It shouldn't go anywhere. If not Shelly, who would be our Player-in-Chief?
And like Veok says - Shelly is the "Player in Chief" we have to keep her there !
I read it every month and look forward to it! I like her writing, I read her book and enjoyed it, and I like the perspective she brings to DND.
In fact, since I started running Encounters, it's helped a lot since some of the players there aren't serious about the games. It's helped me there and in my own home games to make it a relaxed atmosphere that's fun.
So, yes, keep them coming!
One of my favorite articles from an old edition of Dragon was a review of a gen con from a gamer point of view and then from a game developer point of view. It was funny, informative, and just generally interesting. D&D was a constant theme, but not the main focus. There should be more articles like this. Try reading critical hits and you'll get what I'm talking about.
"I'm not really that interested in D&D, but I need to fill column inches, so here's something completely unrelated superficially painted up in D&D colours."
I like the fiction, I like the editorials, and I like Shelly's article. I don't often feel that I am being spoken to in her work, but then again I think the target audience is intended in many cases to be female, which is fine with me. I think more women in the game is a fantastic thing (I wish we had more women playing RPGs when I was a kid).
And not that this matters, but she is damn cute!
oh, i also read unearthed arcana everytime they come up.
(I still have her on Facebook though)
First off, a magazine with only crunch and fluff directly applicable to the game, isn't a magazine at all, it is a rule book and should be published as one.
I like the fiction, I like the editorials, and I like Shelly's article. I don't often feel that I am being spoken to in her work, but then again I think the target audience is intended in many cases to be female, which is fine with me. I think more women in the game is a fantastic thing (I wish we had more women playing RPGs when I was a kid).
And not that this matters, but she is damn cute!
Yep all the above +1 !
I just want to see kind of an unofficial straw poll of who does and doesn't read the "confessions of a full time wizard article." I know I almost never do and personally think the effort could be better spent on something else (no offense mz. mazzanoble). Do you think so? Why or why not, does this article have some deeper more important meaning that I'm missing? Do you think it's just wasted pages? I want to know what other people think about it.
I think she's hilarious and its one of the first things I look for each month. Seriously. I think gamers get too uptight, and I like her lighter point of view. And, I tracked down hummus specifically because she mentions it so frequently (love it!!).
I have two people I wish would show up to my gaming table (neither which will ever happen, but whatever):
1) Wil Wheaton
2) Shelly Mazzanoble
I just want to see kind of an unofficial straw poll of who does and doesn't read the "confessions of a full time wizard article." I know I almost never do and personally think the effort could be better spent on something else (no offense mz. mazzanoble). Do you think so? Why or why not, does this article have some deeper more important meaning that I'm missing? Do you think it's just wasted pages? I want to know what other people think about it.
I think she's hilarious and its one of the first things I look for each month. Seriously. I think gamers get too uptight, and I like her lighter point of view. And, I tracked down hummus specifically because she mentions it so frequently (love it!!).
I have two people I wish would show up to my gaming table (neither which will ever happen, but whatever):
1) Wil Wheaton
2) Shelly Mazzanoble
Dont forget to add "DM to the stars" Chris Perkins in there.
I usually read Shelly's articles as the make a change to see someone elses perspective of the gaming world.
(and yes, she is cute!)
My girlfriend found "Confessions of a Part Time Sorceress" to be condescending.
This from the her most recent article "one of Community’s finest episodes and one of the greatest depictions of d&d ever."
No. A million times no. One of the greatest depictions of D&D ever? Really? Have you played D&D? If by depictions of D&D you mean having the books from two editions ago appear on the screen for a fraction of a second, then yes. It was great.
If you mean a depiction of what makes this hobby fun and great and keeps people playing for literally decades? Then no. It was a miserable failure at that. It was quite litterally not D&D in any way. It was clear that the writters had never played a game in their fracking lives, not even as research. One incredibly bad DM rolling dice for everyone at the table, while he allows a dick who read the adventure to deliberatley grief the rest of the players is not D&D.
Also, it depicted the only regular player of the game to be a fat lonely loser. I was hoping the stereotypes perpetuated by high-school jock culture about people who enjoy imagining things would be abandoned by professional writers. But no. Wall-to-wall garbage.
Y'know, I still remember reading one of her first articles way back in 2008, where she was amping up the Character Visualizer. I definitely am not fond of articles that more or less are blatantly trying to sell the product (they're rare, but she did one for the Monster Builder too). Still, her other articles are interesting.
I would like her make stronger stands as player in chief--like coming out strongly for [or against, I don't really care] DM's who hide their rolls, making the lack of Miniature production a real issue, comic complaints about the lack of decent character sheets--anything she could stir up that actually matter to players instead of D&D as Metaphor type articles...
Another idea would be a read through of old Dragon Magazines--not just a simple one off, but a concerted effort on her part to go through all the printed back issues in a year--fans could read along, comment on things we loved that are no more, and more importantly strengthen our community history.
I would like her make stronger stands as player in chief--like coming out strongly for [or against, I don't really care] DM's who hide their rolls, making the lack of Miniature production a real issue, comic complaints about the lack of decent character sheets--anything she could stir up that actually matter to players instead of D&D as Metaphor type articles...
I like Shelley, she's good in both the magazine and the podcasts. But perhaps it's because she works for Wizards, but I feel like some of her writing is veiled PR. There's a lot of thing I want a Player-in-Chief to do, but that's not one. Still, I think she's got a valuable place in Dragon.
I like Shelly (its true that she is cute) and i wonder if there isn't a possibility Dragon couldn't make her write Crunch too. ;)
Dragon is a little lite on content lately. I wouldn't chop Confessions out of our 50,000 - 60,000 words count...
Even if i know she will marry soon...
Plague
(by the way, the creepy obsession thing was a joke - she is wicked cute, and I would have dated her in a heartbeat based on her writing, but I know better)
She helps, in some ways, make D&D more approachable.
Why dislike that?
As both a player and a DM, what I get out of the article most is the unconventional thinking. Sometimes I get too hung up on what's there and trying to find the "perfect" monster for my encounter or power for my character, and then I think of the Confessions article where she had her non-gaming friends fight the Kardashian sisters. Monthly doses of Confessions help keep me out of a gaming rut. Keep 'em coming!
I picked up her book for my wife, who isn't a gamer. She couldn't finish the book, she felt like she was being talked down to like an idiot. I read the book and found it very humorous, but probably not in the ways she meant it to be. I started reading her column in the forums, but gave up on it after a few months. She has talent in writting, but each article felt like it was "House Bunny" trying to explain things to Paris Hilton. The ladies I've gamed with find her to be insulting.
That is more or less how my partner felt about it. She felt as if she was reducing women to a demographic who was incapable of caring or relating to anything that wasn't shoes, handbags or celebrity gossip. What worries me is that this is might be how WotC views women.
..,This from the her most recent article "one of Community’s finest episodes and one of the greatest depictions of d&d ever."
No. A million times no. One of the greatest depictions of D&D ever? Really? ..,
I loved that episode of "Community". The "Community DnD episode was so great because it both celebrated DnD and poked fun at the hobbie at the same time. It also had a feel good cathartic ending. It's a DnD comedic classic, up there with "Alehouse Wives" by Doctor Demento and the movie "Gamers". But they all require the ability to laugh at ones self to enjoy the humor. Get over it, stop taking yuourself and the DnD hobbie so seriously, and your going to find a lot more enjoyment in life.
I've read 2 maybe 3 of them fully. I usually intent to read them, but I usually stop after the first paragraph or so.
This sumarizes me fairly well. I start every one but trail off somewhere.
Now, this is not to say that I'm against the column. In fact, I defend it's existence and love the idea of a light, fun look at the life of someone a WotC without hype or marketing. It's lovingly informal and real.
But her prose style just does nothing for me. Personal thing. Some people love Dickens and Stephen King and I can't stand either. Not to slander their existance or say they should be struck from the annals of history, but a personal statement that I just choose not to read them.
I loved that episode of "Community". The "Community DnD episode was so great because it both celebrated DnD and poked fun at the hobbie at the same time. It also had a feel good cathartic ending. It's a DnD comedic classic, up there with "Alehouse Wives" by Doctor Demento and the movie "Gamers". But they all require the ability to laugh at ones self to enjoy the humor. Get over it, stop taking yuourself and the DnD hobbie so seriously, and your going to find a lot more enjoyment in life.
Love it all you want, I'm not here to form opinions for you. But aside from having the name "D&D" licensed from WotC, nothing in that episode referenced D&D. It could have been any generic fantasy RPG.
It ignored the inherent comedy that takes place in gaming groups pretending to be fantasy characters. It consistently treated it with an outsider's giggling perspective. The "Gamers" didn't do that. It poked fun of the funny stuff. Dead character's players rejoining the party with identical characters, players getting away with stealing people's pants with a good roll, ridiculous overkill (sneak attack with ballista), overzealous players attacking before the big bad's speech is over. I think you get my point.
I don't know where you get off assuming I don't enjoy my life because I take my hobby seriously. That's actually a very weird assumption. I enjoy my life precisely because I take my hobby, my schooling and my job seriously.
D&D is directly responsible for forming some of the most lasting bonds of friendship in my life. These are the people that came to see me in the hospital after surgery. I've been to their weddings. Yeah, I take it seriously. That doesn't mean I can't or don't laugh at it when it's funny. But laughing with and laughing at are different things.
I'm kind of skeeved by all the people talking not about the merits of the column but about whether or not they find her physically attractive. I've yet to see any extended comment threads about whether, for example, Mike Mearls is hot.
Way to show that once again, RPGing is a boys-only club, guys.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zng5kRle4FA
That said, I think that IT Crowd's D&D episode was way better.
And to bring it back on topic, even though I'm not a fan of the column, I don't think its presence precludes other, better articles now that the magazine is digital and there's no limit on physical pages. So I don't see the harm especially if there are people who like it, and I think it's sort of weird to trash writers from writing especially those that stick their neck out by writing their own experiences. And to those that choose to judge the writing based on the merits of her physical appearance: Please stop existing in my world.
I read Shelly's columns and I enjoy their presence here on the site.
I'm kind of skeeved by all the people talking not about the merits of the column but about whether or not they find her physically attractive. I've yet to see any extended comment threads about whether, for example, Mike Mearls is hot.
Way to show that once again, RPGing is a boys-only club, guys.
Some people have a rather huge chip on their shoulder and very little sense of humor.
Truth is I don't think even one of us who noted that Shelly is cute ONLY noted she is cute and had NOTHING to say about her writing. In fact I wouldn't even have any idea what she looked like were I not already impressed with her work. Assuming that commenting on one has anything to do with the other is where you both have failed at comprehending those posts (at least my own).
Some people have a rather huge chip on their shoulder and very little sense of humor.
Truth is I don't think even one of us who noted that Shelly is cute ONLY noted she is cute and had NOTHING to say about her writing. In fact I wouldn't even have any idea what she looked like were I not already impressed with her work. Assuming that commenting on one has anything to do with the other is where you both have failed at comprehending those posts (at least my own).
I've got a great sense of humor. I still think it's really kind of icky that several commenters thought it was necessary to inject their opinion of her physical appearance into the discussion.
It pretty much shows that women in gaming will continue to be judged based on their looks, and emphasizes the second-class gamer status afforded to female gamers.
Maybe next time you can leave off any sort of commentary about her appearance and stick to her writing? As I said, I've never seen a single discussion on whether male designers are cute or not. Do you think Gary Gygax was a hottie? Do you care whether or not he was?
Some people have a rather huge chip on their shoulder and very little sense of humor.
Truth is I don't think even one of us who noted that Shelly is cute ONLY noted she is cute and had NOTHING to say about her writing. In fact I wouldn't even have any idea what she looked like were I not already impressed with her work. Assuming that commenting on one has anything to do with the other is where you both have failed at comprehending those posts (at least my own).
I've got a great sense of humor. I still think it's really kind of icky that several commenters thought it was necessary to inject their opinion of her physical appearance into the discussion.
It pretty much shows that women in gaming will continue to be judged based on their looks, and emphasizes the second-class gamer status afforded to female gamers.
Maybe next time you can leave off any sort of commentary about her appearance and stick to her writing? As I said, I've never seen a single discussion on whether male designers are cute or not. Do you think Gary Gygax was a hottie? Do you care whether or not he was?
As I've said, we all commented on her work first and formost. Equality isn't just about not being put down, but also about not getting special treatment. You are asking that I not be myself (a man) and notice that Shelly is cute. You are asking me to treat her specially because she is a female. Kind of hypocritical if you ask me.
Also if WotC were not playing on her good looks there wouldn't have been a glamour photo shoot to promote her.
i like her personality
I don't think she's fat at all.
On the other hand, I don't care whether they drop it or not. I don't care for the column, but others obviously do and I don't expect every single word of the mags to appeal to me personally.
i like her personality
I don't think she's fat at all.
LOL
Equality isn't just about not being put down, but also about not getting special treatment. You are asking that I not be myself (a man) and notice that Shelly is cute. You are asking me to treat her specially because she is a female.
I totally disagree that you were being asked to treat Shelly any differently than any other person who has written for Dragon. What does how Shelly looks have to do with her writing? Why is discussing her appearance relevant at all to whether or not you read her column? Would you talk about Mike Mearls' or Chris Perkins' appearance in a discussion on whether or not you read their columns?
Equality isn't just about not being put down, but also about not getting special treatment. You are asking that I not be myself (a man) and notice that Shelly is cute. You are asking me to treat her specially because she is a female.
I totally disagree that you were being asked to treat Shelly any differently than any other person who has written for Dragon. What does how Shelly looks have to do with her writing? Why is discussing her appearance relevant at all to whether or not you read her column? Would you talk about Mike Mearls' or Chris Perkins' appearance in a discussion on whether or not you read their columns?
I think it was the off the cuff comment made with some humor, at the end of a reasonably well worded opinion of her writing. I think if you solely focus on that comment you are overreacting.
By making it into a big feminist drama you are making it into something that it is not. Its unlikely that a straight male is going to make a comment about Mike Mearls or Chris Perkins appearance in any circumstances, not just the context of this thread.
You are right that it is an inapporopriate comment to make if the autthor was being serious about it being the reason he reads Shellys solumns but I think its clear from context that it was humor.
I am curious if a gay or female poster made a similar post about Mike Mearls appearance in a thread about his writing would you jump up and down about that too? My money is on NO.
The world would be a better place if people would stop being so precious about Attraction, whether that stems from prudishness, misguided feminism or some other whacky reason....
for the record I think Shelly is attractive, I read her columns only occasionally however and my decision to read or not read is NOT influenced by her appearance.
i'm a great fan of Shelly's writing, and her column being NOT DDI-exclusive is one of the reasons I'm not too worried about my DDI subscription expire in May. I'll miss the compendium, and that's all.
Editorial, Confessions, Ampersand, and Unearthed Arcana are everything I read on the magazines on the last months.
Equality isn't just about not being put down, but also about not getting special treatment. You are asking that I not be myself (a man) and notice that Shelly is cute. You are asking me to treat her specially because she is a female.
I totally disagree that you were being asked to treat Shelly any differently than any other person who has written for Dragon. What does how Shelly looks have to do with her writing? Why is discussing her appearance relevant at all to whether or not you read her column? Would you talk about Mike Mearls' or Chris Perkins' appearance in a discussion on whether or not you read their columns?
I often have as an aside, just as Shelly's appearance was an aside to my main comment. It is interesting to see what the people you read look like. Back in the days of TSR I never knew what the people whose work I liked looked like because I never went to Cons. Now the magic of a fast Internet allows me to see them, and in some cases interact with them. Awesome! I think my first comment of the sort was about Tracy Hickman. That dude looked nothing like what I expected.
Equality isn't just about not being put down, but also about not getting special treatment. You are asking that I not be myself (a man) and notice that Shelly is cute. You are asking me to treat her specially because she is a female.
I totally disagree that you were being asked to treat Shelly any differently than any other person who has written for Dragon. What does how Shelly looks have to do with her writing? Why is discussing her appearance relevant at all to whether or not you read her column? Would you talk about Mike Mearls' or Chris Perkins' appearance in a discussion on whether or not you read their columns?
I think it was the off the cuff comment made with some humor, at the end of a reasonably well worded opinion of her writing. I think if you solely focus on that comment you are overreacting.
By making it into a big feminist drama you are making it into something that it is not. Its unlikely that a straight male is going to make a comment about Mike Mearls or Chris Perkins appearance in any circumstances, not just the context of this thread.
You are right that it is an inapporopriate comment to make if the autthor was being serious about it being the reason he reads Shellys solumns but I think its clear from context that it was humor.
I am curious if a gay or female poster made a similar post about Mike Mearls appearance in a thread about his writing would you jump up and down about that too? My money is on NO.
The world would be a better place if people would stop being so precious about Attraction, whether that stems from prudishness, misguided feminism or some other whacky reason....
This +1,000
but I can see how some would like it. I can't expect to like everything in the mags.
I have two people I wish would show up to my gaming table (neither which will ever happen, but whatever):
1) Wil Wheaton
2) Shelly Mazzanoble
Dont forget to add "DM to the stars" Chris Perkins in there.
I usually read Shelly's articles as the make a change to see someone elses perspective of the gaming world.
(and yes, she is cute!)
Having Mr. Perkins at my table would be too much like hauling out the kiddy piano to show mom I can plink out Twinkle Twinkle only to find that Uncle Ludwig van Beethoven stopped by for a spot of tea ... O.O
And by the way- she's freaking hot. I talked to her briefly at GenCon right before DMing to the stars. Is that why I read her articles. No. Is it relevant? About as relevant as Chris Perkins being a good face for Wizards. My significant other finds him attractive and she hates D&D.