You know who are the worst, gay people. They're all like this: "Oh I'm gay, I'm gonna sex on you." Not like good upstanding Christian folks. Makes my blood boil to think there are men out there kissing, engaged in heavy petting. Two guys glistening like bronze gods. An embrace that's both tender and violent; a passion so potent it threatens to overwhelm me.
You are what you eat. Quite literally, really. Whatever you consume permanently affects your very being (or your genome, if you prefer scientific gibberish). Now you understand why I advise not to eat the unclean :>
@KidCarnival: So it's like a never-ending circle of obsession? Wow! @belgarathmth: No pots broken, no vases crushed. Just didn't want to distress people.
I am not hungry anymore. And my diet shall prevail.
A diet should include hunger. A diet is a way of life. In fact, 'way of life' is what the word 'diet' (Δίαιτα) literally means. So eat well and eat clean, as if all your life depended on it - because it does.
Include an indoor rower and careful personal hygiene in your Δίαιτα as well, should you want to bed more wenches weekly than there are days.
Is it me or does Imoen sound way too upbeat after Gorion's death. "Heya, it's me, Imoen. I stole everything I could at Candlekeep so I thought it might be more fun to watch your dad die."
You know who are the worst, gay people. They're all like this: "Oh I'm gay, I'm gonna sex on you." Not like good upstanding Christian folks. Makes my blood boil to think there are men out there kissing, engaged in heavy petting. Two guys glistening like bronze gods. An embrace that's both tender and violent; a passion so potent it threatens to overwhelm me.
You are what you eat. Quite literally, really. Whatever you consume permanently affects your very being (or your genome, if you prefer scientific gibberish). Now you understand why I advise not to eat the unclean :>
You gotta go with Kam. Now that is quality luncheon meat.
Has the term demi-human ever bothered anyone else? Firstly it implies that other races don't have unique identities but are in fact human, no less than human.
Secondly if an elf is half a human then that means s/he is half something else? And what the hell are half elves and orcs? Half human, half human, half elf/orc?
@demented, do you want a serious answer to that question, or are you just being silly and venting humor?
The serious answer has to do with Gary Gygax, the creator of the D&D fantasy gaming rules system. Gygax considered the human to be the fundamental, "normal" race of all high fantasy warcraft and lore, with the "exotic" elves, dwarves, and halflings being exceptions to the "norm".
He was very concerned that a majority of players, if not all players, of his tabletop games, would not play only "exotic" creatures and races, because of there being nothing but benefit to being non-human, where being fully human would contain nothing but disadvantage.
So, he designed his theory of tabletop gaming from the ground up, to give each "exotic" race some attractive advantages, such as multi-classing, and charm/sleep resistance, but also some *extremely* limiting disadvantages, such as level limits, and stat penalties.
Actually, the level limits were the big thing. In first edition AD&D, Gary's baby, I specifically remember that half-elves were the only "race" that could be cleric-mages. And also, that they were innately limited to 7th level cleric/5th level mage. And, that I was okay with that, among my tabletop friends at the time, because we always played 1st-5th level campaigns anyway.
And, even though, my friends would be approaching level 4 or 6 in their pure classes, and I would still be around level 3 cleric/level 2 mage. The first and second level spell lists for cleric and mage were so good that, I was perfectly okay with sacrificing some levels and hit points (hit points were each hit die divided in half, yielding a particularly low hit point total for half-elf cleric-mages).
I also rather enjoyed the roleplaying idea of having exotic blood in my ancestry, being mostly but yet not quite fully human.
Although, my friends who multi-classed were mostly just powergaming it.
In our case, we never played high or epic level scenarios, where our choices of multi-classing, long-lived, spell resistant or stat-boosted races would have really began to penalize us.
So, bottom line: the "founder of the feast" for us D&D lovers was Gary Gygax. He wanted humanity to be the "norm" of his world, against which all other fantasy creatures would be compared. And, he wanted most of his players to play humans.
@demented, this whole issue that you're asking about kind of dovetails into the old "Star Trek aliens are just humans with prosthetics and makeup all over their faces" complaint.
In roleplaying gaming, we are attempting to connect to the numinous, through the process of human mythmaking.
We are also enjoying exercising our love of strategy and tactics, and in that sense, when we play D&D, by social tabletop group or by computer, we are doing something akin to working crossword puzzles or word Jumbles.
Or, We might be exercising that part of our minds that wants to read JRR Tolkein, David Eddings, Robert Jordan, George RR Martin, Terry Brooks, Terry Goodkin, et al.
We are both exercising our intellectual love of puzzles, and our mythological love of good stories.
But, the bottom line, is that in all fantasy, sci-fi, gaming, and even puzzle-solving, we are exercising our Humanity.
We might make a certain kind of game out of trying to imagine and write a story or two about "what would alien life be like if there were really alien life out there? Those kinds of stories usually give us Humans an emotional sense of "creepy, otherworldly, inHuman awfulness".
At our cores, we are HUMAN.
Our souls resonate to that which is either purely human, or some variation on the theme of human, and most of our powerful ability to tell, write, read, and listen to Stories and Myths is based on our overwhelming Humanity.
I have seen very few if any creatures or elements of stories that anybody loves that *don't* emphasize our overwhelming concern of "What does it mean to be Human? Why am I Human? Where are other Humans? How can I relate to anything that is not Human? Are, perhaps, not-Humans really Human after all? Are we maybe just not looking at the Universe the right way?" And, on and on, with these kinds of questions.
Universities are built around these questions. People make their careers in almost every field of study around these questions.
Those few stories that emphasize the "not-Human", we almost universally call "Horror".
So, to tie all that back around into high fantasy roleplaying gaming:
Humans are the Theme of Human. Elves are a variation of Human. Dwarves are a variation of Human. Halflings are a variation of Human. Orcs are a variation of Human. Goblins, kobolds, hobgoblins, ogres, half-ogres, ogrillons, lizard men, and even dragons - all Human.
We are not capable of imagining anything other than Ourselves, in some form or aspect, or our own Human interactions with the Plant and Animal Kingdoms, as other than Human.
We are hopelessly Human. We can't even imagine not Human. Even when we're trying to imagine not Human, we really just imagine the Human relationship with the Wolf, the Bear, the Tiger, the Elephant, the Bull, the Snake, the Eagle, the Spider, the Wasp, the Jackal, the Lion, the Dog, the Cat, the Mouse, the Hamster, the Rat, the Squirrel, the Fish, the Whale, the Dolphin, or the Tree, the Leaf, the Fruit, etc., etc., etc., ad infinitum.
We are tied inextricably to Planet Earth, and our Human status on that world, like it or not, and we cannot get away from our Humanity, or our final, hopeless, Earthliness.
@belgarathmth Very interesting answer. I've read quite a few sc-fi books which included aliens with absolutely no human characteristic, such as Solaris. I've also read books that are obsessed by "otherness" such as The Call of Cthulhu. Despite their content, these main focus is always on humanity. It's about how humanity reacts to the other or how it is perceived by the other.
We have a fascination with otherness, but it's always as a reflection of ourselves. Wow, is humanity really this egotistical?
Why can't the rest of the internet be like this place.
Here Person 1: I believe this and here's why. Person 2: I respect your opinion, but disagree and here's why. Person 1: That's an interesting perspective and has valid points. I may alter my own opinion based on the evidence you have shown. Person 2: I'm glad, but you also made many valid points.
The rest of the nternet Person 1: I believe this and here's why Person 2: F**k you for having a different opinion from me. Please die.
Why can't the rest of the internet be like this place.
Here Person 1: I believe this and here's why. Person 2: I respect your opinion, but disagree and here's why. Person 1: That's an interesting perspective and has valid points. I may alter my own opinion based on the evidence you have shown. Person 2: I'm glad, but you also made many valid points.
The rest of the nternet Person 1: I believe this and here's why Person 2: F**k you for having a different opinion from me. Please die.
Because I disagree with world peace. F**k that hippie loving BS - it should die.
Why can't the rest of the internet be like this place.
Here Person 1: I believe this and here's why. Person 2: I respect your opinion, but disagree and here's why. Person 1: That's an interesting perspective and has valid points. I may alter my own opinion based on the evidence you have shown. Person 2: I'm glad, but you also made many valid points.
The rest of the nternet Person 1: I believe this and here's why Person 2: F**k you for having a different opinion from me. Please die.
Because I disagree with world peace. F**k that hippie loving BS - it should die.
U r worser then HITLER!!!
Can't have a good flame war without bringing up Hitler at the earliest possible point. Or is that too specific to YouTube to count as random?
Comments
Now you understand why I advise not to eat the unclean :>
@belgarathmth: No pots broken, no vases crushed. Just didn't want to distress people.
Secondly if an elf is half a human then that means s/he is half something else? And what the hell are half elves and orcs? Half human, half human, half elf/orc?
The serious answer has to do with Gary Gygax, the creator of the D&D fantasy gaming rules system. Gygax considered the human to be the fundamental, "normal" race of all high fantasy warcraft and lore, with the "exotic" elves, dwarves, and halflings being exceptions to the "norm".
He was very concerned that a majority of players, if not all players, of his tabletop games, would not play only "exotic" creatures and races, because of there being nothing but benefit to being non-human, where being fully human would contain nothing but disadvantage.
So, he designed his theory of tabletop gaming from the ground up, to give each "exotic" race some attractive advantages, such as multi-classing, and charm/sleep resistance, but also some *extremely* limiting disadvantages, such as level limits, and stat penalties.
Actually, the level limits were the big thing. In first edition AD&D, Gary's baby, I specifically remember that half-elves were the only "race" that could be cleric-mages. And also, that they were innately limited to 7th level cleric/5th level mage. And, that I was okay with that, among my tabletop friends at the time, because we always played 1st-5th level campaigns anyway.
And, even though, my friends would be approaching level 4 or 6 in their pure classes, and I would still be around level 3 cleric/level 2 mage. The first and second level spell lists for cleric and mage were so good that, I was perfectly okay with sacrificing some levels and hit points (hit points were each hit die divided in half, yielding a particularly low hit point total for half-elf cleric-mages).
I also rather enjoyed the roleplaying idea of having exotic blood in my ancestry, being mostly but yet not quite fully human.
Although, my friends who multi-classed were mostly just powergaming it.
In our case, we never played high or epic level scenarios, where our choices of multi-classing, long-lived, spell resistant or stat-boosted races would have really began to penalize us.
So, bottom line: the "founder of the feast" for us D&D lovers was Gary Gygax. He wanted humanity to be the "norm" of his world, against which all other fantasy creatures would be compared. And, he wanted most of his players to play humans.
So does this mean every "exotic race" is part human but also has ancestry in another being. If yes, then was it ever stipulated what being that was.
In roleplaying gaming, we are attempting to connect to the numinous, through the process of human mythmaking.
We are also enjoying exercising our love of strategy and tactics, and in that sense, when we play D&D, by social tabletop group or by computer, we are doing something akin to working crossword puzzles or word Jumbles.
Or, We might be exercising that part of our minds that wants to read JRR Tolkein, David Eddings, Robert Jordan, George RR Martin, Terry Brooks, Terry Goodkin, et al.
We are both exercising our intellectual love of puzzles, and our mythological love of good stories.
But, the bottom line, is that in all fantasy, sci-fi, gaming, and even puzzle-solving, we are exercising our Humanity.
We might make a certain kind of game out of trying to imagine and write a story or two about "what would alien life be like if there were really alien life out there? Those kinds of stories usually give us Humans an emotional sense of "creepy, otherworldly, inHuman awfulness".
At our cores, we are HUMAN.
Our souls resonate to that which is either purely human, or some variation on the theme of human, and most of our powerful ability to tell, write, read, and listen to Stories and Myths is based on our overwhelming Humanity.
I have seen very few if any creatures or elements of stories that anybody loves that *don't* emphasize our overwhelming concern of "What does it mean to be Human? Why am I Human? Where are other Humans? How can I relate to anything that is not Human? Are, perhaps, not-Humans really Human after all? Are we maybe just not looking at the Universe the right way?" And, on and on, with these kinds of questions.
Universities are built around these questions. People make their careers in almost every field of study around these questions.
Those few stories that emphasize the "not-Human", we almost universally call "Horror".
So, to tie all that back around into high fantasy roleplaying gaming:
Humans are the Theme of Human. Elves are a variation of Human. Dwarves are a variation of Human. Halflings are a variation of Human. Orcs are a variation of Human. Goblins, kobolds, hobgoblins, ogres, half-ogres, ogrillons, lizard men, and even dragons - all Human.
We are not capable of imagining anything other than Ourselves, in some form or aspect, or our own Human interactions with the Plant and Animal Kingdoms, as other than Human.
We are hopelessly Human. We can't even imagine not Human. Even when we're trying to imagine not Human, we really just imagine the Human relationship with the Wolf, the Bear, the Tiger, the Elephant, the Bull, the Snake, the Eagle, the Spider, the Wasp, the Jackal, the Lion, the Dog, the Cat, the Mouse, the Hamster, the Rat, the Squirrel, the Fish, the Whale, the Dolphin, or the Tree, the Leaf, the Fruit, etc., etc., etc., ad infinitum.
We are tied inextricably to Planet Earth, and our Human status on that world, like it or not, and we cannot get away from our Humanity, or our final, hopeless, Earthliness.
We have a fascination with otherness, but it's always as a reflection of ourselves. Wow, is humanity really this egotistical?
Admit it. You read the one ring with the voice of James earl jones in your head XD
Here
Person 1: I believe this and here's why.
Person 2: I respect your opinion, but disagree and here's why.
Person 1: That's an interesting perspective and has valid points. I may alter my own opinion based on the evidence you have shown.
Person 2: I'm glad, but you also made many valid points.
The rest of the nternet
Person 1: I believe this and here's why
Person 2: F**k you for having a different opinion from me. Please die.
Can't have a good flame war without bringing up Hitler at the earliest possible point. Or is that too specific to YouTube to count as random?
now, it's "I'm right, you're Evil"
http://www.blindpanic.com/humor/vecna.htm
It sure had me in stitches the first time I read it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin's_law