OOC Chat

Maybe?

Or even just tables for new classes/Playbooks in this system.

Interesting thought.

Hey gang, I am still here and want to get this wrapped up, but also I'm going to have to be playing a bunch of catch up at work for the next few days.

Probably won't be able to post much until next week?

Thank you for your patience and time.

Hanging out :) No worries.

So here is a ChatGPT generated set of tables for D&D 5eWith a bit of work it might be able to generate a set of tables for each race, background, and class of choice. But would this constitude infringing on BtW cration content? The bot indicated it was aware of the BtW game set so it must have access to some of their content. Might be ok for personal use but not distribution.

I would personally prefer to skip AI and do this the old-fashioned way. I learn better when i work my way through the material. That's just me.

I agree. Using a system of the best way to learn. I just thought the BtW creation method was interesting and this was just an experiment in adapting it for just on other hand systems. Tie in stats to character origin and background. The AI even tried it in to personality, which I thought was interesting.

This is going to be a probably MASSIVELY off topic detour here, but...

There seems to be a pretty large amount of resistance to AI, in the roleplaying games community.

For example I just had a player leave a game because they thought another player was using AI to generate their text, and they got upset when I wouldn't immediately stop the user or remove them.

Which in some cases I get it - like, art generators - which haven't been proven, to my level of satisfaction anyway, that they're not basically just very well obscured stealing.

But in some cases I don't get it. Like language model AIs.

For one, I think there are lots of legitimate use cases.

Such as English as second language - if someone can't express themself adequately in English, perhaps they can at least type an adequate prompt that will generate a more fully realized text.

And frankly there are innumerable disabilities or conditions that could benefit tremendously from the technology. From severe neuromuscular things where it's just really hard to type/communicate, to comparatively very minor things like dyslexia or aphantasia.

I see AI as a tool, or an aid.

Like a dictionary, or thesaurus, or creative writing exercises/prompts, or even just reading other writers works, etc. Albeit, yes, it is a VERY powerful dictionary/thesaurus/prompt/tool.

Ultimately, I don't think RPGs or play by post should be denied to people who need or even just want aid, for any reason.

Basically I don't think it's any of my business what tools someone uses to generate text or stories or content, so long as it's appropriate and demonstrates an ability to understand the story and help advance it and problem solve.

That was what I told the user who left my game.

I'm not going to ask ppl personal information like if they have a legitimate use case - that's nobody's business, and so I'm not going to boot ppl just for using it.

Even someone who is just not a very good writer nor creative - and is perhaps aware of that, and uncomfortable with it - or someone who needs to get over writers block, should they not get to "do" RPGs or create content for rpgs?

I get that it can seem lazy, and if it's to generate text in PBP yea we want human interactions when we do this.

But I'm not certain if there's really harm being done?

I've played around with Chat GPT quite a bit out of curiosity, and I think it's a pretty cool tool.

I've used it to create thematic names, and brainstorm head-canon in various worlds/IPs (which I've turned around and used in RPGs), and to generate poetry/songs/prophecies, and NPC speeches. And in some cases it does a really great job. And I've also found it's not even necessarily a low effort thing in many cases, as you have to give it context and effective prompts, and revise the input, and then probably still ultimately make edits and do tailoring to the output...

It can produce a quality of content that I could frankly "never" do on my own, particularly for things like, rhyming poetry and songs and prophecy.

Is it better to be "authentic" and just not have that kind of content in my games? Instead just having to say, "Well there's a prophecy that gives you THIS impression.", but not have any actual text for the prophecy?

Or is it better to use an available tool that can generate actual text that the players can read and puzzle over and enriches the experience?

Some of it is lazy of course. Could I come up with names? Yes. Could I just go with whatever limited few ideas I had already come up with on my own? Or spend more of my limited free time brainstorming more ideas? Yes.

But... again, where is the harm, in using this tool?

I'm not sure I see it, although I'm willing to be shown it.

I tend to be very upfront with my use of AI, cuz I think it's cool to showcase what it can do. The technologist in me thinks there's a lot of very cool things about the technology, not the least of which are for legitimate use cases.

But so is there a problem with trying to pass stuff off generated by AI as completely original? Probably, I guess? I think a disclosure can make sense. Although we don't disclose when we've had to Google a word or thesaurus or prompts or even necessarily other works that have influenced us... so... ???

But at this time, I don't think AI should be disqualified from or disqualifying to RPGs or RPG content.

Ok, stepping down from soap box!

I'm planning on focusing catching up on this game and posting tomorrow!

Thanks again all for hanging out.

One of the things in most interested in is where everyone's stats came out, so if you could all plz summarize that somewhere, well put a nail in this experiment soon!

Cheers,
em

I don't think there's an issue with using tools. I learn things better when I wade through the material myself. All that firsthand exposure to content makes a big difference.

If people want to use it, feel free. The main problem at this point for me is plagiarism. And this is beyond people wrongfully taking credit for stuff they didn't write, but also for the "AI" programs themselves that "create" based on the resources at their disposal. I don't think I've ever seen an AI present a list of Works Cited or Works Consulted. If a student did that they'd risk being expelled. This is something that bothers me, but probably isn't an issue at a gaming table.

I'm sorry, what did you mean when you wanted a summary of where our stats came out? I didn't understand what you were asking.

Yea, totally agree that if you're publishing something/creating a commercial work, there are potential issues depending on what you're having the AI generate.

To take Psybermagi's table as an example though, where the structure and concepts are all under the OGL/CC, I feel like there's nothing inherently bad about generating something like that through AI. For one, it's probably going to take plenty of editorializing, it's just a starting place. And two, the consumer will be it's judge. We don't need to judge the AI, because judgement will come through the "product" and the "work".

I don't see where value is diminished if the work is good.

But I was just flabbergasted and very frustrated to discover yet another reason someone would just walk out on a game without warning. And so wanted to voice my opinion that absolutely no one asked for, in part to see if it still made sense to me, and in part to see if it made sense to others.

RE: "a summary of where our stats came out", I just mean what is your STR DEX CON WIS INT and CHA here at the end of character creation?

That sounds like someone who is very idealistic about AI, perhaps even a content creator who has had their works used to train AI. I'd probably be pretty strongly opposed to AI then, too. But I use it and am not shy about it.

I use it most when I run what essentially amounts to improv games. I use a lot of random tables to generate things of interest for the players as they explore. If it catches their attention, knowledge/history rolls often demand more information for something I didn't even know existed until 30 seconds ago, so getting a quick list of potential demon cult names or previous rulers of an ancient empire is a huge time saver and helps keep things moving and more or less immersive. I'm creative and usually prepared with lists of town names, NPC names, etc. But if a random table generates something that demands a name I'm not prepared to give, AI can provide me some options and something to go with. All my players know I use it from time to time.

I wouldn't use it to generate text for a pbp game, but unless it somehow caused a problem, I don't think I'd care if someone else did. Personally, I enjoy the challenge of writing something compelling and descriptive.

All in all, it's just another tool in my GM toolbox.