Good point, actually. Seems like these days, a lot of people wouldn’t change their opinion after seeing what this grandma saw.

Speaking as a Satanist studying computational fluid dynamics…

Need a DM?

I guess it’s like saying gambling is just math. You should sit in on her next bingo session or trip to the Indian casino. except you’re not winning money.

A friend calls it “narrative gambling”, because eventually we’re all throwing dice and hoping it doesn’t “ruin” us.

Exactly why I dislike D&D, it’s more about combat and math. I prefer systems that are less math heavy and more narrative/roleplay focused.

Oh absolutely.

If god and religion demand faith over evidence, then clearly math and science, both of which derive from logic, must be the antithesis of god.

They’re using Arabic numerals! It’s obviously all a devilish ploy to subvert our pure Christian souls!

You should check out GURPS. Its a simpler system with universal campaigns (modern, fantasy, mech, dimension hopping, steampunk). The system is super easy. You start with 100 points to make your character. You can spend them on stats, skills, spells, and perks. You can even gain more points by taking quirks.

You roll 3d6 for everything. Your goal is to get under your skill number. Fireball of 13 needs to roll under 13. If its raining or something, your GM can choose to put a -4 on that. So now you need to roll under 9. Just simple addition and subtraction, but it works really well.

Weeks? More like decades.

These days, some people wouldn’t even attempt to see the game with their own eyes and completely makes up their mind based on one FB post.

Knock #2 by the merry mushmen has a set of actual d666 tables for generating a pact with a devil.

I’m going to second the other commenter in my enthusiasm for GURPS, but for the opposite reason.

Gurps has the problem of being a universal role-playing system, like Fate, which means session zero includes a long sit-down with your DM about what precisely we will be doing in this game and what mechanics we will be using to create the desired experience. You then fill out the appropriate forms in triplicate to create your character. Usually, your DM makes a template for you to use like a shopping list, but the rulebook assumes you are digging through the first 300-page volume selecting your abilities and skills over the course of a day.

Then, once you start playing, you never have to look at the rulebook again. All the rules you will be using were written (by you) on your character sheet. You roll the dice, see if you managed to roll under your target numbers, and then either succeed or fail. The DM barely has to adjudicate anything.

Ooo, that sounds awesome! Thank you for sharing!

Oh wow, it sounds so much simpler and easier. Thanks for expanding on the other person’s point!

I just wanted to make sure you understood that the complexity is loaded all at the front, during session 0. Its actually a good deal more complex, but you get to pick and choose what kinds of complexity you want and deal with it at character creation.

Also, their supplemental books really helped me grow as a writer and gamemaster. Most of them tackle a genre and explore it thoroughly.

The conspiracy and accusations must always go deeper.

I’m also surprised it ended with the grandma realizing it was just math, because it could have just as easily ended with her thinking that they’re obviously hiding what the real game is about, and how bad it must be be that they’d go to such great lengths to cover it up.

I have to assume having a good, strong relationship with her grandchild must also be a contributing factor. If D&D remained something only anonymous ne’er-do-wells do, it’d be easy to continue buying into the satanic panic. But someone you know and trust to be responsible telling you it’s no big deal might make it a bit easier to accept.

I am assuming this was the 2.5ed? THAC0 calculations was treated as an arcane knowledge that only DMs had access to

Oh, thanks! We really appreciate that!

That’s great!

Not at my games, we only use true American ternary - , , and ️

Thanks for this. Its been quite a while since I’ve played, so I was going off of fuzzy memory. I do still have all the books, but haven’t opened them in a long time.

That’s exactly it. You choose what you want your character to do and be within the GM’s world type. Then you have one or two sessions really setting everything up for world, characters, story, progression, etc. After that you’re done with the hard part. Heck, even the GM is done with it. They may need to reference material occasionally, but the game almost plays itself.

It’s much, much more casual and focuses more on story and narrative. Its like if Choose Your Own Adventure was a game, the rolls only being there to add flavor and excitement to your adventures.