Greeting from Sweden yet again!
I don't know how popular KULT: Divinity Lost is outside Sweden, and if American KULT fans have discovered this "subtle" scenario:
https://webshop.helmgast.se/kult/and-the-rockets-red-glare-digital-pdf.html
Now, I'm not all that insightful when it comes to American politics, apart from some stuff I read and hear on alternative media channels, but I vote for the Sweden Democrats (SD), a party that is often maligned in the press and called nazis even though roughly a million Swedes have voted for the party. My point is, that if Helmgast who produces the new KULT, had written a scenario where Jimmie Åkesson, the party leader of the Sweden Democrats, had been portrayed in the same way I would have been pretty pissed off.
Here is an actual play in English of the scenario:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzkX1WQ3W9c
What do you think of all this? A sign of the times?
Edit: an update. I found this review who claims that the scenario is not basic Trump-bashing in any way:
https://kultrpg428229752.wordpress.com/2019/05/21/and-the-rockets-red-glare-scenario-review/
"First of all: This is not a Trump-bashing scenario. This scenario is not that banal or simple. This scenario does not take sides it instead reveals the dark and depressing insight in the KULT-universe that there are no “good” powers looking out for us. It is all a charade that is part of our prison. And Clinton wants to keep us Imprisoned just as much as Trump."
But then I started checking out the author behind the scenario. Jaqueline Bryk. It didn't sound like a Swedish person and after some google-fu it turns out she is from Delaware. She's written quite a bit of tabletop rpg stuff it seems. Then I found her Twitter:
https://twitter.com/RuffleJax
Now, she has suffered from anxiety and other stuff like I have, so I don't want to attack her, really. But her Twitter-account is rather telling about her very strong personal and political viewpoints.
Final edit: I noticed that she's following ANTIFA Philadelphia. Here in Sweden they are regarded as quite violent and to many viewed as a threat to democray, including being mentioned in reports about the violent left from Säpo (The Swedish Security Service). Maybe it's not the same in the US?
I did notice Divinity Lost has some writing that suggests the writers lean a certain way politically but it wasn't extreme enough for me to consider it propaganda.
Quote from: myleftnut;1092085I did notice Divinity Lost has some writing that suggests the writers lean a certain way politically but it wasn't extreme enough for me to consider it propaganda.
Alright, are we talking the core book, other scenarios or the scenario above now?
Funny I just ran into this myself today. I am also reading another scenario by the same author where they state that mass immigration from Cuba was because of an embargo induced famine as opposed to people fleeing from Castro's shit policies and the likelihood of death under the Communist regime. I am sure it will not be too long before we get this sort of thing from New Chaosium or a proxy such as Gold Goblin Press.
Quote from: GIMME SOME SUGAR;1092093Alright, are we talking the core book, other scenarios or the scenario above now?
I'm referring to the core book. I haven't read this new adventure. Is Clinton a lictor too?
Quote from: myleftnut;1092102I'm referring to the core book. I haven't read this new adventure. Is Clinton a lictor too?
I think she is, but she plays no part in the scenario as far as I can recall. I just wonder if the same author would have written about lictor Clinton as the central figure instead of Trump, or written about Antifa ledd by razids or lictors? Or the whole woke-movement led by creatures from beyond the illusion? I somehow doubt that, but maybe I'm just being a bit negative.
Quote from: GIMME SOME SUGAR;1092063Sweden Democrats (SD), a party that is often maligned in the press and called nazis
Wikipedia paints that picture. SD is nationalist, and populist, and alt-right, and all kinds of other weasel-words.
Quote from: GIMME SOME SUGAR;1092063Then I found her Twitter:
Good rule of thumb - if a Twitter bio/profile contains someone's pronouns, they're going to be a trash person who subscribe to trash beliefs.
Quote from: KultFirst of all: This is not a Trump-bashing scenario. This scenario is not that banal or simple.
It really is.
There seems to be a common theme among many new/rebooted rpgs, their production companies and their selection of writers. If you really want to get published by them you have to be political, you have to take a stand against something in your written material, you have to fight the good fight or at least be queer, polyamorous or gender-fluid. How can a more conservate scenario/adventure writer even get published today by these companies?
Speaking of Kult, the first Swedish version was free of any virtue signaling. It was made in less sensitive times. The people that got upset where the same people that got upset by heavy metal. The game itself was just body horror, some sex, occultism and gnosticism baked into a big, bloody Clive Barker-cake. Chains, guns, private hells, madness, the veiled Metropolis, abandoned warehouses where unspeakable acts took place and stuff like that.
Quote from: GIMME SOME SUGAR;1092124How can a more conservate scenario/adventure writer even get published today by these companies?
Fuck 'em. Self-publish. There's Lulu, where you can sell .PDF and print-on-demand copies of your work. DriveThruRPG does the same, but you do run the risk of them censoring or ultimately de-platforming you there if you don't toe the line.
Right now, the only items DTRPG has censored that I can think of are Grim's card game mocking GamerGate and "Tournament of Rapists" from Skortched Urf' Studios "Black Tokyo" line (but, the rest of their stuff appears unmolested).
That's not to say they won't do it again (I'm positive they will), but if you fly under the SJW radar (and, quite frankly, avoid blatantly racist/sexist stuff in your work), you should be relatively OK (both instances above, DTRPG caved to cry-bully demands). The SJWs will still bitch and lie, but if your stuff is "clean" then, well? What are they gonna do? Bitch on Twatter some more?
Amazon also has it's print-on-demand feature (formerly CreateSpace, unsure what it's called now), and folks like Grim have setup their own storefront for selling PDFs, so there's that option, too.
The trad-publlishers still have more of a marketshare, and their economies of scale allow them to do traditional (offset?) print runs, but that's becoming increasingly unimportant as POD technology improves/gets cheaper.
I'm kind of a "it was better in the original, before the plebes knew about it" poseur. :p So I tend myself to be fond of the older rpg editions. What's the new Kult got that I need?
(As for using ersatz modern politics for modern setting rpg gaming fodder, I'm a fan, especially if it is well done and everyone gets shat upon. :D Kult, Delta Green, and the like seem perfectly fine places for such speculative adventures, in my opinion. Twisting the knife only makes the screams sweeter. ;) )
Of course that "adventure" is an anti-Trump imbecile screed! LOL.
If Hilary had won (aka Grandma Nixon), that scenario would never have been written, let alone published.
Fuck'em in their pronouns.
Quote from: GIMME SOME SUGAR;1092063Final edit: I noticed that she's following ANTIFA Philadelphia. Here in Sweden they are regarded as quite violent and to many viewed as a threat to democray, including being mentioned in reports about the violent left from Säpo (The Swedish Security Service). Maybe it's not the same in the US?
ANTIFArt and all groups which use violence to promote their political views are terrorists.
Unfortunately, the Left in the USA have been increasingly embracing political violence and I expect this trend to continue.
Quote from: Opaopajr;1092164I'm kind of a "it was better in the original, before the plebes knew about it" poseur. :p So I tend myself to be fond of the older rpg editions. What's the new Kult got that I need?
Original editions of RPGs are usually the best editions. Later editions may have "cleaned up" rules and perhaps "better art", but invariably they are lacking or devoid of the initial energy that led the original author to create the game from scratch. Rarely do the later editions have fire in their bellies. They mostly feel sterile and committee approved, versus games designed by one nutter with a typewriter who only hoped their idea would find an audience.
I saw no reason to buy the new Kult. It looked like a nostalgic cash grab.
Quote from: Opaopajr;1092164(As for using ersatz modern politics for modern setting rpg gaming fodder, I'm a fan, especially if it is well done and everyone gets shat upon. :D Kult, Delta Green, and the like seem perfectly fine places for such speculative adventures, in my opinion. Twisting the knife only makes the screams sweeter. ;) )
I don't like mixing politics and gaming. Invariably, one or more players will get offended and then I have to flay their skin off.
I kinda knew this thing would get written sooner or later. I personally think it's funny. The disappointment comes from the fact that it was only written because Trump bashing is "soooo hot right now" and no one would have dared publish a Hillary or Obama equivalent. Are any Trump supporters here actually offended?
Quote from: Opaopajr;1092164What's the new Kult got that I need?
The consensus is that, besides having very good art, the new edition has better rules than the original.
Quote from: Spinachcat;1092173Original editions of RPGs are usually the best editions. Later editions may have "cleaned up" rules and perhaps "better art", but invariably they are lacking or devoid of the initial energy that led the original author to create the game from scratch. Rarely do the later editions have fire in their bellies. They mostly feel sterile and committee approved, versus games designed by one nutter with a typewriter who only hoped their idea would find an audience.
The Kult : Divinty Lost does not use the original mechanics. It uses Powered by the Apocalypse.
Quote from: Gagarth;1092206The Kult : Divinty Lost does not use the original mechanics. It uses Powered by the Apocalypse.
Yup, and considering PbtA is usually great at emulating specific themes, it actually turns Spinachcat theory around it's head.
Changing the ruleset between editions doesn't preserve the energy of the original edition. See D&D 3e and 4e for more details.
So my theory is doing just fine.
Quote from: Gagarth;1092206The Kult : Divinty Lost does not use the original mechanics. It uses Powered by the Apocalypse.
So its even worse than I thought!
PbtA is exactly the opposite of rules getting the fuck out of the way which is crucial for a horror RPG.
Changing the ruleset between editions doesn't preserve the energy of the original edition. See D&D 3e and 4e for more details.
So my theory is doing just fine.
Quote from: Gagarth;1092206The Kult : Divinty Lost does not use the original mechanics. It uses Powered by the Apocalypse.
Its even worse than I thought!
PbtA is a good game. It has some narrative hooha stuff in it, in some distros/games but Kult is not one of them. It basically codifies trad play in a way that helps spur the conversation part of the game. It's major tagline is "play to see what happens" which is the same goals as OSR GMs.
I would recommend that those who are skeptical take a look at it.
Quote from: Gagarth;1092206The Kult : Divinty Lost does not use the original mechanics. It uses Powered by the Apocalypse.
:( Hard pass. No longer interested. :) Thanks for the heads up! (Returns to collector boards for 'gently used' oldies.)
How was the 1st edition of Kult in English like? I heard some stuff about it being toned down a bit...or was this the 2nd edition?
I acquired the 1st edition in English back in the 90s. My friend and I read the game fiction aloud on the way back from the store and laughed awkwardly at the gory horror. In time, I wondered if I was comfortable with my purchase.
It's now one of my favorite gaming possessions.
Hm, reading this, several things comes to mind:
On SD, i can only say one positive thing ... Åkesson has cleaned it up well ... on the outside, but that is all on the surface.
There was briefly another good thing, wanting to exit the EU, but i guess we were both screwed there (voted left, they and SD was the only "Exit EU-alternatives" a few years back), as not even they were interested in that any longer in the EU-voting.
On KULT:
Owned the original ... while i was in a psyche ward, no less.
Great concept, decent rules (very BRP, the system-to-go in Sweden back then), plays a hell of a lot with psychological problems as well as splatter horror ...
And that alternate take on insanity and humanity ...
I miss it.
On PbtA ....
It might work, but it has nothing to offer me, and it is NOT OSR ... Although, i find "OSR" over-rated, as i'm more of a WoD - fan.
* smirks *
On SJW shenanigans:
I'm a fucking leftist transgender, trans-racial, pansexual otherkin, and a damned weird "snowflake" ... But SJWs are too far off on the authoritarian border and, to reuse a now seemingly forgotten reference:
They are NOT MY SHIELD.
Fuck them, they might need it.
Quote from: Catelf;1092869On SJW shenanigans:
I'm a fucking leftist transgender, trans-racial, pansexual otherkin, and a damned weird "snowflake" ... But SJWs are too far off on the authoritarian border and, to reuse a now seemingly forgotten reference:
They are NOT MY SHIELD.
Fuck them, they might need it.
Yeah, what irks me the most is that the chosen few seem to think they speak for everyone. And that some delicate flowers in the rpg hobby need a safe space, that old fantasy art is just about toxic masculinity etc. They are few, but they are smart/loud enough to infiltrate and influence rpg companies.
Quote from: GIMME SOME SUGAR;1092871Yeah, what irks me the most is that the chosen few seem to think they speak for everyone. And that some delicate flowers in the rpg hobby need a safe space, that old fantasy art is just about toxic masculinity etc. They are few, but they are smart/loud enough to infiltrate and influence rpg companies.
"Leftist" i.e. liberal and equality - based ideals had a good motion forward a bunch of years ago, but on ALL successful waves there will always be riding attention-seekers and manipulators, supported by people that like the ideals and the ideas, but that cannot see or refuse to see that the ones they are supporting only gives lip service and nothing else to the ideas and ideals.
I don't blame them, they just don't know better, and today, despite the knowledge at our fingertips, it is still hard to get fully informed, as there are echo chambers and the equivalent of "safe spaces" (yes, for the right as well) practically everywhere, and for every political view.
This place took me out of a path to SJW-dom, frankly, i find the mix of opinions on here refreshing.
But, as the main point here is games, i would like to say that the reviewer that claims the scenario isn't Trump-bashing has a point, as KULT's world is pretty much that however you do, you're screwed.
Of course, the one that wrote it could easily have been bashing Trump, but really, the original game bashed historical characters to the right and left, including the game creators themselves ... yes, they went meta.
So i would say it is still usable, perhaps after a few tweaks.
Quote from: Catelf;1092979"Leftist" i.e. liberal and equality - based ideals had a good motion forward a bunch of years ago, but on ALL successful waves there will always be riding attention-seekers and manipulators, supported by people that like the ideals and the ideas, but that cannot see or refuse to see that the ones they are supporting only gives lip service and nothing else to the ideas and ideals.
I don't blame them, they just don't know better, and today, despite the knowledge at our fingertips, it is still hard to get fully informed, as there are echo chambers and the equivalent of "safe spaces" (yes, for the right as well) practically everywhere, and for every political view.
This place took me out of a path to SJW-dom, frankly, i find the mix of opinions on here refreshing.
Yup, there is more than one axis when it comes to human beliefs. People can very much be anti-Liberty ass-clenchers while otherwise agreeing with you elsewhere. Humans are allowed to be complicated. :)
Quote from: Catelf;1092979But, as the main point here is games, i would like to say that the reviewer that claims the scenario isn't Trump-bashing has a point, as KULT's world is pretty much that however you do, you're screwed.
Of course, the one that wrote it could easily have been bashing Trump, but really, the original game bashed historical characters to the right and left, including the game creators themselves ... yes, they went meta.
So i would say it is still usable, perhaps after a few tweaks.
Yeah, if there ever were some games where modern politics
should become gaming fodder Kult is definitely on that list. It takes the royal piss out of everything. It's like Kierkegaard decided to make an RPG on how to deconstruct polemics with Clive Barker cenobites chasing you. :D Yes, it's every bit as crazy and wonderful and torturous as that sounds -- and yes, finding that right group of gamers for it is rare like hen's teeth. :)
Quote from: myleftnut;1092179Are any Trump supporters here actually offended?
I'm proTrump and I'm hardly offended. The scenario doesn't matter. KULT doesn't matter. The author doesn't matter.
In ten to twenty years, the number of people that remember any of this with anything more than "remember how people got really retarded for a while" likely approaches zero.
@spinachcat; Placing Richard Nixon in the same company as Hillary Clinton is an insult to Nixon.