Other What do people have against fandoms? (Role Playing Discussions)

[Alexandra]

I've been in a variety of gaming groups over the years, and have played in what could technically be considered fandom roleplays, though I only discovered that category when I can to this site. I'm a die-hard dice roleplayer, so pretty much all of my resources have a codified system and setting attached, ie; an established universe for us to work with. I find these kinds of boundaries can offer clarity in what can and cannot be done character and plot-wise (like an exercise in learning to break the rules intelligently).
One of our unwritten rules for playing something set in, for example, the Firefly universe, was that *no-one* would ever get to play, or speak to a named character from the show. Ever. For us, that solved the "you're not doing it right" arguments before they came up. If you're doing fandom roleplays right, in my opinion, you should be using the universe to tell the stories that never got told, and make your own mark.

 

[Teh Frixz]

What defines a fandom versus a setting? I must say I'm squarely in the Warhammer 40k fandom and I enjoy the Mass Effect Setting. I really think what it comes down to is the fans involvement in it and if you are attempting to rewrite canon. 


For or the must part, I run far away from people attempting to play Canon characters but I see nothing wrong with playing around in the various settings of fandom but there is a hard couple of lines that shouldn't be crossed. 

 

[Alexandra]

What defines a fandom versus a setting? I must say I'm squarely in the Warhammer 40k fandom and I enjoy the Mass Effect Setting. I really think what it comes down to is the fans involvement in it and if you are attempting to rewrite canon. 


For or the must part, I run far away from people attempting to play Canon characters but I see nothing wrong with playing around in the various settings of fandom but there is a hard couple of lines that shouldn't be crossed. 

The fandom are the people. So, a setting (any piece of specific media) would have a fandom surrounding it, often building online communities to discuss it, and creating fanart and fanfiction.

 

[commanderproton]

I don't think Warhammer really counts as fandom rpg, because it was created as an rpg, unless I'm mistaken.  It can have a fandom, which creates art and fiction and all sorts of fun stuff, but a Warhammer game would just be a Warhammer game, right?  

 

[Alexandra]

I don't think Warhammer really counts as fandom rpg, because it was created as an rpg, unless I'm mistaken.  It can have a fandom, which creates art and fiction and all sorts of fun stuff, but a Warhammer game would just be a Warhammer game, right?  

40k started as miniatures game, then came novels, rpgs, videogames, etc, but I wouldn't really tag it as fandom per se because it was always a thing to be played. But you could totally "be in the fandom" as a way of expressing how you feel about it and the associated media.

 

[commanderproton]

40k started as miniatures game, then came novels, rpgs, videogames, etc, but I wouldn't really tag it as fandom per se because it was always a thing to be played. But you could totally "be in the fandom" as a way of expressing how you feel about it and the associated media.

Exactly.  It *is* a tabletop rpg, which developed a fandom, as opposed to creating an rpg around something like Steven Universe, Harry Potter or the X-Men.  

 

[Alexandra]

Exactly.  It *is* a tabletop rpg, which developed a fandom, as opposed to creating an rpg around something like Steven Universe, Harry Potter or the X-Men.  

Indeed.


Though things get interesting when a film or series gets an officially licensed RPG after years of fans making their own. Isn't language fascinating??

 

[Donder172]

A Huge Problem with Fandom RPs, particularly Multiverse, is when two characters fight, and it just becomes a contest to see who can have the most ridiculous powers and counters. The Problem is probably the worst in Comic Universe, but Sci-fi has it too. The biggest problem there is that they throw in a ton of terms with no real meaning, and then don't actually give reasons why they would win. They worst is probably the good 'ole Star Trek vs. Star Wars headache. As someone who is starting a multiverse RP, i have thought about this quite a bit 

Is Star Wars v Star Trek still a thing?

 

[Sara Sidereal]

A Huge Problem with Fandom RPs, particularly Multiverse, is when two characters fight, and it just becomes a contest to see who can have the most ridiculous powers and counters. The Problem is probably the worst in Comic Universe, but Sci-fi has it too. The biggest problem there is that they throw in a ton of terms with no real meaning, and then don't actually give reasons why they would win. They worst is probably the good 'ole Star Trek vs. Star Wars headache. As someone who is starting a multiverse RP, i have thought about this quite a bit 

you think that's bad, you should see supreme commander vs starcraft (or really any other universe) arguments. My favorite post was the one that tried to prove that space marines must be over one thousand kilometers tall using the speed of light.

 

[Alexandra]

you think that's bad, you should see supreme commander vs starcraft (or really any other universe) arguments. My favorite post was the one that tried to prove that space marines must be over one thousand kilometers tall using the speed of light.

If you find those kinds of things amusing, check out Screw Attack's Death Battles. 

 

[Sara Sidereal]

If you find those kinds of things amusing, check out Screw Attack's Death Battles. 

https://forums.spacebattles.com

 

[Alexandra]

https://forums.spacebattles.com

Ooh, gimme an elevator pitch for this site, the name is instantly interesting.

 

[Sara Sidereal]

It's pretty much exactly what it sounds like, nerds arguing at each other with rhetoric on the level of "nuh uh, goku would throw the overmind into the sun, and plus your face is ugly anyway", except occasionally with math


I check it out every now and then for a laugh

 

[Alexandra]

It's pretty much exactly what it sounds like, nerds arguing at each other with rhetoric on the level of "nuh uh, goku would throw the overmind into the sun, and plus your face is ugly anyway", except occasionally with math


I check it out every now and then for a laugh

Ooh, excellent. I'll need to go look for threads that catch my eye, I love to laugh at that ~

 

[commanderproton]

Whenever my friends and I have fandom vs fandom debates, we makesure to leave out the likes of Phoenix, Doctor Manhattan, and the entire Dragon Ball canon.