Are we seeing "wrongfans" being called out for "wrongfun?"
Not that I recall, no. I'm sure that some of the more SJWish people at Pazio or something have done that on thier twitter page or something, but I question how much influence those people actually have or how many people read thier twitter rants.
Ok, so thoughts on major points here:
1. It's kind of hard to dispute the great man theory of history in a world where some people objectively have the power to single handedly shape the course of history and events and other people don't. If Napoleon was a 20th level wizard with enough casting power to annihilate entire armies on his lonesome, I think that just might make him more of a "great man" than if he was just some random dude not much different than anyone else.
Ditto for whining about a "savior complex". Sorry, but the people of some small village in the middle of nowhere are probably not equipped to deal with a roving band of orcs, much like real medieval towns they had sufficient resources to look after thier own affairs but external threats required external aid. Hell, that's how it is today, there's a reason a lot of small towns need the help of state law enforcement to deal with numerous issues. This is like whining that in superman comics, they need superman's help to deal with various superhuman threats.
Now, fleshing out the setting is still a good idea because it helps create a more enjoyable and engaging experience. But most settings and adventures books are already fleshed out to some degree or another, and they still have those same "issues", so I feel like the proposed solution is not going to actually address the "problem".
2. Yes, murderhobos exist. I feel to a point this is an inevitability of in person RP, even if you want to interact with NPCs you have 4 other people on the table who have to sit there doing nothing while you chit chat with your buddy, because the DM can only have one conversation at once. At best, you might have one NPC buddy, and a stable of important NPC's the whole party knows. Beyond that, you start making demands the average or even above average DM will struggle with.
All, I call bullshit on this bit:
However, it’s all too common for the PCs to barely tolerate each other. Characters who shun human contact in favor of treasure are unlikely to bond with others who are doing the same thing.
I have never once in about 10 years of playing tabletop RPGs seen a group like that. Ever.
3. I'm actively trying not to make smartass and unhelpful comments like "hur hur, I can practically smell the soy as I keep reading this", but damn does this guy make that difficult. Yes, asshole, I think we all know that many times, famous explorers were visiting places other humans had visited before, that doesn't make the fact that they were the first people from thier civilization or culture to do so notable. And they were entirely correct to note that the places they explored were effectively uninhabited.
And then we get this bit:
In roleplaying games, we’ve established an elaborate framework to justify the explorer myth. It’s amazing how the ‘evil’ races are used as obstacles to be overcome rather than neighbors that deserve respect. Orcs have a culture and society, yet no one bats an eye at intruding into their lands in search of treasure. We have the luxury of knowing that orcs can’t be reasoned with. They are
inherently bad, so we don’t have to feel guilty about whatever we do to them. They are often referred to as a ‘savage’ race, inferior to civilization.
I checked this guy's profile page, and I'm calling bullshit on him playing tabletop games for years and whatnot. I haven't seen any race that didn't come from hell or it's equivalent described as being inherently evil in....like forever. Prone to it? Yes. Born in a culture that encourages it? Yes. But actually being outright, to the core, fundamentally evil? No. Particularly not orcs, most settings will go out of their way to make them more distinct and unique and avoid the 80s era D&D stereotype of pure evil orc barbarians running amok, and even those like pathfinder that retain them in an antagonistic role frame that as being a self perpetuating issue within the predominant orcish cultures, not an inherent quality of orcs. Anyone who has cracked open any RPG written in the past 20 or 30 years would know this, the fact this guy doesn't speaks volumes.
I quit. Fuck this article, fuck this soyboy asshole for writing it, and fuck you for making me read this tripe. Someday I will have my revenge, and you will rue the day you posted that link!
m.mythcreants.com
