@montecook@dice.camp
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montecook

@montecook@dice.camp

I design tabletop roleplaying games.

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montecook, to random
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Okay. Got it. No one alive today has ever heard of Led Zeppelin. Can you all please stop @ing me over my little joke?

montecook, to random
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I was scrolling through YouTube and saw one of those "first reaction" videos for a guy listening to Stairway to Heaven.

I I could think of was, "you big liar." (I didn't actually watch it, it might be true, but come on)

montecook,
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@zdl Sure, not everyone's a Zeppelin fan, but how does a person get through life, at least in the US or the places heavily influenced by US culture, and not hear it on the radio, in movies, on tv, etc.

montecook,
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@DM_Zeppelin I very much understand that we all have different tastes and experiences. But some things are so omnipresent that I don't know how you avoid them. I've never in my life sought out Dolly Pardon's music, but can I sing along to Nine to Five? Yes I can.

Back when the radio was a more significant part of life, you had to go out of your way to avoid hearing some songs, and I'd argue Stairway is one of them. Today, it's probably a lot easier to avoid what you don't particularly like.

montecook,
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All I'm saying is, the guy would have to either be quite young, or have lived a cloistered life to have not heard it unintentionally or unknowingly in a movie or something.

montecook, to random
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So there's a very cool new Lego set coming that's branded D&D. It's so fun in all that it includes and how it's presented that in my opinion it makes a case that Lego understands the D&D audience better than WotC.

However, I can't look at it without a story coming to mind, so indulge me if you will.

1/

montecook,
@montecook@dice.camp avatar

Back in the late 90s, I worked at TSR and everyone--and I mean EVERYONE--who was employed by the company had to work at GenCon when it came around. If you were smart, you created fun events to manage or host at the con or else you were stuck manning the ticket booth or whatever.(TSR owned GenCon back then.)

2/

montecook,
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So as one of my events, I wanted to have a workshop on using Lego bricks and minifigs in your D&D game. I wanted people to be able to build a minifig or a small dungeon room or whatever right there in the event, but I didn't want to have to fund it myself. So I tried to get official Lego sponsorship.

3/

montecook,
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I made many phone calls trying to get through to someone who would have the ability to say yes or no, and that was hard. I kept getting passed around. All I wanted was a few Lego sets, and I was promising them lots of visibility .I was even empowered on my end to offer them ad space in the program book. (Which was hard to do, but that's another story.)

4/

montecook,
@montecook@dice.camp avatar

Finally, I got through to some events and promotions person with some actual authority, and I gave them my pitch.

There was a pause on the phone when I was done, and finally she said. "Dungeons and Dragons? Like that game with the demons and things?" Before I could reply she said, "I can assure you that Lego can't possibly associate its brands with that kind of thing."

And that was that. The event never happened.

Guess I was once again ahead of my time.

5/

montecook,
@montecook@dice.camp avatar

Ah well. Would have been cool then, but it's cool that it's happening now. I don't bear any grudges or anything, but every time I look at photos of the new set I hear her voice in my head, "Lego can't possibly associate its brands with that kind of thing."

/The end

montecook,
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@orionkidder @waitworry I would love to forget, but it's been too big a part of my life.

montecook, to random
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We're heading into a time when AI is so very, very good for shareholders and corporate bottom lines that companies are going to continue to try to force feed it to us with a big grin, even though the vast majority of us don't want it.

We're going to see a lot of condescending messaging in the next year or two about how we just don't understand, and they're sure we're going to love AI when we can see how great it is for us.

montecook, to random
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It's launched, it's funded, and I need some breakfast (actually, at this point I guess it's lunch) https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/monte-cook-games/knights-of-dust-and-neon?ref=bk-discover-trending

montecook,
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"I said lunch, not launch!"

(That's a reference for the olds)

LeviKornelsen, to random
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After a discussion with @thoughtpunks , I thought:

I should blog this.

So I did.

https://levikornelsen.wordpress.com/2024/03/18/reject-the-god-emperor-and-be-free/

montecook,
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@LeviKornelsen @thoughtpunks I think you are completely right.

TheDreadGazebo, to DnD
@TheDreadGazebo@dice.camp avatar

Going to read my very favourite.
Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 Player's Handbook.
#dnd35e #dnd

montecook,
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@DM_Zeppelin @TheDreadGazebo Me too.

montecook,
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@DM_Zeppelin @TheDreadGazebo I always blame Jonathan (Tweet) in cases like this. (But seriously, yeah, they were meant to be glass cannons, so to speak.)

montecook, (edited ) to random
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You know that feeling when you're walking through a potentially dangerous area (bad part of town, dark woods in the wilderness, etc) and you're constantly aware that someone or something might jump out and do something bad to you? I feel like that tonight. I feel like someone's going to jump out and steal an hour from me.

montecook, to random
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It was a Kickstarter-fueled day of 80s nostalgia for me today as I got the new Dreadstar graphic novel as well as the Dark Tower homage from Goodman Games. Good stuff. Felt like I was 13 years old again.

montecook, to random
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I realized today that I never need to watch or read a superhero origin story again. Cosmic rays, spider bites, escaping doomed planets, the whole thing. I don't need to see a character struggle to cope with their new powers or decide to hide it from their family or friends.I don't need anyone to answer the question "how could this be?" when I never actually asked.

montecook,
@montecook@dice.camp avatar

I mean, it's fine, I won't avoid stories that include origins, but if I never see one again, that will be okay. There are still so many reasons I love superhero stories, but at this point origins are not one of them.

montecook,
@montecook@dice.camp avatar

@breadwizard Wait. Batman's parents are dead? I didn't even know they were sick.

montecook, to books
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Read any good books lately? #books

montecook, to random
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Started listening to the podcast Tower 4. Really enjoyed it so far. Very much like the game Firewatch, but shaping up to be even better.

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