Is a 5th Edition coming soon? [Answer: NO, it isn't!]

[ericbsmith]

Originally Posted by roguebfl

Kromm said nothing about not understanding cyphering, he talking about how much contration/effort is needed to pull it off...

Exactly. There are plenty of people who can read yet never bother to pick up a book. They don't enjoy the exercise of reading, so they just don't bother to read when they don't have to. Similarly, there are plenty of people who can do basic math, especially if given pencil & paper or a calculator, but they simply don't enjoy the exercise of doing math so they avoid it when they can.

One might argue that people who don't spend much time reading or doing math are less intelligent. Since most intelligence tests are based on reading comprehension and mathematical skills it's kind of a catch-22 though - people who don't practice the kind of skills that are on intelligence tests tend to score lower on those tests.

However, all that said, my experience is that most RPG players are of above average intelligence. Of course, at the same time, most of them want to believe that they are of significantly higher intelligence than they actually are, so anything that might make them look "dumb" becomes an activity that they don't want to participate in. This may be where the whole "GURPS requires knowing cube roots and other hard math" meme comes from - while GURPS doesn't actually require that much mathematics to play, it does require more than many games, and anyone that doesn't particularly like doing math is going to dislike it for that reason alone. Then, to make themselves feel better, they are going to make the math that GURPS does use sound far harder than it actually is.

[Barenziah58]

I believe PnP roleplaying games will make than come back in the future. There are certain groups of people who hated PnP roleplaying games after it encought you to think and use your invageion.

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by ericbsmith

Exactly. There are plenty of people who can read yet never bother to pick up a book. They don't enjoy the exercise of reading, so they just don't bother to read when they don't have to. Similarly, there are plenty of people who can do basic math, especially if given pencil & paper or a calculator, but they simply don't enjoy the exercise of doing math so they avoid it when they can.

I don't enjoy reading. Nor do I enjoy doing arithmetic.

But I find that doing either brings rewards. Reading brings the reward of getting to explore interesting worlds and interesting characters, or acquiring useful information. Doing arithmetic brings many rewards. I keep track of personal finances (budgetting), I get to make better decisions in computer games (even if often it is as simple as calculating or intuitting the "value density" of loot in Skyrim), I get to objectively simulate interesting characters who differ starkly from the average in specific regards, in RPGs, and so forth.

But doing either as a thing in itself is completely unrewarding for me. It makes as much sense to me as fetishizing the act of sitting in front of a computer and using it. A computer is a tool, interesting only in terms of what I can do with it or on it. Like reading, writing and arithmetic, it empowers the person who has mastered it.

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by Palmer

He specified 4th Edition D&D, which you are obviously not playing.

I didn't mean only 4E. I also had 3E and 3.5 in mind, where Wizards have a limited number of Fireballs prepared per day, so the choice of actually casting one is important. Should I cast it now, or should I save it for later, for a more critical situation?

Sorcerers are freer to cast Fireballs, though, since they don't hae to prepare spells.

But my point stands that casting Fireball is not routine in any edition of D&D, except at very high levels.

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by ericbsmith

This may be where the whole "GURPS requires knowing cube roots and other hard math" meme comes from - while GURPS doesn't actually require that much mathematics to play, it does require more than many games, and anyone that doesn't particularly like doing math is going to dislike it for that reason alone. Then, to make themselves feel better, they are going to make the math that GURPS does use sound far harder than it actually is.

IME, most of these people have never played it, or even really looked at it. It's not D&D (or whatever) so therefore it must suck for some reason and they heard from a guy that heard from a guy that heard from a guy that some guy was doing cube roots for something in GURPS. Haters gotta hate.

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by sir_pudding

IME, most of these people have never played it, or even really looked at it. It's not D&D (or whatever) so therefore it must suck for some reason and they heard from a guy that heard from a guy that heard from a guy that some guy was doing cube roots for something in GURPS. Haters gotta hate.

Most people in this hobby are one-system people who find the idea of having to learn a new system extremely intimidating. I draw my own conclusion about the mental capacity of such people.

Also, those who are biased against GURPS in factual ignorance often fail to overlook that most of the arithmetic is done prior to game start. In advance. They assume that the arithmetical work is spread evenly throughout the sessions, sometimes because that's what they're used to in D&D or AD&D.

[TorgSmith]

Originally Posted by sir_pudding

IME, most of these people have never played it, or even really looked at it. It's not D&D (or whatever) so therefore it must suck for some reason and they heard from a guy that heard from a guy that heard from a guy that some guy was doing cube roots for something in GURPS. Haters gotta hate.

So why are you hating haters so much? :)

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by TorgSmith

So why are you hating haters so much? :)

Hate haters gotta hate haters. :)

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by sir_pudding

Hate haters gotta hate haters. :)

So you're saying your hat know no limit?

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by Kromm

So you're saying your hat know no limit?

Ouch. My poor brain.

Though I do have some pretty awesome hats...