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I'm going to tell you what's wrong with the new generation.
[Grabs my bicep with his bony hand, which despite looking and feeling like a bird claw is surprisingly strong.]
In my day, you could trust bike racers because they cheated with integrity. They hopped a train mid-stage. They snorted some strychnine. They kicked up their feet and watched French sitcoms while enjoying a refreshing blood transfusion in the hotel during the rest day.
Not these new kids! No sir or ma'am! (I can't sex you young people no more what with your long hair and your nipple rings.) Take this Froome character for instance. He's as doped as the next guy, but just because he's "sick" it's "legal:"
Froome fell ill during the race and the Sky team doctor Allen Farrell put in the TUE application to allow Froome to take 40mg of the oral corticosteroid, per day. French newspaper La Journal du Dimanche reported that the UCI medical adviser Dr Michele Zorzoli had fast-tracked the TUE application at the Tour de Romandie.
By this time I was able to extricate myself from the Ancient Mariner's claw by jabbing at it repeatedly with one of those tiny plastic cocktail swords, at which point the bartender chased him out of the establishment by hitting him with a broom. Still, the old coot had a point. Why should you be allowed to take a banned substance just because you weren't feeling well that day? Shouldn't you have to either lose or stop racing? What's the real difference between taking corticosteroid because you got sick during a race and getting a blood transfusion during the third week of the Tour because your body won't recover? Seems to me they shouldn't allow any of it, or else they need to allow all of it.
Also, I'm amazed Chris Froome can race a bike at all at this point, much less win major stage races. The guy's got a blood parasite, he needs corticosteroids mid-race, and his asthma's so bad he needs to suck on an inhaler while he's riding:
At this rate they're going to give him a TUE for a Gruber Assist.
By the way, I was researching ("researching" is pretentious for "G--gling") Froome's blood parasite, and I learned that it can cause something often mistaken for "male menstruation:"
In some tropical peoples that work in wet places such as rice fields, most boys pick up Schistosoma, and start the bleeding, about puberty when they start working in the rice fields, and uneducated locals think that it is normal and refer to it as the male equivalent of female menstruation, and call it by their native language word for "menstruation".
It's worth noting that it's impossible follow pro cycling without having a deep knowledge of subjects such as hematocrit levels, the difference between autologous and homologous blood transfusions, chimeras, corticosteroids, Clenbuterol-tainted meat, and now male menstruation. To me, this is exactly what's wrong with the sport. Somehow, the rest of the world manages to sit back and watch a bunch of people kick a ball around, yet I wind up reading about children bleeding from their penises.
Moving on (you're welcome), here is a video to which I was alerted by a reader that explores the complex interplay between childlike fascination and total cluelessness:
The video is a profile of this couple. They love each other, which is nice, and so they do stuff together, which is also nice:
What kind of stuff do they do together? Well, stuff no other couple in the history of humankind has ever done together, such as eating food:
And riding bikes:
They also have what they call a unique living situation, by which I mean it's not:
"Our work situation and living situation is pretty unique. We live on one side of a duplex, and then the other side of a duplex is our office."
How is this even remotely unique? If they lived on a submarine and worked in a decommissioned nuclear silo then that might be unique, but this sounds like the typical live/work scenario that is the basis of a million Craigslist apartment ads.
And the way they go about their work is as unique as the situation in which they do that work:
"Whenever I'm working I'm starting one project and then it takes me to another project, and I'm constantly like back-and-forth and back-and-forth."
Right, because that's what working is. This is like saying, "Whenever I'm taking one mouthful, I'm chewing it and swallowing, and then I'm taking another mouthful."
You might imagine someone with such a unique approach to working has a similar approach to not working, and you'd be right:
"When I'm on my bike, it's like I get a focus on like, 'What do my legs feel like right now, how hard am I breathing right now.' I get a focus on my...self for the first time?"
So, like, you mean you're pedaling a bike and you're having fun? Yeah, us too, welcome to bikes.
It really is fascinating to watch someone discover the concept of "recreation" as they're describing it to you.
But there's more to riding bikes than having fun and not working while moving your legs. There's also weather:
"Having the sun hit your skin, like, being outdoors. The sensory experience involved in that? That's something that like our human ancestors experienced for 200,000 years and, like, a lot of times we're disconnected from that?"
It's true, we are somewhat disconnected from the sun when we're inside, I'll give him that. However, I'd also imagine that our human ancestors were similarly disconnected from the sunlight 200,000 years ago on those occasions when they retreated into their caves to hide from sabertooth tigers.
Sun isn't the only thing that amazes him, either. He's also amazed by the wind:
"When else do you think about the wind?"
An excellent question. When do you think about the wind? Well, let's see: getting dressed in the morning, walking, running, carrying an umbrella, wearing a floppy hat, wearing a skirt, wearing a necktie, sailing, swimming, flying a kite, reading a newspaper on a park bench, setting up a beach blanket... Yeah, pretty much all the time, really. In fact, wind is probably third only to precipitation and temperature as far as the atmospheric conditions that dictate your day. You wake up and you look out the window. What are you wondering? Three things: 1) Is it raining? 2) Is it cold? 3) Is it windy? Then, you get dressed accordingly, and you go to work--you know, the place where you go back-and-forth among numerous projects.
Next, they discover the concept of exhaustion:
"And then there's always a threshold. So, at what given point...are my legs at, and so, like, am I close to that threshold?"
It was at this point I realized that I was watching a documentary about two synthetic humans who have just emerged from a pod that aliens recently planted on the Earth, and whose mission is to live among us as they gather data about our planet.
But then the narrative takes a strange turn, as the Male Humanoid tells the story of his first century:
"When we get to mile 90? I mean, when we realized that we're actually 30 miles away from home? That was the darkest place I've ever been."
Wow. That was the darkest place you've ever been, really? The time you got really hungry on a bike ride and you needed a snack?
This confirmed my suspicion about the pod.
So what happened on that ill-fated century:
"I kept yawning?"
Yeah, us too.
Then he took a nap in a cornfield:


text:
Section 103
Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet, at Kirtland, Ohio, February 24, 1834. This revelation was received after the arrival in Kirtland, Ohio, of Parley P. Pratt and Lyman Wight, who had come from Missouri to counsel with the Prophet as to the relief and restoration of the Saints to their lands in Jackson County.
1–4, Why the Lord permitted the Saints in Jackson County to be persecuted; 5–10, The Saints will prevail if they keep the commandments; 11–20, The redemption of Zion will come by power, and the Lord will go before His people; 21–28, The Saints are to gather in Zion, and those who lay down their lives will find them again; 29–40, Various brethren are called to organize Zion's Camp and go to Zion; they are promised victory if they are faithful.
1 Verily I say unto you, my friends, behold, I will give unto you a revelation and commandment, that you may know how to act in the discharge of your duties concerning the salvation and redemption of your brethren, who have been scattered on the land of Zion;
2 Being driven and smitten by the hands of mine enemies, on whom I will pour out my wrath without measure in mine own time.
3 For I have suffered them thus far, that they might fill up the measure of their iniquities, that their cup might be full;
4 And that those who call themselves after my name might be chastened for a little season with a sore and grievous chastisement, because they did not hearken altogether unto the precepts and commandments which I gave unto them.
5 But verily I say unto you, that I have decreed a decree which my people shall realize, inasmuch as they hearken from this very hour unto the counsel which I, the Lord their God, shall give unto them.
6 Behold they shall, for I have decreed it, begin to prevail against mine enemies from this very hour.
7 And by hearkening to observe all the words which I, the Lord their God, shall speak unto them, they shall never cease to prevail until the kingdoms of the world are subdued under my feet, and the earth is given unto the saints, to possess it forever and ever.
8 But inasmuch as they keep not my commandments, and hearken not to observe all my words, the kingdoms of the world shall prevail against them.
9 For they were set to be a light unto the world, and to be the saviors of men;
10 And inasmuch as they are not the saviors of men, they are as salt that has lost its savor, and is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men.
11 But verily I say unto you, I have decreed that your brethren which have been scattered shall return to the lands of their inheritances, and shall build up the waste places of Zion.
12 For after much tribulation, as I have said unto you in a former commandment, cometh the blessing.
13 Behold, this is the blessing which I have promised after your tribulations, and the tribulations of your brethren—your redemption, and the redemption of your brethren, even their restoration to the land of Zion, to be established, no more to be thrown down.
14 Nevertheless, if they pollute their inheritances they shall be thrown down; for I will not spare them if they pollute their inheritances.
15 Behold, I say unto you, the redemption of Zion must needs come by power;
16 Therefore, I will raise up unto my people a man, who shall lead them like as Moses led the children of Israel.
17 For ye are the children of Israel, and of the seed of Abraham, and ye must needs be led out of bondage by power, and with a stretched-out arm.
18 And as your fathers were led at the first, even so shall the redemption of Zion be.
19 Therefore, let not your hearts faint, for I say not unto you as I said unto your fathers: Mine angel shall go up before you, but not my presence.
20 But I say unto you: Mine angels shall go up before you, and also my presence, and in time ye shall possess the goodly land.
21 Verily, verily I say unto you, that my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., is the man to whom I likened the servant to whom the Lord of the vineyard spake in the parable which I have given unto you.
22 Therefore let my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., say unto the strength of my house, my young men and the middle aged—Gather yourselves together unto the land of Zion, upon the land which I have bought with money that has been consecrated unto me.
23 And let all the churches send up wise men with their moneys, and purchase lands even as I have commanded them.
24 And inasmuch as mine enemies come against you to drive you from my goodly land, which I have consecrated to be the land of Zion, even from your own lands after these testimonies, which ye have brought before me against them, ye shall curse them;
25 And whomsoever ye curse, I will curse, and ye shall avenge me of mine enemies.
26 And my presence shall be with you even in avenging me of mine enemies, unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me.
27 Let no man be afraid to lay down his life for my sake; for whoso layeth down his life for my sake shall find it again.
28 And whoso is not willing to lay down his life for my sake is not my disciple.
29 It is my will that my servant Sidney Rigdon shall lift up his voice in the congregations in the eastern countries, in preparing the churches to keep the commandments which I have given unto them concerning the restoration and redemption of Zion.
30 It is my will that my servant Parley P. Pratt and my servant Lyman Wight should not return to the land of their brethren, until they have obtained companies to go up unto the land of Zion, by tens, or by twenties, or by fifties, or by an hundred, until they have obtained to the number of five hundred of the strength of my house.
31 Behold this is my will; ask and ye shall receive; but men do not always do my will.
32 Therefore, if you cannot obtain five hundred, seek diligently that peradventure you may obtain three hundred.
33 And if ye cannot obtain three hundred, seek diligently that peradventure ye may obtain one hundred.
34 But verily I say unto you, a commandment I give unto you, that ye shall not go up unto the land of Zion until you have obtained a hundred of the strength of my house, to go up with you unto the land of Zion.
35 Therefore, as I said unto you, ask and ye shall receive; pray earnestly that peradventure my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., may go with you, and preside in the midst of my people, and organize my kingdom upon the consecrated land, and establish the children of Zion upon the laws and commandments which have been and which shall be given unto you.
36 All victory and glory is brought to pass unto you through your diligence, faithfulness, and prayers of faith.
37 Let my servant Parley P. Pratt journey with my servant Joseph Smith, Jun.
38 Let my servant Lyman Wight journey with my servant Sidney Rigdon.
39 Let my servant Hyrum Smith journey with my servant Frederick G. Williams.
40 Let my servant Orson Hyde journey with my servant Orson Pratt, whithersoever my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., shall counsel them, in obtaining the fulfilment of these commandments which I have given unto you, and leave the residue in my hands. Even so. Amen.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Friday Photo Fun: February 11, 2022
Match the arrestee with their alleged crime
FEBRUARY 11--For today's "Friday Photo Fun" game, readers must examine five mug shots and match up the respective defendants with the crime for which they were arrested.
Just click and drag the crimes into the squares beneath each individual. Then click the "submit" arrow.


text: We are completely aware that the syllabus of Bank Exams changes every session. We need to be prepared for every change occurred in the examinations. Therefore, we are providing you questions of Hindi Language on a different pattern, which are updated on a daily basis. If you practice these questions on a regular basis, it will help you crack you all bank examinations. We wish you all the best for your bright future.


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Rolex Yellow Gold Date Ref. 1503 with Original Warranty (NEW ARRIVAL)
Brand: Rolex
Model: Date
Reference: 1503
Material: 18k YG
Dial Color: Black
Dimensions: 34 mm
Watch Movement: Self-Winding
Bracelet/Strap: Tan
Box/Paper: Papers & No Box
Condition: Excellent Condition with Very Minor Wear
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Brass Seated Hindu Goddess Lakshmi Statue Holding 2 Lotus Flowers & Coin 8"
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- Lakshmi is seated in the lalitasana seated position with her left leg hanging down while holding two lotus flowers in both her hands; symbols of beauty, prosperity and fertility, as well as a coin which she is offering to her devotees
- She is the Hindu Goddess of wealth, by having a statue of her in your home your are inviting abundance into your home and lives
- Her right hand is held up in the vitarka mudra with her thumb and forefinger touching which is the hand position of teaching
You just know when you find the right piece to bring into your home and into your heart. - Kyle Tortora, Founder of Lotus Sculpture
Draped in red saree, bedecked with gold ornaments, seated on a lotus, pot in hand, flanked by white elephants, the image of Lakshmi adorns most Hindu homes and business establishments.
Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, luxury, beauty, fertility, and auspiciousness. She holds the promise of material fulfillment and contentment. She is described as restless, whimsical yet maternal, with her arms raised to bless and to grant her blessings.
Shri is the sacred name of Lakshmi. Shri is written atop most documents and spoken before addressing a god, teacher holy man or any revered individual. The word evokes grace, affluence abundance, auspiciousness and authority. When the word is spoken or written an aura of holiness is established. Whatever follows is imbued with divine blessing. Just as the word "Om" is associated with the mystical side of life, Shri is associated with the material side of existence.
Lakshmi represents the beautiful and bountiful aspect of nature. As Bhoodevi, the earth-goddess, she nurtures life; as Shreedevi, the goddess of fortune, she bestows power, pleasure and prosperity on those who deserve her grace. To realize her, one must respect the laws of life and appreciate the wonders of existence.
Brass statues from India do not need much maintenance. The best way to maintain the statue is to simply dust the piece periodically to keep any dirt from accumulating. They can be used for both indoor and outdoor use.
You can use soap, warm water and a cotton cloth to periodically go over the statue to remove any dust or dirt buildup. If you are really interested in making the statue shine you can use some natural oil, like coconut oil or olive oil, and a cotton rag to wipe down the metal portions of the piece. You can use a toothbrush as well to get into the small crevices of the statue like the hands and hair.
Indian brass's durability makes it perfect for cold winters and hot summers of any climate. The metal can stand up to the harshest conditions of heat and bitter cold. We suggest you bathe the sculpture every couple of months so that dirt does not collect on the sculpture and then use a cotton cloth with some natural oil to give the statue a shine.
If you have any questions concerning your brass statue please email us at [email protected] or call us at 1(760) 994-4455.
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You can obtain a shipping quote for any statue by clicking the link, Calculate Shipping beneath to the Add To Cart button on every statues' page. Besides the shipping price, the results will also display the date the statue will arrive at your home. Lotus Sculpture uses Instapak foam injection packing system or bubble wrap and recycled peanuts to ensure that all our pieces arrive undamaged. Click here to learn more about Lotus Sculptures packing.
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You can obtain a shipping quote for any statue by clicking the link, Calculate Shipping beneath to the Add To Cart button on every statues' page. Or you can email [email protected] or call us 760-994-4455 to receive a shipping quote. Please include the item number of the statue you are interested in purchasing as well as your country and postal code. Lotus Sculpture uses Instapak foam injection packing system or bubble wrap and recycled peanuts to ensure that all our pieces arrive undamaged. Click here to learn more about Lotus Sculptures packing.


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Figural soapbox derby trophy on wood pedestal. The plaque on this trophy is not marked/etched. 3" W x 3" L x 6.5" H MM - 106248 - 041823
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By Chadwick R. Gore
CSCE Staff Advisor
The United States delegation to the 11th Annual Session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in (OSCE PA) hosted by the German Bundestag in Berlin, July 6-10, 2002, contributed to the work of the meeting through the introduction of measures on topics ranging from anti-Semitic violence in the OSCE region to developments in Southeastern Europe and the deteriorating situation in Belarus.
Attended by nearly 300 parliamentarians from over 50 countries, the OSCE PA unanimously adopted the Berlin Declaration on the political, economic and the human rights aspects of the central theme of the Session: "Confronting Terrorism: a Global Challenge in the 21st Century."
The U.S. Delegation was headed by Commission Co-Chairman Rep. Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ) with Commissioner Senator George V. Voinovich (R-OH) serving as Vice Chairman. Other Commissioners participating were Ranking Member Rep. Steny H. Hoyer (D-MD), Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD), OSCE PA Vice President Rep. Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL), Rep. Robert B. Aderholt (R-AL), and Rep. Joseph R. Pitts (R-PA).
Other delegates from the House of Representatives were Rep. Joseph M. Hoeffel (D-PA), Rep. Janice D. Schakowsky (D-IL), Rep. Thomas G. Tancredo (R-CO), and Rep. Jo Ann Davis (R-VA).
Although OSCE PA President Adrian Severin attempted to register and seat a Belarus Delegation with "provisional" badges, following a raucous debate the Assembly denied seating members of the National Assembly. The debate expressed continued concern from many parliamentarians about the severe irregularities in Belarus' 2000 parliamentary elections. Commissioners Smith, Hoyer and Cardin took an active part in the debate. Mr. Severin's motion was defeated in a close vote. The matter is expected to be revisited at the Assembly's Winter Session scheduled to be held in Vienna in February 20-21, 2003.
The opening ceremonies included addresses by OSCE PA President Adrian Severin, President of the German Bundestag Wolfgang Thierse, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany Gerhard Schröder and the Chairman-in-Office of the OSCE Foreign Minister of Portugal Antonio Martins da Cruz. Mr. da Cruz responded to questions from the floor, a procedure that has become the norm for the OSCE PA annual sessions.
Several senior OSCE Officials, including the OSCE Secretary General, Ján Kubiš, the High Commissioner on National Minorities, Rolf Ekéus, and the Representative on Freedom of the Media, Freimut Duve, also briefed the parliamentarians.
During the various sessions, delegates heard from such notables as Minister of Defense Mr. Rudolf Scharping, Minister of Economy Dr. Mr. Werner Müller, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Joseph Fischer.
The 2002 OSCE PA Prize for Journalism and Democracy was shared between Austrian TV-journalist Friedrich Orter and Belarusian TV-journalist Pavel Sheremet. The prize is awarded by the Assembly to journalists who, through their work, "have promoted OSCE principles on human rights, democracy and the unimpeded flow of information." This represents the seventh annual prize.
The PA reported that "Dr. Orter has promoted OSCE Principles on human rights and democracy through his comprehensive and impartial reporting in the Balkans and lately in Afghanistan. Mr. Sheremet has shown admirable courage in his independent and reliable reporting on the lack of free expression in Belarus and on violations of human rights, including disappearances of opposition politicians and journalists."
The U.S. delegation had a private meeting with the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Antonio Martins da Cruz. Matters discussed included the field operations, the developing memorandum of understanding with the PA and the OSCE response to terrorism. The delegation also had a private meeting with the delegation from the Russian Federation.
Members of the U.S. delegation played a leading role in debate in each of the Assembly's three General Committees: Political Affairs and Security; Economic Affairs, Science, Technology and Environment; and Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions.
In addition to U.S. amendments to the committee resolutions, several free-standing resolutions were adopted that were sponsored by members of the U.S. delegation concerning critical topics. They included: "Anti-Semitic Violence in the OSCE Region" and "Roma Education" by delegation Chairman Mr. Smith; "Human Rights and the War on Terrorism" by Smith and co-sponsor Dragoljub Micunovic of Yugoslavia; "Southeast Europe" by delegation Vice Chairman Senator Voinovich; and, "Belarus" by Mr. Hoyer.
Other free-standing Supplementary Items were adopted on "Moldova," "Combating Trafficking in Human Beings," "The Impact of Terrorism on Women," and "The Prohibition on the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and their Destruction."
A Supplementary Item on "Peace in the Middle East: the protection of the Holy Basin of Jerusalem" was tabled pending consultations among interested parties. Mr. Cardin was a key negotiator in the effort to table the draft item.
The resolution condemning the increasing rate of anti-Semitism throughout the OSCE region called upon the participating States to make vigorous public statements against anti-Semitism and to ensure aggressive law enforcement and thorough investigation of anti-Semitic acts. As further emphasis on this matter, the United States and the host German Parliament co-sponsored a seminar on anti-Semitism in the OSCE. (See Digest, Volume 35, no. 15, August 6, 2002, "Berlin Forum Highlights Disturbing Rise in Anti-Semitism")
Addressing the discrimination faced by Roma, the U.S. resolution focused on the concerns of under-education and inadequate schools. All OSCE States were called upon to rectify these problems and to eradicate segregated schools and the mis-diagnosis of Romani children which erroneously assigns them to "special schools" for those with mental disabilities.
Expressing concern about states which compromise human rights in the struggle against terrorism, the "War on Terrorism" resolution called on States to adhere to the rule of law, avoiding xenophobic reactions against Muslims since the attacks of September 11, 2001.
The language addressing past developments in Southeast Europe commended the ongoing presence and constructive work of the OSCE and called upon the OSCE to lead in the fight against organized crime, corruption and trafficking in human beings, narcotics and arms. The resolution also encouraged the use of regional mechanisms, especially the Stability Pact.
The Assembly adopted the resolution expressing concern about the state of democracy and the rule of law in Belarus, restrictions on basic freedoms and harassment of political opposition, media and religious minorities. The Government of Belarus was called upon to live up to its OSCE obligations, cease the human rights abuses, and cooperate with the OSCE and its institutions.
Mr. Hoyer reported to the Assembly on the activities of the Ad Hoc Committee on Transparency and Accountability which he chaired. The committee developed guidelines on the relationship between the Parliamentary Assembly and the Vienna-based, 55-nation OSCE.
On July 10, the final day of the Session, the Assembly elected Mr. Bruce George, MP (United Kingdom) as its new president for a one-year term, succeeding Mr. Severin who has served the Assembly for the past two years.
Mr. George, Chairman of the British House of Commons Defense Committee, has been an active member of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly since its first gathering in Budapest in 1992. Recently a Vice-President of the Assembly, he has served the Assembly as Rapporteur and Chair of the General Committee on Political Affairs and Security and as Vice-Chairman and chaired the Assemblýs Working Group on the Rules of Procedure. Other Officers elected at the Berlin Session:
- Vice Presidents: Ms. Barbara Haering (Switzerland), Mr. Ihor Ostash (Ukraine), Mr. Gert Weisskirchen (Germany);
- General Committee on Political Affairs and Security: Chair: Mr. Goran Lennmarker (Sweden), Vice-Chair: Mr Panyiotis Kammenos (Greece), Rapporteur: Mr. Clifford Lincoln (Canada);
- General Committee on Economic Affairs, Science, Technology and Environment: Chair: Mr. Oleg Bilorus (Ukraine), Vice-Chair: Ms Monika Griefahn (Germany), Rapporteur: Mr. Leonid Ivanchenko (Russia);
- General Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions: Chair: Mrs Elena Mizulina (Russia), Vice-Chair: Mr. Svend Robinson (Canada), Rapporteur: Ms. Nebahat Albayrak (Netherlands).
German Minister of Foreign Affairs Joschka Fischer addressed the Berlin Session. As an indicator of the evolution of the OSCE, Fischer said, "The OSCE has ceased to be a conference of governments a long time ago and has become an international organization which deeply penetrates our societies. Where governments come upon their limits, parliaments can often act with greater independence. During the ten years the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly has existed it has shown how important impulses and support can be given to the work of the Organization … The Parliamentary Assembly has at its disposal a political potential which should be further utilized in the Organization."
The United States Helsinki Commission, an independent federal agency, by law monitors and encourages progress in implementing provisions of the Helsinki Accords. The Commission, created in 1976, is composed of nine Senators, nine Representatives and one official each from the Departments of State, Defense and Commerce.


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20Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. 2So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him. 3Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went towards the tomb. 4The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, 7and the cloth that had been on Jesus head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. 8Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10Then the disciples returned to their homes.
11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look* into the tomb; 12and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. 13They said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? She said to them, They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him. 14When she had said this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15Jesus said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? For whom are you looking? Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away. 16Jesus said to her, Mary! She turned and said to him in Hebrew,* Rabbouni! (which means Teacher). 17Jesus said to her, Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God. 18Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, I have seen the Lord; and she told them that he had said these things to her.
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On the final day of confessed Norwegian mass killer Anders Behring Breivik's trial, the defense is trying to portray him as an ideologically driven political militant rather than a delusional madman in hopes of getting a lighter sentence or an outright acquittal.
Breivik, 33, an anti-Muslim extremist, has admitted to the bombing and shooting that killed 77 people in the capital Oslo.
"July 22 was an inferno of violence," Breivik's defense lawyer Geir Lippestad told the court as he asked that his client be acquitted, according to The Associated Press. "But we must also look at how he carried out the attacks to see whether it was violence in itself or radical politics that was the cause."
"He realized that it is wrong to kill, but he chose to kill. That's what terrorists do," Lippestad said. "The ends justify the means. You don't understand this if you don't understand the culture of right-wing extremists."
"That little, safe Norway would be hit by such a terror attack is almost impossible to understand," Lippestad said, according to the AP, adding that it helped explain why psychiatric experts reached different conclusions about Breivik's mental state.
Lippestad tried to prove to the court that Breivik's claims of being a resistance fighter in a struggle to protect Norway and Europe from being colonized by Muslims are not delusional but part of a political view shared by other right-wing extremists.
The day before, prosecutors had argued that the 10-week trial had proved that Breivik was psychotic and needed to be hospitalized instead of imprisoned.
"In our opinion, it is worse that a psychotic person is sentenced to preventive detention than a nonpsychotic person is sentenced to compulsory mental health care," Svein Holden, one of the prosecutors, told the court, according to The New York Times.
As Holden concluded his statement in the courtroom, Breivik smiled broadly, and as he was led out of the courtroom, he repeated the fist-pumping gesture that he affected in the first few days of the trial.
The five-judge panel is expected to make a ruling in July or August.
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


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Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Retrospective: Claw Law & Arms Law
You must remember that 1982 was the tail end of the Golden Age. The fantastic realism that carried the day in the early part of the Silver Age was becoming an undeniable force in gaming culture, with lots of our older contemporaries dabbling in games they'd earlier told us were "for weirdos," like RuneQuest and Chivalry & Sorcery. Why? Partly because those other games had more "realistic" combat systems. That's where Claw Law & Arms Law came in: they were designed to make your RPG's combat system more realistic -- and deadly. That greatly appealed to us, as we'd already had solid experience with critical hit tables and, while their results were decidedly mixed, we nevertheless continued to see the appeal in making D&D's combats bloodier.
The big problem was that, for all their advertisements as add-ons to other games, they worked very poorly with AD&D. Like Rolemaster itself, Claw Law & Arms Law used percentiles for its combat system. To use it with Dungeons & Dragons, you weren't merely modifying the existing combat rules; you were completely replacing them. That caught us off-guard and probably ensured that we'd never adopt the rules on a permanent basis. To our way of thinking, it was perfectly fine to add or subtract to the existing combat rules, but to replace them entirely was a different thing altogether. At the same time, we wanted to see what all he fuss was about and so we decided to test out Claw Law & Arms Law.
The result not pretty, not because the new combat system was difficult to use; it wasn't. Indeed, despite our own mocking of Rolemaster by calling it Rulemaster, the game isn't particularly rule-heavy but it is chart-heavy. The new combat rules slowed down play, because we had to keep consulting charts. I am sure that this was because of our inexperience with the system. Indeed, I know it was, as I'll explain shortly. Charts catch a lot of undeserved flak in certain quarters, but my experience is that they're often better at presenting complex rules than are formulae, unless the formulae are very simple. Once one becomes familiar with which charts are needed and when, speed is increased considerably.
But the simple truth of the matter is that, for D&D, the addition of Claw Law & Arms Law just never felt right. We were far too accustomed to the existing combat rules (including weapons vs. AC modifiers, but not speed factors) to change midstream. The additional detail these add-ons provided simply didn't justify the cerebral rewiring necessary to make it all run smoothly. Yet, there was still something about these rules that we did like, which is why, when Middle Earth Roleplaying was released in 1984, we happily played it. MERP felt nothing like Tolkien's novels in my opinion, but the rules presentation was cleaner and more compact than in Rolemaster. We enjoyed playing the game as an alternative to D&D rather than as a replacement for it. That seemed to be the best way to use Rolemaster and its derivatives and we had a lot of fun doing so.
42 comments:
I have posted many times on this blog and everyone knows I am a Silver Age fan who likes well-designed rule systems.
And I hated this system.
A rule system that totally shuts down gaming momentum because of 18-million charts is not a rule system worth playing. This is what killed combat in 3e (though I like the skill system in 3e).
Plus this is rule system is a classic case of "overfitting". They have charts which are just aperiodic enough that no reasonable mathematical rule will fit to it. So you cannot wean off the charts without massive changes.eheh James, sometimes looks like we moved with the same pace, even if I was some (many) years behind you (in Italy it was very hard to find RPG in the '80s). MERP was a great game for my playing group, and at that time we felt like all those charts and dicerolls where "the next step" from DnD easy rules. A couple of years ago I've buyed on ebay most of the old Rolemaster rulebooks. Oh, nostalgia :-)
ReplyDeleteI love Silver age of AD&D and the period's preoccupation with realism. One key difference between Gygax AD&D and WoTC D&D wss that Gygax was not trying to impose a universal mechanic over his game system. AD&D 1st is a hodge podge of different game mechanics utilizing different dice. This made the game more flexible when it came to modeling reality. WoTC replaced this with its Core Mechanic concept in the name of simplicity, but that trend has started well in Silver Age, I can distinctly recall the "Universal Outcome" tables for the period RPG Chill! (Basic version of Call of Cthulu), so the WoTC did not invent this trend. Just as there is a variety of narrative styles in storytelling, I think that there is nothign wrong with having a great diversity of game mechanics for different occasions under one roof. In keeping with this spirit. I replaced AD&D Non-Weapon proficiency mechanics with Rune Quest's skill system, keeping AD&D's conceptualization and usage of NWP's. I grouped NWPs in Traveler type tables, with each character clas having its own table that only members of that class have acces to. This made Fighter class a far more intersting to play, since now players can conceptualize, what kidn of warrior they want to play, which they can develop over levels, as with other character classes, thye development is not limited to improvements in game mechanics. I kept the DMG combat mechanics AND the infamous weapon versus armor class chart. That chart provides diversity and realism to the otherwise abstract combat system. The rest of the realism in my version of D&D comes from modifying the definition of "To Hit" Roll and from doing research and fleshing out the historic description, purpsoe,a dn effectiveneess of weapons listed in Players handbook. Thus, in typical D&D, a player with a spear sets the spear against a goblin, mounted on a charging wolf. Player rolls first because of a longer reach. In my version, is the player tells me s/he sets the spear against the chaging wolf-rider and is proficiant with this weapon, if s/he hits, Goblin is thrown off the mount, whether damage is taken or not. Goblin does not roll to hit. Next round goblin will try to get on his feet. Key modification here is that if longer weeapon scores a hit, the opponent with the shorter weapon does NOT get to close the distance and does not get to hit. If the opponent with the shorter weapon scores a hit, s/he then gets to close the distance and possibly inflict damage on the opponent with the longer weapon in the next round. This makes the tarditional AD&D combat mechanic plenty relistic and forced the players to do the mortal dance of melee.
I never got into the Arms Law etc, first, I didn't have the money and second, all the tables turned me off to it.I played Rolemaster a few times and under different game masters. Games where the GM really knew the tables were a whole lot of fun, but games where the GM didn't know them cold quickly bogged down and stagnated.
I never really got into Role Master's magic system. You could cast spells more often, which I liked a lot more than AD&D's system, but it always felt you were more limited in what spells you had.Arms Law was, at first, very appealing when others RPG had so "realistic" combat systems (Runequest, DragonQuest, Stormbringer...)
But it could not just be "added" to D&D. It had to replace it, so, despite the interesting critical hits tables, we never really used it.
Later came MERP (Middle Earth Role Playing game), which was basically a light version of Arms and Spells Laws set in Tolkien's world.
We loved this game, and played it a lot.
The combats were so vivids they were like short adventures.
It was so funny when the proud elven warrior-prince PC managed to shot himself in the foot just while five angry orcs rushed at the party from a nearby wood...
Anyway, the game itself, and particularly its magic system, had very little to do with the "real" Middle Earth...
Besides, even a light version of Arms Law was still hardly manageable, with countless charts and mental arithmetic (D100: (87 + 139) x75% -15 +23 -54 +5 =???).
And of course, a "deadly" combat system is opposite to D&D philosophy, where the game purpose is to survive many encounters to gain experience and become stronger (which is impossible if you have even a 15% death ratio on every combat).While some people I know liked it, I tended to refer to Arms Law, etc. as "Chartmaster." One of the things that put me off of it almost immediately was that the charts themselves were simply not rooted in anything like "realism" - detail, yes, realism, no. Over-engineered and too fiddly for fast play, in my not so humble opinion.
ReplyDelete> A rule system that totally shuts down gaming momentum because of 18-million charts is not a rule system worth playing.
Nope; in personal experience RM actually plays more quickly than AD&D "by the book" as I'd inconveniently posted on James's "A Modest Proposal" entry before this one went up. :)
@James: If you're just reviewing these two, yes it is clearer that the publication history was initially as "bolt ons" given Arms Law predating Claw Law by two years.
Gets a smile with that particular boxed set, too, in that they just chopped the cover in two to sell 'em bagged separately. :)
Converting characters isn't quite so difficult but meshing RM combat within AD&D interactively certainly requires a bit more than a casual dalliance and it is, indeed, easier to go the whole hog. That in its own right wasn't so easy for many people to do until 2e in 1984/85 (C&T being a somewhat important volume...) and this lengthy hiatus no doubt left quite a large number of people "in the lurch" eating tables without much additional meat on them.
(Will you be retrospecting The Iron Wind at a later date, out of interest?)
p.s. 565 target to beat, unmodified, in combat. Helluva roll to "waste" on a thrown rock... :p> detail, yes, realism, no. Over-engineered and too fiddly for fast play, in my not so humble opinion.
A compromise between abstract "hit points" and more "realistic" aspects from the crit tables that could be reworked in textual detail to taste and context on the fly. Keeping tabs of hits, stuns, bleeding and penalties isn't /that/ hard on a sheet of paper. Honest...
Excessive realism is also, of course, as popular as being on the receiving end of any 66E crit.aside: I guess it goes without saying that wading into purely physical combat using RM tables (in isolation or conjunction) is undertaken with a greater degree of consideration than doing so under xD&D if one does not wish a maimed or killed character.
This does, to a degree, make up for the unbalancing effect of magic & supernatural attacks in the latter - i.e. /knowing/ that max damage from those enemy attacks can't kill you in AD&D encourages metagaming and jumping in "heroically" whereas the risk from a "hold person" is far more serious... in RM, however, jumping in carelessly is more equally dangerous on both physical and non-physical levels.I ran RM for abut a year, for people who were mostly RPG newbies*. The secret to running it smoothly was *photocopies*.
Every player got a photocopy of the charts for their weapons, and I kept a stack of extras on-hand in case they got tricky on me and picked up an enemy's weapon. Ditto spell lists, spell attack charts, and the moving maneuver chart.
These were people who had, by and large, rejected AD&D 1e/2e as 'too complicated'. They thought RM was much simpler and more straightforward.
I think a lot of the bad odor around RM comes from reading the books (and their absurdly large charts), rather than actual play. In play, it was smooth and easy to use, and produced dramatic and semi-realistic results.
To this day I still consider it the best game in its class, and all other systems I run, I measure against that ongoing RM game.
* By which I mean, most of them were aware of RPGs but hadn't actually played any; two of them had played occasional AD&D games.I played 'Chartmaster', as we lovingly called it, for about 12 or 13 years straight. We had occasional forays into D&D and AD&D; but, for the most part we stuck to Rolemaster. It did take some getting used to the charts; but, once you get them organized the way you like them things move very smoothly.
What we did was photocopy the charts, put them in plastic sleeves, and then put the sleeves into three ring binders for each character. As GM, I would organize my charts based on the upcoming encounter(s). It took about 5 min extra prep each gaming session but streamlined the combat experience so that it was faster paced.
Ah, good times.I have played quite a bit of MERP/Rolemaster over the years (currently playing now, actually...) and I always remember smirking at those appendices about how to adapt the systems to fit other games. It never looked to me like it would ever work, though the one time I spiced up a game of Tunnels & Trolls with some RM critical tables it worked disturbingly well. My own experience with both systems probably helped me avoid a lot of mistakes, though.
ReplyDeleteRegarding MERP, I was "meh" about the rules, but I love the setting material and the maps. I still consider them among the "must keep" parts of my collection. Yes, there was too much (overt) magic in them for Tolkien, but that was easily stripped out for use in another game system.
It makes me smile to remember the time the low-medium level party I was DMing tripped a dimensional gate and found themselves just outside a castle coming under siege. They had no idea where they were, so they asked a peasant hurrying by. The looks on the players' faces when he replied "Deeping Coomb, it is. And that be the Hornburg" was priceless. :)I think I still have my original copy of Arms Law around the place somewhere. And yes, it was designed as to be an unofficial new damage system for D&D, but failed in that because people generally preferred their D&D to be as simple as possible. Which is much the same reason that I almost never saw the Weapon Mods vs AC used (unless you had the Judges Guild Ready Reference Cards).
It was only quite a bit later that it formed the core of it's own RPG (which we always referred to it despairingly as Rollmaster), and the order or release of the products under this umbrella is important. Essentially everything was a supplement to your fantasy game, which you could take or leave at will, including the core ruleset.
Still it did embody some interesting ideas, however clumsily, like giving new abilities (disguised as Spell Lists) at each level. And line "66" of each new critical/fumble chart was always amusing to read.You don't need hit locations or charts for a vivid and realistic combat system. If you make armor historically expensive in your world and encourage your warriors to assemble suits of combat armor, ONE PIECE AT A TIME, historically inaccurate, but portrayed in D&D illustrations, you MIGHT need a hit location table, to see if a critical hit as averted if blow fell of the chain-mailed or plate covered location. Other than that, fight ending critical hits are rare enough for DM to improvise - crunch of bone and the guy's leg collapses under him. Massive blow across the chest and the guy gets thrown against the wall, barely breathing deathly pale with a rivulet of blood running down the corner of his mouth, etc.
The problem with most fantasy games competing against D&D is that by default they lack the fantasy storytelling infrastructure - Monsters, Spells, treasure description, plus a convenient adventuring framework - Dungeon adventure. It is this copyrighted D&D infrastructure that made Baldur's Gate type of game coherent and contextually rich, at which Troika's Arcanum failed, since it had to rely mostly on wolves and spiders for a typical monster, and they were forced to "invent" new magics and treasure not to infringe on Black Isle Studio's/TSR's turf. D&D has a workable and simple paradigm for fantasy adventuring, while C&S. Runequest and Tunnels and Trolls could not compete int he Monsters and Spells department, not did they offer enough of a paradigm to create an alternative to dungon exploration. If a game master was experienced and had ideas, he could write an advnture, but a brand new player just opening a box, was better off creating adventure worlds with D&D, than with Runequest or C&S or T&T since D&D had a lot more on designing yor own advnetures than did those other games. That is the reason, I think, that everyone ended up pretty much house ruling D&D.>Odd you should say that, since until less than a year ago you totally misunderstood the weapon v. AC modifiers...
I never said we used them correctly :)<
Hmmm...seeing as I haven't used them since around 1983, I'm now wondering if I was using them right back then. How wrong could you use them? Just pluses or minuses right?As others have already mentioned, when I played RM is grad school with my neighbors, every character had a photocopy of the weapon chart necessary, or had a copy of Arms Law with pages marked for the weapon(s) in use.
The combat system in Arms Law still seems to "get it right" in terms of armor's ability to protect you from damage, but not necessarily the chance to hit. If you are wearing a bulky set of plate, then you have a greater chance of being hit, but a smaller chance of doing great damage."The combat system in Arms Law still seems to "get it right" in terms of armor's ability to protect you from damage, but not necessarily the chance to hit."
As well, because it splits damage into 'concussion' damage that represents bruising and fatigue, and 'critical' damage that can kill you, and then further breaks criticals into different severities... you get really neat outcomes from various weapon/armor combos.
For instance, check out the rapier or poiniard table, and find the column for chainmail. And on any weapon's table, look at how much concussion damage a guy in plate is taking from you (answer: a huge amount).
Armorless people are way harder to hit, which is completely reasonable, but when they do get hit it's often fatal.
It's the core of what I like about RM: there's so much *meat* in those charts, places where some real thought has gone into their design. In actual play, that clever design fades into the background, and what you get is a lot of action that just *makes sense*.Unarmored opponents may have been way harder to hit in a duel, but in massed medieval combat, people were locked into formations, had no room to meneuver, and medieval battlefield mass slaughter didn't differ much from battle slaughter in the 20th century with the carpets of dead and dying littering the battlefield. As that guy said in Fallout, War never changes...
With regards to "non-lethal" concussive damage, I seen at lest two accounts from 1200s to 1400s where a front line plate armored knight was beaten to death from a second rank (massed front rank opponents pinned the knight with their swords), getting beat on the head with the shaft of the spear or a polearm. Helmet was never broken or penbetrated, but it probably dented and the knights went down hair, blood and gore running dorn from eye sockets and breating holes. Not quite chovalrous. Which may, perhaps explain, why the knights would run down and slaughter unarmerd peasants on battlefield whenever they could. I am not saying that all RPGs have to be absolutely accurate, but a could campaign CAN guive a good historical flavor in addition to experience points, and also that notion of "non lethal concussive damage" got me going.
As an aside. Historical knights held their own and other lives in total contempt. Contempt and disregard for safety were marks of a courageous warrior. When two-handed sword fencing became popular in medieval Germany, it was chic among knights to duel with two handed combat swords in their underwear. i.e. unprotected so as to show off their courage and to show what kind of damage they can do to their opponent with that "first cut". Considr with that lack of healing spells available to them in our world.I'm not sure that there is any historical evidence that fighters thought that foregoing armour would make it significantly easier to dodge or avoid blows. I have come across accounts of fighters foregoing armour for comfort and convenience, just as people today forego safety gear for similar reasons, but not for mobility.
The idea that armour protects you from being damaged, not hit also depends on a very literal sense of the concept of "hit." If you define hit as in "hit hard enough to cause measurable damage" then armour can indeed be said to reduce the chances of being hit. Either way, all RPG combat systems are abstractions. In most systems, the fundamental effect of armour is to increase survivability of the wearer, whether they implement it as a reduction in the odds of being hit, or use a more complicated system of multiple die rolls, conditional damage, and tables. One is more of a black box system that condenses and averages multiple factors into a single die roll, while the other is more of a "show your work" approach. Neither is inherently more realistic, and both can be used to produce the same net outcomes.
One problem with modeling realism is that we don't actually know what the statistical effect of wearing certain armour or using a certain weapon has on the range of outcomes: we simply don't have a lot of real world data on people wearing period armour and trying to kill each other with period weapons in real life-or-death situations to quantify the difference between wearing chain versus plate or using a sword versus mace. The sheer variety of weapons and armour in use at any given time in the middle ages suggests that the people of the day didn't really know what worked best either; one can imagine that, if the Internet existed in the 15th Century, knights would engage in mace vs. warhammer flame wars where they extolled the virtues of their chosen weapon and pointed out the intellectual inadequacies of those who foolishly favoured the other.
Even those who seriously study medieval and renaissance combat can only make educated guesses about the exact effectiveness of various weapons and armours; game designers by and large have even less factual information to go on. We can compare the verisimilitude of two systems, but making comparisons based on realism is mostly pointless.MERP was, hands down, my favourite RPG during the late 1980s. I played it almost constantly from grade 10 until I left high-school. I loved the system and loved the campaign modules.
Pete Fenlon's colour regional maps for MERP were works of art!
Ah, good times. I'd play it again, if I could find anyone interested...W2,
German knights forewent armor only in single combat duels among each other. Whil there is no adequate statistical evidence to quantitatively show the effectiveness of armor, what makes D&D historically inaccurate is the greatvariety of weapons and armor in PH. Historically, each period and place was dominated by a few weapon and armor types. Those reigned supreme and were used by leaders until that technology becmae common place and new weapons and armor were found for the king and the knight. During dark ages it was shield and chain mail. Chain mail saved your life if your torso took a blow from the sword. Before sword was perfected in early middle ages, Great Axe predominatedd the Anglo-Saxon battlefield to be replaced by the sword, weapon of the knight agaisnt a poorly armed brigand and the peasant. Sword was faster and more effective than a great axe. In the British campaigns agaisnt the French in 100 years war, British men at arms were armed with a short-handed lance, which was capable of poenetrating breast plate, when swung by a rofessional man at arms, who spent their adolescendce and adult lives swinging melee weapons. Which means that an untrained person would would not be able to defeat plate given the same weapons as the professionals. Later on, other weapons were develped to let the mases defeat the plate - pole axe, where the long pole served as force multiplier and substituted for muscle and skill. Between wars, medieval knights jousetd and engaged in paramilitary competition, so they were abreats of the developments in the field. So, I say you can recreate historic accuracy without knowing the stats. It would make the game boring, of ocurse, since there will be vewry few weapon and armor combination, one would dominate the game, and everyone would know what the winning combination would be. Historically, it was the price that defeated the common soldier's efforts to get a good suit of plate and a warhorse, peviously, it was swordblades, that were expensive. Of course, part of what makes D&D fun is the tremendous amount of choice that players have, and historically, people have a lot choice, and in the middle ages economic and social choices ere a lot fewer. One can ever say that Medieval German knights had no choice but to fight in their peers in their underwear. What say willing suspension of disbelief? They never said in PH that a DM should flesh out a few weapons and armor combinations available to the layers and make other very rare and unavailable. Players tend to use the equipment lists in PH as their shopping list. Gygax's error.Brooze:
Sorry, didn't mean to imply that RM Concussion damage was non-lethal. It was plenty lethal, in a horrifying grindy kind of way; there's only so many hits to the head, helmet or no, that you can take before you keel over.
And in particular, because RM keyed all combat outcomes on a weapon type vs. armor type matrix, the 'right' weapon to use against a heavily armored person was often a mace or other blunt instrument. Your rapier wasn't going to be effective, and this was reflected in the damage outcomes in the rapier table vs. plate armor (as was the 'lucky/skilled hit' that penetrated a gap in the armor to deliver a deadly critical anyway). Your mace, on the other hand, was going to hurt that guy, with a fair chance of at least a minor crush critical on most swings.
But flipping it around, your rapier or edged weapon had a good shot at an instant kill on someone in no armor at all, while the mace was much more likely to deliver only crippling damage.
What's more, the type of critical delivered was also keyed to the weapon, so when you did finally get a decent critical with your broadsword on an armored opponent, it was probably a crush critical, not a slash critical. You literally bashed in his armor until it killed him.
However, in almost every case, if what you were going to be doing was going toe-to-toe with someone in melee, heavier armor was always better for survivability. The tales of a lucky goblin instakilling a PC that RM was known for were mostly a goblin killing an unarmored or lightly armored PC. Heavy armor made it very difficult to kill someone outright because it made critical hits less likely, at the expense of more battering, crushing, and general fatigue.
RM didn't really *support* the unarmored duelist archetype; it just tried to portray, as realistically as it could manage, how such a person might fare in a fight. He might dodge 3 out of 4 swings, but that fourth swing is going to lop off his arm; meanwhile, the heavy-armor guy got hit by all four swings, but is mostly just in a lot of pain as a result.w2:
"In most systems, the fundamental effect of armour is to increase survivability of the wearer, whether they implement it as a reduction in the odds of being hit, or use a more complicated system of multiple die rolls, conditional damage, and tables."
I agree, but would add that the primary value I took from the Arms Law tables was the ability for players to tailor their weapon (or armor, though more rarely) choices to the type of opponent they were going to fight.
Against the city watch of a wealthy city, you could be pretty sure you'd be up against guys in mail coats, possibly with breastplates. Against naked filthy cultists in a sewer temple, it's time to get out that broadsword and start hacking away.
Things that add meaningful player decision points appeal to me, and systems that reward players for spending time thinking about them 'offline' also appeal to me.
That said, I've run way more D&D in all its flavors than RM, so it's not like I'm some kind of RM evangelist. I just always take any opportunity to enthuse about its strong points, and the weapons vs. armor matrix concept is one of those strong points.- AnonymousMarch 18, 2010 at 2:49 AM
I weaned of D&D onto Rolemaster after about 5 years, and played it for another 8 or 10 years after that, with various expeditions into other systems. Once you knew the charts it was very effective, and it had a really deadly flavour that AD&D lacked.
I'm intrigued by the claim that MERP doesn't represent Middle Earth. As far as I know, until the movies came along it was the most meticulously researched and presented attempt at describing that world, and the definitive one for role-playing. As for the claim of too much magic - you won't find a wizard in MERP who can do anything like Gandalf in The Hobbit, and most of the magic was easily worked to look mundane - Boil Water at first level is hardly uber powerful, is it?
MERP was also beautifully presented, and obviously highly respectful of the original novels. I found Iron Crown Enterprises work generally very high quality, it's just a shame it was too complex for most people to be bothered with... Ahh, yes. The deadliness of combat and linearity of traditional D&D combat where charaters keep slugging each other until their 80 or so HP run out. That was what drove me away from D&D early on.
The first time I ran into someone playing Rolemaster was in high school. After the usual lunchroom introduction "Do you play D&D", he said no with such seriousness, that I expected him to say "I play Chess.". He said Rolemaster instead. I asked him what it was and he said "Claw Law, Arms Law Spell Law, you know?". I can see the logic of Weapon versus Armor tables, and complexity is no issue to me. If I knew those rules when I re-opened DMG back in 2005 I may have included it in my rules mods.
As an aside, Eward Oakeshott (I think his name is) was a British weapons historian who studied Sword extensively and came up with a sword blade classificastion. He has something that reads like an AC table, is based on archeological evidence and lists at least 8 categories of what in D&D is called a Longsword. One day I will go over his writings and integrate his sword classification into my house rules do away with short, long, broad and bastard swordblades in D&D, or maybe not. It's just funny, that Gygax was writing about Type I Demon, Type II etc, and Oakshott writes about Type I sword blade, TYpe II sword blade versus Type IV sword blade."Ahh, yes. The deadliness of combat and linearity of traditional D&D combat where charaters keep slugging each other until their 80 or so HP run out. That was what drove me away from D&D early on."
80 hit points is an unrealistic number for almost any character to have, if played by the book. A 9th level AD&D fighter with 18 constitution will have about 86 hit points; one with average constitution will have 50. A B/X D&D fighter will have 41 hit points at 9th level; 68 with an 18 constitution (and only 1 in 216 characters would have such a score). There are above average rolls, of course, but 99% of 9th level fighters will have 56 or fewer rolled hit points.
It is the low-level combats that tend to have a lot of back and forth rolling to hit, because characters and monsters alike tend to miss a lot, though when a hit is made, there is a good chance of it being a telling blow. Also, there are few special abilities or magic items to use at low levels and, I suspect, more than a few players are fairly short on imagination and can't or won't act outside of the options that the rules specifically suggest or illustrate. At higher levels, there are enough interesting magic items and spells to give even the most unimaginative player something to do other than spend round after round rolling to hit.How wrong could you use them? Just pluses or minuses right?
Well, in my case, I misunderstood that the AC in question was the base AC rather than the modified one. So, a Thief with high Dex in leather armor might have a modified AC comparable to a Fighter in Chain, but the weapon bonus/penalty vs. the Thief is against leather's base AC, not against the lower, modified AC. That's where I went wrong all those years ago.I'm intrigued by the claim that MERP doesn't represent Middle Earth.
My issue was not with the presentation of the setting, which, by and large, was very good and quite true to the novels. My issue isn't even with the rules, for the most part (though the magic items often seemed un-Tolkienian to me). Rather, it was with the way MERP took the Fellowship and universalized it, allowing players to freely choose a mixed party of hobbits, dwarves, elves, and odd humans to go off adventuring together, as if that were a common sort of thing in the Third Age. Speaking for myself, it just felt off and not at all like the novels. We still had lots of fun with it, though.- AnonymousMarch 19, 2010 at 1:30 AM
I can understand that gripe, James, but it doesn't seem like a significant part of the rules and it is certainly true to most people's experience of Middle Earth (the Fellowship) and of role-playing in general (D&D). I think they'd have a hard time convincing most gamers to consider it as an issue, let alone go along with it.
I don't remember the magic items, though I vaguely recollect it was mostly +10 swords and daily items, which are low-powered enough for my tastes. And didn't their description of the weapon that killed the ring-wraith match perfectly?
Having played MERP extensively, for all its flaws, I can't imagine a game that better suits Middle Earth. I tried recreating it in D&D 3.5 and it was fun, but it didn't work quite the same way at all. > Rather, it was with the way MERP took the Fellowship and universalized it, allowing players to freely choose a mixed party of hobbits, dwarves, elves, and odd humans to go off adventuring together, as if that were a common sort of thing in the Third Age.
Not really: just in D&D. ;)
> I don't remember the magic items, though I vaguely recollect it was mostly +10 swords and daily items, which are low-powered enough for my tastes.
Both MERP & RM play well with low-level magical and non-"standard" items, IMO: a benefit of having been designed from scratch (even if originally intended for play with D&D, etc.) rather than derived from high-level battlefield wargaming powers in Chainmail -> D&D where the lesser items/magics were retrofitted after the arms race had already taken place.w2,
If playing by the book. What are the odds in D&D that a lucky arrow shot will kill a ninth level character with no previous damage? What are the real world histoical odds? That's why I prefer to make things interesting not with magic items, but with critical hits and the possibility that any arrow hit can potentially kill.- AnonymousNovember 18, 2011 at 9:26 PM
We used this system as a replacement for the basic then ad&d combat system for over 10 years. It was incredible, and agreed you couldn't memorize it but it made such a great impact in our game play.


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Yugoslavia 1992 (Home)
Yugoslavia 1992 (Home)
Retro Football Kit from Yugoslavia, year 1992.
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Come in and see 20/20!
Flashes & Floaters??!!
Retinal Tears and Detachments
Retinal tears and detachments are conditions where the inner lining of the eye called the retina is damaged. The retina is a layer of tissue that's light-sensitive and sends visual information through the optic nerve to the brain. If damaged, this layer of tissue can eventually detach from the inside of the eye, causing permanent vision loss.
A retinal tear describes a small break in this lining. Retinal tears can have many causes and can happen at any age. Retinal tears can be treated with laser surgery or an advanced "freezing" process. Both of these treatment options attempt to keep the retina in place and keep it from fully detaching.
Retinal detachment describes a much larger separation of the retina tissues and although it is not exclusive to older people, it's more common in those over age 40. If detected with an eye exam early enough, retinal detachment can be treated with the procedures used for some tears, or with a more intricate surgery that uses gas to push the retina together with the wall of the eye to allow for reattachment.
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