@nudraxon.bsky.social
I realize now I probably should've phrased that differently.
February 17, 2026 at 10:47 PM
I realize now I probably should've phrased that differently.
The average RPG character has a body count on par with Curtis LeMay, and also would never dream of saying anything mean to an NPC.
February 17, 2026 at 10:42 PM
The average RPG character has a body count on par with Curtis LeMay, and also would never dream of saying anything mean to an NPC.
People talk a lot about the "revenge of the nerds" aspect of the martial/caster divide in D&D, but DEX becoming a god stat in 5e, plus dodge-tanking having always been way more viable than it should, makes me wonder if a group of acrobats with a chip on their shoulder was also somehow involved.
February 17, 2026 at 6:11 PM
People talk a lot about the "revenge of the nerds" aspect of the martial/caster divide in D&D, but DEX becoming a god stat in 5e, plus dodge-tanking having always been way more viable than it should, makes me wonder if a group of acrobats with a chip on their shoulder was also somehow involved.
GRRM: I created King Joffrey as a cautionary tale.
The entire American political establishment, apparently: At long last, we have created King Joffrey from the classic fantasy novel 'Don't be King Joffrey, You Dumbass'
The entire American political establishment, apparently: At long last, we have created King Joffrey from the classic fantasy novel 'Don't be King Joffrey, You Dumbass'
February 16, 2026 at 8:57 PM
GRRM: I created King Joffrey as a cautionary tale.
The entire American political establishment, apparently: At long last, we have created King Joffrey from the classic fantasy novel 'Don't be King Joffrey, You Dumbass'
The entire American political establishment, apparently: At long last, we have created King Joffrey from the classic fantasy novel 'Don't be King Joffrey, You Dumbass'
On a related note, I find it really annoying when games ask you to roll a d100 on a probability table...when all the probabilities are in multiples of 5 or 10. Like, you guys already made dice specifically for those probabilities.
February 15, 2026 at 8:47 PM
On a related note, I find it really annoying when games ask you to roll a d100 on a probability table...when all the probabilities are in multiples of 5 or 10. Like, you guys already made dice specifically for those probabilities.
On a related note, I do knock a lot of fantasy settings for being "20th/21st century with a medieval coat of paint", but I actually think The Witcher is at its strongest when it deliberately leans into the fact that it's basically WW2 with a medieval coat of paint.
February 15, 2026 at 8:42 PM
On a related note, I do knock a lot of fantasy settings for being "20th/21st century with a medieval coat of paint", but I actually think The Witcher is at its strongest when it deliberately leans into the fact that it's basically WW2 with a medieval coat of paint.
What's the 2nd last image?
February 15, 2026 at 5:55 PM
What's the 2nd last image?
"OK, imagine your boss and your landlord are the same person. Now imagine he's also the judge, jury, and executioner for any legal disputes in your community..."
February 15, 2026 at 3:42 PM
"OK, imagine your boss and your landlord are the same person. Now imagine he's also the judge, jury, and executioner for any legal disputes in your community..."
I mean, the society depicted in D&D is a more-or-less modern one with a medieval coat of paint.
February 15, 2026 at 3:39 PM
I mean, the society depicted in D&D is a more-or-less modern one with a medieval coat of paint.
In Arms and Influence, Schelling says something to the effect of 'a threat of destruction can only work if it's paired with an equally credible promise of non-destruction in the event of compliance'.
February 14, 2026 at 3:58 PM
In Arms and Influence, Schelling says something to the effect of 'a threat of destruction can only work if it's paired with an equally credible promise of non-destruction in the event of compliance'.
Cyberpunk's an interesting case, because it came before CDPR had flipped in their culture war coding.
So there were a bunch of progressives calling it transphobic, and a bunch of anti-SJWs defending it...even though it did a bunch of things they'd consider a casus belli just a few years later.
So there were a bunch of progressives calling it transphobic, and a bunch of anti-SJWs defending it...even though it did a bunch of things they'd consider a casus belli just a few years later.
February 13, 2026 at 2:20 AM
Cyberpunk's an interesting case, because it came before CDPR had flipped in their culture war coding.
So there were a bunch of progressives calling it transphobic, and a bunch of anti-SJWs defending it...even though it did a bunch of things they'd consider a casus belli just a few years later.
So there were a bunch of progressives calling it transphobic, and a bunch of anti-SJWs defending it...even though it did a bunch of things they'd consider a casus belli just a few years later.
"Side note: I will address that very controversial debate (custard v ice cream) in another video."
February 11, 2026 at 11:40 PM
"Side note: I will address that very controversial debate (custard v ice cream) in another video."
We've actually reached the singularity several times now, the problem is that the newly-sentient computers keep getting depressed and deleting themselves.
February 11, 2026 at 11:34 PM
We've actually reached the singularity several times now, the problem is that the newly-sentient computers keep getting depressed and deleting themselves.
...is it bad that I'm actually kind of tempted to watch it now?
February 11, 2026 at 10:41 PM
...is it bad that I'm actually kind of tempted to watch it now?
In general, a lot of people seem to think that there's this bright dividing line in fiction, with Stuff That Actually Matters (characters, themes) on one side, and Stuff Only Dumb Nerds Care About (plotholes, worldbuilding, etc.) on the other.
And I don't think those two are so neatly separable.
And I don't think those two are so neatly separable.
February 11, 2026 at 1:25 PM
In general, a lot of people seem to think that there's this bright dividing line in fiction, with Stuff That Actually Matters (characters, themes) on one side, and Stuff Only Dumb Nerds Care About (plotholes, worldbuilding, etc.) on the other.
And I don't think those two are so neatly separable.
And I don't think those two are so neatly separable.
On a related note, I sometimes feel like opposition to plothole-focused criticism has led some people to negatively polarize against the very concept of analyzing events and characters' actions in a Watsonian sense.
February 11, 2026 at 1:21 PM
On a related note, I sometimes feel like opposition to plothole-focused criticism has led some people to negatively polarize against the very concept of analyzing events and characters' actions in a Watsonian sense.
...would you care to name the show?
February 11, 2026 at 1:15 PM
...would you care to name the show?
I once heard someone say that the prequels were the result of George Lucas reading too much Lost Cause propaganda, and it's kind of hard to unsee it now.
"A bunch of planets wanted to secede for, uh...reasons."
"A bunch of planets wanted to secede for, uh...reasons."
February 11, 2026 at 1:09 PM
I once heard someone say that the prequels were the result of George Lucas reading too much Lost Cause propaganda, and it's kind of hard to unsee it now.
"A bunch of planets wanted to secede for, uh...reasons."
"A bunch of planets wanted to secede for, uh...reasons."
Rey and Poe literally didn't even meet each other until the end of TLJ.
February 11, 2026 at 3:05 AM
Rey and Poe literally didn't even meet each other until the end of TLJ.
Pros of AotC: Every second Anakin and Obi-Wan are on screen together.
Cons of AotC: Every second Anakin and Padme are on screen together.
Cons of AotC: Every second Anakin and Padme are on screen together.
February 11, 2026 at 3:05 AM
Pros of AotC: Every second Anakin and Obi-Wan are on screen together.
Cons of AotC: Every second Anakin and Padme are on screen together.
Cons of AotC: Every second Anakin and Padme are on screen together.
"How can you possibly continue a story that has so many potential endings?"
By picking one and running with it, the same as Larian did wrt BG2's various endings for its characters.
By picking one and running with it, the same as Larian did wrt BG2's various endings for its characters.
February 6, 2026 at 1:34 PM
"How can you possibly continue a story that has so many potential endings?"
By picking one and running with it, the same as Larian did wrt BG2's various endings for its characters.
By picking one and running with it, the same as Larian did wrt BG2's various endings for its characters.
I'm also seeing a lot of people shitting on Craig Mazin and...I dunno. From my PoV, he's made one season of TV that was phenomenal (Chernobyl), one that was very good (TLoU:S1), and one that was mediocre to bad (TLoU:S2). That's not a terrible track record, all things considered.
February 6, 2026 at 1:29 PM
I'm also seeing a lot of people shitting on Craig Mazin and...I dunno. From my PoV, he's made one season of TV that was phenomenal (Chernobyl), one that was very good (TLoU:S1), and one that was mediocre to bad (TLoU:S2). That's not a terrible track record, all things considered.
Of course, a million different things could go wrong, and the show may well end up sucking (or end up in permanent limbo like that Disco Elysium adaptation).
But I'm not going to immediately write it off.
But I'm not going to immediately write it off.
February 6, 2026 at 1:14 PM
Of course, a million different things could go wrong, and the show may well end up sucking (or end up in permanent limbo like that Disco Elysium adaptation).
But I'm not going to immediately write it off.
But I'm not going to immediately write it off.
It's also funny seeing people saying this will suck since Larian isn't involved, because one could easily have said (and in fact many people did say) the same of BG3 itself wrt the first 2 games.
February 6, 2026 at 1:12 PM
It's also funny seeing people saying this will suck since Larian isn't involved, because one could easily have said (and in fact many people did say) the same of BG3 itself wrt the first 2 games.