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Getting to Know Each Other, August 2017


TaleSpinner
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10 minutes ago, VitM said:

 

I'll say they can go ahead and do this if they play up the "magic force-fields make it okay" aspect.  I've played and run many games where the wizards and clerics casually attained AC scores that the fighters could only dream of.  I'm cool with physical weapon strikes against someone being turned aside in a shower of golden sparks if someone gets most of their AC from magic rings, deflection spells, and the stunning force of their Charisma.

 

If you don't need to wear plate armor to get equivalent or better protection, why would you?  There should totally be some character with outlandish (un)dress or mannerisms and an attitude of "I am near-invulnerable to swords and can set people on fire with my mind; I will wear what I want."

 

Adventurers aren't average joes; they're super heroes, rock stars, and professional athletes.  Sure, some of them can actually be good role models, but you're definitely going to get more than a few Dennis Rodmans, Axel Roses, and Russel Crowes in the mix.  This is especially likely in D&D land where you are one of a countable number of people that can bind demons or raise the dead or whatever.  There's a lot of behavior people will just have to put up with if you're the only one in the region that can punch a dragon in half.

 

If I could fight wearing a sundress, I totally would. As is, I can wear a sundress. I like your logic. 

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7 hours ago, TaleSpinner said:

August 9: What should the Dungeons and Dragons movie TOTALLY NOT have in it, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES?  (DocBedlam)

Women cast and attired only to titillate viewers.  If this movie is done well, this is an opportunity to publicize D&D beyond its normal community and there's no good reason to present stereotypes or tropes that reflect poorly on the community.  (If done well, I suppose you could subvert it but I'm not holding my breath.)

 

Cheesy and/or overused special effects.  I know they're going to feel compelled to show at least one fireball but there's no reason to do it cheaply/poorly and there's no reason to have very many of them.  (They should definitely avoid Michael Bay levels of explosions.)

 

Excessive backstory.  The Hobbit tells enough backstory to put the events of the book in perspective and no more.  (Disclaimer: I haven't seen the new movies.  I've only read the book and seen the Rankin & Bass version.)  If you prefaced it with all of the world setting done for the Lord of the Rings, it'd be awfully boring and irrelevant.

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13 hours ago, TaleSpinner said:

August 9: What should the Dungeons and Dragons movie TOTALLY NOT have in it, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES?  (DocBedlam)

 

The Raise Dead spell.

 

Don't get me wrong.  As a former cleric, I loved the Raise Dead spell and all the various other ways that you can bring characters back from the dead.  And from a gameplay point of view, it makes absolute sense as well.  However, from a story point of view, I've always felt it was fairly suspect and a prime reason that death becomes meaningless in a campaign.  

 

Also, from a movie point of view, I've seen too many fantasy movies where the director has tried to brute force emotion by having one of the main characters die with everyone in standing around in tears before the dead character is brought back to life in a shower of sparkly CGI. <_<

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THINGS THE D&D MOVIE DOES NOT NEED

1. Straw houses. Every awful fantasy film has people literally living in houses slapped together out of stuff they found in a farmer's field, all the better for when the bad guys burn it down. No. I want SETS, durnit.

 

2. Goatskins. I don't know what it is, but every bad fantasy film has its actors dressed either in full armor of some sort, your standard Renfaire gear... or goatskins. Any fantasy film where any named character wears goatskins is a BAD MOVIE. Except Sorceress, which succeeds by virtue of being so gawdawful, it's hilarious.


3. Wayans brothers. I have no idea why they felt the first one needed a Wayans brother, and he certainly TRIED, but it just did NOT work. That also goes for the guy in the blue lipstick.

4. Wizards who shout the name of the spell they're casting. That's not a movie, that's a LARP on film.

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7 hours ago, Dr.Bedlam said:


4. Wizards who shout the name of the spell they're casting. That's not a movie, that's a LARP on film.

How about fighters who shout the names they gave their moves? :lol: 

 

"Normal, consecutive punches." :mellow:

 

 

In terms of comedy, like the marvel films, anything funny should be the sort of stuff that happens in normal life and is funny. The comedy in the MCU succeeds because it's relatable, not because it's actual comedy.

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On 8/8/2017 at 8:30 AM, TaleSpinner said:

August 8: What does the Dungeons and Dragons movie (the one currently in pre-production, not that horrible Jeremy Irons paycheck)...ABSOLUTELY HAVE to have in it? (DocBedlam)

 

I'm not much of a movie goer anymore; SO I needed a little longer to think about the questions:

I definitely feel the D&D Movie should try to avoid including Ferris Wheels, the Eiffel Tower, AND quasi-patriotic songs sung by Kate Smith.

It should include, in BOLD LETTERS the caveat: THIS MOVIE IS BASED LOOSELY ON A GAME, WHICH IS FAR MORE ENJOYABLE TO PLAY THAN IT IS TO WATCH.

Edited by malefactus
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5 minutes ago, TaleSpinner said:

August 10: What do struggle with the most, hobby-wise? (Can be a top 3 or 5 list if you like.)

 

  1. Lack of display room.
  2. Lack of storage room.
  3. Not having enough energy after work to hobby.
  4. Not as much free time as I would like to hobby.
  5. Blending..
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8 minutes ago, TaleSpinner said:

August 10: What do struggle with the most, hobby-wise? (Can be a top 3 or 5 list if you like.)

 

Motivation and distraction, which are pretty tightly linked. I want to paint/model, but I also want to do other things that require less effort much of the time.

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4 minutes ago, TaleSpinner said:

August 10: What do struggle with the most, hobby-wise? (Can be a top 3 or 5 list if you like.)

1. Procrastination: I have bunches of ideas, I just never seem to get around to them.  I am easily distracted.  I was doing good last winter/spring with sitting down at the desk for an hour or two about 5 days a week.  Then I got busy and got out of the habit, even after time freed up some.  I need to get back in the habit.

 

2. Developing my skills.  So, I want to improve (painting techniques, basing, sculpting, etc.) but I constantly find myself defaulting to stuff I already know, instead of stretching myself to improve.  I generally end  up painting everything to tabletop level.  I think it's a combination of having so much to get done that I end up speeding through things, and not really having a defined goal to work towards.  Some goal setting techniques might help out with that.

 

3. Color choice.  I always seem to pick the wrong shades of colors for a harmonious figure.  I know what looks good when I see it, but don't seem to be able to visualize what something will look like until I paint it.  Then I get discouraged and either abandon the figure or just finish it quickly and move on.  Again, painting more will allow me to develop this skill, as will asking for advice.

 

Most of these struggles can be improved by the "paint more" solution.  I just have to get more focused and get back in my groove.  Perhaps the approach of RCon will start to give me the kick in the elf that I need.

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15 minutes ago, TaleSpinner said:

August 10: What do struggle with the most, hobby-wise? (Can be a top 3 or 5 list if you like.)

 

1. Time

2. Patience

3. Cognitive dissonance from having both of the above problems simultaneously.

 

Put a little more seriously, I am at a stage where I have learned many useful techniques, and I think I know what it would take to produce much better results than I currently do, so why don't I?

 

1. I need practice, and that requires time. It seems like I always either struggling to get a project done in time for a deadline, or having trouble finding hobby time at all. Practicing a technique on 20 consecutive Bones minis doesn't really enter into the equation.

2. I struggle with the patience to work through the real finishing work on a competition-level mini. This problem would undoubtedly improve, if I could address issue #1, but, at the end of the day, I still need to be able to buckle down, and spend hours carefully layering and smoothing my colors.

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