UrsulaMajor's recent activity
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Comment on DMing my first session of D&D 5e tomorrow night in ~games.tabletop
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Comment on DMing my first session of D&D 5e tomorrow night in ~games.tabletop
UrsulaMajor Link ParentAfter doing XP Leveling for years, and then switching to Milestone Leveling for years, my party is now switching entirely back to XP Leveling for the foreseeable future. Our group consistently got...And finally, do milestone leveling. XP leveling is fun for no one.
After doing XP Leveling for years, and then switching to Milestone Leveling for years, my party is now switching entirely back to XP Leveling for the foreseeable future.
Our group consistently got frustrated with milestone leveling, since it was never clear what should "count" as a milestone, or what should happen if we don't do anything "milestone" worthy for a long number of fun sessions that nonetheless durdled on before suddenly doing three or four milestones rapidly once we had built up power and connections. The lack of clarity in when the party would level led to constant "do we level up?" followed by "Well, we levelled up only two sessions ago" or "we haven't leveled up in five sessions" before we ultimately left both DM and Players feeling like we were negotiating on arbitrary lines instead of settling on something that truly felt good for any of us.
All 3 of the DMs in my group have moved on to using the pathfinder 2 XP awards system for all of our games, with some modifications.
You get XP for all achievements, including minor RP moments that were fun for the group. The main modification is, obviously, that converting 5e to a 1000 XP system and deciding how much XP to award per enemy takes some homebrew work.
"milestones" are more frequent, and give out smaller but more consistent amounts of XP.
I also give 10XP per hour played. That way, in the scenario where the group meets up for 3 hours just to do some shopping and then end early, the group still makes 30XP of progress towards leveling up. No session ever feels like a waste.
Now, whenever we sit down to play, our group can look at our character sheets and know roughly when we're likely to Level up; if we're at 800 XP and about to fight a big boss fight? A level up is imminent. We leveled up last session and only have 200 XP? Unlikely to level up but we're going to make tangible progress.
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Comment on DMs and GMs - what are your favorite traps and puzzles to use in your campaigns? in ~games.tabletop
UrsulaMajor LinkThe favorite trap/puzzle I've ever pulled on a 9th level party is as follows: A 10 foot wide by 30 foot room. Halfway through the room, a mage has permanencied a Shadow Conjuration of the 10 foot...The favorite trap/puzzle I've ever pulled on a 9th level party is as follows:
A 10 foot wide by 30 foot room. Halfway through the room, a mage has permanencied a Shadow Conjuration of the 10 foot by 10 foot square segment of the floor in the center of the room.
Everyone who steps onto this floor segment makes a will save. If they succeed, the shadow conjuration fails and they fall through the floor into a gelatinous cube, meaning they are immediately engulfed, silenced by the mass, and potentially paralyzed. Those who fail the will save continue to walk over the floor as normal, as shadow spells behave normally so long as you fail the will save.
Watching your cleric and wizard fall through the floor and then trying desperately to pound through the illusion to disbelieve it so you can save them is ridiculously funny in retrospect, and is a really fun way for a level 4 spell and a CR 3 creature to scare a party of level 9 adventurers. It just feels to me like the kind of thing a clever evil wizard would do to scare off intruders.
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Comment on What's your favorite TTRPG system that isn't DnD or Pathfinder/Starfinder? in ~games.tabletop
UrsulaMajor LinkAnima RPG It's a nutty as heck anime-inspired RPG originally published in Spain, then translated into English for international release. It's based on the Hackmaster system, so everything is d100...It's a nutty as heck anime-inspired RPG originally published in Spain, then translated into English for international release. It's based on the Hackmaster system, so everything is d100 or d10 based, but the standardization of the mechanics (everything is an opposed roll, flat check, or roll-under) means that the game can have 4 different systems (Magic, Ki, Psionics, and Summoning) that can be modularly included to make whatever kind of anime-inspired game you want to make. Dragonball Z? Ki. Yu Yu Hakusho? Ki and a little Summoning. Fire Force? Psionic pyromancy.
Trying to play in the system is super frontloaded, and making a character is super complicated using a point-buy system for all abilities, but actual play is decently streamlined.
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Comment on Civility is on the decline and we all bear responsibility in ~life
UrsulaMajor Link Parentwe are not in the same situation as them, and so it's pointless to bring them up. mind explaining how it was supposed to contribute, then? it wasn't an argument or a point other than "I think...What did you mean then? Would the Jews have been wrong to fight violently against the people who wanted to exact violence against them?
we are not in the same situation as them, and so it's pointless to bring them up.
Saying this doesn't actually make it true. If you can't counter an argument, just fess up buddy.
mind explaining how it was supposed to contribute, then? it wasn't an argument or a point other than "I think Nazis are sociopaths", which, ok, you think that, what's the point? why should I care?
The "alt-right" is just neo-nazism with muddier optics, but you already know that.
the alt right is shorthand for "Right but not Republican", and so it is a wide variety of political leanings, many of which share a ideals with Nazis, but most of which fall short. You need a special combination of hyper-nationalism and racism to be a neo-Nazi and the are many alt righters (like libertarians) that by and large aren't either.
but yeah, basically.
Ah, so we should appease them instead
please quote the portion of my post where I said we should do that.
Nope, just want to disillusion supremacists of their feeling of invulnerability.
mind elaborating? I don't see them how that's any different than Possibility 1, which I see you've conveniently ignored.
This explains why the Middle East is such a quagmire.
actually, yes. American military action makes for excellent recruitment material for middle eastern extremists. Not saying we necessarily have a choice in that particular example, but luckily, we're not talking about literal war, here.
Quick, tell Donny that instead of fighting ISIS and the Taliban he should be funding them!!
please quote the portion of my post where I said we should support Nazis.
Look, my entire point here is that, regardless of your reasons, you're helping the Nazis by doing what you're doing, and there are a multitude of other ways to combat nazism that are way, way more effective than punching people that you've excluded as possibilities a priori.
edit:
honestly, your tactics here are so strikingly alt-right inspired that it's nauseating.
This explains why the Middle East is such a quagmire. Quick, tell Donny that instead of fighting ISIS and the Taliban he should be funding them!!
Misdirection, check!
Would the Jews have been wrong to fight violently against the people who wanted to exact violence against them?
irrelevant emotional appeal, Check!
Ah, so we should appease them instead
Straw manning, check!
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Comment on Civility is on the decline and we all bear responsibility in ~life
UrsulaMajor Link Parentwhatever way you vote or are perceived to vote. I left it deliberately nonspecific. It doesn't matter what your political leanings are, people's brains are lazy and will stereotype people who...What do you mean when you say "that I vote a certain way?"
whatever way you vote or are perceived to vote. I left it deliberately nonspecific. It doesn't matter what your political leanings are, people's brains are lazy and will stereotype people who share your views based on your behavior.
So I guess the Jews forced the Nazis to exterminate them in the 20th century, huh?
Don't put words in my mouth. You know that's not what I meant, and so your saying it is just a sensationalist emotional appeal.
The only violent sociopaths in this scenario are the people advocating mass-murder based on someone's ethnicity, not on the content of their character.
this contributes pretty much nothing to the discussion.
here, I really doubt you are actually capable of changing your mind based on discussion for reasons I'll explain, but I'm going to explain my point in its entirety anyways.
To what end would one advocate violence against "nazis"? (here assumed to be a slur against alt right ideologies sharing similar beliefs and not literal Nazis)
Possibility 1: You want to convince them not to be alt-right anymore
Advocating violence against a group of people only deeper entrenches them into their viewpoints. It's a well documented scientific observation that people tend not to leave any sort of confrontation of their deeply held beliefs with anything other than a deeper commitment to that belief. This is why I believe debate explaining this to you is probably useless, by the way. It's human nature for you to only deepen your beliefs in response to confrontation.
Possibility 2: You want to convince other people that you are correct
This is also pretty much not going to happen. Anyone who would be supportive of your act of violence already agrees with you, else they wouldn't support it. Furthermore, violence isn't an argument, and most people find it abhorrent.
Possibility 3: You want to convince other people that the person you are punching is wrong
Well, this is actually counter-productive, then. Imagine this: you walk into a Denny's at 3am partially hungover and see two men arguing. One is physically pushing the other one while the other is remaining calm and repeating "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend." Finally, the first one decks the second one and knocks them out cold. On an emotional level, what is your gut reaction? To believe that man #1 is correct about whatever that were just arguing about, or that man #2 seemed very reasonable and man #1 probably didn't have anything to say that would prove #1 wrong, or else why would they resort to violence?
This sort of instantaneous gut reaction is programmed into us, and even if you later find out #2 was an honest to god real Nazi and reassess your opinion, in the moment you were put into an emotionally vulnerable state where you likely had an increased susceptibility to being converted.
People tend not to change their mind by direct confrontation, but they do tend to be more susceptible to conversion when they see people they identify with acting in a way they deem socially or rationally unacceptable.
in other words, Proving someone wrong is less likely to convince them they're wrong than socially embarrassing someone they agree with
and even more bluntly put, punching "Nazis" is a better alt right recruitment tactic than anything the Nazis could do on their own, because you paint a powerful emotional appeal in the Nazi's favor.
This is why I'm writing this, by the way. I hope someone reading this is indirectly led to question their beliefs because they're protected by not being directly confronted, as I am directly confronting you.
Possibility 4: You just want an excuse to punch someone
to be honest, I don't think you even believe this is true of yourself, but it's the only possible intention that is in line with the likely outcome of your behavior. If you want to punch someone more than you want to cause positive political change, then of course you're going to advocate punching people and then come up with an post-hoc rationalization for why you should be allowed to.
Examine your motives and ask yourself if what you're advocating is really in line with what you wish to achieve. Then ask yourself if what you really want to achieve is the same thing as what you desire to want to achieve
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Comment on Civility is on the decline and we all bear responsibility in ~life
UrsulaMajor Link Parentjail is a hefty price to pay to help make it happen. no, seriously, people like you turn fascists into reasonable martyrs instead of political extremist pariahs. nobody will see that you feel...jail is a hefty price to pay to help make it happen.
no, seriously, people like you turn fascists into reasonable martyrs instead of political extremist pariahs. nobody will see that you feel morally justified, they'll just see that you vote a certain way and are a violent sociopath, then associate people who share your political views with your moral shortcomings.
nobody will stop being a nazi because you punch them, but many people will become one because they see you doing it
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Comment on Civility is on the decline and we all bear responsibility in ~life
UrsulaMajor Link ParentI think that this point of view is completely off. these labels hold connotations beyond their "definition". the kind of person who would call themselves an "egalitarian" would not find themselves...That is, your self-prescribed labels don't matter. Feminism is a great example for this. If you believe that men and women should be equal, then you're a feminist. If you're an egalitarian, then you're also a feminist.
I think that this point of view is completely off. these labels hold connotations beyond their "definition". the kind of person who would call themselves an "egalitarian" would not find themselves in good company with someone who calls themselves a "feminist". although their foundational beliefs are the same these labels are defined by more than just their strict definition.
they're as much a social group as they are an ideology, basically, and there are different social norms in each community.
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Comment on Civility is on the decline and we all bear responsibility in ~life
UrsulaMajor Link Parentyou can be intolerant of ideas, and criticize the people that hold them, while retaining basic human decency. Advocating violence against people, even people as terrible as Nazis, is deplorable....you can be intolerant of ideas, and criticize the people that hold them, while retaining basic human decency. Advocating violence against people, even people as terrible as Nazis, is deplorable.
you're twisting the intent of the paradox of tolerance to justify behavior that would, and should, result in you going to jail for battery.
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Comment on What's something you're good at? And what advice to you have for those who aren't good at this thing? in ~talk
UrsulaMajor Link ParentSomething I'd like to add from personal experience: Explain your problem to someone else, preferably someone who knows nothing about your problem. Ask them to ask questions where something is...Something I'd like to add from personal experience:
Explain your problem to someone else, preferably someone who knows nothing about your problem. Ask them to ask questions where something is confusing them about your explanation. I find that this makes the problem a lot easier to solve
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Comment on Daily Tildes discussion - general feedback/questions in ~tildes.official
UrsulaMajor Link Parentdampen, going with the waveform themedampen, going with the waveform theme
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Comment on The current problem with ~ in ~tildes
UrsulaMajor Link ParentI suggested this a long time ago but nothing came of it; hopefully more support will make it happen :]but the text presented with the link is automatically posted as a comment?
I suggested this a long time ago but nothing came of it; hopefully more support will make it happen :]
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Comment on Bitcoin in ~tech
UrsulaMajor Link Parentuh... no it isn't. It's a fiat currency. It has no backing other than people's trust in its value. in order words, exactly the same backing as pretty much every currency ever (including bitcoin)...uh... no it isn't. It's a fiat currency. It has no backing other than people's trust in its value.
in order words, exactly the same backing as pretty much every currency ever (including bitcoin) that doesn't have a commodity backing it.
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Comment on Inventor says Google is patenting work he put in the public domain in ~tech
UrsulaMajor Link ParentI guess I'm just confused then; I thought this was an intra-company exchange, hahBut Duda says he suggested the exact technique Google is trying to patent in a 2014 email exchange with Google engineers
I guess I'm just confused then; I thought this was an intra-company exchange, hah
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Comment on Inventor says Google is patenting work he put in the public domain in ~tech
UrsulaMajor LinkHe probably signed an agreement saying any technology invented on company time or using company-issued property belongs to the company. That email is basically a nail in that coffin. I've signed a...He probably signed an agreement saying any technology invented on company time or using company-issued property belongs to the company. That email is basically a nail in that coffin.
I've signed a similar agreement with my company, which is why I do all of my personal stuff at home.
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Comment on Markdown in ~tildes
UrsulaMajor Link Parentthe entire table is awkward on mobile. tbh I'd prefer something like {{{Column 0, Column 1, Column 2}}} {{{---}}} {{{Value 00, Value 01, Value 02}}} {{{Value 10, Value 11, Value 12}}} etc.the entire table is awkward on mobile. tbh I'd prefer something like
{{{Column 0, Column 1, Column 2}}}
{{{---}}}
{{{Value 00, Value 01, Value 02}}}
{{{Value 10, Value 11, Value 12}}}etc.
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Comment on How to have a civil conversation in ~talk
UrsulaMajor Link ParentI don't think a permanent unsubscribe is really what I'm asking for; it encourages people to do "drive by" arguments where they don't want to see criticism but still want to give their piece....I don't think a permanent unsubscribe is really what I'm asking for; it encourages people to do "drive by" arguments where they don't want to see criticism but still want to give their piece.
which is why my suggestion, the "take a break" button, would still give you all those notifications... just on a significant delay, so that you can cool it for a bit.
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Comment on I like not having a downvote aka disagree button in ~tildes
UrsulaMajor Link Parentmaybe votes should be invisible. they can serve their purpose without anyone being able to see them. we're supposed to be trying to discourage "popularity seeking" behavior, anyways. maybe the...maybe votes should be invisible. they can serve their purpose without anyone being able to see them.
we're supposed to be trying to discourage "popularity seeking" behavior, anyways. maybe the lack of being able to see how much agreement you're getting would discourage attention-seekers from participating at all
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Comment on How to have a civil conversation in ~talk
UrsulaMajor Link Parentto be honest, as I mentioned in this comment, I have a really hard time walking away: personally, I've been feeling the urge to hit "disable inbox replies" a lot lately, which I don't think bodes...And another thing I just thought of; Don’t be afraid to walk away if you feel a debate/argument/discussion is getting too personal, you can feel yourself getting angry or feel the other person is simply not getting your point. You can always come back later once you have cooled down... or not at all. There is no shame in walking away before you say something you might regret.
to be honest, as I mentioned in this comment, I have a really hard time walking away:
If nobody is enjoying the discussion on either an emotional or intellectual level, the discussion should probably stop. I personally struggle with this a lot; I rely very heavily on the "disable inbox replies" and "block user" button on reddit because I have trouble stopping a discussion even after I've recognized that I'm getting nothing out of it.
personally, I've been feeling the urge to hit "disable inbox replies" a lot lately, which I don't think bodes well for my involvement on this site. I mentioned here, that I fear coming off as a "coming across as a negative, antagonistic person", and I'm starting to feel like I'm probably already seen as one. I don't think I've really enjoyed any of the discussions I've had here, yet, because I feel like a lot of them have kindof turned into thinly veiled flame wars that I can't get away from.
I wonder if we could implement a "take a break" button that temporarily caches notifications for 1 hour and displays them after the break is over
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Comment on The efficiency myth in ~finance
UrsulaMajor Link ParentI think part of my issue is that I kindof mentally filter out political toss-outs like "socialist", "alt right", "liberal", etc as noise. the statement they made might as well have been: and it's...I think part of my issue is that I kindof mentally filter out political toss-outs like "socialist", "alt right", "liberal", etc as noise. the statement they made might as well have been:
I wouldn't really take this at face value, coming from a rather well known alt-right magazine. It's an editorial, not economic research.
and it's got the same meaning to me:
this publication is heavily political. read with skepticism
I don't know of anyone outside the OSE community that doesn't do party XP (Individual XP stopped being a thing in 3.5 and pathfinder 1 at the latest, since all classes progress at the same XP rate), and I don't think that it's at all the same as Milestone leveling. XP is transparent to players; they understand the rules, they know roughly what a minor/moderate/major accomplishment is and can read the descriptions of what they are the same as you can.
The modification I'm referring to in the quoted segment is that 5e CR is a clusterfuck and it's hard to decide of an enemy is a PL+1 or a PL+2 threat based on their CR, so you have to gauge that more loosely based on the actual difficulty of the enemy independently of its numerical "challenge rating".