Controversial posts made by Ganymede

@Monogram said:

Sarcasm aside, I could see Durant getting so desperate to win, he would join up with Lebron. Well, okay, I see it more happening with Westbrook than Durant. Or 'Mello. Definately 'Mello.

This.

Do you think LeBron wanted to leave Cleveland? Of course not, but he couldn't get anyone to go there because he was an untested star. Then he won his two rings, went back, and convinced Kevin Love to join him.

Do you think Jordan wanted help in Chicago? He might not have needed it for his 6 rings, but he welcomed it, and he was a winner. Shaq? Three rings with Kobe, and then another with Wade. Garnett? Went to Boston, won a ring. Durant is already sharing the spotlight with Russell Westbrook.

Durant's not Allen Iverson or Kobe Bryant He's a smart kid. He'll go where he can win. And he can win on a team with LBJ, Love, and Irving. Easily.

@Warma-Sheen said:

The problem is that the overturned staffer doesn't think one of those things applies. For example, you may not think you were being arbitrary or capricious but Headstaff thinks you were.

Since you don't speak lawyerese, I will not lecture you on how the term "arbitrary" and "capricious" have very specific meanings. That said, the standard is more than "Headstaff thinks you made a wrong decision"; it means "there is no fact or reasonable inference that can be made to support your position."

For me, it boils down to this. If you hire me as staff, you are giving me a set of expectations and a clear objective. I will follow those expectations if I am hired, and will meet that objective. But if what I do to meet that objective does not meet unsaid or irrational rules, I'm not going to follow them.

Generally, I come into games when a sphere or game needs to be re-booted or fixed-up; something happened, and the game needs serious help to get straight again. So, I'm going to make some decisions that other staff may not like, but I'm going to ultimately expect support unless I make a decision that is contrary to (printed) rules or have no basis in fact or reason. If you want someone to do your work that adheres strictly to your decisions, you need to find someone else; I can definitely do this, but I can think of eleventy-billion other things I'd rather be doing than acting like a cog.

I don't mind discussion; I encourage it. But if you want me to assume responsibility for something, I want the autonomy I described. Otherwise, you can assume responsibility, and you will probably need to look for someone else.

@Arkandel said:

Given how prevalent zombie tropes have been over the last couple of years I'd be shocked if there are no MU* around already set in The Walking Dead universe or some such.

Find one for me. I'll pay you.

@Bobotron said:

People who are bitchy about 'fairweather friends' ...

I never really understood what this meant. I don't like to hang out with bitchy, negative, whiny, or pissed off people. This is because I've been conditioned not to respond to antagonism.

You really would not want to hang out with me, unless you're ready to have a good time. I'm blunt, cold, and kind of callous when it comes to emotions.

@Arkandel said:

@bored said:

But that gets into the whole 'don't hire shitty staff' (and perhaps more important, 'actually fire your friends when they turn out to be shitty staff') thing.

Sure, but what is the point of having good ('not shitty') staff if you can't trust them to make decisions like that without accusing them of favoritism?

Presuming that the friends are objectively shitty and I had authority over the good staffer at issue, I would simply step in and fire his or her friend(s). If the good staffer objects, they can either resign as well or continue to staff.

It sucks being a boss at times, but reasonable decisions need to be made. Again, this presumes that the person-to-be-fired is objectively shitty.

@Scissors

I'm going to give Kushiel's Debut a shot. I'm still waiting for approval, but it's Thanksgiving down here in the U.S.

It's giving me time to work on the ol' Mass Effect Project, though. Yes, @Thenomain, I am working on it.

@EmmahSue said:

Note how HR doesn't complain about how that jury summons happens to have hit the exact week his mother in law is in town.

Coincidental magic is coincidental.

@Arkandel

Did you see what I wrote back there about restricted concepts? That also applies to Tier PCs. I don't like the concept, and would never implement them in my sphere. If I were forced to do so, and presuming that I don't outright quit because of such stupidity, then I would not hand-pick the player, and I would ask people generally if he/she/it would like to play that elder. From the list of people who show interest, I would pick the person I felt would be the best choice based on the surrounding circumstances.

What the hell does that mean? It means that I would try to consider all the angles. What if all of the players that would be good for the role did not want it? What if they already had positions of importance that I need to keep filled? What if the only person applying for the role were someone I barely had any experience with, but gets high commendations from others, including those I know well? Is the sphere such that I could find a "friend" from elseMU* to drop in? Is that a bad idea? Etc.

Of your five options, option 4 is my go-to. If that's not a choice, option 5: elder NPCs. Otherwise, look at the totality of the circumstances.

I'd gladly play on an Exalted game if I had a better handle on the rules. They seem overly complex to me.

@Coin said:

You may be surprised how easy it is for some of us to fall asleep while people yell at each other.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20knMq7_JZY

@bored

I might not have communicated well, but what you cited first is an accurate statement. You should try to maintain a good reputation, and, if you do, doors will open regarding whether you will be trusted with certain concepts or positions. It is entirely unrealistic to waltz into a game and be made Prince, but some people think that it would not be fair otherwise, and those people would be stupid.

Also, if I were to open a vampire sphere, I would not install a PC Prince to begin with. If I were forced to, then you're damned right that I would put it in the hands of someone I know I can work with, who isn't going to flake out on me, and who I can trust to not let things go down in flames and laughter. But I would only do that if I were forced to.

I suppose it depends on how you look at "concepts." I'm all for the idea of making CGen open, and making sure people have equal access to X, Y, and Z stats. I'm opposed to the idea of "restricted" stats, unless those relate to IC status, reputation, and position. If you don't like people having Iron Will, then don't let them have it period. And I don't consider "Seneschal" or "Sheriff" to be a concept; that's a position you can be appointed to.

But if there's an open Court position on a Vampire Sphere game like Seneschal or Sheriff, I will likely not approve of any player's PC taking that position if I know the player to be a shitbag or flaky. It does not serve the game's interests to allow any such player to have a PC in a power position. By the same token, if there's an open position and I know a player wants it who, in my opinion, is an asset to have in the sphere, then I will give it to that player over the unknown candidate.

Also, yeah, I'm all for having to spend XP or whatever to get the higher Status. And if you lose the position, that gets refunded, as per the Sanctity of Merits doctrine.

I hope this post clarifies my position.

@Wizz said:

Now it's like, you're an Iron Master because you hunt people, the end.

I find this more of a feature than a flaw. The obvious focus in Werewolf 2e is the hunt. The Tribes dictate what you're best at hunting, and the Auspices dictate how you go about participating in the hunt. It limits concepts in that there really aren't any wolves that don't hunt, but I think that's part of the game.

@HelloRaptor said:

I'm up for jury duty in Federal court in a couple of weeks. I'm mostly just wary of my ability to stay awake the whole time. My sleep schedule is pretty fucking erratic for a number of reasons, so having to be awake and alert during the day every day if I get called will be problematic. I imagine falling asleep during a trial would probably get me in trouble.

You'd be surprised how difficult it is to fall asleep when people are yelling at each other.

@bored said:

Its fine to make adjustments in game, as I hope I've clarified, but the 'casting' analogies are just kindly euphemisms for nepotism. If you don't promote equality at the fundamental first step, when people are joining your game, you set a precedent of favoritism and bullshit permanently.

Again, you show a basic lack of appreciation or knowledge of "casting" for a community theatre.

When you cast a show, you have open auditions. People come out to try out for roles. For some roles, there will be many prospects; for others, none. For the roles with multiple candidates, you pick the one that fits the role best, and that someone may be the person with the fewest rehearsal conflicts and a good reputation rather than an unknown commodity who puts on a spectacular audition (although this is not always the case). For the other roles, you try to convince the other actors and actresses to take one of them. But, above all things, if you know that a person is difficult or impossible to work with, you don't put them into any role.

What does this mean? If you want your sphere to work well, you let everyone come in. When it comes time to give them hats, make sure that the right hat goes to the best candidate. Use your personal experience and judgment to guide you in that decision. For the open roles, see if others want it, and try to encourage the "best" person into that role. If you have difficult people, keep them out of those important roles.

If you're a shitty director or producer, it won't matter what you do: you're shitty at it and until you become better, more thoughtful, or more reasonable, whatever you do will result in a shitty production. You should probably take up another hobby.

I fail to see how the above is fundamentally terrible. Please explain.

And @Arkandel, I'm not a tyrannical despot. I'm just ahead of the curve.

@tragedyjones said:

Not going to lie... I never knew why they were called "Spheres".

Venn diagrams were really popular in the mid-90s.

@Arkandel said:

Toronto is the cat's pajamas. Especially in the summer.

The Golden Horseshoe as a whole is the cat's negligee. I like Toronto as much as the next person, but there's so much more.

@Groth said:

The second most powerful combat discipline in the game is Majesty.

You're kidding, right? If you want to start any effect, you need to hoist up Awe. And Awe can be broken via Lashing Out. From personal experience, Majesty will get you nowhere if you're up against a vampire with higher Potency.

No, the best part about Majesty is the number of useful Devotions attached to it. Enfeebling Aura, Wet Dream, etc.

@Derp said:

So if that's the reason that staff are claiming, then I call that some lazy bullshit, right there.

No, it isn't. I'm not staff, and there's no official policy on point, as far as I can tell.

All I'm saying is that I understand why.

Maybe I just hate the fact that some shits think it's okay to leave others in a lurch. You fucking pricks, you can't send a fucking message or e-mail? Like, holy shit, how fucking childish and irresponsible is that, especially if your idling isn't due to an emergency?

(This is mostly due to some RL things happening right now. For real.)

If you're going to go, go and don't look back. If you're not sure about coming back, let someone know. If you have an emergency, try to let someone know, and, if that fails, get a friend to lend a hand ... and if that fails, and your emergency is so sudden that you can't pop an e-mail out in two weeks, I'll bet you have other things to worry about than your PC, whose demise can easily be flipped around if you come and ask.

Anyhow, I can understand why people are up in arms. I don't think it's a big deal.

@tragedyjones said:

Update: Their vague 'he put a ring on it' fb post is a PROMISE ring.

You should unfriend him. He's weak.

@Derp said:

I'm against xp caps, mostly for the reasons everyone else has stated: That is the end of the character's growth, and that's all they can ever learn, ever. It creates an inorganic finish to an otherwise vibrant character.

So, make it movable. Problem averted.