TGWTG The Spoony One / Spoony / Noah Antwiler and Rachel Baker / @RaeAngel07 - The touching romance between a washed-up videogame reviewer throwing a decade-long pity party and his delusional Canuck stalker. #weaknotsick #donttellmehowtosulk

[Wormy]

I'm gonna white knight Spoony a bit on a couple of Counter Monkey topics.

1: What he did to the Vampire LARP, IMO, was just desserts. They shit on his experience by straight up crippling his character right out of the gate by playing the usual "you ain't part of this clique so we'll fuck you up" all too common in those fucking outings, not giving him an out of character warning about playing a Carthian in a place where Carthians were nothing but gank meat with no support, basically taking away the bulk of his agency until he turned tables on them. Am I bitter about having my own group bullied to hell and back when we went to game with the World Storyteller back in my Camarilla days? Maybe.

2: The L5R game was not his fault. That duellist was a fucking jackass who either didn't know Thing 1 about how actual duels went down, and had a GM so incompetent that he didn't call him on it. To those of you don't know, the rule about "refusing a gift 3 times" is meant for far more formal occasions and holidays, not a simple offer of food and drink. Secondly, and far more egregiously, duels in Rokugan do NOT go down like that except in completely lawless territories between ronin and similar scumbags who have no honor to lose. If you're part of a proper clan like PC's are, duels have to be arranged. Both you and your opponent's Clan superior's are consulted and informed and negotiations are involved to determine just what kind of duel. It's not just the typical swordfights, duels can take the form of everything from bonsai tending to lyrical poetry slams (Samurai Rap Battles, FTW). If Cranes were going around just calling out people in swordfights and slaughtering other samurai not nearly as skilled in duelling, word would reach the Imperial Courts faster than bacteria grows on shit, Jade Magistrates get involved, and they'll proceed to legally take shits on the party, since such actions make the Crane's representatives look like dolts who can't make their kids behave. One thing you don't do in L5R is make your betters look bad in court. That shit will make you deader than a Kennedy.

 

[RJ MacReady]

1: What he did to the Vampire LARP, IMO, was just desserts. They shit on his experience by straight up crippling his character right out of the gate by playing the usual "you ain't part of this clique so we'll fuck you up" all too common in those fucking outings, not giving him an out of character warning about playing a Carthian in a place where Carthians were nothing but gank meat with no support, basically taking away the bulk of his agency until he turned tables on them. Am I bitter about having my own group bullied to hell and back when we went to game with the World Storyteller back in my Camarilla days? Maybe.

I mean, Spoony himself said he regretted that during one of his freakouts last year.

 

[Wormy]

I mean, Spoony himself said he regretted that during one of his freakouts last year.

View attachment 2446209

Well, that's his perspective, he's entitled to it. He only did what everyone in my group wanted to do to the area we had the misfortune of gaming with, who did similar to everyone in my chapter, that one night.

Ours had a happier ending though. We may have been pantsed by a power tripping World Storyteller, but further down the road our territory got a reputation of not tolerating the usual In and Out of Character vampire bullshit. Something I'm proud of.

 

[ShimmyHolmes]

Gotta say, the semtex story was a lot of fun. For me there's never anything wrong with shitting on an insular circlejerk that bullies outsiders into staying away or quitting. Hijacking people's characters in RP is a big no-no, and regardless of what kinda person Spoony is (a passive-aggressive clamhat) there's no reason you shouldn't stand up to that.

I've got no experience with LARP in the usual sense, but I used to play airsoft, which is technically also just LARP, but for either:
1. veterans who have muscle memory they need to keep engaged in a way that's healthy,
2. guys living the dream of being the action figures they used to bash together, or
3. people who tried out for the army, got turned down, think airsoft is proof that they could've hacked it, and are in comically strong denial that what they're doing is LARPing - this type in particular seems to make up the majority of airsoft's playerbase
The site I used to go to actually was run by a bunch of guys from type-one. They were super welcoming to type-twos like myself, and a friend of mine who was both of those, but most of the players were type-threes who would get pissy when you weren't doing it "their way" (pretending to be SEALS or SAS or something despite having a 40" waist) especially despite constantly losing to my type-two friend who'd actually served. (He went dressed as John Wick once, and despite ridicule nobody could fucking touch him.) Ultimately though I did quit because the majority of the players were type-threes and I just couldn't be bothered with it any more as they were absolutely no fun to be around. What this tangent about airsoft cringe is getting to is that yeah, I reluctantly empathise with Spoony on that one. I just didn't try to "kill" all the players on the way out.

Spoony was always very outspoken against the kind of roleplaying where everything runs on whether or not you're friends with the GM or part of the game's in-crowd, and while we've seen signs of him having not practised what he preached there, that's still a commendable message to spread, and the semtex story, while a bit extreme, was a great example.

 

[RJ MacReady]

Well, that's his perspective, he's entitled to it. He only did what everyone in my group wanted to do to the area we had the misfortune of gaming with, who did similar to everyone in my chapter, that one night.

Ours had a happier ending though. We may have been pantsed by a power tripping World Storyteller, but further down the road our territory got a reputation of not tolerating the usual In and Out of Character vampire bullshit. Something I'm proud of.

Nigger you were just looking for a reason to sperg about a shitty RP experience you had.

Spoony was always very outspoken against the kind of roleplaying where everything runs on whether or not you're friends with the GM or part of the game's in-crowd, and while we've seen signs of him having not practised what he preached there, that's still a commendable message to spread, and the semtex story, while a bit extreme, was a great example.

This is a pretty interesting point TBH, and somewhat ironic considering Spoony's self-admitted inability to form stable gaming groups.

But it's worth mentioning that he was specifically addressing LARP groups with that comment and I get why: LARP groups maintain a core meta-narrative for usually years whereas a tabletop campaign is usually a self-contained narrative.

 

[ShimmyHolmes]

But it's worth mentioning that he was specifically addressing LARP groups with that comment and I get why: LARP groups maintain a core meta-narrative for usually years whereas a tabletop campaign is usually a self-contained narrative.

I kinda get it, including everybody and their dog in your core meta-narrative can be a bit tricky. You can fairly easily create a metaplot for your RP and then just have other people run games in that world without being directly involved with you though.

At least when I called airsoft a LARP, the difference is that there is no ongoing narrative. Every session is a one-and-done deal with a bunch of players ending every session where they began: super insecure about their fantasies of being real soldiers being crapped on while other people had fun

 

[Wormy]

Nigger you were just looking for a reason to sperg about a shitty RP experience you had.

It's called finding the whole thing relatable. Spoony did nothing wrong that night.

I kinda get it, including everybody and their dog in your core meta-narrative can be a bit tricky. You can fairly easily create a metaplot for your RP and then just have other people run games in that world without being directly involved with you though.

But if you're really doing that, why are you inviting other people in on it the first place?

 

[Persistent Hobo]

Probably been on this thread, good as a reminder:

I've never paid any attention to Spoony aside from watching the Knudsen YouTube but watching that I was sure I'd never seen such an entitled, arrogant, unpleasant asshole and watching this confirms everything.

Once he perceives weakness he ploughs on, and on and on, without realising everyone else in the room has moved on and lost interest.

TL DR I just don't get what anyone saw in him in the first place.

 

[White Devil]

TL DR I just don't get what anyone saw in him in the first place.

He was funny back in the day when it was a very new medium and not very much occupied.

 

[Captain Syrup]

TL DR I just don't get what anyone saw in him in the first place.

Bullshit Baffles Brains.

He spoke with confidence on topics he knew nothing about. A novice salesman who preyed on young people. As they got older, they learned not to have their precious cheeks slapped.

He was funny back in the day when it was a very new medium and not very much occupied.

It's easy to forget: Yahtzee Croshaw was a fan of Spoony at one time.

 

[Persistent Hobo]

He was funny back in the day when it was a very new medium and not very much occupied.

I'll admit to being a bit harsh there*. The first thing I did with a PC and the internet in 1997 was to download an emulator and ROMS so it would have been cool to find videos of what was such an esoteric subject even later on.

I did start watching YouTube in 2006 but missed CA (perhaps Doug's face put me off).

Weirdly the page that alerted me to the existence of YouTube is still online:
https://musicthing.blogspot.com/2006/02/miracle-of-youtube.html

*Edit: Just to clarify, harsh about people who liked Spoony's videos, the initial assessment of Spoony stands.

 

[RJ MacReady]

I'll admit to being a bit harsh there. The first thing I did with a PC and the internet in 1997 was to download an emulator and ROMS so it would have been cool to find videos of what was such an esoteric subject even later on.

I did start watching YouTube in 2006 but missed CA (perhaps Doug's face put me off).

Weirdly the page that alerted me to the existence of YouTube is still online:
https://musicthing.blogspot.com/2006/02/miracle-of-youtube.html

He was an entitled, arrogant, unpleasant asshole - and he could make videos worth watching.

As many have touched on, it's considerably unlikely that Spoony would've found meaningful success if he started making content today and not in 2007.

 

[Me262PrinceOfTurboJet]

"What's the most you've ever lost in a dice roll?"

 

[ShimmyHolmes]

But if you're really doing that, why are you inviting other people in on it the first place?

Because they usually need people to play the minor NPCs. Probably able to delude them into the idea they'll get promoted or something.

 

[Apteryx Owenii]

I'm gonna white knight Spoony a bit on a couple of Counter Monkey topics...

One thing to keep in mind is that the counter monkey stories are told entirely from the perspective of what I would call a somewhat unreliable narrator. One who seems to engage in a lot of DM v. player dynamics.

Some objective truth to what happened isn't important to those stories- they can be entertaining on their own. But I would not be surprised if other people at those tables (or whatever) have a different recollection.

(or maybe not, there's plenty of dicks that happen to play games and would pull shit like that)

 

[The Cunting Death]

I'm on the spectrum

OH IT SHOWS finkler, it shows

 

[Mask_de_SMITH]

I mean, Spoony himself said he regretted that during one of his freakouts last year.

View attachment 2446209

He's stupid to apologize for that... Like, how was he in the wrong?

His LARP group essentially took over his character and the DM just shrugged it off. It's the DM's responsibility to make sure all the players are having fun, and getting your character tortured and converted is not fun. I'd have honestly done the same thing, if I were him. At the very least, it made the story of the game world more interesting. Spoony's apology just makes him look like a spineless wimp. What you did was awesome, Noah, just fucking own up to it.

That being said, I agree with him in this: the new World of Darkness is hot fucking garbage.

 

[BScCollateral]

He's stupid to apologize for that... Like, how was he in the wrong?

Assuming he's a reliable narrator here, the only thing he did "wrong" was to go beyond "I won't be coming back," with an optional "You people are assholes, fuck you."

Of course, that course stops drama instead of escalating it.

 

[MLK Ultra]

His fucking lipsmacking was unbearable. Every sentence punctuated with a sharp wet smack to accentuate his disgusting mouth. I want to puke.

 

[The Rockafire Explosion]

I'm gonna white knight Spoony a bit on a couple of Counter Monkey topics.

1: What he did to the Vampire LARP, IMO, was just desserts. They shit on his experience by straight up crippling his character right out of the gate by playing the usual "you ain't part of this clique so we'll fuck you up" all too common in those fucking outings, not giving him an out of character warning about playing a Carthian in a place where Carthians were nothing but gank meat with no support, basically taking away the bulk of his agency until he turned tables on them. Am I bitter about having my own group bullied to hell and back when we went to game with the World Storyteller back in my Camarilla days? Maybe.

2: The L5R game was not his fault. That duellist was a fucking jackass who either didn't know Thing 1 about how actual duels went down, and had a GM so incompetent that he didn't call him on it. To those of you don't know, the rule about "refusing a gift 3 times" is meant for far more formal occasions and holidays, not a simple offer of food and drink. Secondly, and far more egregiously, duels in Rokugan do NOT go down like that except in completely lawless territories between ronin and similar scumbags who have no honor to lose. If you're part of a proper clan like PC's are, duels have to be arranged. Both you and your opponent's Clan superior's are consulted and informed and negotiations are involved to determine just what kind of duel. It's not just the typical swordfights, duels can take the form of everything from bonsai tending to lyrical poetry slams (Samurai Rap Battles, FTW). If Cranes were going around just calling out people in swordfights and slaughtering other samurai not nearly as skilled in duelling, word would reach the Imperial Courts faster than bacteria grows on shit, Jade Magistrates get involved, and they'll proceed to legally take shits on the party, since such actions make the Crane's representatives look like dolts who can't make their kids behave. One thing you don't do in L5R is make your betters look bad in court. That shit will make you deader than a Kennedy.

I'll say that he has good points in a few of them. I agree that what happened in the Vampire LARP was bullshit, and oftentimes LARPs get caught up in petty infighting amongst a core group who take everything over because they suck off the GMs. His response was kind of hilarious but also way over the top, however, I don't know what kind of "change from the inside" thing you can do when the powerful players are so entrenched they just beat the shit out of the newbies until they go along with the status quo. In reality, it was just a shitty game and he should have walked away. I don't remember the L5R story offhand but that also sounds pretty much par for the course.

Really, his All Jedi or No Jedi story is the highlight of Spoony's Counter Monkey vids in my opinion, in that it shows how he has good advice and is actually knowledgeable about games, but is also a raging asshole. Up until the newest edition of the Star Wars RPG, which has managed to balance Jedi with other characters, this was sound advice; Jedi could fuck up a game really quickly, and you could easily extrapolate that advice to any other game with a character type that could screw things up because of power levels. The fact that he completely ignores this advice to fuck over a friend's game by not playing a Jedi in an all Jedi game, and gleefully recounts how he uses obscure rules and sourcebooks just to be a dick, is Spoony in a nutshell.