# Acquisitions Incorporated: The Lost Episode



## bpauls (Sep 2, 2012)

For those interested in the latest adventure of Aeofel, Binwin, Omin and Jim, Acquisitions Incorporated: The Lost Episode is up on the streaming site for Pax Prime 2012.

This year's presentation is an exhibition of the current state of D&D Next, under the guidance of Dungeon Master Chris Perkins.


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## F700 (Sep 2, 2012)

They've really jumped the shark.

The original PA/PVP podcasts did a lot to get me interested in 4e. These live performances don't compare. The games have all been severely limited by the single set pieces they obviously use for visual appeal.

Worse is wil wheaton. He was bad enough in the podcasts, but worse with an audience and in front of cameras. He rambles on longer than he should, and if I ever had an attention hog like that at my table I'd be telling him to stfu or gtfo.

And the PA and PVP guys can be really funny - especially Kurtz. But with the time constraints of the live game they seem to be rushing to make jokes so the humour feels forced and the quality of the game suffers for it.


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## Magil (Sep 2, 2012)

Fairly entertaining, but I liked it better when they didn't spend the whole session on a single encounter.

Though it is funny that these guys spent almost two hours on a single encounter when that was precisely the kind of thing that was supposed to be rare in DnD Next (I know that's not entirely fair considering how much joking around was going on there) 

I definitely like the original three podcasts better than any of the live shows they've done so far, this one included.


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## Blackwarder (Sep 2, 2012)

I like the live shows, was very entertaining.

Warder


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## Baileyborough (Sep 2, 2012)

I haven't listened to this one yet, but I don't have high hopes unfortunately. I loved the original podcasts, and the live shows don't compare. Obviously it has a lot to do with the time constraints.

I will agree that the more I listen, the more Wheaton annoys me. In the podcasts he's not so bad, but in any of the live shows... Christ.

I personally think one or two series of podcasts would do a lot more for WotC than the token live show, but it seems like they enjoy playing in the live games, so there it is. There's still the first 3 podcasts, and the great Dark Sun podcast...


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## Iosue (Sep 2, 2012)

Magil said:


> Though it is funny that these guys spent almost two hours on a single encounter when that was precisely the kind of thing that was supposed to be rare in DnD Next (I know that's not entirely fair considering how much joking around was going on there)



Not rare in D&D Next, _selectable_.  Ideally, if you want a bunch of quick encounters, you can do that, and if you want a big, rock-the-house, set-piece encounter you can do that, too.  This, like the previous celebrity games Perkins has run to be put up on video, was by design one huge set-piece encounter leavened by thin layers of character interaction.


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## Magil (Sep 2, 2012)

Iosue said:


> Not rare in D&D Next, _selectable_.  Ideally, if you want a bunch of quick encounters, you can do that, and if you want a big, rock-the-house, set-piece encounter you can do that, too.  This, like the previous celebrity games Perkins has run to be put up on video, was by design one huge set-piece encounter leavened by thin layers of character interaction.




Well, perhaps what I should be saying is I'd have liked it if they'd showed off DnDNext's ability to make "quick" encounters that are still somewhat interesting, because this kinda failed at that. I'm also disappointed that the monsters posed no threat to the PCs but that's a different issue.


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## Jupp (Sep 2, 2012)

Not a lot of info regarding Next but I did not expect that to happen anyway. I think this session was not really meant to explain the game that much but it was just a good old getting together and having fun at the table. I thoroughly enjoyed the thing for what it was; friends sitting together for a few hours of gaming fun. Being in a beer and pretzel gaming group myself I was really having a good time watching the video.

Mr. Perkins did a good job on letting them play it the way they wanted to and not getting too much in the way with rules and stuff. The whole thing was not really about D&D Next but more like a way to show that you can have a lot of fun at the table. In that way it was good advertising for RPGs in general.


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## Scipio202 (Sep 2, 2012)

*Three rules nuggets*

I thought it was very funny.

There were three new rules mentioned.  One was a beefed-up version of crit damage: max base damage + 2d6 (plus an additional d6 per odd level).  I like it - makes crits more meaningful but seems easy enough to control the system math since it isn't a multiple of base damage.  Two was using opposed Cha contests every round for the battle of wills with an intelligent cursed sword.  Three was that Wil's character still had fey step (presumably the racial trait of an eladrin subtype).


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## Magil (Sep 2, 2012)

Scipio202 said:


> There were three new rules mentioned.  One was a beefed-up version of crit damage: max base damage + 2d6 (plus an additional d6 per odd level).  I like it - makes crits more meaningful but seems easy enough to control the system math since it isn't a multiple of base damage.  Two was using opposed Cha contests every round for the battle of wills with an intelligent cursed sword.  Three was that Wil's character still had fey step (presumably the racial trait of an eladrin subtype).




I noticed that too. But isn't an eladrin basically a high elf? I really thought they were the same thing with different names.

He also used fey step twice, which makes me wonder if maybe it was actually a spell (I think he said he was a cleric at some point).


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## Iosue (Sep 2, 2012)

Magil said:


> I noticed that too. But isn't an eladrin basically a high elf? I really thought they were the same thing with different names.
> 
> He also used fey step twice, which makes me wonder if maybe it was actually a spell (I think he said he was a cleric at some point).



I recall him using it once, to get out of the acid.  When was the other time?


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## Scipio202 (Sep 2, 2012)

Iosue said:


> I recall him using it once, to get out of the acid.  When was the other time?




He fey stepped up onto the statue to cut the spider web strand and stop the drop from getting the second eye gem.


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## Olgar Shiverstone (Sep 2, 2012)

Not enough Uni.


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## Magil (Sep 2, 2012)

Well, he may have also just forgotten that it was a per-encounter ability (if it is) and used it an extra time. Wouldn't be the first time such a thing has happened in these games


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## Baileyborough (Sep 2, 2012)

Is there anywhere to see this after the fact?


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## bpauls (Sep 2, 2012)

Baileyborough said:


> Is there anywhere to see this after the fact?




The link in my original post goes to an archive of the stream, which you can watch at any time.


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## Abciximab (Sep 2, 2012)

It sure played a lot faster, no more of the dreaded, "I.. Uh... um..." from the players. A lot less to know and keep track of.


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## Ichneumon (Sep 2, 2012)

Magil said:


> I noticed that too. But isn't an eladrin basically a high elf? I really thought they were the same thing with different names.




It was in 4th Edition. Given that a high elf has gone back to being an elf in D&D Next, it's possible that there's still a fey humanoid race called "eladrin". If so, it gives that race a chance to be a bit more alien, more like the eladrin from 2e Planescape.


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## Stasis_Delirium (Sep 2, 2012)

I was pretty entertained, but I'm easily entertained.

It helps if the sessions are seen as just a group of fellow geeks playing a loose game of D&D with no slogging through bizarre (and utterly insane) politics and line-in-the-sand drawing that crop up around the gaming hobby these days.  Its just a bunch of people goofing around with characters and story, run by a pretty amazing DM in my opinion.

The seminars are much better for getting actual tidbits of news out of, but the live game did feature a try at some new crit rules.  

Imagining Binwin getting a crit with what.. 4d12 on top of that is almost terrifying.


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## bpauls (Sep 2, 2012)

I've only watched the video through once so far, but I didn't notice any use of the Advantage/Disadvantage mechanic. I found the absence surprising.

Did anyone else see something I didn't?


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## Stasis_Delirium (Sep 3, 2012)

bpauls said:


> I've only watched the video through once so far, but I didn't notice any use of the Advantage/Disadvantage mechanic. I found the absence surprising.
> 
> Did anyone else see something I didn't?




I didn't see a single use of it either, and there were circumstances that I would have thought it would be given.  Wil's character firing from hiding on completely clueless enemies, for example.


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## Vael (Sep 3, 2012)

Compared to the last two live staged pieces they've done, it wasn't the best. But I love watching Chris Perkins DMing, and the group has a hilarious dynamic. Any opportunity to see the Jim Darkmagic ... magic is a treat.


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## Abciximab (Sep 3, 2012)

Stasis_Delirium said:


> I didn't see a single use of it either, and there were circumstances that I would have thought it would be given.  Wil's character firing from hiding on completely clueless enemies, for example.




They used it once, for a religious lore check for Omen early on.


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## Magil (Sep 3, 2012)

Ichneumon said:


> It was in 4th Edition. Given that a high elf has gone back to being an elf in D&D Next, it's possible that there's still a fey humanoid race called "eladrin". If so, it gives that race a chance to be a bit more alien, more like the eladrin from 2e Planescape.




I did notice that Will didn't object to being called an "elf" in this session. In the past events he's been rather passionate about being an "eladrin" rather than an elf. That could be coincidental of course.



bpauls said:


> I've only watched the video through once so far, but I didn't notice any use of the Advantage/Disadvantage mechanic. I found the absence surprising.
> 
> Did anyone else see something I didn't?




The only time I saw those rules being used was when Tycho pointed out he had "keen senses" and thus had advantage when searching. Otherwise, I did find it rather odd that those rules never saw use.


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## Baileyborough (Sep 3, 2012)

Right so, finally watched it.

This was not as bad as I had feared. I'll be honest, I felt that the last game (Darkmagic's Will) jumped the shark for them. Dick jokes ahoy and Wheaton acting like a fool.

This wasn't as bad as it could have been. And it had some semblence of the dynamic that I recall from the podcasts. 

I do wonder sometimes though why they wouldn't get Straub in on this instead of Wheaton. He's a much funnier guy, and the dynamic could have been really great. Oh well.


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## F700 (Sep 3, 2012)

I definately get the impression wheaton isn't popular at the table and he's included due to his having foisted himself on nerd culture. Replacing him with Kris Straub would definately be an improvement - D&D should be played amoungst friends and it would be nice to see Kurtz have a dynamic with someone at the table like Holkins and Kruhlik have.

Watching the live stream, I also thought the moderators were a little heavy handed with comment deletions and banning people.


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## Jupp (Sep 3, 2012)

F700 said:


> D&D should be played amoungst friends and it would be nice to see Kurtz have a dynamic with someone at the table like Holkins and Kruhlik have.




Funny you mention this because Kurtz and Wheaton are actually the ones that get along together the best at the table since the first time they played together. And if the others would not have liked Will at the table from the start you can bet they would not have invited him to the next play session. But alas he has been part since the second podcast series.


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## F700 (Sep 3, 2012)

Jupp said:


> Funny you mention this because Kurtz and Wheaton are actually the ones that get along together the best at the table since the first time they played together. And if the others would not have liked Will at the table from the start you can bet they would not have invited him to the next play session. But alas he has been part since the second podcast series.




Kurtz and wheaton may high five, but a) I never suggested everyone was looking to kick the crap out of him, and b) Jerry and Mike are tight enough that Kurtz and wheaton wind up as a team by default.

Also, these guys are getting paid to play. It's part of WotCs marketing budget, so it's not a matter of inviting him back, and there's nothing new or unusual about disliking a co-worker and still having to work with him/her.

wheaton is such a douche bag and hypocrite that I think WotC would be better off hiring someone else, and the garbage that comes out of his mouth on Twitter and elsewhere could be potentially damaging to D&D as a brand.

*Mod Note:*  Please see my post below  ~Umbran


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## Blackwarder (Sep 4, 2012)

I don't understand all the Wheaton hate, personally, I like him.

Warder


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## Teataine (Sep 4, 2012)

Seriously, when did we start calling Wil a douchebag and hypocrite? Did I miss a memo? I don't get it.


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## Baileyborough (Sep 4, 2012)

For the record, I don't think he's a douche, I just don't find him funny, and can think of funnier people. I also think he's a bit of an attention seeker, and drags his "jokes" out a bit too long.


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## Jupp (Sep 4, 2012)

F700 said:


> wheaton is such a ....




You might not like him but please stop calling names here and just state "I do not like him" and get on with it. This board deserves better things than name calling and mud slinging.


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## Umbran (Sep 4, 2012)

F700 said:


> wheaton is such a douche bag and hypocrite ...




F700, please don't resort to name calling.  We would prefer EN World's discussion remain just a bit above that sort of thing.  Our Rule #1  is "Keep it civil," and calling someone a such names, whether he's present or not, we don't consider civil.

If you've any questions on this, please take them to e-mail or PM with the moderator of your choice.  Thanks.


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## Abciximab (Sep 4, 2012)

While Wil does go a little over the top (which I blame on his being an actor and nothing more), I enjoy watching him as part of the group and would not want to see him replaced. I think having different personalities makes for a great dynamic. I also believe he is genuinely enthusiastic about the game and gameplaying in general as well as the camaraderie that goes with it.


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## gyor (Sep 4, 2012)

Blackwarder said:


> I don't understand all the Wheaton hate, personally, I like him.
> 
> Warder




 Me too, loved him on big bang theory, STG as well.


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## filthgrinder (Sep 4, 2012)

F700 said:


> Also, these guys are getting paid to play. It's part of WotCs marketing budget, so it's not a matter of inviting him back, and there's nothing new or unusual about disliking a co-worker and still having to work with him/her.




Right... that is why Mike and Jerry had Wil give the keynote address at the first ever PAX, and invited him back to give the keynote at the first PAX East. Thats why he's invited to every PAX, and has a giant panel every year. 

As for "being paid", PA has an ad policy of not doing site take-over, not doing pop outs, and not running ads for games they don't like or haven't played. They ask for demos/betas of games before they'll run ads. They've even pulled ads when the game launches is different than the played beta.

Mike even talked about how they lost the deal to do a comic book for the Old Republic MMO after Mike posted about why he stopped playing.

So, I'm going to wager they like Wil, because apart for the above, they've said they like him.

As for Wil love, I think his series "TableTop" is probably the best ad for table top gaming anyone has ever done. That alone should get him some credit.

Kris isn't in the game because he wasn't in Seattle when this all started. He should be the fifth member, but alas. 

I liked this one better than last year's, but not as much as the first live show (which I was at). They aren't as good at 4+ hour podcasts, but I take what I get.


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## Blackwarder (Sep 4, 2012)

filthgrinder said:


> As for Wil love, I think his series "TableTop" is probably the best ad for table top gaming anyone has ever done. That alone should get him some credit.
> 
> .




This, it's the best tabletop ad you can ask for, made me buy sme great games and it was cool seeing them play the games we love.

Warder


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## F700 (Sep 6, 2012)

filthgrinder said:


> Right... that is why Mike and Jerry had Wil give the keynote address at the first ever PAX, and invited him back to give the keynote at the first PAX East. Thats why he's invited to every PAX, and has a giant panel every year.
> 
> As for "being paid", PA has an ad policy of not doing site take-over, not doing pop outs, and not running ads for games they don't like or haven't played. They ask for demos/betas of games before they'll run ads. They've even pulled ads when the game launches is different than the played beta.
> 
> ...




Actually, Kruhlik has mentioned before that they're paid to do the podcasts. That they`re pro D&D after being paid to play isn`t a matter of ethics - I have no doubt if they were paid to play the first time and didn`t like it, they`d have said so and not been paid to play again or refused to be paid to play. 

What makes you special so that you can ignore a moderators instructions? Answer: nothing. Don't do it again or you'll have a 3 day ban. Plane Sailing, enworld admin
As for "name calling"...do a Google search of wil wheaton is a douche. It returns 86,000 or so hits for a reason. As a public figure, he's open to criticismn, and since WotC has chosen to make him one of the public faces of their product his behaviour relates to that product and becomes representative of their corporate values. If you don't like douche bag, that's fine, I can go with hypocrite, liar, arrogant, egotistical, etc. Douche bag just sums it up nicely. But the fact is, as a celebrity - even a d-list celebrity - he`s a product, and reviewing his performance and behaviour is as appropos as reviewing any other D&D book or product.

As for the subject at hand - the live PAX game - I found it less enjoyable than ever for the reasons I previously stated. Over-produced, too short, not enough story, way too much wheaton. As a marketing move, it failed.


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## filthgrinder (Sep 6, 2012)

F700 said:


> As for "name calling"...do a Google search of wil wheaton is a douche. It returns 86,000 or so hits for a reason.




Because if it is on the internet it must be true!

google "we didn't land on the moon": About 124,000,000 results. "the sky is green": About 590,000,000 results
Google results is a really bad metric. 

So, going by bad metrics, there are plenty of stores of people picking up D&D from the podcasts and live shows. The fact that D&D is MASSIVE at PAX and DWARFS any other table top game (expect for cards against humanity and zombie dice, since those are line games)


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## RedShirtNo5.1 (Sep 6, 2012)

A Google search of "F700 is a douche" gives 261,000 hits.  What's up with that?


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## tercoil (Sep 6, 2012)

RedShirtNo5.1 said:


> A Google search of "F700 is a douche" gives 261,000 hits.  What's up with that?




tide goes in, tide goes out. you can't explain that!


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## nightwalker450 (Sep 6, 2012)

Also of note "Wil Wheaton is Awesome" returned 4,540,000 results...

Either way I don't think it really matters. I just find the fact that D&D makes for an excellent spectator sport to be very interesting. Yes its more along the lines of watching wrestling, the more the people cater to the crowd the better it is. Wil might be a bit more over the top than the others, but by doing so he's forcing the others to up their game as well. Mike and Jerry are getting pretty good at the public thing, after doing PAX for so many years, and all the other events (Childs Play, etc..), but Scott is a funny guy, but a lot quieter then the rest so what he says goes unnoticed at times.

I wish Mike, Jerry, Scott and Kris, and a couple other PA staff (Erica and Khoo) would do something for PATV of a weekly RPG session. I don't even care if it's D&D or not, I think it would just be an awesome addition to gaming programming.

Extra Creditz, Tabletop, and "Jim Darkmagic's Magic Hour" (ok they can come up with something better..)


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## Plane Sailing (Sep 6, 2012)

F700 said:


> Actually, Kruhlik has mentioned before that they're paid to do the podcasts. That they`re pro D&D after being paid to play isn`t a matter of ethics - I have no doubt if they were paid to play the first time and didn`t like it, they`d have said so and not been paid to play again or refused to be paid to play.
> 
> As for "name calling"...do a Google search of wil wheaton is a douche. It returns 86,000 or so hits for a reason. As a public figure, he's open to criticismn, and since WotC has chosen to make him one of the public faces of their product his behaviour relates to that product and becomes representative of their corporate values. If you don't like douche bag, that's fine, I can go with hypocrite, liar, arrogant, egotistical, etc. Douche bag just sums it up nicely. But the fact is, as a celebrity - even a d-list celebrity - he`s a product, and reviewing his performance and behaviour is as appropos as reviewing any other D&D book or product.
> 
> As for the subject at hand - the live PAX game - I found it less enjoyable than ever for the reasons I previously stated. Over-produced, too short, not enough story, way too much wheaton. As a marketing move, it failed.





What makes you special so that you can ignore a moderators instructions? Answer: nothing. Don't do it again or you'll have a 3 day ban. Plane Sailing, enworld admin


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