I've got space ships on the brain.

I've got space ships on the brain.

Which means I've been writing a role playing game, calling it Solar Wind & Sales. In particular, a pbta hack that i can't stop talking about.

These aren't giant ships like Star Destroyers, and not tiny ships like the Falcon. Ship's a bit bigger than the Serenity, with crew and officers. What specialization do you expect in crew and officers?

I expect this to be a pirate ship -- operating outside the law, smuggling and raiding other ships.

This started before reading the Solar Clipper series, which has really pushed it along.

If this is a pbta game, what stats do you expect? What do you want on the ship? What officer positions do you expect? Do you expect the PCs to be the officers? Crew? Both?

Like I said, a little bigger than Serenity. She's listed with a mass of 280t, and 82 feet long. Similarly, the Free Trader of Traveller field is 200t and 37.5 meters. What size do you expect this to be? How many crew, and in which specializations?

What level of specificity do you think matters on these questions?

Novel: Half Share

Novel: Half Share
Author: Nathan Lowell
Rating: 3 out of 5

I read this book in under 24 hours.

It parts that becomes the series remains a delight, in part that I was hoping something more would happen. In part, today was a reading day.

Maybe 3/4s through, our protagonist discovers boozing and sexing. Hooray!

I've got the next one -- Full Share -- and plan to read it to see what'll happen next.

I'm hopeful there is more about finances. I still don't understand the watch rotation, but its always been peculiar to me.

Novel: The Summer Prince

Novel: The Summer Prince
Author: Alaya Dawn Johnson
Rating: 5 out of 5.

This novel grabbed me in the beginning. It let go a little and I almost put it down. I am glad I did not. It was hard for me as it is about Art and the sacrifices made for it. That's harder for me than, say, the economics of space merchants.

Its about a young woman in an arcology in Brazil, dealing with the privileges and challenges of her life. Its about the politics surrounding a system of government with an elected King with one power -- to choose the next Queen, as he is killed by the current Queen.

Its about the end of the world, and shows how it might end.

Its by a DC native two years younger than me, and is a far better piece of art than I've ever created.

Solar Wind & Sail.

Solar Wind & Sail.

I've put together some preliminary sheets.

This is intended to be printed double sided; the basic moves are on the back of the officer sheets. The fifth is either for the MC, or for the fifth player.

The playbooks are designed to limit competence the players have access to.

Questions and comments would be invaluable!
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1OSCGD3HXZ4i8sgMcXU_Bsi2r6A_A7gHXWyv9eETji94

Also, if you aren't mentioned in the who be helping section and think you should be? Lemme know!

Great article in the Atlantic about unconditional cash transfers.

Great article in the Atlantic about unconditional cash transfers.

https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/12/why-not-cash/511799/

Points out something I forget too often: Carnegie was a dick.
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/12/why-not-cash/511799/

Projects from 2016:

Projects from 2016:
-- Started slow and unsure of myself, with some light hacking of Star Wars World

-- Hacked up The Watch to make Markets & Mages, my economic RPG on after the adventure. I'm really pleased with how well this has gone. The characters sheets are available for anyone who wants them.

-- Written up and talked a lot about The Caliphate of Azithan, the fantasy realm of necromancers. I've designed city master plans (sort of), thought about various types of undead, and had a lot of fun thinking about a government run by priests.

-- In the last month or so, I've gone through a few versions of Solar Wind & Sale, my game of space piracy. Initial playtests went well, but I have no idea how much of that was my enthusiasm and how much is the game system. I've put in some weird elements, and am slowly disintegrating the need for an MC.

-- Acted as mentor, both knowing and unknowingly, to folks wanting to play and MC more games.

-- I played a lot more games than these! One shots of AW, MH, Headspace, Night Witches, and Star Wars. We're almost done with a full run of SpaceWyrm, which is a sequel campaign to a World in Peril campaign that I'm really proud of, and we did Microscope to bridge between!

What've you done, gaming wise, in 2016? Did we collaborate on anything that I didn't list above?

Quarter Share.

Quarter Share.

I think I already posted about this, but I want to talk some delightful elements to this novel.

Namely:
-- five pages spent on how to make coffee, while the protag cleans and measures and grinds.

-- about half the book is dedicated to developing trade for the ship's crew, including establishing a coop. The coop has rules: the coop takes 1% of proceeds, up to 10 credits per person per day. The coop splits the proceeds with whomever is doing the selling, to encourage people to do the selling. Items that are on consignment instead give 10% to the coop, and that's split 50-50 with the person doing the selling.

-- everyone has strengths! The protag's friend starts off on the wrong track, but with some clever work by protag is able to get back on track.

These were all pretty great. This is the sort of book Heinlein might've written, had he been born 50 years later.

In Solar Wind and Sale, there's an officer position of Boatswain.

In Solar Wind and Sale, there's an officer position of Boatswain. This officer is in charge of making sure gigs are profitable and selling prizes.

I'd wanted a bankruptcy mechanic, and it occurred to me in the shower that this was the right place to put it.

When the ship docks in port, the Boatswain rolls with Trade (probably gigs). on a 10+, good things. On a 7-9, slightly less good things. On a 6-, one good thing but also bankruptcy.

Here's my first draft for how bankruptcy works:
Bankruptcy: Whether through ill luck or incompetence, you are unable to meet the ship’s financial obligations. Choose one, and mark it off. Once chosen, an option cannot be chosen again by the same Boatswain:
[ ] Everything is fine
[ ] Mark a ship’s system down one
[ ] Mark a ship’s system down one
[ ] Mark a ship’s system as busted
[ ] The ship is prevented from leaving.

That is: You get one get out of jail free card, and then you have to start selling off ship's systems to keep the ship flying.

This is not yet playtested. Whatcha think?

I'm getting really annoyed with a specific emerging narrative.

I'm getting really annoyed with a specific emerging narrative.

Namely, that the Democratic party lost voters. That the democratic party needs to be rebuilt. That the democratic party is a failure.

The FBI & CIA agree: Russia interfered in the election. Whether this turned the election or not is unknown pending further investigation.

How the hell is the head of the DNC in South Carolina blaming HRC and Podesta when Putin hacked the election?

How this isn't the dominating story in all news outlets across the world for the next 4 years, I don't understand.

30 Rock, season 4, Episode 2.

30 Rock, season 4, Episode 2.

Jack references Zac S as someone Malina Obama knows.

Tell me this is not the Zac S of gaming infamy.

Please. Jesus Christ, please.

Novel: A History of Travel in 50 Vehicles

Novel: A History of Travel in 50 Vehicles
Author: Paula Grey
Rating: 5 out of 5.

This book does exactly what it is supposed to, and made me remember that Riskshaws exist.

Fun, and a quick skim!

Caliphate of Azithan --

Caliphate of Azithan --

Riskshaws. Of course there are rickshaws in the city, pulled by Lifeless. Of course there are. How could I not have thought of this before?

What else am I missing?

I'm a spaceship!

I'm a spaceship!

I have a crew of 18, plus 4 officers. These are divided into boarders, sailors, traders, and seers.

Onboard is a nose cannon and defensive mounted weapons, a bomber and a couple of shuttles. I've got modern hand weapons and a disciplined gang of violent bastards.

My foodstuffs include soylent and bread for everyone to eat. I have bandages and emergency medicines, and enough spare parts and hydrospanners for my sailors to take care of me and themselves.

I've asked to engage in piracy, and carry some cargo. The cargo is carried in sealed boxes and a few nooks and crannies; my diligent, tough traders know a couple of contacts who sometimes ask me for help.

My viewports let the weird, scientific seers on me look into the abyss to know where to take me; I've got a solar sail and ion drive. My hull has a full seal.

Can you answer some questions about me?
-- What is special about me?
-- What size am I?
-- How much do I weigh?
-- What do my insides look like?
-- What sort of sleeping conditions do I have for my crew?
-- How much of me is given over to engines and life support?
-- What're my toilets like?

What other questions do you have about me?

Solar Wind & Sail.

Solar Wind & Sail.

Each playbook is linked to another one, literally on opposite sides of paper. The PCs get one or the other, but never both.

So, for ex, you can have either a Mechanic or a Surgeon. Not both. This enforces limitation of competency.

Each pair is tied to a stat. I did have Void linked to the Navigator and Master of the House, but I think I've had a bit of a moment. Instead, haul in the Brainer and link that to void with the Navigator. That gives two ways to think about the void -- between our ears, or out in the abyss.

Push the Master of the House (Guinan / Quark / etc) to a fifth sheet, and don't let the be a ship's officer. On the opposite side have the shipboard Intelligence. Only have this one if the other four are already filled -- meaning 5 PCs, and one MC at the table.

Which is a big table, and multiple conversational threads start happening. Push responsibility to manage conversation to the fifth slot, baked right into the moves. Give the Master of the House the ability to have away from table conversations, and give the Shipboard Intelligence a move about being in multiple conversations at once.

Build it into the moves, "When you pull someone aside for a conversation away from the MC ... ", "When you join two simultaneous conversations ... ". I need to work on the triggers, but that's the idea.

I also want to hand the contact list to some PC, but I'm not sure which one. Eventually, I'd like to get rid of the MC altogether. I'm getting closer.

Thoughts? Ideas? Questions?

Failure!

Failure!

The stats so far:
Successes: 3
Tentative Successes: 1
Failures: 7

I'm a half pound over success. As much as this is failure, its only failure by a pretty strict definition.

Still. Sucks.

Happy Newton Day, everyone.

Some relatively dorky spaceship math, tangentially related to Solar Wind & Sale.

Some relatively dorky spaceship math, tangentially related to Solar Wind & Sale.

The Traveller Free Trader (200t) has listed dimensions of 37.5m by 21m by 9m, and 3 decks. On the floor plan, each square is 1.5 meters by 1.5 meters. For reasons of ease of use, I'm using the Free Trader's deck plans, but calling the squares 2 meters by 2 meters.

Which indicates 50m by 28m by 12m. I'm keeping three decks, and assume there's a magical 3-4 meters of machines.

That indicates ~1,400 square meters per deck, over two full decks and one half deck -- so 3,500 square meters to work with.

With 18 crew and 4 officers, how much space do you allocate to:
-- Mutual space, such as a galley? Medbay? Gym? Bridge? Access ports? Flight Deck? Arms locker? Comms? Cargo Hold? Gangway? Lounge? Server farm? Airlocks? Engine room? Meditation chamber? Brig? VR chamber?
-- Sleeping quarters?
-- There are 6 sailors, 5 boarders, 4 traders, and 3 seers. Do you allocate space per person, or per department?
-- There are 4 officers. How much private space does each get?
-- Each PC has a special area, things like a Workshop, an Establishment, and a Balcony. How much space do these each need?
-- How much of a social difference do you give between crew and officer?

These are questions asked implicitly in the game, in the first session, when I have them draw these areas on the ship. Its printed out and in front of them, and they are told to start drawing.

What do you draw? How do you allocate the space?

Solar Wind & Sale

Solar Wind & Sale

The second playtest went less well than the first. There are some reasons for that not related to game design -- I had five people, and the game is designed for up to four -- but also tried some things that didn't work well. And that's ok! That's why we playtest, to find out what doesn't work and experiment.

The scarcity of competency continues to be pretty great. Drawing the ship didn't work out as well as the first time, but I think that's because I didn't put a cap on the number of ship's systems. If you tell PCs they can have whatever stats they want, they go crazy. In the future, this'll be "pick one at +2, two at +1, one at 0, and one that is busted", or something similar.

There's a move I think is great: Rely on the Crew. If there's a problem the PCs don't want to deal with, they can have the crew deal with it instead. This is not a get out of jail free card -- relying on the crew always has a complication of the crew acting out. Even on a 10+. That has worked out surprisingly well, and keeps the game directed back to relationships.

I've come to a conclusion. It is pretty obvious.

I've come to a conclusion. It is pretty obvious.

Here it is: Laws that stray from simplicity inherently exist to create classist and racist and sexist barriers.

For ex: In many states, the law is "everybody can vote ... except criminals". And then, various interests work to ensure that certain classes of people are criminals.

Or, for example: "anyone can get unemployment checks ... so long as they fill out these forms, held a job for at least 30 days, etc" ... leaves out those who can't fill out forms, or who didn't have a job for 30 days. Guess who that tends to be?

Or, for example: "Anyone can get health care! But, only immediate life saving health care, otherwise doctors can refuse", benefits those who can afford it.

Or, "everybody deserves equal pay .... and they'll get it if they can prove they didn't", which again benefits the status quo.

Which are all reasons that I want a single rule for these things:
-- Are you a person? Then you can vote.
-- Are you a person? Then here's enough money to not die.
-- Are you a person? Then you can show to a clinic without paying.
-- Are you a person? Then you get paid for your work.

But, I'm simple like that -- I've got this crazy notion that people are equal.

Novel: Quarter Share

Novel: Quarter Share
Author: Nathan Lowell
Rating: 4 out of 5.

As a rule, I only buy books that are not available from my library. This series is not. Does anyone own it? Would anyone like to suggest reading or not reading the rest of the series?

Short Synopsis: Our white male cis het shy dorky protagonist uses his out of the box thinking to find profit that others had not considered, by discovering the magic of sharing.

At the same time, he also diversified his own capabilities by taking tests in all four departments on a ship, so that he is unlikely to ever be out of work. Once again, our young protagonist is thinking of things no one else has.

That's pretty much it. While a lot of the secondary characters were women, I would have liked it if one of the three main characters was a woman -- protag, best friend, boss. The women in the book are at least people with their own motivations, but are secondary at best.

This is like something Heinlein might have written if he was born 40 years later. Especially only hinting at sex.

I am likely to buy the rest of the series. I read this book in two days, pretty quick by my standards. I could probably do the whole series in a couple of weeks.

This is absolutely fodder for Solar Wind & Sail, my pbta hack about space pirates.

You have 18 crew on a pirate spaceship, plus some officers.

You have 18 crew on a pirate spaceship, plus some officers.

Who are they? What do they do?

For Solar Wind & Sail:

For Solar Wind & Sail:

The crew is really important on a space ship, yeah? And here, I've got an NPC crew of 18, divided into four sections. Each of these can be upgraded or busted when we build the ship.

These are: Sailors, Boarders, Porters, and Seers. That's 6 Sailors, 5 Boarders, 4 Porters, and 3 Seers. For each of the 18 people, I've got names, cravings, looks, and a downside.

Maybe the boarders are a busted ship's system. I think I know what that means, but do you think it means? What's it mean for Sailors? Porters? Seers?

Similarly, what's it mean to have improved boarders? Sailors? Porters? Seers?

Where's the line between game design and session prep?

Where's the line between game design and session prep?

For example, right now I am coming up with names, cravings, look, and weakness for 18 NPCs. Plan is to have these as crew members of a spaceship.

Have I moved from design to prep? Or, are these words meaninglessly similar at the level I am speaking of them?

Failure!

Failure!

The stats so far:
Successes: 3
Tentative Successes: 1
Failures: 6

Managed to go running outside today, and I'm still a little more than 2 pounds up from a success.

The 200 to 205 ranges gives me 2.5% of bodymass to work with, which is under the 3% just noticeable difference threshhold. 

That means that now I'm at 207, which feels different than 202. As in, 207 abbreviates to 210, not to 200.

If it stays warm (hah), then I can keep running outside. We'll see.

If you're going to write pages on a topic, while claiming something novel?

If you're going to write pages on a topic, while claiming something novel?

It'd be real good if you got the official facts straight.

For ex, if I am reading an article claiming that American doesn't have enough jobs for those who want to work, and you say the official unemployment rate is 8.3%?

Nope. You just lost me. It is < 5%.

I cannot and will not go with you on your claims if you do not get the facts straight.

should I bring a game to Dreamation?

should I bring a game to Dreamation?

If so, what should it be?

There's this show I used to love.

There's this show I used to love.

About the crew of a spaceship, travelling around. Making trouble. Trying to be bad guys, and getting stuck with the moral issues thereof.

With nine people on the ship, I've always had difficult thinking of it as an RPG. That's too big of a table for my wants.

Then I started working on this game, Solar Wind & Sail.

Here's a question: Which of those nine are NPCs? Which are PCs? How many are PCs?

Here's the list: Captain Reynolds, Zoey, Wash, Kaylee, Jayne, Shepherd Book, Inara, Simon, River.

I've got my notion, but I want to hear how you break it up.

The Grinning Liar, the PCs ship last night.

The Grinning Liar, the PCs ship last night.

What do you see?
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0ByuvweEiUz-raWcyamhVRFZMdU5zUHV6S1pFLVlHQXZIZXE0

I ran Solar Wind & Sail today: a pbta hack about space pirates.

I ran Solar Wind & Sail today: a pbta hack about space pirates.

It went really well. Like, much better than I expected from a first run.

What really made it was having a blank deck plan to Traveller's Free Trader. That's three decks of amazing.

So, Thanks Game Designers Workshop for sending me free deck plans! That made my night. Anybody know Marc or others at GDW?

We wound up with a bloodthirsty crew of pirates with no food, no boarders, no real hull, and no seers. That is, the food was poisoners, the only designed boarder was the Captain, the hull had huge gaps, and the only seer was the Stargazer. They couldn't rely on NPCs to help with those things.

I've got some ideas for improvement, some of which I'm already implementing tonight.

Including, it turns out, some really great feedback on my MCing from George Austin. That guys is the best.

The Traveller Free Trader's deck plan has squares of 1.5 square meters. That is, the base unit is 1.5 square meters.

The Traveller Free Trader's deck plan has squares of 1.5 square meters. That is, the base unit is 1.5 square meters.

Does 1.5 square meters strike anyone else as weird? That's ~16 square feet, which is 4 feet on a side.

I think they did this originally in imperial and converted.

As the ship I want for this game has a sizeable crew beyond the table, I think I can adjust by calling those square 6 feet on a side -- about 2 meters, so 4 square meters.

think that means 2.66 times bigger on the inside, so big enough for a real crew instead of just the table. Which is what I'm going for, so huzzah.

As an aside, 2 meters is a great baseline distance, as that's roughly how much a bunk needs.

Also, jeebs is Traveller stuff involved. I'm intentionally just scratching the surface, as I am not making a traveller game. Just stealing the deck plans for a first run, so we can draw on the ship.

I am bad at internet.

I am bad at internet.

just received Merry Christmas email from Game Designer's Workshop through DriveThru.

Email says a product has a special low low price of $0.00, but clicking in shows a price of many more dollars than zero.

How did I internet wrong?

Kind of on a dare, I am writing a pbta space hack about pirates! Avast, its a pirates life for me!

Kind of on a dare, I am writing a pbta space hack about pirates! Avast, its a pirates life for me!

Solar Wind & Sale: an economic pbta hack for 3-4 players and an MC. At least until I divide up the fronts and make it GMful.

I have some novel things, maybe. This post is here to talk through how I expect those to work, and see if they make sense to you. Yes, you.

In decreasing order of novelty:
1. Only the ship has stats, which are Supplies, Guns, Trade, and Void.

2. These have sub-stats! For Supplies its Foodstuffs, Medical, and Repair. Sometimes you need to rely on access to fruit, sometimes its the self-sealing stembolts. What're some other sub-stats you might expect for Supplies, Guns, Trade, and Void?

3. Damage is done to stats! If the ship takes damage, you mark down one of the advances until it gets fixed.

4. There are ships officers: Captain, Quartermasters, Boatswain and sometimes Stargazer. These must be PCs. They have a move each, and are responsible for widely different things.

5. Only half of the playbooks can be in use at any time! These are things like Mechanic and Surgeon -- you can only have one. If you've got a Ship's Doctor, you don't have a decent mechanic.

6. (Less Novel) -- Each PC brings a new room onto the ship, which lets them change the game in a cool way. The Mechanic has a workshop, which lets her build or figure out just about anything. The Navigator has a balcony.

7. (less novel) -- the "Do something" move is "Rely on the crew", which always has a complication. Even on a 10+. You don't get out of drama by relying on the crew!

8. (less novel) We go around the table to build the ship. First, everyone marks off a ship's system that is lacking, "Our ship does not have medical equipment", "Our ship does not have cargo boxes", "Our ship's engines are untrustworthy, and possible missing entirely". Then, go around and build up systems, "Our food stuffs include cheese", "Our weapon systems include a real gang", "Our gigs include hauling cargo", "We have a lot of mechanics, 24".

9. I don't yet have an Hx system. That'll be after the first playtest. It'll probably be Hx with PCs and with the crew, though I'm not yet sure what that'll look like. Maybe a I'll steal from The Watch, and have a spendable resource.

10. The move for the Stagazer is almost exactly Let It Out, because why not steal from what I love the most?

What of this doesn't make sense? Does this sound good? Do you want to play this? Who am I unintentionally stealing from?

Novel: A Man Called Ove

Novel: A Man Called Ove
Author: Fredrik Backman
Rating: 5 of 5 tears
Genre: Fiction

Short Synopsis: TEARS

This book is alternatively hilarious and heart wrenching. The author knows how to hit you right in the guts, and I cried on Metro.

On. Metro. That's kinda rude, but there it is: I cried outloud during rush hour on Metro.

Do yourself a favor, read this book.

Novel: The Spider's War

Novel: The Spider's War
Author: Daniel Abraham
Rating: 4 of 5
Genre: Epic Fantasy

Short synopsis: The fifth book (of 5) in the Coin and Dagger series. I read this series over the last six months, finishing the first end of June. I adore Abraham's writing, though this is not his best. That'd be the Long Price Quartet.

I literally cannot say more without a spoiler.

---spoiler space---

---spoiler space---

--spoiler space--

--OK, spoilers--

I was really pleased with a lot in this book, which pulled out of the fire some of my concerns in the previous volumes.

For example, I was worried that Cithrin's creation of fiat currency would be for nought. Instead, at the very end we not only see war reparations in fiat currency, but the beginning of a currency exchange.

I was concerned that the Spiders would win. I admit it, I didn't see a way out. Getting Geder back on the "good" side was about the only way out, and I'm glad he thought his noble sacrifice was big deal and everyone else is like "Its the job".

Along with that, I was glad that not all war is placed at their feet -- just a particularly pernicious sort of war.

DRAGONS. Inys the Dragon is what they are supposed to be: greater than human, with an ego to match.

Glad our man Marcus got to take out the chief spider priest, too. He carried around that damn sword for long enough. The King refusing to treat the kidnapped children as hostages was excellent.

Could have used more currency manipulation, and fewer swords.

Traveller.

Traveller.

Remind me about the basic ship you start with.

Here's what I think i remember: skeleton crew, no shields, no weapons, minimal cargo and no minimal ability to take a hit. The ability to go from system to system, but only in the local neighborhood.

Am I remembering right? Am I wrong?

I know there are other ships you can start with, especially as a scout. I'm meaning like the ship that you get and owe money on.

Solar Wind & Sail post --

Solar Wind & Sail post --

I've got a super rough draft, and plan to run this game on Thursday.

As of now, the playbooks are super duper light; I need to add names and looks, for sure. But, I like the idea of the system from each playbook being simple; a move or two, and a room in the ship. Right now, that's advancing a basic move and a room that gives a move no one else can have.

Notice, stats weren't in there. I'm hopeful I can just have stats be something the ship has, and what's great about the crew is their ability to use it.

A big deal is the ship, even more so with it having the only stats. A bunch of other things, but for sure also stats. The other stuff is things like shuttles, gangs, and spacesuits. These things are important!

The ship's officers, which must be PCs, are the Captain / Quartermaster / Boatswain. Captain is in charge during battle, QM while undersail and not during combat, and Boatswain takes care of repairing the ship and hiring more crew between missions.

The ship starts off pretty shitty! If it takes a single hit, it is disabled. If the crew takes a single point of damage, it is disabled! If you take cargo damage, you've nothing to sell! Your Supplies, Guns, Trade, and Void are all very low! It is very hard to make a dollar at first, but if you can manage to get an upgrade then life becomes a lot easier.

Or does it?

Thoughts about space pirates? Does this pbta game sound like anything? Am I too dumb to think about games?

Success!

Success!

The stats so far:
Successes: 3
Tentative Successes: 1
Failures: 5

I'm not really sure how, but a success is a success.

Writing things down.

Writing things down.

A ship has the following resources: supplies, guns, cash, crew.

The ship's officer have the following stats: Discipline, Popularity, Thrift, and Prizes. The Captain has Discipline, the Quartermaster has Popularity, the Boatswain has Thrift, and the Fence has Prizes.

The Captain and Quartermaster are in charge of the ship while it is in space; the Boatswain and Fence are in charge in dock.

Those resources can be used by anyone to accomplish goals and make rolls. Specialists can roll without spending, or spend to get a 10+.

More later.

Had a run-in with christian privilege this morning.

Had a run-in with christian privilege this morning.

On Metro.

Fairly crowded train car, and on comes a Christian Caroler. Who takes it upon himself to sing Oh Come All Ye Angels as loud as possible.

Unluckily enough for him, we were commuting and were next to where he started to sing. Our reaction started with a "Could ya not?", and escalated to a discussion of Christian privilege as it contrasts with other religious.

You never see jewish carolers. Or Hindi. Or Muslim. There was a woman wearing the hijab five feet from this asshole, and she wasn't singing about Allah.

But you know, there's a "war on christmas".

I'm annoyed. What is to be done about it?

Does this make sense for A Pirate's Life (25th century space pirates).

Does this make sense for A Pirate's Life (25th century space pirates).

The ship has stats like Hull and Crew. It has resources like Supplies and Guns. Supplies and Guns are capped at the lowest of Hull and Crew. A crew of zero is a skeleton crew like Serenity, a crew of 3 is like Enterprise.

If the ship takes damage, anyone can fix it up by spending one supply. So, the rating goes down by one. This'll heal one box of harm.

The Mechanic may roll plus the supplies on hand to fix the hull. On a 10+, she completely fixes the hull. On a 7-9, she heals one box of hull damage, and . On a 6-, still heal one but hard move. The Mechanic may spend 1 as if she rolled a 10+.

If you don't have a specialist (the mechanic), then you just move stuff around. If you do, then you have a chance to really fix things!

Does this make sense?

This is a thing that exists: www.safetypinbox.com/

This is a thing that exists: www.safetypinbox.com/

This is maybe important!
https://www.safetypinbox.com/

I am envisioning a game about Piracy.

I am envisioning a game about Piracy.

Scratch that: a game about power and finances through the lens of 25th century space piracy. The fundamental scarcity onboard ship is competency.

There is never enough competency to go around. The playbooks are setup to cover more than you have moves for, such that an important part of what you do cannot be done well.

That is: There's a single playbook for Mechanic/Surgeon. The moves will be designed so you can be good at one or the other, but not both.

Same thing for Master Gunner/Navigator, Master of the Watch / Fence, Caravan Master / Steward.

That is: the playbook select ensures you choose between keeping the ship in good shape or the people, between knowing where you are and how to fire your weapons, between having a good watch and being able to sell stuff readily, and between knowing where other ships are to rip off and being able to feed everyone.

In addition, there are specific positions onboard ship. Officers, which may or may not have the abilities to do this well. These elected officer positions are:
1. Captain, who has unlimited authority during battle. And none otherwise.
2. Quartermaster, who has authority over the crew during non-battle and controls the purse. Major issues are settled through a vote of the crew.
3. Boatswain, who is responsible for the equipment and ship. Basically, the Boatswain is in charge while the ship is docked and/or getting repairs.

Those are the only officer positions, so those three players have additional responsibilities. These come with no additional powers, just responsibility. This may be all the players! Everyone else is a spacer.

I'm very tempted to make this a hack of Dream Askew. In particular, the GMful nature and distributed fronts could hit exactly what I want.

Sound any fun?

Hard fail. I ate way too much pizza last night.

Hard fail. I ate way too much pizza last night.

I ran twice, once outside!

I don't want to be putting this weight back on, and am hovering close and then shooting up once a week. Its really kinda interesting to notice.

The stats so far:
Successes: 2
Tentative Successes: 1
Failures: 5

What's a ridiculous thing you've done for an RPG?

What's a ridiculous thing you've done for an RPG?

For me: putting together a crew rotation for a Correllian Corvette. I designed it such that the Captain and the XO -- my character's wife -- were never on crew rotation. I showed this to friends who think about military space ships, and they were aghast.

That's the first ship we see in Star Wars; Leia's consular ship. I know way too much about Star Wars, including things like the crew counts.

What's a ridiculous thing you've done for an RPG?

In the Caliphate of Azithan, known to its neighbors as the Necromancer Kingdom ...

In the Caliphate of Azithan, known to its neighbors as the Necromancer Kingdom ...

Here's a post about city design. This is a weird post, very much in the weeds on how the Caliphate structures its cities. I figure the audience for this is five people, at absolute most.

There are three main types of cities:
(0) The Capital, which is a combination of all three of the below.

(1) Organic cities. Whether in areas where the Faith is new, or cities older than the Faith, these cities are a combination of buildings built by Lifeless and designed by priests, and those that predate.

(2) Leisure cities, focused on the people rather than those people having jobs. The safe distribution of flour and turning it into bread is the main industry in these cities. The bakers guild loves the leisure cities.

(3) Working cities, centered around production. Different priest-architects have designed different version of these. The most successful make the building labor sufficiently repetitive as to require mostly Lifeless, and empower the people in these cities to work.

The above nomenclature ignores the Lifeless Enclaves that farm and mine, which also serve as garrisons.

All the cities have the multi-use tenements built for the Faithful. Remember, anyone who goes to church receives sufficient Flour to make ends meet -- 50 cups of flour, if my memory checks out. Go twice, get 80. Go three times, get 100. That is, there is diminishing returns from returning. As these are built, so are support locations, such as temples, bathhouses, and schools.

Of course, the Faithful build their own houses and businesses, but only in the working cities is this viewed as a matter for the Church to plan.

The working cities also have parks, commercial areas, suburbs (individual houses), and industry as well as the tenements, temples, bathhouses, and schools.

In one conceptualization, a working city is thought of as a mile and a half diameter half-circle around a river. The city is broken up into a grid, with 1000 feet (300m) by 1000 (300m) feet sections. These are divided into 25 squares, each 200 ft (60m) by 200 ft (60m). Outside of the grid is a network of homes, both for the wealthly and simply those who do not wish to live inside the apartments.

[ I played way too much SimCity. ]

Of these 25 squares:
1. The middle is a Temple.
2. The surrounding 8 are parks.
3. The outer 16 contain the industry, tenements, bathhouses, commerce, schools arranged such that when you put a square next to another square, nothing touches a like building.

That is, the outer edge of each square is the "city", with the inner being parks and temple. Because Temples are important in the Caliphate of Azithan! This is an approximation, as roads simply disappear at this resolution. A lot of the life of the city occurs within those inner 9 squares.

Here's the layout of a tenement in a working city:
Because I think in terms of feet, the following are primarily in feet and contain translations to meters:
Tenements: approx 160 feet by 160 feet (50 meters by 50 meters). That's 25,600 square feet (2,500 m^2).

In all cases, stairs are on the outside.

Basement: Accessible from the priest's apartment, and holds the Lifeless. Most of the actual work of the church is done at the temple, if there is one nearby. In the designed cities, there always is.

Ground Floor: This is divided evenly into 8 locations, each accessible from outside: 6 retail, 1 magistrate office, and one apartment / workshop for a priest. The priest's apartment contains the entrance to the basement, which has the Lifeless and doubles as a machine room. Each is approx 2,500 square feet (~250 m^2). The retail usually includes a couple places to eat, a leasing office /cop shop, and other useful shops. What else goes here?

Floor 1: Apartments fit for families, with running water! Eight of these, each approx 2,000 square feet (~300 m^2). Balconies on the roofs of the floor below. Population: ~40.

Floor 2: Apartments fit for singles, couples, and small families, making a reasonable wage in local industry. Each apartment has rudimentary plumbing. Sixteen of these, each approx 800 square feet (~80 m^2). Balconies on the roofs of the floor below. Population: ~30.

[ As an aside, my apartment isn't 800 square feet. Of course, it is also made out of steel, drywall, and glass. Not concrete.]

Floor 3: Dorm style! Small rooms, and a lot of them. Each ~100 sq feet (10 m^2), and 50 of them. Not all of these have light, and are accessible by hallways lit only by the outside. There's a waste and waste water disposal shaft for the floor. icky! Communal balconies. Population: ~30, but up to ~50 without too much difficulty.

Floor 5: Barracks style! Additional housing for the Faithful as needed. Visiting monks, additional lifeless. Those Faithful who don't work and wander from City to City! Whatever!

Thoughts / Ideas / Questions/ Comments welcome!

Rob Donoghue -- I hear you love bags.

Rob Donoghue -- I hear you love bags.

If you've got the time, advice would be appreciated.

My LL Bean messenger bag is, I think, a version they are no longer making. Near as I can tell, they only have a smaller version: www.llbean.com/llb/shop/85743?feat=845-GN3&page=bean-s-messenger-bag-medium

After several years, my bag is giving up the ghost. Tears & dirt, and a whole lot of fabric fraying. I'll want to replace it in the next year.

This is my everyday bag. I take it to work, to game night. It holds laptops and gaming supplies and meds without complaint.

Have any suggestions for replacements? Ideally, I want an identical version of what I have now, including being red and from LL Bean. I realize this may be impossible.
http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/85743?feat=845-GN3&page=bean-s-messenger-bag-medium

Remind me: Is this normal?

This is how gaming gets expensive: I just bought a book on urban planning, as I am dissatisfied with my plans for...

This is how gaming gets expensive: I just bought a book on urban planning, as I am dissatisfied with my plans for the cities of the Caliphate of Azithan.

Granted, i bought it used and its a dummies book. Still.

Novel: Dust

Novel: Dust
Author: Hugh Howley
Rating: 2 of 5?
Genre: SF

Short synopsis: The fairly predictable end of the Wool or Silo trilogy.

The first of these, Wool, is fantastic. The second is the weakest of the series by far.

Without giving away too much, these books are great at world building and at there always being another dastardly surprise. The first shows this really well, and this third one is basically just an extension of that.

Highly Unlikely Scenario:

Highly Unlikely Scenario:

Yesterday, I asked what may happen if the recounts show very different results than the computer count.

I didn't really get any stories.

Here's one, highly unlikely:
The Stein-Clinton team funds recounts in three states, each of which show irregularities. These irregularities are enough to sway the election, and show tens of thousands of Trump votes with no paper trail. Nate Silver is quoted as saying "fuck".

Obama -- who is still the President -- orders the Department of Justice to recount all votes across all states. The Trump team sues to prevent this action, claiming it is a clear violation of the rights of States to handle their own elections. The Supreme Court takes the case, claiming original jurisdiction.

From the bench, Clarence Thomas breaks silence and precedent by saying "count the damn votes". The court agrees 8-0 that we should "count the damn votes".

Riots break out across the rust belt, as white americans decry the Supreme Court overruling their votes.

What happens next?

Remarkably Unlikely Hypothetical: The Stein recount happens.

Remarkably Unlikely Hypothetical: The Stein recount happens. The results don't match. The next recount occurs, and doesn't match. Each is off by just enough votes to swing it.

What happens next?

Hard fail.

Hard fail. After visiting Oklahoma, I'm back to after-boat weight. Apparently if I drink every night, have a milkshake every day, and don't exercise then I gain weight. Who knew.

The stats so far:
Successes: 2
Tentative Successes: 1
Failures: 4

Hive mind -- How do I find the amount of pavement in a city?

Hive mind -- How do I find the amount of pavement in a city?

I didn't see it on wiki, nor on city-data. Any suggestions?

I'm not sure about this, for a bunch of cascading reasons.

I'm not sure about this, for a bunch of cascading reasons.



Originally shared by Josh Roby

Because this crazy year isn't over yet, motherfucking Jill Stein is calling for a recount in three questionable state election results. But since candidates need to pay for the recounts they petition, she's fundraising to make it happen. She's been raising $3000 a minute so far. She needs to get to $2.5million by Friday. She has a chance. You can help.

RESHARE THIS LIKE CRAZY.
https://jillstein.nationbuilder.com/recount

Hallelujah

In the Caliphate of Azithan, known to its neighbors as the Necromancer Kingdom ...

In the Caliphate of Azithan, known to its neighbors as the Necromancer Kingdom ...

Let's talk political geography.

And I'll preface this with: My sense of geography is absolute garbage. I've gotten lost going to the grocery store, and am pretty sure SimCity warped my view of cities. Also, I can't do fucking puzzles.

So, planning out what a society may look like and be governable is really hard for me.

My first thought was something like Russia, the US, or Canada: a large landmass with few neighbors and secure borders along most of it.

But, that's a really modern notion of a country. Instead, imagine a flowing river. Maybe like the Mississippi, flowing from the mountains to the Ocean. Or the Hudson. Or the Ankh.

The Capital sits at the mouth of the river, like New Orleans or NYC. Less like London or Ankh-Morpork. A lot like Rome. A natural port and harbor, like Sydney. Thanks to the great river, the natural end point of a supply line stretching into the mountains.

The Capital was the beginning of the Caliphate. This is the Holy City as well as the capital of the Kingdom. As the Faith spread, cities were built for The Faithful. The Caliph established the Faithful's Distribution, the flour to every faithful. He decreed this would be based not on gender or age or education, but simply on whether you came to church.

The Capital is a large metropolitan city, chaotic like all natural cities. Less so with time, as the Ancient Caliph has continued insight into how to build the city. Urban Renewal is a thing. The nearby cities are nearly as chaotic -- but each newer city shows more purpose.

The newer cities are the furthest from the capital. Each shows a different design aesthetic, as different architects are used. These cities create something in particular, be in glass or leather. The population of these is each roughly 10,000 souls.

Farm land extends for miles from the cities, and is largely the purview of the Lifeless, the priests, and what farmers are still needed -- a number reduced nearly every year! The Lifeless double as protectors, helping to secure the borders from hostiles. Also, from any faithless individuals who view the land as their own and would take it from the Faithful.

And, of course, the Missionaries are sent by land, sea, and river to bring the Faith to those who do not have it.

There are some obvious places for player characters in this mess. Political Intrigue, missionaries, fighting the extension of the Caliphate, fighting on behalf of the caliphate, the day-to-day enjoyment of living within such a Kingdom. Sailors, either along the river or along the ocean going from one civilization to another.

Does this geography make sense? Does something like the Mississippi river make sense as a kingdom? Do you know of examples of planned cities that worked?

The games I know best are ones I learned through osmosis.

The games I know best are ones I learned through osmosis.

I learned Fiasco at a wedding. I played D&D with friends through high school. My first pbta game was at Camp Nerdly. Catan I learned in grad school, Carc from a great friend. Hell, Endless Sky was first shown to me.

And I just realized -- because I am not so smart -- that the learning through osmosis with pbta doesn't just apply to a single game like Monster Hearts or Apocalypse World, but gives a suite of skills that are applicable to all pbta games.

So, for ex, I know how to look to my principles and think about what moves follow. I know how to think about hard versus soft moves. Heck, I know how to quickly add the result of 2d6 + stat and determine the outcome. As MC, I often do this before my players and start thinking about the result.

I'm not sure I have ever learned and internalized rules through a book. Have you? Do you? Am I weird in this?

Or, is learning and mastering a game an inherently social phenomenon?

In the Caliphate of Azithan, known to its neighbors as the Necromancer Kingdom ...

In the Caliphate of Azithan, known to its neighbors as the Necromancer Kingdom ...

Let's talk about roleplaying within this setting. The key parts of the setting are:
1. A society where a single necromancer religion is the government, and allows for freedom of religion.
2. Lifeless undead that are used as workers, and the Faithful are provided a minimum basic income that covers basic food and housing.
3. Cities that act as specific economic zones, creating specialized products. That is, the economy is fairly planned.
4. An arm of this government sends out missionaries in groups of two. Maybe one of these is capable of raising Lifeless, maybe not.

There are a few obvious ways this can go:
Stop The Invasion: A group of player characters reacts to missionaries with violence. This'd be good D&D-style play. After defeating the incursion -- and the undead -- the PCs invade the Caliphate.

This gives the option of making the Caliphate evil, or simply misunderstood by the player characters. Perhaps as the campaign continues, they discover that the lawful good kingdom of necromancers really aren't that bad. Or decide that raising the dead is inherently evil, no matter what the Priests of Azithan say.

Personally, I'd do this with Dungeon World, but D&D is, of course, another good option.

Spread The Caliphate: The PCs are the missionaries, and are strangers in a strange land. This includes a lot of talking, a lot of raising the dead. Maybe also adventuring in a D&D sense, but mostly it'd be the day to day realities of creating a church and raising a flock of believers. Think the musical Book of Mormon, and you're pretty warm.

I'm thinking Apocalypse World: Fallen Empires is a decent place to start. Reasonable playbooks would be Bonepicker (Angel), Mesmerest (Brainer), Hocus. I could see a call for a Wolfhead (chopper), but the Strongholder (Hardholder) would probably be a nonstarter. That being said, the Waterbearer could be a reasonable playbook to port over.

Basically, you are in someone else's land, trying to convert them to your religion.

Build The Cities: The PCs are sent out by the Church to expand the reach of the Kingdom. Maybe this is along the Great River, and they need to create a self-sustaining community. The obvious choice is again Fallen Empires, this time making sure there's a Strongholder or porting over the Waterbearer from AW2e.

It'd be fascinating to see all the PCs be priests with different views, but maybe even better to have some of them not be priests. The class and power differences there would be interesting.

Palace Politics: This version gets into the politics of power, and how the Kingdom functions. Either set in the Capital, or one of the major cities.

I think Urban Shadows is a good fit for this. The Power caste are clearly the priests, the wild are the unbelievers. Remove all the guns, or make them "necromancer guns", and you're pretty much in business. Vampires and Zombies and crap as PCs is perfect, especially as Vamps aren't within the power structures of the church.

What are some other possible campaigns related to Azithan? What system would you use to run it?

Obviously, my recommendations are mostly pbta. That's where my brain is. I'm open to alternatives!

This is fascinating.

This is fascinating.

what the geographic numbers do show is that the specific subset of Mr Trump’s voters that won him the election—those in counties where he outperformed Mr Romney by large margins—live in communities that are literally dying.

That is: Measurements of public health outperform non-college whiteness as an indicator of Trump voting.

Thoughts on why?

http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21710265-local-health-outcomes-predict-trumpward-swings-illness-indicator
http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21710265-local-health-outcomes-predict-trumpward-swings-illness-indicator

Still in recovery from last week.

Still in recovery from last week. Still, lost about 4 pounds this week and that's nuts. Wasn't able to run because of the wind and cold. Need to look into how to solve that problem.

The stats so far:
Successes: 2
Tentative Successes: 1
Failures: 3

On West World episode 6:

On West World episode 6:

That was obvious & delightful that we saw it coming.... from episode 1.

Tell me some good things, minor or major, that you've done lately.

Tell me some good things, minor or major, that you've done lately.

Here are some examples of what I've done today:
-- On public transit, unobtrusively stood between a white guy having a very bad day and a WoC. I figure violence is less likely to happen if it has to go through me, and then nobody has the worst day of their life. Granted, if violence does happen to me then I'll fall down with catastrophic injuries. Or worse, lose my cool and meet violence with violence.

-- Called my house rep about a klansman being nominated for Lynch's job. This is the third time in as many days, and sure I know the House doesn't have much of a say in appointments. They've got more than I do. And its easy, and they didn't know yet!

Please prove this is not real.

Please prove this is not real.

Originally shared by John Poteet

The planet is changing rapidly in ways we can't predict. We're riding this rollercoaster blindfolded people.

https://twitter.com/davidtorcivia/status/797498436354506752
https://twitter.com/davidtorcivia/status/797498436354506752

My gaming group. I love these guys.

My gaming group. I love these guys.

Last night, we played City of Myst. We needed some escapism, so Space Wyrm versus Moonicurn wasn't gonna do it. Neither was The Watch.

After we figured the system out well enough, we get the following characters:
-- I was played a Rich Old Bitch who found a magical weapon in the attic. Normally, this is a bracelet but it can transform into any weapon.
-- Swamp Thing, the former boxer playboy whose car ran into radioative chemicals from Helix Industries.
-- The Undead Assasin, who woke with no memory surrounded by technical goodies from Helix Industries.

We wound up playing as "The Pros", meaning we have funding. It makes sense that I'm funding the crew.

We establish that I run a half-way house. Right now, that's the two other PCs, while they try to figure out their new lives. This half-way house is a sanctuary for those with no place to go. A half dozen bedrooms, shared kitchen and other essentials. Like a place to box and a shooting range.

One of our informants comes by HQ, and tells us there's a human trafficking deal going down at the docks. A bunch of people in a shipping container, about to be sold. Two days time.

We do a little recon and show up. The undead assasin sneaks in, and sets up a little sniper shack. There are a dozen goons. The gang inside is complaining that this is way out of their comfort zone. They sell product, not people.

Swamp Thing and Rich Bitch knock on the door. Politely. Though, how polite a monster with three arms and bone where skin goes can be is up for debate. Of course, thanks to The Mist, the sleepers only see him as a big ole' fighter.

The Rich Bitch explains to the gangsters that there are two options. In option number one, the people in the shipping container come home with Rich Bitch. The Gang keeping them gets paid, and everything is fine.

Option number two isn't nearly so pretty. As Rich Bitch explains it, the undead assasin turns on the red dot on his sniper rifle. On the forehead of the leader of the gang. In option two, the gang dies and Rich Bitch still gets the people.

They choose option 1. Rich Bitch cuts a check, and the gang clears out. The Heroes take the people to HQ, and buy a couple dozen sleeping bags to help them out until we can place them somewhere better. We call a refugee lawyer.

See? Who needs violence when you have the threat of violence, money, and two unkillable super heroes?

Preserved for prosperity / admittedly, virtue signaling.

Preserved for prosperity / admittedly, virtue signaling.

In a thread with a probable troll, who was claiming bathroom bills let men into girls bathrooms.

I rather liked my retort. Am I wrong in any particular? I could very much be wrong! I get words wrong all the time, and am by no means an expert. If I am wrong, please tell me.

------------------------------
None of that allows men in women's bathrooms. Full Stop.

Those bills allow transgender persons to use the bathroom of their gender, rather than the sex the government inappropriately assigned them at birth.

To say otherwise is to allow the government to decide what sex you are.
------------------------------

Why do I love this? Because I get to use the language of small government. Because I get to cast gendered bathrooms as big-government intervention is the most intimate affairs. Because the troll asked if I know what gender and sex mean.

Once again, if I am wrong in any particular this'd be a perfect time and place to inform me.

Trump is bringing in his kids. Is this because they've been running his businesses for years?

Trump is bringing in his kids. Is this because they've been running his businesses for years?

If you say No, feel free to explain in comments.

Need an RPG we can play while filled with existential dread.

Need an RPG we can play while filled with existential dread.

Nromally, this time slot is filled with either Moonicurn versus Space Wyrm or The Watch. Both of which are off the table right now, for being too on the nose.

Alternative suggestions?

For years, I adored the Star Wars Technical Commentaries.

For years, I adored the Star Wars Technical Commentaries. These take Star Wars remarkably seriously. When discussing the ships of the empire, they use this schema:

gunboat -- a small vessel of shallow draught and with relatively heavy guns. [Oxford]
monitor -- a heavily armed warship of shallow draught. [Oxford]
corvette -- a small, lightly armed, fast vessel, used mostly for convoy escort, ranging between a destroyer and a gunboat in size. [Macquarie]
frigate -- a naval escort vessel between a corvette and a destroyer in size. [Oxford]
destroyer -- a fast warship with guns and torpedoes used to protect other ships. [Oxford]
cruiser -- a warship of high speed and medium armament. [Oxford]
battlecruiser -- a warship of maximum speed and fire power, but with lighter armour than a battleship. [Macquarie]
battleship -- a warship with the heaviest armour and the largest guns. [Oxford]

In tonnage then, more or less:
gunboat << monitor << corvette << Frigate << destroyer << cruiser << battlecruiser << battleship.

in modern warfare, the battleship has largely been replaced with the carrier. And heck, that's being replaced with drones, but let's put the last twenty years aside for a moment.

Within Star Wars -- the original series mind you -- we see the following ships, more or less in increasing tonnage:
-- X-wings & Tie Fighters, and a variety of other starfighters.
-- The Falcon
-- Leia's consular ship
-- The medical ship where Luke gets his hand fixed up at the end of Empire.
-- Mon Cal Cruisers, such as Ackbar's ship in Jedi.
-- Vader's ship in A New Hope. Lots of other vessels of the same class, commonly called star destroyers
-- The Executor, Vader's command ship in Empire and Jedi
-- Death Stars

Where, if anyone, do those ships fit within the framework above? Does the framework make sense for the sort of war depicted in Star Wars? Or, as Carriers and drones have done to this sort of schema, does this not align at all to Star Wars? Or, something more esoteric?

I have a couple different perspectives on this, and think I can guess what a few of you would say. I'm interested to test my ability to know other people's minds.

Oh, and I promise this is related to gaming. Take my word for it, I am likely to explain later.

From Going Postal:

From Going Postal:

"What a situation! What kind of man would put a known criminal in charge of a major branch of government? Apart from, say, the average voter."

Thanks, Terry. Your hand continues to help.

Belief revision is incredibly hard.

Belief revision is incredibly hard. We're not very good at it. Belief revision while depressed is harder. I've got a bunch of symptoms of mild depression.

Here's what I wonder. If we could be so wrong about the outcome of the election, what else are we wrong about?

Philosophy is generally described of as having three main branches: epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics. More or less, epistemology is how we know stuff, metaphysics is what stuff exists, and ethics is right and wrong. Again, more or less. Depending on the philosophy, the three inform each other.

For me, these three serve as anchors holding together a worldview. It is a liberal areligious scientific one, where it is right to help those less privileged. Where science tells us the most we can know about the world, and there are (effectively) no gods to save us.

Within epistemology, more or less, is the theory of minds. In particular, the theory of other people's minds. Of knowing about other people, and how we gain information about them. My theory of other people's minds has suffered a tremendous shock.

That shock is reverbing through the rest of my positions, casting doubt. I'm struggling with wondering how much of my epistemology is wrong. How much of how I gather and learn about information is mistaken. With such doubt, I have to wonder is my metaphysic is wrong. And with two unmoored, I question even my ethics.

With all three in question, I am left unmoored. For now, there is no knowledge I do not doubt.

This'll change. My expectation is I'll come back to largely where I was before, but this is a philosophical singularity.

I've started more fights online than usual, without ever meaning to. There's very loud subtext that everything is about the election. That's true, but its really about this unmooring. Questioning and wondering and that turns into aggression and depression.

imma gonna use public posts for PSAs in the future. Do it if you haven't.

imma gonna use public posts for PSAs in the future. Do it if you haven't.

Originally shared by John Hattan

Note to LGBT+'s in the US. Lotsa people in the know are recommending that you get your paperwork fixed ASAP if your gender doesn't match your social security or driver's license or whatever.

Apparently that's one of those little Obama-led niceties that can be reversed pretty easily by President PussyGrabber. But if it's already changed, you're probably okay.

Sucks that I have to pass this on. But if you've been pushing it off, now's the time.

We lost Leonard Cohen?

We lost Leonard Cohen?

No one told me until now.

Novel: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

Novel: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Author: JK & some friends
Rating: Worse than the Chamber of the Half-Blooded Azkabhan.
Genre: SF

Short synopsis: This is more an apology for killing Cedric Diggory than a novel. In effect, the moral is: The HP universe is the best possible universe, and if you think changing things would make it better than you are wrong wrong wrong.

I find that sort of moral disheartening and wrongheaded.

Novel: too like the lightning

Novel: too like the lightning
Author: Ada Palmer
Rating: 4 Sherlocks, 5 roddenberries, 3 Pulitzers, 7 Herberts, and 8 Heinleins.
Genre: SF

Short synopsis: This is the greatest novel I've read this year. This is the 27th book I've read in 2016.

Set in the ~25th century for future readers, the novel uses the mechanics of the 18th century novel. So, it goes like this:

Something about how gender doesn't exist in this century
_Dear reader, what are you to make of this? In my time ... _

That is, the author found a way to have as much world-building as Dune while still explaining it without an appendix. There is the problem and crime solving of Sherlock, with the answer staring us in the face where we can't see it the whole time. The hopefulness of Roddenberry, and an investgative streak a mile wide. And, of course, a certain joy in technology that identifies with the best of Heinlein.

Turns out, there is a second book as of yet unpublished. I look forward to it with great anticipation!

If I've ever convinced you to read a book, read this one.

Novel: The Truth about Fragile Things

Novel: The Truth about Fragile Things
Author: Regina Sirois
Rating: 3 sniffles
Genre: YA

Short synopsis: As a baby, our protagonist's life was saved by an adult man's heroic sacrifice. Now, 15 years later, she blames herself and meets his daughter.

I just about forgot to add this one to the list. I finished it most of a month ago. It was fun and short and not as much MonsterHearts as I'd hoped it would be.

I sniffled, but did not cry. I laughed but did not belly laugh. Recommended if you want a novel about growing up and facing death.

If there's ever a week to fail, this is it. And I did. That is, after a 5k I am still > 205.

If there's ever a week to fail, this is it. And I did. That is, after a 5k I am still > 205.

The stats so far:
Successes: 2
Tentative Successes: 1
Failures: 2

What you probably don't know is, on Thursday, we went on a 2-day inagural cruise paid for by my work. Free food, free booze. Sure, some swimming but not really very much. A lot of naps.

As it was a work trip, there are certain lines I feel I shouldn't cross. Let me put it this way: affluent mostly white people waited on by mostly people of color, all ruled by a few corporate executives is not my idea of a vacation.

What it does describe I'll leave as an exercise for the reader.

The power to destroy a thing is the power to control a thing.

Here is a partial list of powers given to the President:

Here is a partial list of powers given to the President:

The big one:
-- Under the War Powers Resolution, take any military action anywhere in the world and notify congress within 48 hours, and seek approval within 60 days. As a de facto matter, the President has full command and control of the largest military apparatus in the history of the world.

Some others:
-- Thanks to the AUMF, the president doesn't need congressional approval to fight terrorism wherever it is on earth.
-- Order the murder of anyone on earth. This includes American citizens, by declaring them enemy combatants.
-- Issue Executive Orders will full force of law. These tell federal employees what to do, more or less.
-- Appoint over 4,000 employees to leadership positions within the federal government
-- Make agreements with foreign nations, which need congressional approval. These are different from treaties, but i don't want to go into the differences right now.
-- Declare states of emergency, which greatly broaden the powers of the federal government
-- Federalize the national guard.
-- Appoint judges & justices, set policy and tone.

I've missed some big ones. This is a small partial list. Don't let anyone tell you the President can't do things.

And with both chambers of congress, the powers are effectively unlimited.

does anyone know anything?

omg. What is wrong with my country.

Vote.

Vote.

I've made it clear who I prefer. Remember to vote.

This week, I:

This week, I:
-- Ran a really fast 5k, and a much slower 5k.
-- Ate one of the largest and fanciest meals I have ever had the pleasure of enjoying.
-- Drank moderately
-- Voted
-- Stayed within goal! That is, when weighing in this morning, I'm under the target line.

Take that, entropy!

The stats so far:
Successes: 2
Tentative Successes: 1
Failures: 1

Trying this again.

Trying this again.

Are there any Trump supports out there? Do you know any?

If so, I have been trying to find an answer to this question:
-- Why do you support your candidate?

I've been looking for an answer in the positive which does not address Obama or Clinton. I haven't yet found one.

If you can answer, please do! If you know someone who could, please plus them in.

Moderation policy: This is NOT an argument thread. Any attempt to argue with a Trump support will be deleted. I may ask questions, which'll be similar to "Will you you explain more about that?". At the same time, any post such as "killary for prison" will be deleted and, at my discretion, the poster blocked. I explicitly reserve the right to delete this post or any comments without warning or explanation.

Feel free to reshare. Feel free to sub.

Guess whose got 2 thumbs, a reasonable grasp of modern evolutionary synthesis, and just beat his 5k time by 25...

Guess whose got 2 thumbs, a reasonable grasp of modern evolutionary synthesis, and just beat his 5k time by 25 seconds?

THIS GUY.

Amazon can prime roses. We live in an astonishing world.

Amazon can prime roses. We live in an astonishing world.

Pretty sure the race is tightening due to a fault in human memory.

Pretty sure the race is tightening due to a fault in human memory. Well, I say fault. Memory doesn't work how we think it does.

We don't actually remember what happened. We remember the story we tell ourselves. The things we think about most we remember least well to fact.

And here's the kicker: We erase how terrible previous events were.

That is, retrospectively events are not as horrible as they were at the time.

DT bombed each debate, giving a truly horrible presentation. He besmirched the office of President by saying he would jail his opponent. He stalked HRC like a sexual predator.

But, we don't really remember how terrible it was. Instead, we sort of average it out. It becomes just a meh event.

I think this is why the race is tightening.

Dragon World, or

Dragon World, or
Markets and Mages, or
How Adventurers pay the rent, or
Learning your ABC's, or
...

I don't know what to call this game. This is a pbta game. The main characters are wanderers, with ties to communities and individuals. Like D&D-style adventurers.

The game is about paying the rent. Or, rather, it is about personal finances. But that's not even true: Its a game about the fallout from hitting stuff with swords, and rolling the bodies of sentient people for their shit. Its about how you live with yourself after you do terrible things. And the economic reality that forces you to commit actions that are less than savory.

There are three families of stats: Assets, Bonds, Credits. Together, these are your balance sheet. There's no stat for how hot or strong you are, because you are understood to be capable. What matters is your stuff, your relationships, and how you fit in.

Assets are things you have: weapons, spell components, bags of holding.
Bonds are relationships you can call on: friends, mentors, loved ones.
Credit are your standing in communities: the Enclave, the Wizard's Academy, the Paladin's Church.

Adventuring is a single move. It is how you gain Assets, Bonds, and Credits. This move is huge, and is fully a quarter of the move sheet.

You spend from your balance sheet when you Pay The Rent. You must Pay The Rent at the start of session, after an adventure, or during a lull. You need to spend an Asset, Bond, and Credit, or else bad things happen.

The result of violence is chosen rather than rolled, and you spend to affect the outcome. Other PCs can help or hinder, by marking down their balance sheet. If you refuse to pay when you commit to violence, you can instead mark jaded and lose a part of what makes you a hero.

It literally costs you wealth or your soul to commit acts of violence.

What should I call this game? Do you want to play this game? Do you want to read this game and give feedback? Would you back this game if it made it to ks?

Conversely: Do you hate the sound of this game? Does this sound terrible? Do I have a poor understanding of the world that bleeds through in this description?

This game.

This game.

I'm at the buy four level. This is a first for me. Everyone wants a copy.

I adore this game.

If Fiasco saved roleplaying for me, Monsterhearts turned it to 11.

I have never been able to fully express the quality of this game. It isn't simply that it is a wonderful experience, but that the rules force a change of perspective. Retrospectively, this causes increased empathy for those you unknowingly think of as Other.

I am a better person for having played Monsterhearts. Kinder, gentler, and more patient. I am a better feminist, a better ally, and have seen others go through the same change as a result of engaging with this game. Avery's other games -- I'm thinking of The Quiet Year and Dream Askew -- have been as beneficial.

Do yourself a favor and back this game.

Originally shared by Avery Alder

I'm really excited to announce that Monsterhearts 2 is now live on Kickstarter. A tabletop game about the messy lives of teenage monsters. Check it out!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/averyalder/monsterhearts-2
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/averyalder/monsterhearts-2

The news is talking about HRC again. How long until Trump says something terrifyingly awful?

Here's a hopeful scenario:

Here's a hopeful scenario:

HRC administration:
Day 1: Order the NSA to provide secure phones for all senate-confirmed appointees. This is a long list, but the key is the head of the 24 executive agencies, such as State and Treasury. They get real phones by Executive Order.

Day 2: The NSA balks, so HRC sets up a white-hat agency, whose entire purpose is to create IT for the appointed and elected parts of the Executive branch. Comey is summoned to the Oval Office, and given a new project: Figure out why the NSA and FBI do not want our officials to be able to do their job.

Day 3: Nancy Pelosi gets her gavel back. The 54 Democrats in the Senate approve rules which include the Real Filibuster, but not the procedural filibuster.

As an aside, the difference is key. Standing up, talking for forever? That's a filibuster. Saying that you might do that, and not letting a bill come to the floor? That's a procedural filibuster, and it is bad for democracy.

Day 4: HRC sends a budget to Congress. It is like no budget ever sent: It cuts federal spending, reduces the military infrastructure, and increases spending for women, infants, and children.

Day 5: HRC ends the undeclared and illegal wars fought for oil across the world. You know, the five secret wars we're not talking about.

What else do you see happening in a hopeful scenario? What did I miss?

Today's measurement was over the target line, and I didn't have the gumption to go run to fix it.

Today's measurement was over the target line, and I didn't have the gumption to go run to fix it. The forces of destruction that will eventually consume us all took a small victory.

This is in line with expectations. In the end, entropy always wins.

That being said, I won a victory this week. I ran a 5k faster than I ever had before.

This is outside my expectation, and pretty awesome!

The stats so far:
Successes: 1
Tentative Successes: 1
Failures: 1

What'll be interesting to see is if this failure is the new normal, or a blip. We'll see.

You've sent Avie your game description, right?

You've sent Avie your game description, right?

Originally shared by Avonelle Wing (Avie)

I've got over 75 designers who haven't sent in their Metatopia game descriptions.
Help! Spread the word. I need those today.

A player just compared my gming to the Milgram prison experiment.

A player just compared my gming to the Milgram prison experiment.

I'm thrilled. I was not consciously going for it, but I will take this as praise of the highest possible order.

Endless Sky

Endless Sky

Q&A with me.

Q: Do you have a favorite ship?
A: Honestly? I'm partial to the blackbird. It is fast, maneuverable, and lets you do early pirate raids. I think all of my characters have gone through it, and it is a really fun time. You need to run from anything large, but can take down a fighter or two. With 20 bunks and laser guns, its not too hard.

Q: Huh! I assumed you'd say the Bactrian. What's been your favorite plot so far?
A: I liked doing a few charity missions. I wish I could do more of those, and make human space a kind of nicer place. As the net worth of my main character is over a billion, it'd be nice to start up a foundation in-game. That being said, I'm glad that the default is that using violence is useless -- more pirate ships will always show up.

You cannot change the status quo with mere violence. I like that.

Q: .... ok... I meant, like, space combat missions, but ok. What do you want to happen next in the game?
A: Other than having a built-out Syndicate and Republic mission quest? I want to learn what's up with the Kor, and talk to one or two of them. To help the Wanderers deal with them, for sure.

Q: How much time have you sunk into this game"
A: too much. And you should to! The game is free, and available on Steam, linux, and a variety of other things. It is open source and in development. You can help!

Q: Why don't you help, then?
A: Trying!

In light of yesterdays thread, it is time to admit where I've come to over the years, morally speaking.

In light of yesterdays thread, it is time to admit where I've come to over the years, morally speaking. I know, I know, I still owe Tony and Ron responses.

But, here's where I'm at: a weird version of contractualism, where what you are morally obligated (and sometimes praised) for doing is what you have said you will do.

Here's what that looks like, more or less in order of importance:
(1) Practice self-care
(2) Practice love for those who depend on you.
(3) Honor Your Commitments

If you look real closely, each of these is really a special case of the last one.

To break those out a bit:
1. The first thing I need to do is to take care of myself. If I'm having a panic attack or a knee surgery, the other concerns fall away. As a corollary, keeping myself healthy is then morally praiseworthy. This absolutely includes self-improvement, and Maslow. That is, the first priority is to be the sort of person you wish to be.

This is number one for a lot of reasons, but largely as without it you cannot develop your own virtues.

2. My next concern is those who depend on me. Why? Because they have come to expect action from me, and I have let them build up that expectation. There are all sorts of implicit expectations in this category, which do not need to be made explicit to demand action.

3. I should do what I say I'll do. If I say I'll be at a job or a game or that I'll finish a project by a certain time? Then it is a moral duty to do so, as the expectations of other people is that I will do so. As an aside, by hanging out in the USA, I implicitly say I will not violate the law.

To be clear: I hold that I do not have an objective moral requirement to help those who do not depend on me, and who I have not said I'll help.

I do, though, think that it goes to (1): Self-Care. Because I want to be the sort of person who helps others.

Spoilers for SFP --

Spoilers for SFP --

In this lead up to this, we learn there is a boy with the power to enhance other people's super powers. He doesn't use it, because he thinks his power is dumb. He is a straight white rich privileged guy.

Allison literally strongarms him into using his powers to enhance her friends regeneration. As we learn in today's comic, she now provides sufficient organs for the needs of the world is 40 hours a month. Considerably less than a full time job.

There are not easy answers to the below! If you think there, reconsider and then try to answer.

Here's what I'm interested in exploring over the next couple of days:
-- Were Allison's actions ethical? Can it ever be ethical to violate someone's consent to compel action?
-- If so, what are the conditions? That is, when is it OK to violate someone's will to produce good for others?
-- Who decides these things?
-- Conversely, is Allison acting immorally? That is, has she crossed a line by compelling action?
-- When determining if an action is moral, what considerations go into it?

Some rules: Think. Be kind to other posters. This is effectively an ethics class, so be aware I may respond with more questions. While among professionals I wouldn't expect kindness (philosophers are dicks to each other), I will insist upon it here.

http://strongfemaleprotagonist.com/issue-6/page-92-2/
http://strongfemaleprotagonist.com/issue-6/page-92-2/

!

!

Originally shared by Meguey Baker

Hey we did a thing!
http://geekandsundry.com/3-ways-this-rpg-will-make-you-a-better-gamer/

I have three games of Endless Sky:

I have three games of Endless Sky:
Malcolm Reynolds, my first game. Trial and tribulations as I learned the game. I started with a shuttle, as it let me have both cargo and passengers, which seemed perfect. Diversity!

With this character, I've done all the in game content. I've replaced my Dreadnoughts with Wanderer Derecho's, which have like 4x the hull! The game has even told me that if I want more content, I should write it myself.

My flagship is a bactrian.

Wedge Antillies, captain of an interceptor. I did a lot of escort work, and captured a couple of other fighters. With the millions from that, I upgraded to a blackbird.

Once you hit a blackbird, the game is easy. It paid for itself in a day, as I took on pirates and sold their ships. Then I got a Mule.

Now, I have a bactrian as my flagship.

Han Solo, captain of a cargo ship. This is the most sluggish, as transporting cargo doesn't make nearly as much money as taking over other ships. I've upgraded a couple of times, and am hoping to get a mule soon. At that point, I start doing anti-piracy and then buy a bactrian.

With this character, I'm trying to take jobs more and take out pirates less. It isn't working well.

Because no matter the start, the game has one overwhelmingly dominant economic move: Murder pirates, sell their ships. Then, buy a bactrian. Then, it gets easy.

I'm kind of sad that the game has a dominant playstyle. And a dominant spaceship.

Am I wrong? Am I missing something? How do I fix it?

Observational experiment, measurement 2: Success.

Observational experiment, measurement 2: Success.

That is, today's measurement was under 205. The weight is kept off for another week.

It is still warm and bright enough to run. I think I've learned what appropriate portions are these last few months.

In the Caliphate of Azithan, known to its neighbors as the Necromancer Kingdom ...

In the Caliphate of Azithan, known to its neighbors as the Necromancer Kingdom ...

It has been asked what the Necromancers do about the flying dragons in the kingdom one over. More or less, the question is: What's so special about the necromancers such that they can stand up to other fantastical empires?

This question has stuck with me, and I think I know the answer: infrastructure development.

That is, the Caliphate has an almost modern approach to infrastructure. They build roads and waterways and bridges and temples and cities and granaries. With the worst labor done by Lifeless, the people are free to either pray, or to work higher on the value chain.

Here's the big secret: If you pray three times a week and receive a minimum income, you are still contributing to GDP. That is: The act of prayer generates more magic energy than is needed to support a person.

That excess -- the Caliphate's surplus -- is reinvested almost entirely in improving the inside of the Caliphate. This allows for the building of cities to produce goods higher on the value chain, staffed by people freely working who know they can quit and still receive their minimum basic income.

And that's how the Caliphate manages to win: When it does meet its neighbors, it has a useful and productive population of free people, who will fight and lead armies of Lifeless to protect that life.

Chris Wallace is some sort of bullshit sack of stupid.

Anna has been a positive influence in my life.

Anna has been a positive influence in my life.

In light of this, I want to unpack that a little. Some memories:
-- We met at Dreamation 2016. I spent most of Dreamation with her and Andrew Medeiros. I trolled both of them hard with honesty, telling Drew that, say, Urban Shadows fundamentally changed how I look at pbta games. And telling Anna that her blog, Go Make Me A Sandwich, was a conversation topic in my household.

-- Our first game together was her magical girls game about misogyny. What, Anna wrote a game about misogyny? She did, and it was delightful. If I recall correctly, I wound up playing one of the misogynistic assholes with no actual power, and that was nicely insightful.

-- We blubbered all over each other when she played my mother in Keeping The Candles Lit. Her character was a powerfully protective force, which I know comes from the heart. Despite the nazis and young men seeking me, I knew I'd be safe so long as she was alive. Then she died and I cried some more.

-- The Watch! Anna and Drew's pbta game about women fighting the patriarchy darkness. While I have reservations about trying to make real money from pbta games, if anyone can do it it is these two.

-- After Dreamation, I was overly familiar online. It isn't much more complicated than that. We didn't talk for months. Learning of how I am a jerk is very helpful -- an example of Anna doing unpaid labor. Protip: professional writers are scathing.

-- Her blog has constantly reminded me that I can ignore misogyny and other bullshit due to it not being aimed directly at me. And that it directly impacts people I care about, many of whom don't mention it to me. That I should be vigilant in trying to notice. Selfishly, my games and game experiences are better with perspectives different from my own.

https://gomakemeasandwich.wordpress.com/2016/10/19/you-say-hello/
https://gomakemeasandwich.wordpress.com/2016/10/19/you-say-hello/

Electoral predictions:

Electoral predictions:
1. HRC will win the election with somewhere between 300 and 400 electoral votes. She will win the popular vote by over a million votes. The democratic party will win the senate, but not the House.

2. Donald Trump will concede. He will blame someone, probably the electorate. In no instance does he accept the blame. Because he is a shitty leader.

3. He will continue to be a thorn in the side of our government.

4. We will have a full supreme court by March.

I could be wrong about any of these things. Ask, and I shall explain why I believe these things.

New experiment, observational in nature.

New experiment, observational in nature.

Seeking to determine if I can keep the weight off through the dark fall & winter months. Through parties to stave off the sadness of night, our upcoming cruise ride, thanksgiving and friendsgiving, christmas and new years. Through friends visiting and spring festivals.

As an observational experiment, I won't put anything on the line. Not even ego. It would be best if the experiment could be conducted by someone other than me, but close enough. This isn't for publication.

While I'll do daily weigh ins, I'll publish them weekly. Because bodies are unpredictable, I'll have a five pound buffer. That is, I am considered to have kept the weight off for another week so long as the measurement on Sunday is below 205 pounds.

These weigh ins have three categories:
Under 205: Success
Under 205 after morning exercise: Conditional success.
Over 205: Failure

Yesterday, initial measurement was > 205. After running a 5k, measurement was < 205. This is a conditional success.

So far, so good!

Wish me luck!

"Running is easy to get into -- just a $30 pair of shoes and go!"

"Running is easy to get into -- just a $30 pair of shoes and go!"

Or -- Why I am not a libertarian and am pretty sure modern notions of it are just unaware privilege

Some things that have made running easier for me:
-- the weather is gorgeous
-- when it isn't, our apartment has treadmills
-- There is a community of running. When walking to dinner, we're liable to pass a half dozen runners.
-- a walkable neighborhood
-- The local high school has a track and multipurpose field. They do the football there, too. Except during games, this is open to the public.
-- That local high school is architecturally attractive. It doesn't look like a prison: windows, open sidewalks.
-- When I've hurt myself, I have a world class county hospital a mile away, an orthopedic who can see me within a week, and a physical therapist on the metro line.

In short, both luck and community investment. I'm on my second pair of running shoes, and I've bought a couple shirts and pants. I've spent maybe $100 a year.

And I've benefited from billions of dollars in infrastructure. Without my thinking about it or even knowing about it, billions of dollars have been spent creating a community that I can benefit from.

That's really why I can't be a libertarian, no matter how much I want to believe we're all individual islands. I can see it is bullshit.

Endless Sky update:

Endless Sky update:

My god. It's full of stars.

Register

Register

Originally shared by Rod Mesa (Motorod)

Today is the last day to register to vote in 11 states.
If you're registered, share with those who aren't.
https://www.usa.gov/register-to-vote

As per usual, this is fabulous.

As per usual, this is fabulous.

http://www.critical-hits.com/blog/2016/10/11/the-quest-for-a-magic-sword/

Last few weeks, I've been reading on supply lines. Supply chains themselves are magical, allowing for increased specialization of labor and decrease profitability from warfare. Modern states are less concerned with territory and more concerned with economic influence.

Heck, the shipping container is magic.

My next campaign may have to be about supply chain economics.
http://www.critical-hits.com/blog/2016/10/11/the-quest-for-a-magic-sword/

Games I've played lately:

Games I've played lately:

-- Apocalypse World, as The News and The Waterbearer. I like both of these new playbooks. The News brings concerns of truth to the apocalypse, and The Waterbearer has legitimate authority. Mine enforces the rules in a commune where no one goes without.

-- Monster hearts, wherein I played the worst Chosen I have ever played. He was awful, and rightly wound up in jail.

-- Endless skies. So much I made myself sick.

-- Markets & Mages, or whatever it is I'm calling my love letter to Dungeons and Dragons. Play an adventurer! Pay the rent, try to have friends!

All she needs to say:

All she needs to say:

"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

The thoughtful post. Maybe.

The thoughtful post. Maybe.

To simplify, we are fires.

To simplify a little less, we are moving fires that need fiber.

I like to think that I have free will. That my actions are unbound to the economic and political forces around me. That I can do what I want. That I am free.

In a meaningful metaphysical sense, I've known that was bogus since phil 101. Still, I like to think it, so I wind up in a modern Humeian sort of compatibilism. Thousands of hours of philosophy, hundreds of pages written, a thesis defended and that's what I've got.

Anyway.

Nothing has quite struck home the degree to which free will is metaphysically unsound as this particular incentive structure.

For years, I've wanted to lose weight. And it has seemed impossible. I've weighed myself nearly every morning, yet my weight continued to climb. And I sure knew why -- I eat too much, don't exercise much, and drink.

I've wanted to lose weight for all the reasons: to not die, to not get diabetes, to be prettier. To not be a burden to those I love. To consume less.

But, wanting was never enough. I had insufficient control over my own actions. I'd eat a slice of pizza, and then the whole pie. I'd sit down at a computer and spend the whole day there. I'd drink a beer and then the six pack.

Enter The Incentive Structure. Also known as The Bet. I'd heard about this before. I'd even tried it before and failed. This time was different. It worked, and it worked surprisingly well.

The first person experience of this bet was like nothing else. Excess food and sloth become tinged with motivational guilt. I couldn't eat a whole pizza because then they would win. I couldn't drink a six pack because they would win. I couldn't avoid running because they would win.

This externalized the harm; I wasn't just potentially harming myself from sloth, overindulgence, and gluttony. I would be making it easier for people with wrong beliefs to do harm in the world. Can't let that happen! Or, rather, if I did, I would be morally blameworthy.

Here's what I wonder: What other activities and habits of ours are malleable with different incentives? What habits do we have that are formed from invisible societal incentives? How much hacking can we do through incentives?

I think the answers will very greatly from person to person, and from time to time. I may have to start reading behavioral economics, or seeing if my old empirical philosophy lab has published anything in the arena.

My hypothesis, from which I'll over time generate a bunch of hypotheses and test them, is that a tremendous number of objectives become possible with an appropriately aligned incentive.

Figuring out what all that means is going to take work.

Hey, Aaron Griffin?

Hey, Aaron Griffin?

Can you tell me what exercises and strategies to employ to run faster?

Muscle building and crap, I imagine. I don't know anything about this!

What do I -- and by extension, most people -- need to do to safely run faster and for longer?

Other than running, of course.

Assume I don't have any major medical issues. if I run into something that's too hard, I'll see if I can adjust.

Monsterhearts and the prison pipeline: a play report.

Monsterhearts and the prison pipeline: a play report.

Last night, I had the pleasure to play Monsterhearts with Tony Lower-Basch. We had three players: myself as the Chosen, Em as the Wyrm, and Zed as the Calaca. The Chosen is your standard buffy type, the Wyrm is covetous and wealthy, and the Calaca is a skeleton wearing a human suit.

From the beginning, I wanted a Chosen different from normal. Instead of having an armory and a watcher and a history, I played a dumb jock who stands up for himself and does what needs to be done ... by killing vampires.

Em was delightful as the Wyrm. For introduction backstory, the Wyrm choses if the other player characters are treasure or mere currency. I was treasure, the Calaca merely currency. The Wyrm wanted to possess my chosen, and it was delightfully creepy.

The Calaca is a tough playbook, but Zed pulled it through.

Anyway, I really want to talk about something that went exactly as it should. While vaping his cherry bubble gum, my Chosen was attacked by one of the other jocks. Kids asserting dominance, whatever. And if characters were reasonable human beings, that's where it would have ended.

Instead, the chosen fought back. 10+ on Volatile, choosing to deal great harm. The kid lost teeth and broke an orbital socket. The Chosen was arrested for assault.

The next scenes for our Chosen involved time with adult criminals in the holding cell (kid, you are fucked. Have a cigarette. ::smokes, cough cough cough:::), and being interrogated by cops who have security camera footage of the Chosen murdering vampires. And the little idiot doesn't realize he should shut up and not talk to cops until they start showing him cold case files, and asking if he made sure vampires don't come back.

Meanwhile, the Wyrm manipulates the family of the kid in the hospital by promising to pay for their medical expenses, but only if they say he started it and it was all his fault. The cops drop the assault charges, but not so much the murder charges. The Chosen's public defender suggests he pleas guilty to murder in the second degree, and take just 20 years.

Our Chosen gets out on parole, and returns to the playground. With an ankle bracelet. And cigarettes. And a whole new attitude problem.

The Wyrm informs the Chosen that she got him out. And that she'll continue to help get rid of the charges, but only if he is her boyfriend. She invites the Chosen to her place, but ankle bracelet. Instead, the Wyrm comes over to "study".

That's pretty much that. The Chosen disgusts himself, and makes the Wyrm promise to get him out of this.

Don't talk to cops.