Yes, waking up next to somebody you don't know is always a great moment. I had this happen to me a number of times; the Senior Wife has a very droll sense of humor, and has a habit of getting me married off to her friends without mentioning it to me until 'later'. It makes for some very good comic relief, as well as possible plot elements.

Originally Posted by AsenRG

I understand that. It's just that I've never spoken to an RPG publisher who said he's publishing RPGs for the money, because he believed they're more likely to sell than a normal book.
Then again, 1984 is 15 years before I got into the hobby, and that's enough for the attitudes to have changed radically in the meantime.

Yep. It was a very different time and place, back then, and the 'industry' had really changed - for the better, if you want my opinion - by the middle 1980s. The very early days were very fast and loose, and very 'Wild West'. With no sheriff, either.

Originally Posted by AsenRG

I understand that. It's just that I've never spoken to an RPG publisher who said he's publishing RPGs for the money, because he believed they're more likely to sell than a normal book.
Then again, 1984 is 15 years before I got into the hobby, and that's enough for the attitudes to have changed radically in the meantime.

Yes. By 2000 people were starting to realize and articulate that "you too can make tens and tens of dollars in the RPG industry."

Not to mention that computers, the Internet, and PDFs changed everything. If I ever finish my current game project ("Source of the Nile" meets "Dying Earth") I won't even bother putting a price tag on it; I'll hang the PDF out there with a tip jar.