Why so many looks at a First Print Dieties Demigods book? • Collecting General • The Acaeum

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Why so many looks at a First Print Dieties Demigods book?
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Gnat the Beggar
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Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 9:34 am

My current listing of a First Print DDG now has 376 views!

Not that I am complaining because I am not....

The more looks the more likely SOMEONE will bid on it.

And of course the more the bidding merrier I will be.

But WHY so many?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=280344578450

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bbarsh
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Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 9:38 am

377

happens everytime I list one, too.

How many watchers?

That is the more important number because it will translate into higher end bidding.

Certain items just get way move views. Holmes basic sets also get lots of looks.

And I could've bought these damn modules off the 1$ rack!!!

New modules for your Old School game http://pacesettergames.com/

Everything Pacesetter at http://pacesettergames.blog.com/

Gnat the Beggar
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Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 9:40 am

402

and counting ....
Watchers? Seven now, with 3 hours 45 minutes left.
Two watchers signed on since I posted this thread.
They may be members here (My guess) not certain though.

I do not recall having this many views ever on anything.
Of course I have only sold like 20-30 items in all the time ive been on E-Bay (till now).
That total will be nearing 50 after this group of listingsare done.

No way I would have ever thought that this listing would get 400 plus views.......

"Guys, I am starting to think Tegel Manor might be haunted..."
Stated by me as a PC during a run of Tegel Manor DMed by killjoy at NTRPGCon 2010

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killjoy32
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Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 1:33 pm

wow look at that pic. i think Ane needed to eat and the wife hadnt got back with the shopping yet

Are we nearly there yet?

Gnat the Beggar
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Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 3:55 pm

456 views... WOWSERS!

"Guys, I am starting to think Tegel Manor might be haunted..."
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Deadlord
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Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 4:25 pm

I read one of mine in bed just last night. Having re-devoured the Elric series, I wanted to brush up on the Melnibonean pantheon.
The DDG is helpful, but it seems pointless to give gods hit points.....

If you hit a Rowsdower, you get to keep it.

Gnat the Beggar
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Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 4:38 pm

Whale Tagger wrote:I read one of mine in bed just last night. Having re-devoured the Elric series, I wanted to brush up on the Melnibonean pantheon.
The DDG is helpful, but it seems pointless to give gods hit points.....

And in later years, a PC could easily have more hit points, better armor, better weapons, better spelles, and better stats too.

"Guys, I am starting to think Tegel Manor might be haunted..."
Stated by me as a PC during a run of Tegel Manor DMed by killjoy at NTRPGCon 2010

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copycat
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Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 4:49 pm

I don't think I've seen a 1st print. The ones I have are all 2nd prints.

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JohnGaunt
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Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 7:48 pm

Whale Tagger wrote:I read one of mine in bed just last night. Having re-devoured the Elric series, I wanted to brush up on the Melnibonean pantheon.
The DDG is helpful, but it seems pointless to give gods hit points.....

IIRC, Tim Kask posted here or on DF regarding this. I think he said that hit points were given to gods and avatars to show super-high-level characters how ridiculous their PCs were.

I look at the Deities and Demigods auctions to see how incorrect the description is, how rare the item is hyped to be, and whether or not the auction text mentions that the book has the Finnnish gods.

Faster, Pussycat
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Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 6:14 am

JohnGaunt wrote:IIRC, Tim Kask posted here or on DF regarding this. I think he said that hit points were given to gods and avatars to show super-high-level characters how ridiculous their PCs were.

Not sure if I believe this (no not that he didn't say it, just that it was true

). It seems unlikely that the entire hit pointing (and stat) exercise of the whole of a D&D manual was in fact an ironic exercise in shaming munchkin players. Perhaps the simpler, more likely explanation is that it was just one of those things that people did in the early heydays of roleplaying - which now, 25+ years of experience later, looks a little unwise. Of course, D&D was born nearly perfect, but I am sure if one were to go back in time and place to the very early days of its development, one couldn't help but tinker with it a little bit....

Deadlord
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Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 8:55 am

One thing I've always found slightly amusing is the mishandling of deities by the vast majority of DM's. All but the MOST powerful PC's would typically be overawed in the presence of a deity. Any deity, greater or lesser, could and should be able to swat a PC like a bug.
What I COULD see is using the stats on deity vs. deity combats, which should be a once-in-a-millenium occurrence.

If you hit a Rowsdower, you get to keep it.

TheMilford
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Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 10:34 am

the Gods', Demigods' and heroes' stats are there so that the aren't not there.

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Kingofpain89
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Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 11:04 am

I would use the hit point and stats in Deities & Demigods to describe their avatars. Killing an avatar is one thing....killing a deity is nowhere near as simple, even for another god. I'm sure statistics for avatars have been changed and defined several times through the various editions but I dont recall ever reading any.

You don't like your job, you don't strike. You go in every day and do it really half-assed. That's the American way. - Homer Simpson

Traveller
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Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 11:19 am

Faster, Pussycat wrote:Not sure if I believe this (no not that he didn't say it, just that it was true ). It seems unlikely that the entire hit pointing (and stat) exercise of the whole of a D&D manual was in fact an ironic exercise in shaming munchkin players. Perhaps the simpler, more likely explanation is that it was just one of those things that people did in the early heydays of roleplaying - which now, 25+ years of experience later, looks a little unwise. Of course, D&D was born nearly perfect, but I am sure if one were to go back in time and place to the very early days of its development, one couldn't help but tinker with it a little bit....

Gods, Demigods, & Heroes wrote:This volume is something else, also: our last attempt to reach the "Monty Hall" DM's. Perhaps now some of the 'giveaway' campaigns will look as foolish as they truly are. This is our last attempt to delineate the absurdity of 40+ level characters. When Odin, the All-Father has only(?) 300 hit points, who can take a 44th level Lord seriously?

That's the second or third paragraph in the Foreword to the book, which happened to be written by Tim Kask. Given that there was actually very little in the way of guidelines given regarding using deities in a campaign, the quoted paragraph given above was in fact the real reason.

Regarding the stats themselves, I use them to describe the avatars, but I also make the avatars damn near unkillable thanks to some prior work I had done on this very topic.

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Last edited by Traveller on Tue May 19, 2009 11:30 am, edited 1 time in total.

Badmike
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Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 11:27 am

Having hit points, classes, AC, etc in the D&DG was a huge mistake...BITD, lots of groups used the book as a monster manual and had their groups battle entire pantheons at once. I would almost say the appearance of D&DG began the entire slippery slope of major munchinism. Look at games like Call of Cthulhu, which give stats to deities but makes them overwelming in the comparison to humans....that's would should have happened. A god should have started at 1000 HP and gone from there, IF they should have even been statted out at all.

By using the framework of the game (giving them classes, AC, HD, etc) the presumption was that they were just "superheroes" and could be battled. Whatever the reason the result was a failure, probably because goofball 15 year old kids don't understand the "irony" of such an endeavor, it was doomed.

BTW, the slippery slope was made really slippery the moment EGG gave Lolth, Princess of Spiders, only 66 hp. Yeh her AC was -10, but there is no excuse for not making her hp at least, say, 250 (the amount she would have anyway since she can "heal" herself thrice a day) because there ARE situations in the modules where she can be forced into hth combat.

Mike B.

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Deadlord
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Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 11:31 am

Realistically, even Demon Princes and the like should be insanely difficult.

If you hit a Rowsdower, you get to keep it.

mordrin
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Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 11:42 am

This volume is something else, also: our last attempt to reach the "Monty Hall" DM's. Perhaps now some of the 'giveaway' campaigns will look as foolish as they truly are. This is our last attempt to delineate the absurdity of 40+ level characters. When Odin, the All-Father has only(?) 300 hit points, who can take a 44th level Lord seriously?

That's interesting. I didn't remember that intro.

Also, very ironic, given that about 5 years later the company was publishing rules for characters up to level 36 and beyond (immortality).

Kingofpain89
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Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 11:46 am

Badmike wrote:BTW, the slippery slope was made really slippery the moment EGG gave Lolth, Princess of Spiders, only 66 hp. Yeh her AC was -10, but there is no excuse for not making her hp at least, say, 250 (the amount she would have anyway since she can "heal" herself thrice a day) because there ARE situations in the modules where she can be forced into hth combat.

Mike B.

I recall in the Return to Tegel game last year we had major problems doing damage to the demon queen (and her demon spawn) with spells due to her magic resistance and her range attacks. And she was eventually taken out by a brilliant backstab from an exceptional thief. No one else could get close enough for melee and if they had she would have most likely torn them in two. I think Al could have easily wiped all of us out if he really wanted to.

You don't like your job, you don't strike. You go in every day and do it really half-assed. That's the American way. - Homer Simpson

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