From: owner-the-edge-digest@ (The Edge Digested) To: the-edge-digest@robin-nvh.bvsd.k12.co.us Subject: The Edge Digested V1 #98 Reply-To: the-edge@robin-nvh.bvsd.k12.co.us Sender: owner-the-edge-digest@ Errors-To: owner-the-edge-digest@ Precedence: bulk The Edge Digested Wednesday, August 19 1998 Volume 01 : Number 098 Today's subjects from The Edge: Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois [The Edge] Live Action OTE Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois Re: [The Edge] Notes on 'Martian patois, Pt. 1 ( somewhat long) Re: [The Edge] Notes on 'Martian patois, Pt. 2 (long) Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 18 Aug 1998 17:11:00 -0500 From: "Paul J. Lareau" Subject: Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois Stephen Avery wrote: > > Yeah, I find slang to be a valuable part of any game to quickly set the > mood. Does anyone know any african nations vocabulary to help stir the > pot. Also, I'm in the ATLANTA area and need to find gamers interested > in OTE any takers out there? Anyone looking for odd and not-so-odd languages needs to visit the TRAVELANG web site at: http://www.travlang.com/ Best language source anywhere! (No Martian, though!) - -- Paul J. Lareau - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - [POST] 135 E. Viking Dr. #301, Little Canada MN 55117 USA [HOME PAGE] http://www.wavefront.com/~pjlareau/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 00:12:15 -0400 From: Alexander Williams Subject: Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois On Tue, Aug 18, 1998 at 09:50:24AM -0700, Stephen Avery wrote: > Yeah, I find slang to be a valuable part of any game to quickly set the > mood. Does anyone know any african nations vocabulary to help stir the > pot. Also, I'm in the ATLANTA area and need to find gamers interested > in OTE any takers out there? There are a few native Atlantans out here who occasionally try to pull a game or two of OtE together; the next big event seems to be Dragon*Con in Sept. Should we see how many ML members intend to attend and make plans to have a huge live-action Al Amarja event, just to confuse the Vampire LARPers? :) - -- Alexander Williams (thantos@mindspring.com) Sometimes you bleed just to know you're alive. [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 05:06:34 PDT From: "Stephen Avery" Subject: Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois Funny I wasn't planning on attending but it might be worth it just to play with their heads. "of course I'm a vampire...what's the password!" :) >Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 00:12:15 -0400 >From: Alexander Williams >To: the-edge@robin-nvh.bvsd.k12.co.us >Subject: Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois >Reply-To: the-edge@robin-nvh.bvsd.k12.co.us > >On Tue, Aug 18, 1998 at 09:50:24AM -0700, Stephen Avery wrote: >> Yeah, I find slang to be a valuable part of any game to quickly set the >> mood. Does anyone know any african nations vocabulary to help stir the >> pot. Also, I'm in the ATLANTA area and need to find gamers interested >> in OTE any takers out there? > >There are a few native Atlantans out here who occasionally try to pull >a game or two of OtE together; the next big event seems to be >Dragon*Con in Sept. Should we see how many ML members intend to >attend and make plans to have a huge live-action Al Amarja event, just >to confuse the Vampire LARPers? :) > >-- >Alexander Williams (thantos@mindspring.com) >Sometimes you bleed just to know you're alive. > >[O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge >[0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of >[O] (un)subscribe the-edge > ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 08:32:26 -0400 From: Alexander Williams Subject: Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois On Wed, Aug 19, 1998 at 05:06:34AM -0700, Stephen Avery wrote: > Funny I wasn't planning on attending but it might be worth it just to > play with their heads. "of course I'm a vampire...what's the password!" > :) The illness of my psyche wonders what the LARPers would do if they ran into Horrors Count ... - -- Alexander Williams (thantos@mindspring.com) Sometimes you bleed just to know you're alive. [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 09:57:17 -0500 (CDT) From: Eric Jome Subject: [The Edge] Live Action OTE On Wed, 19 Aug 1998, Alexander Williams wrote: > There are a few native Atlantans out here who occasionally try to pull > a game or two of OtE together; the next big event seems to be > Dragon*Con in Sept. Should we see how many ML members intend to > attend and make plans to have a huge live-action Al Amarja event, just > to confuse the Vampire LARPers? :) i had the honor of playing C. A. Radford in a beautifully conceived live action game (hybrid OnTE/OTE) some years ago... since, when the spirit takes me, i have been working on a variety of OTE live action events and rules. has anyone else ever given this any serious thought? eric [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 11:25:48 -0400 From: Alexander Williams Subject: Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE On Wed, Aug 19, 1998 at 09:57:17AM -0500, Eric Jome wrote: > i had the honor of playing C. A. Radford in a beautifully conceived > live action game (hybrid OnTE/OTE) some years ago... since, when the > spirit takes me, i have been working on a variety of OTE live action > events and rules. has anyone else ever given this any serious thought? The problem I always run into when considering LARP OtE is the necessity of having extremely simple mechanics, and I don't think I can really do better than the tabletop system! All you'd need is a 3x5 card with your Traits and Flaw written on it, presentable to anyone that asks for verification, then go with your standard mechanics. - -- Alexander Williams (thantos@mindspring.com) Sometimes you bleed just to know you're alive. [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 11:19:24 EDT From: DocCross@AOL.COM Subject: Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE In a message dated 98-08-19 11:13:03 EDT, you write: << > There are a few native Atlantans out here who occasionally try to pull > a game or two of OtE together; the next big event seems to be > Dragon*Con in Sept. Should we see how many ML members intend to > attend and make plans to have a huge live-action Al Amarja event, just > to confuse the Vampire LARPers? :) i had the honor of playing C. A. Radford in a beautifully conceived live action game (hybrid OnTE/OTE) some years ago... since, when the spirit takes me, i have been working on a variety of OTE live action events and rules. has anyone else ever given this any serious thought? >> I was going to run an OTE LARP at Worldcon this year, but then had to miss the con. However, I fully intend on running one next year at GenCon. I may also run one at DunDraCon in February. [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 11:37:27 -0400 (EDT) From: Joshua Kronengold Subject: Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois Stephen Avery writes: >Funny I wasn't planning on attending but it might be worth it just to >play with their heads. "of course I'm a vampire...what's the password!" >:) This Does sound like fun; maybe a combined light larp plus an Omni league, with symbols for involvement in the Larp/Leauge being either a noose, wearing or displaying an ONTE card, or both? I also don't usually attend DragonCon, but am being increasingly tempted this year; does anyone have crash space to offer, or need a share? - -- mneme@dorsai.org Joshua Kronengold |\ _,,,--,,_ ,) - ---^---- "What part of 'Pthhhrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr' /,`.-'`' -, ;-;;' /\\ didn't you understand?" -- Me |,4- ) )-,_ ) /\ - -/-\\\-- AKA mneme at mcny.com '---''(_/--' (_/-' [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 11:47:23 -0400 (EDT) From: Joshua Kronengold Subject: Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE >> events and rules. has anyone else ever given this any serious thought? >The problem I always run into when considering LARP OtE is the >necessity of having extremely simple mechanics, and I don't think I >can really do better than the tabletop system! All you'd need is a >3x5 card with your Traits and Flaw written on it, presentable to >anyone that asks for verification, then go with your standard >mechanics. Actually, while I agree on the character creation/description mechanics, I don't much like rolling dice in a Larp. Why not just keep the 0-5 scale, but have use be automatic, if subject to a "shots" cost (ie you get traitx4 shots for each trait, and various uses will cost one or more shots), with better traits being able to counteract weaker traits where appropriate, but weaker traits not being able to counteract better ones (if it's a tie, flip a coin). Or is This too complicated? I've been a bit corrupted by various mediocre to good systems used by the Other major group of non-combat Larpers (aside from the vampire wenies, that is). - -- mneme@dorsai.org Joshua Kronengold |\ _,,,--,,_ ,) - ---^---- "What part of 'Pthhhrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr' /,`.-'`' -, ;-;;' /\\ didn't you understand?" -- Me |,4- ) )-,_ ) /\ - -/-\\\-- AKA mneme at mcny.com '---''(_/--' (_/-' [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 08:48:28 -0700 (PDT) From: "Adam T. Ness" Subject: Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE On Wed, 19 Aug 1998, Alexander Williams wrote: > The problem I always run into when considering LARP OtE is the > necessity of having extremely simple mechanics, and I don't think I > can really do better than the tabletop system! All you'd need is a > 3x5 card with your Traits and Flaw written on it, presentable to > anyone that asks for verification, then go with your standard > mechanics. The difficulty then becomes carrying around five dice with you all the time and finding a flat surface to roll them on. I personaly like the Rock Scisors Paper of the MET system, but I haven't had exposure to many other systems. Also, a OTE LARP requires either very honest players or constant GM interaction due to the open-ended rules system. I'm not saying this is bad, but I don't know how it would go over at a convention game where a lot of people are Hack and Slashers looking for something new. A firmer rule system might be better. "Hey, all my friends are on another planet now, Gotta escape, from the planet of the apes." - They Might Be Giants, Escape from the planet of the apes. Adam "Dostoyevski Kicks Ass." Ness ICQ #3665941 | Cam #9701-061 [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 11:59:21 -0400 From: Alexander Williams Subject: Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE On Wed, Aug 19, 1998 at 11:47:23AM -0400, Joshua Kronengold wrote: > Actually, while I agree on the character creation/description > mechanics, I don't much like rolling dice in a Larp. Why not just keep > the 0-5 scale, but have use be automatic, if subject to a "shots" cost > (ie you get traitx4 shots for each trait, and various uses will cost > one or more shots), with better traits being able to counteract weaker > traits where appropriate, but weaker traits not being able to > counteract better ones (if it's a tie, flip a coin). Or is This too > complicated? I've been a bit corrupted by various mediocre to good > systems used by the Other major group of non-combat Larpers (aside > from the vampire wenies, that is). I'm really unfond of systems that don't allow for weaker abilities to win out over more powerful ones. Especially in OtE, with its extremely broad Traits, somone may just have a better grasp of some narrower field than you do. Besides, part of the allure of the Edge is that anyone might be a credible threat if the Deities or Pharohs are smiling on them and its their lucky day. Myself, I don't have a problem with die-rolling during a LARP; devices don't get more portable than knuckle bones and you can always get one of those narrow cylinders used to store poker chips in to carry them about (along with your rolled-up charsheet). - -- Alexander Williams (thantos@mindspring.com) Sometimes you bleed just to know you're alive. [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 12:21:37 -0400 From: Alexander Williams Subject: Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE On Wed, Aug 19, 1998 at 08:48:28AM -0700, Adam T. Ness wrote: > The difficulty then becomes carrying around five dice with you all > the time and finding a flat surface to roll them on. I personaly like the > Rock Scisors Paper of the MET system, but I haven't had exposure to many > other systems. Also, a OTE LARP requires either very honest players or > constant GM interaction due to the open-ended rules system. I'm not > saying this is bad, but I don't know how it would go over at a convention > game where a lot of people are Hack and Slashers looking for something > new. A firmer rule system might be better. Myself, I don't find carrying dice any more obligational than toting around a bag full of 'blood points' and redistributing them around whenever I use them or other such nonsensical actions (and RPS is much nicer if you have hands that can make RPS gestures, which I'm short of :). Tightening up a system on OtE would remove all the absolute insanity that its wide-open aspect allows for. Its that completely over-the-top anything-goes atmosphere that makes it so appealing as a LARP, at least to me. - -- Alexander Williams (thantos@mindspring.com) Sometimes you bleed just to know you're alive. [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 11:35:51 -0500 From: "Rodney J Anderson" Subject: Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois - -----Original Message----- From: Paul J. Lareau To: the-edge@robin-nvh.bvsd.k12.co.us Date: Tuesday, August 18, 1998 5:33 PM Subject: Re: [The Edge] 'Martian slang/patois >Stephen Avery wrote: >> >> Yeah, I find slang to be a valuable part of any game to quickly set the >> mood. Does anyone know any african nations vocabulary to help stir the >> pot [. . . .] >Anyone looking for odd and not-so-odd languages needs to >visit the TRAVELANG web site at: > > http://www.travlang.com/ > Thanks for the tipoff. In response to Stephen Avery's question about African languages, check the above website for Swahili, a Bantu language spoken in Kenya, Tanzania and Zaire. It's related to various Bantu languages used throughout central/south Africa, so for game purposes you could probably use it for characters from anywhere in that area. North Africans mostly speak Arabic, I believe. Some speak Berber or Tuareg, but there's not a lot of material for those languages (Berbers and Tuaregs not controlling any important tourist destinations). - --Rod Anderson "I've been authorized by the jurisdiction of whatever city this is to punish you in whatever way I can think of!" - --Max, in "Sam and Max: Surfin' the Highway" [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 11:35:58 -0500 From: "Rodney J Anderson" Subject: Re: [The Edge] Notes on 'Martian patois, Pt. 1 ( somewhat long) What with this subject generating some interest, I thought I'd go ahead and share some ideas I've come up with about the slang and patois of Al Amarja. Steal or ignore, as you will. Since I've got quite a bit of yakking to do on the subject, I'm going to split it into two or more separate messages. First, I've made a few notes speculating about how the patois may have developed. This is what I have so far, in admittedly crude form: The roots of Al Amarja's patois lay in Monique D'Aubainne's "liberation" of the island in 1940. When she bought it from the Italians, they pulled out rapidly and all of a piece, leaving D'Aubainne to construct her own government almost from scratch. Having determined to make American English the island's new offical language, she wanted employees of her government to be at least somewhat fluent in it. She gave the highest-ranking positions (both civil and military) mostly to well-educated French citizens from Algeria. Most were fluent in English, or, if they weren't, they were wealthy enough that it didn't matter. Further down the line were petty bureaucrats, laborers, policemen and soldiers. These were recruited from the island's native Arabic/African inhabitants. As part of their training, they were given crash courses in English by imported American teachers. These English lessons were rushed and perfunctory, and didn't particularly sink in. Most of Al Amarja's new "public servants" came out of them with just a smattering of English words, which were absorbed as slang into their native Arabic, or Spanish, or Bantu, and spread to their families and friends. It took a decade or so for real English fluency to pick up, which it did because of the following factors: 1. Fluency in English was used as a guideline to consider candidates for promotion in the government and military. If you were ambitious, you had to learn English (and usually had to pay for it yourself, but that's another story). 2. The post-WWII growth of US-based corporate outfits in Al Amarja. American companies came to A.A. because of loose regulations and low taxes, and preferentially hired English speakers -- another incentive to learn. 3. In 1948, the U.S. government established a "goodwill" program with A.A., opening several small English schools all over the island which taught students for nearly nothing. A.A.'s poor sent their children to these schools in droves, hoping for upward mobility. The schools ran at a hefty loss, and during the '70s they were gradually shut down, the last one closing in 1978. (There are still, of course, expensive American private schools in A.A., mostly in Gold and Broken Wings.) 4. The growth of Al Amarja's tourist industry. To work in this field, one had to know at least a few sentences of English. All of these factors contributed to the growth of fluency, but true fluency has never become universal. Most Al Amarjans never needed more than a handful of English to do their jobs, and if they didn't care about career advancement (as many didn't), they never learned more. This "broken English", however, eventually became a lingua franca for communicating across the language barriers of A.A.'s ethnically diverse population. Salted with Arabic, Bantu, Spanish, French, and a dozen other languages, it became what is called "Al Amarjan patois". Next: Patois today; patois words and phrases - --Rod Anderson "I've been authorized by the jurisdiction of whatever city this is to punish you in whatever way I can think of!" - --Max, in "Sam and Max: Surfin' the Highway" [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 11:36:07 -0500 From: "Rodney J Anderson" Subject: Re: [The Edge] Notes on 'Martian patois, Pt. 2 (long) This is a multi-part message in MIME format. - ------=_NextPart_000_0092_01BDCB65.8E258180 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable In my last post, I sketched out a possible scenario for the growth of Al = Amarjan patois from English and the diverse languages of A.A.'s = population. In this message, I'll make some comments about the patois = as it is today, and list some words and phrases that I've made up that = are meant to be representative of the patois. God willing, I won't make = a complete buffoon of myself. :-) =20 Patois Today: The older generations of Al Amarja -- those who remember the liberation, = and their children -- primarily use the patois as a trade language, = speaking their native language among family and friends. Many members = of the younger generation, however, speak patois preferentially. Some = reasons:=20 =20 1. Many 'Martian young people come from interethnic marriages. Their = parents spoke patois to each other, not knowing each others' native = tongues, so their children grew up with patois in the house. =20 2. Al Amarja has many private schools for English, ranging from = upper-crust academies to classes run by working-class citizens in their = homes. These schools attract an ethnically-diverse student body, who = usually talk with each other in patois when they're not busy learning = "proper English". Meeting friends and lovers with whom they communicate = in patois, students from many backgrounds become attached to the = language. =20 3. New people, mostly young and adventurous, move to Al Amarja every = day. They learn patois in order to "get in on" life on the Edge. To = them, patois *is* the language of Al Amarja. To speak of "the patois" is in some ways misleading. There are = countless variants of patois in existence throughout the island. All = are based on a common set of "core words" used for basic communication, = but diverge widely outside of that. Different ethnic groups naturally = evolve their own "insider" words and phrases; young people do it = deliberately and hyperactively, to exclude their elders from their = conversations (pubes are a curious exception to this; see below). = Street gangs also create their own patois expressions to distinguish = themselves from each other, and to exclude each other. =20 =20 Following are some notes on the more easily observable patois variants = in the Edge. For game purposes, this is mostly background stuff; it may = suffice to say that people from any given barrio can exclude people from = other barrios from understanding up to 70% of a conversation. I may = never use a tenth of this stuff myself. But anyway, here it is if = someone wants it: =20 Gold and Broken Wings Barrios: The well-educated residents of these = barrios mostly speak English or French with each other (French remains = the "prestige" language of Al Amarja; many believe that Monique = D'Aubainne preferentially gives high-ranking positions to Francophones, = even if their English is spotty). They do spice their conversations with = occasional patois words, often to be humorous or ironic. The snobbier = residents of Broken Wings won't condescend to learn patois at all. = Young people are an exception, speaking their own style of patois = heavily influenced by French, especially Parisian street slang picked up = from French movies and magazines. This "Broken Wings patois" is = considered obnoxiously upper-crust by inhabitants of other barrios. =20 Arms Barrio: Most members of the Peace Force and Democratic Guard and = their families pick up a "military patois" which retains French and = Arabic slang from the '40s that has since passed out of general use. = Basically sounds old-fashioned, but is not really different from the = patois at large. Also, the Loyal Defenders have their own private slang = code full of seeming non-sequitur meanings. For example, "Fred" means = "pistol" -- from Fred Bismouth, a crack shot with a revolver and one of = the Defenders' founding members. =20 Sunken Barrio: The part of the Edge where you're least likely to hear = patois being spoken. There is no noteworthy local patois here; most = 'Martians living or working here speak whatever is appropriate to their = particular ethnic group/age group/whatever. =20 Four Points, Justice, Great Men: Various ethnic and street gang variants = can be heard throughout these barrios. In some dense and diverse = neighborhoods, the residents of one block may be barely able to = understand the patois spoken the next block down. In Four Points, the = Dog-Faces have their own patois. In Justice, Otto's Men are encouraged = to speak good English, as befits upstanding citizens, and they pride = themselves on their fluency. Meanwhile, the Satanists of Great Men have = a variety of home-brewed slang terms for sexual perversions, drug = cocktails and exotic weapons. =20 Science: The patois here is full of cheeky, ironic, = pop-culture-referential student slang. =20 =20 Pubes: While teenagers in general are hyperactive in the creation of = slang, pubes, eager to appear mature, avoid youth slang like the plague = (in public at least -- in private with their friends, they may be as = giggly and adolescent as they please). Often, a pube will = self-consciously affect the patois of an ethnic group other than the one = he/she was raised in. And some would-be upwardly-mobile pubes from Four = Points try to affect what they call a "Broken Wings style" of speech, = which usually gets them beatings from neighbors who don't appreciate = their airs of self-importance. =20 **** =20 Well, I've tired myself out on this, so I think I'll save the made-up = slang and whatnot for another post. Hope I'm not keeping anyone in too = much suspense . . . ;-) - --Rod Anderson "I've been authorized by the jurisdiction of whatever city this is to = punish you in whatever way I can think of!" - --Max, in "Sam and Max: Surfin' the Highway"=20 - ------=_NextPart_000_0092_01BDCB65.8E258180 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
In my last post, I sketched out a = possible=20 scenario for the growth of Al Amarjan patois from English and the = diverse=20 languages of A.A.'s population.  In this message, I'll make some = comments=20 about the patois as it is today, and list some words and phrases that = I've made=20 up that are meant to be representative of the patois.  God willing, = I won't=20 make a complete buffoon of myself. :-)
 
Patois Today:
The older generations of Al Amarja -- those who = remember the=20 liberation, and their children -- primarily use the patois as a trade = language,=20 speaking their native language among family and friends.  Many = members of=20 the younger generation, however, speak patois preferentially.  Some = reasons: 
 
1. Many 'Martian young people come from interethnic=20 marriages.  Their parents spoke patois to each other, not knowing = each=20 others' native tongues, so their children grew up with patois in the=20 house.
 
2. Al Amarja has many private schools for English, = ranging=20 from upper-crust academies to classes run by working-class citizens in = their=20 homes.  These schools attract an ethnically-diverse student body, = who=20 usually talk with each other in patois when they're not busy learning=20 "proper English".  Meeting friends and lovers with whom = they=20 communicate in patois, students from many backgrounds become attached to = the=20 language.
 
3. New people, mostly young and adventurous, move to = Al Amarja=20 every day.  They learn patois in order to "get in on" = life on the=20 Edge.  To them, patois *is* the language of Al Amarja.
 
To speak of "the patois" is in some ways=20 misleading.  There are countless variants of patois in existence = throughout=20 the island.  All are based on a common set of "core = words" used=20 for basic communication, but diverge widely outside of that.  = Different=20 ethnic groups naturally evolve their own "insider" words and = phrases;=20 young people do it deliberately and hyperactively, to exclude their = elders from=20 their conversations (pubes are a curious exception to this; see = below). =20 Street gangs also create their own patois expressions to distinguish = themselves=20 from each other, and to exclude each other. 
 
Following are some notes on the more easily = observable patois=20 variants in the Edge.  For game purposes, this is mostly background = stuff;=20 it may suffice to say that people from any given barrio can exclude = people from=20 other barrios from understanding up to 70% of a conversation.  I = may never=20 use a tenth of this stuff myself. But anyway, here it is if someone = wants=20 it:
 
Gold and Broken Wings Barrios: The well-educated = residents of=20 these barrios mostly speak English or French with each other (French = remains the=20 "prestige" language of Al Amarja; many believe that Monique = D'Aubainne=20 preferentially gives high-ranking positions to Francophones, even if = their=20 English is spotty). They do spice their conversations with occasional = patois=20 words, often to be humorous or ironic.  The snobbier residents of = Broken=20 Wings won't condescend to learn patois at all.  Young people are an = exception, speaking their own style of patois heavily influenced by = French,=20 especially Parisian street slang picked up from French movies and=20 magazines.  This "Broken Wings patois" is considered = obnoxiously=20 upper-crust by inhabitants of other barrios.
 
Arms Barrio: Most members of the Peace Force and = Democratic=20 Guard and their families pick up a "military patois" which = retains=20 French and Arabic slang from the '40s that has since passed out of = general=20 use.  Basically sounds old-fashioned, but is not really different = from the=20 patois at large.  Also, the Loyal Defenders have their own private = slang=20 code full of seeming non-sequitur meanings.  For example, = "Fred"=20 means "pistol" -- from Fred Bismouth, a crack shot with a = revolver and=20 one of the Defenders' founding members.
 
Sunken Barrio: The part of the Edge = where you're=20 least likely to hear patois being spoken.  There is no noteworthy = local=20 patois here; most 'Martians living or working here speak whatever is = appropriate=20 to their particular ethnic group/age group/whatever.
 
Four Points, Justice, Great Men: Various ethnic and = street=20 gang variants can be heard throughout these barrios.  In some dense = and=20 diverse neighborhoods, the residents of one block may be barely able to=20 understand the patois spoken the next block down.  In Four Points, = the=20 Dog-Faces have their own patois.  In Justice, Otto's Men are = encouraged to=20 speak good English, as befits upstanding citizens, and they pride = themselves on=20 their fluency.  Meanwhile, the Satanists of = Great Men=20 have a variety of home-brewed slang terms for sexual perversions, drug = cocktails=20 and exotic weapons.
 
Science: The patois here is full of cheeky, ironic,=20 pop-culture-referential student slang. 
 
Pubes: While teenagers in general are hyperactive in = the=20 creation of slang, pubes, eager to appear mature, avoid youth slang like = the=20 plague (in public at least -- in private with their friends, they may be = as=20 giggly and adolescent as they please).  Often, a pube will = self-consciously=20 affect the patois of an ethnic group other than the one he/she was = raised=20 in.  And some would-be upwardly-mobile pubes from Four Points try = to affect=20 what they call a "Broken Wings style" of speech, which usually = gets=20 them beatings from neighbors who don't appreciate their airs of=20 self-importance.
  
****
 
Well, I've tired myself = out on this, so=20 I think I'll save the made-up slang and whatnot for another post.  = Hope I'm=20 not keeping anyone in too much suspense . . . ;-)
 
 
--Rod Anderson
"I've been authorized by the = jurisdiction=20 of whatever city this is to punish you in whatever way I can think=20 of!"
--Max, in "Sam and Max: Surfin' the=20 Highway" 
- ------=_NextPart_000_0092_01BDCB65.8E258180-- [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 13:09:05 -0500 (CDT) From: Eric Jome Subject: Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE On Wed, 19 Aug 1998, Adam T. Ness wrote: > The difficulty then becomes carrying around five dice with you all > the time and finding a flat surface to roll them on. I personaly like the > Rock Scisors Paper of the MET system, but I haven't had exposure to many > other systems. Also, a OTE LARP requires either very honest players or > constant GM interaction due to the open-ended rules system. I'm not > saying this is bad, but I don't know how it would go over at a convention > game where a lot of people are Hack and Slashers looking for something > new. A firmer rule system might be better. the system i have used is fairly straightforward and simple. people are given a small packet at the outset. inside the packet are some OnTE cards and some other things. first, there is a character card typically worn as a badge. if it bothers you that the card stats are on the card, simply cut up the card to have only the picture and name available. for my personal rules, i cut up the card and make a badge out of the name and picture... and change the stats. Fabrissa Melors becomes Havani Shagasemi and such. a character might also receive a number of other cards, such as Gear or such. if the player is using these things openly, they are attached to the badge. it is not necessary for all of them to be open to be used. in addition to any gear or conditions, they get some paper monopoly money as well. amount depends on the person. a character receives 1 "activation token". this token represents using some ability the character may use. the basic ability is an attack. when you wish to attack someone, you find a judge, give them your token, and resolve the attack in the OnTE fashion; compare AP to DP and dont forget to add gear or whammies (Total Taxi) or whatever. the judge keeps the token. if a person is popped, that person loses their token, if any, and must not interact with others for a short amount of time (15 minutes). another activity is Pulling. a character with pull can go to a judge and get money equal to 10 times their pull stat by exchanging their token. also, if a character has any other special ability, such as Barber Hammock upping his DP or Ricardo Cerdo aiding someone in a fight, they use their token for that as well. tokens are not transferable (well, Ricardo Martinez can give his token to someone who doesnt have one and Portia could grab someone elses token... but you get the idea). the last thing a player gets is a short list of "goals". these are things the player must try to accomplish during the current "turn". a turn usually lasts 1 to 2 hours. players have the over-arching LARP goal as well as personal goals. at the end of every "turn" a player cashes in his goals for points... people with the most points in the end win the event. of course, you vote on best role play as well... well, thats basically it for mechanics. the system is very straight and simple and easy to play. eric [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 13:20:01 -0500 (CDT) From: Eric Jome Subject: Re: [The Edge] Live Action OTE On Wed, 19 Aug 1998 DocCross@AOL.COM wrote: > I was going to run an OTE LARP at Worldcon this year, but then had to miss > the con. However, I fully intend on running one next year at GenCon. I may > also run one at DunDraCon in February. what were you planning on using for rules, Doc? eric [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge ------------------------------ End of The Edge Digested V1 #98 ******************************* [O] You received this message because you are subscribed to the-edge-digest [0] To (un)subscribe, send a message to majordomo@robin.ml.org with body of [O] (un)subscribe the-edge-digest To get off digest, subscribe the-edge [O] To post a message, send it to the-edge@robin.ml.org