Is D&D having an appeal because it lets you "live" in a world with more heroism and less bad consequences than an actual battlefield?
Maybe because it creates team spirit amongst troopers between two missions?
Or is it non related at all, being a D&D player before being deployed?
People at my college mentionned that those who have seen violence firsthand develop an aversion for violent games and movies (there was a controversy over Peach Project because some people said that)
Oh, and thank you for all that you've did for the free world. I'm canadian, but I support our neighbor's troops.
....I don't play CoD4 with him ever. :P
Also, wasn't there some small charity organization that donated gaming goods to active soldiers? I could be wrong about that.
I knew a guy who had a group going in prison.
So you have three warm meals a day and can play D&D?! If you can avoid becoming a buddy, prison suddently doesn't seem so badBunch of dudes. Free time. Leaving can be a pain. Very few people to "Look Cool" for.
I think you might be looking to hard for a cause and missing the obvious.
Bunch of dudes. Free time. Leaving can be a pain. Very few people to "Look Cool" for.
Are you talking about prison or the army?
It seems like several members of this forum are or have been deployed overseas and I was wondering how you feel about the simulated violence in D&D, when real violence is raging a few dozens miles from you.
I play, but when I was overseas, we were just getting a foothold in Iraq and I didn't have time to play games.
Is D&D having an appeal because it lets you "live" in a world with more heroism and less bad consequences than an actual battlefield?
Maybe because it creates team spirit among troopers between two missions?
Or is it non related at all, being a D&D player before being deployed?
Aside from the same releases that everyone gets from gaming, I think Soldiers enjoy the tactics, camaraderie and freedom of a fictional hero w/o the real death of ourselves or others on the line.
People at my college mentionned that those who have seen violence firsthand develop an aversion for violent games and movies (there was a controversy over Peach Project because some people said that)
Ehhh, it depends on the type and my mood. I don't do well with modern war movies/games... or books. Or crowds, driving in heavy traffic or with trash on the road... or any RL stresses that relate to when I was at war. Fantasy games/movies don't have as big of an effect on me.
Oh, and thank you for all that you've did for the free world. I'm canadian, but I support our neighbor's troops.
Thanks you for your support.
I would hope that the difference between armed soldiers at a gaming con and armed idiots at a gaming con would be that armed soldiers are trained not to shoot each other over rules disputes.
I am sure that most people on these forums would agree (and have probably witnessed) that a passionate rules discussion can turn even the most calm, rational, and intelligent person into a blithering idiot! :D
It seems like several members of this forum are or have been deployed overseas and I was wondering how you feel about the simulated violence in D&D, when real violence is raging a few dozens miles from you.
There has always been a higher incidence of military personel RPG'ing than a lot of other vocations and no one really knows why. Typically, these aren't a lot of guys/gals seeing extensive trigger time so much as working in support capacities, etc. Still, it's odd, but in a good way.
As for the violence issue, I think they are intelligent enough to understand willing suspesion of disbelief as their grounding, particularly those in a hot area, have no illusions about what's frivolous in life vs. what's real & wholesome. Life's little issues seem petty by comparison when life can be gone 1, 2, 3 IMO. Besides, game violence is nothing like RL violence. They live it, see it. I'd wager, they are better able to differentiate than we are.
Is D&D having an appeal because it lets you "live" in a world with more heroism and less bad consequences than an actual battlefield?
I think it's just another creative outlet for downtime, stress management, and entertainment, same as our's really. I'm sure there are those that sublimate the aforementioned, but most understand, it's recreation only.
Maybe because it creates team spirit amongst troopers between two missions?
That is an interesting proposal, but how would you measure it?
I have known a few enlisted guys and an officer that swore by it, particularly the 2nd Lt. "Fun, inventive, bla bla bla, but pragmatic: you can count on those gamers to be safe, not f'ing off away from base, getting drunk and raising Hell." ie)Accountable and less likely to get into trouble basically.
Or is it non related at all, being a D&D player before being deployed?
I think you might have something there. An old church/high school friend from Cincy gamed religiously w/ us from '88 till his death in '97. Jay went 10th Mountain, light infantry around '93 or so, then off to Airborn to get into Ranger School; quite the badass (he's whip us every time we'd play paintball, easy). Each time he came home on leave, bam, Forgotten Realms non stop. He kept hopscotching from Haiti, to Serbia, to Somallia, and yes, it got ugly a few times, but he only wanted to game more. Even asked us to air mail his old Dragon mags, dice, whatever.
Now, this impressed the Hell out of me as a kid. Here was a guy form Northwest Local, all American kid, strong, fit, clean-cut, smart, Hell of an artist too, and could get any girl he wanted. In short, he defied most gamer conventions so that set the bar pretty high, but D&D was like his crack and no one could figure it out. Military life only enforced it moreso.
People at my college mentionned that those who have seen violence firsthand develop an aversion for violent games and movies (there was a controversy over Peach Project because some people said that)
Often, yes, it's triggering memories from some of the worst moments of your life, no? Grandfather in the Pacific theatre (Army, WWII) always clammed up about it and dad told us in no uncertain terms that his dad (gramps) saw some pretty heavy sh-t that messed him up, so, don't expect story time w/ pappy, you know? It's not fair to be entertained by someone else's nightmarish past.
Jay (Army, see above), on the otherhand, he killed some ppl in Mogadishu and a couple in Haiti but was not the worse for wear. He didn't seem guilty or conflicted. Perhaps, in his own heart of hearts, away from prying eyes, there was something, but who knows. He seemd perfectly adjusted.
To be fair, they've changed psychological indoctrination these days a lot though, so who's knows. I certainly don't.
Oh, and thank you for all that you've did for the free world. I'm canadian, but I support our neighbor's troops.
Thought you guys sent over some troops as well, no?
Thought you guys sent over some troops as well, no?
Does Canada even have a military?
Im leaving for Marine basic training in may, and i dont plan to stop gaming...
Well, you will have to give it up for at least 3 months!
We've got a couple pretty kick-a** gaming shops in the local area (not to mention Wizards HQ about 30 miles away), and I had an idea to try and get some of the local shops, the City of Lakewood, and the two bases together to put on a mini-gaming convention for all those gaming soldiers coming home from overseas here, almost akin to Operation Dice Drop (only local instead of in Iraq). Any thoughts on how this would go over with the bases and the troops there?
Does Canada even have a military?
There's that diplomatic backbone foreigners mention in reference to us...
susannymn: Any Service people here out of Ft Lewis/McChord in Washington?
I'd venture there is a lot, lurkers mostly. I've spoken w/ a few in your neck of the woods and D&D is of course popular (hard to beat the king, right?), but not surprisingly, Shadowrun is too. I think it goes w/out saying when the main rules have maps of the SeaTac, The Redmond "Barrens", Renton, etc; it's rooted in a cyberpunk future, default start point is Seattle.
Closest I get here is Wright Patterson air base in Dayton and there's a ton of gamers there. It's just, Cincy can't really compete w/ a 1st tier city like Seattle
so our gaming population is, uh, yeah...We've got a couple pretty kick-a** gaming shops in the local area (not to mention Wizards HQ about 30 miles away), and I had an idea to try and get some of the local shops, the City of Lakewood, and the two bases together to put on a mini-gaming convention for all those gaming soldiers coming home from overseas here, almost akin to Operation Dice Drop (only local instead of in Iraq). Any thoughts on how this would go over with the bases and the troops there?
This is a good idea. Yes, do it.
Not sure, but I think you should definetly look into this and push for sponsorship from WotC and the like. It's good PR. Good business is where you find it.
Yeah, I also believe that people are able to separate real and fictionnal violence, unlike what some "infamous" tracks say. I suppose that if terrorists used undead and oozes, the soldiers would suddently move away from D&D! (wow, that's actually a pretty terrifing prospect...)
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