Celebrate the Season with Festivult!

[Cordovan]

It's that time of the year again! The Festivult Jester is making a return to Stormreach! You can already find copper, silver and gold coins in chests, and the Jester himself will soon be ready to exchange those coins for goodies! Read more about this year's celebration by clicking here (http://www.ddo.com/news/1269-celebrate-the-season-with-festivult)!

[bradleyforrest]

So, when can we start actually turning these things in?

[MrkGrismer]

I think there be a mistake:


The Festivult Jester has a cool task for you: earn Festivult coins from treasure chests and turn them in to the Jester for special rewards. December 6th through January 3rd.

I thought the jester was not appearing until Update 8, which as far as I know did NOT come out December 6. :o

Also:


Check the DDO Store’s Advent Calendar every day to unlock a new item and get 50 percent off the regular price at the DDO Store. December 1st through December 31st.

How very Christian of you ;) Did I miss the Hanukkah calendar (jk - not intended to offend anyone)?

[deathtouch]

I prefer 25% bonus xp so I can do a TR on a toon :=)

[MrCuisinart]

The coins started dropping on the 6th. The jester "will soon be ready to exchange those coins for goodies".

edit: I see that the News article does not mention that the Jester appears later. Perhaps it should.

[Cordovan]

I thought the jester was not appearing until Update 8, which as far as I know did NOT come out December 6. :o

This is correct, the Jester will not arrive in-game until the release of Update 8. The announcement refers to the Festivult Jester event in total, meaning, you are seeing coins in chests as of December 6th. The Jester will be here soon!

[DANTEIL]

"Advent Calendar," really??

Well, I suppose if Lego (http://shop.lego.com/Product/?p=2824) can do it, so can DDO.


I expect you're going to get some flack for it though :D

[Ciaran]

"Advent Calendar," really??

Well, I suppose if Lego (http://shop.lego.com/Product/?p=2824) can do it, so can DDO.


I expect you're going to get some flack for it though :D

Yeah, would've been better for them to keep it totally neutral in regards to any specific religion. The winter holidays are too copious and varied, as is the playerbase, to be specific in regards to any kind of religion. Not to mention the prevailing religion owes much of what it celebrates this season to other religions it displaced/subsumed.

Besides, this is Eberron - I'm pretty sure they don't have Advent...

[The_Phenx]

I will start the flak then. As a Jew I get enough Christmas everywhere else.

Leave it out of my game.

Advents... lil holly berries... gimme a break.

That's the reason we have Festivult in the 1st place. Because it was a neutral fun holiday which came from Jerry Seinfeld's Festivus.

[jjflanigan]

Advent simply means "arrival that has been awaited (especially of something momentous)" - to that end 50% off a different item fits the bill.

*edit*

removed stuff that probably sounded a lot more insensitive then I intended it to be.

[The_Phenx]

Advent Calendar is a decidedly religious item. As are holly leaves... Do we really need to debate the connotation behind either?

It not like they put an advent calendar into the store in mid June or anything. :D

[Ciaran]

It’s December. Christmas is right around the corner. The usage of “Advent”, especially “Advent Calendar” is a rather obvious reference to the Christian season of Advent. It’s not like it’s a stretch to see that association when used at this time of the year.

Advent has a specific connotation at this time of the year; defaulting to the etymological root doesn’t change that.

In the past, Turbine has been very careful to disassociate anything it does in game from any real world religion. Referring to their calendar for 50% off a different item as an “Advent Calendar” crosses that line.

Even as a non-Christian, it's not a big deal to me. I do see how it could be a big deal to others and think Turbine should've remained neutral and avoided any associations, deliberate or otherwise.

[MrkGrismer]

To be honest I figured somebody typoed an 'a' onto the front of Event and 'auto-correct' changed it to 'Advent'. But maybe not.

[jjflanigan]

Advent Calendar is a decidedly religious item. As are holly leaves... Do we really need to debate the connotation behind either?

It not like they put an advent calendar into the store in mid June or anything. :D

Nah, in all honesty I agree that they should make sure to not link things in the game to a real world religion in any way, shape, form or fashion. I was just going from a pure logic standpoint about the usage of the term...and I'm happy about the bank slots :D

[Riggs]

Most people that celebrate Xmas do not really care about the religious part of it anymore.

Ex - Santa is universally well known - and I dont recall magic reindeer and elves and toys anywhere in the Bible.

it is an excuse to hang out with friends and family and give presents.

While less people know about Advent other than 'some vague religious thing - but I get daily gifts!' - it would be nice if they had of renamed it to something else instead since any religious talk is going to offend many people no matter how you slice it.

And players get banned or at least shut down for talking about religion on the forums - it is a bit ill-planned to name an event after one religion's event.

[Ciaran]

And players get banned or at least shut down for talking about religion on the forums - it is a bit ill-planned to name an event after one religion's event.

That's a very good point.

Of course, the subtle "health care" discussion the NPC's have in the House J tavern near Delera's (forget the name) could be considered cleverly insinuated political commentary. Not that I completely think it is, but the case could be made. ;)

[The_Phenx]

I really don't care that much. It's just annoying, Can't escape Xmas... NOOOOOO!!!!

Carols and Songs and decorations everywhere... even in places they don't belong, like government owned military buildings, and now Ebberon...

Gasp* Choke* Perish***

[bradleyforrest]

I really don't care that much. It's just annoying, Can't escape Xmas... NOOOOOO!!!!

Carols and Songs and decorations everywhere... even in places they don't belong, like government owned military buildings, and now Ebberon...

Gasp* Choke* Perish***

As an athiest, I don't really have a problem with Christmas being everywhere. I still celebrate it with friends and family. It's mostly a secular holiday at this point, anyway. The only thing that I don't like is the songs, and only those that are religious in nature. There are plenty of secular Christmas songs out there that are fine.

Let's not get into the fact that most of the traditions associated with the holiday arise from pagan sources, not christian.

[Endricane]

Leave it to trolls to find a problem with calling the countdown to christmas an "advent calender".

Who cares? It's not like there's a chinese or Iraqi version of Christmas. And quanza, well, that's just stupid.

There are alot more people who identify with an "advent calender" than "a calender for the jewish holiday chanukah that nobody except jews or really close friends of jews celebrates".


Oh yeah and plus it's not your decision what Turbine says or does, and they don't really care what you think of their wording either, and never will. So get over it. If I were to refer to Christmas as the Advent, Turbine wouldn't ban me for it, thus they are free to use that word as well.

[Hadrienn]

And quanza, well, that's just stupid.



Kwanzaa

[Endricane]

Kwanzaa

*gasp* Google told me the wrong spelling! :P

[hityawithastick]

If I see a single jolly elf, I am going to kill everything. With fire.

[Endricane]

If I see a single jolly elf, I am going to kill everything. With fire.

Now I have to go into the lobster with an elf, wearing a jolly christmas hat, dancing around naked, just to tempt you.... XD

[The_Phenx]

Let's not get into the fact that most of the traditions associated with the holiday arise from pagan sources, not christian.

Honestly thats most of my problem with it. Bugs me that most people don't know their own history and blindly swallow truths that are fictional.

[Endricane]

I don't mind what religion anyone here is; however people are free to say "happy holidays", "merry Christmas", call stuff an "Advent calender" or "countdown to Christmas". But since people are free to say that, wherefore did this tradition come from that companies can't word things their own way as well? I wouldn't get flak for saying merry christmas, but Turbine might. Why? There's no logical reason to say a large group of people can't say the same thing a single person can, when it's as harmless as a way to say "have a good time this season".

[melkor1702]

..

[MrkGrismer]

I was just surprised to see it, since it is not 'xmas' in-game, but Festivult that is being celebrated, I thought they would have a Festivult calendar, or a 'countdown to Festivult'. I don't know Eberron all that well, is it called 'Advent' in Eberron?

[LightBear]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ysWaSZEoNY

Says it all really.

Any idea how to post youtube links in here?

[Ciaran]

I don't mind what religion anyone here is; however people are free to say "happy holidays", "merry Christmas", call stuff an "Advent calender" or "countdown to Christmas". But since people are free to say that, wherefore did this tradition come from that companies can't word things their own way as well? I wouldn't get flak for saying merry christmas, but Turbine might. Why? There's no logical reason to say a large group of people can't say the same thing a single person can, when it's as harmless as a way to say "have a good time this season".

Because some of Turbine's customers might feel a little offended or incensed at a specific religion being recognized over others. Given that Turbine is a public company and that people from all walks of life play their game, it's usually good form for a company to avoid specific associations so as to respect the diversity of their player base.

That's why there's the difference between you, as an individual, saying "Merry Christmas" and Turbine as a company saying it. An individual that says "Merry Christmas" to a Jew will probably get a polite "Thank you, and same to you, but I'm Jewish". A company however is perceived as endorsing one religion over another. Even if they aren't, that's the perception that is given and why they have to avoid it.

The assumption that everybody is the same as you and has had the same basic experience and opportunity as you is what causes a lot of interracial, interfaith and even gender relations to get dicey.

Now, I'm not upset by this "Advent calendar"; I really don't care that much about it. I'm just surprised that Turbine made a specific religious association when in the past they've steered mostly clear of such things.

[The_Phenx]

I don't mind what religion anyone here is; however people are free to say "happy holidays", "merry Christmas", call stuff an "Advent calender" or "countdown to Christmas". But since people are free to say that, wherefore did this tradition come from that companies can't word things their own way as well? I wouldn't get flak for saying merry christmas, but Turbine might. Why? There's no logical reason to say a large group of people can't say the same thing a single person can, when it's as harmless as a way to say "have a good time this season".

Its not that they can't, not illegal in the slightest.

But from a business standpoint you don't want to cater to one crowd over any other, it makes you appear biased.

Alienating part of your customer base is generally a dumb move.

[The_Phenx]

Because some of Turbine's customers might feel a little offended or incensed at a specific religion being recognized over others. Given that Turbine is a public company and that people from all walks of life play their game, it's usually good form for a company to avoid specific associations so as to respect the diversity of their player base.

That's why there's the difference between you, as an individual, saying "Merry Christmas" and Turbine as a company saying it. An individual that says "Merry Christmas" to a Jew will probably get a polite "Thank you, and same to you, but I'm Jewish". A company however is perceived as endorsing one religion over another. Even if they aren't, that's the perception that is given and why they have to avoid it.

The assumption that everybody is the same as you and has had the same basic experience and opportunity as you is what causes a lot of interracial, interfaith and even gender relations to get dicey.

Now, I'm not upset by this "Advent calendar"; I really don't care that much about it. I'm just surprised that Turbine made a specific religious association when in the past they've steered mostly clear of such things.

+1 to you sir.

Nailed It! Now I can shut up lol.

[69firebird]

Wanting to turn something inside a game into a religous debate is beyond "Special".

Take a moment to think about what you are breathing life into in these forums by even stating such a thing, next thing you know, you will be using the race card because there are no/or not enough black people in the game.

Get a grip on reality and sit back and enjoy the fantasy.

Oh, and Merry Christmas...yes, I said it....because I celebrate it.

[Ciaran]

Wanting to turn something inside a game into a religous debate is beyond "Special".

Take a moment to think about what you are breathing life into in these forums by even stating such a thing, next thing you know, you will be using the race card because there are no/or not enough black people in the game.

Get a grip on reality and sit back and enjoy the fantasy.

Oh, and Merry Christmas...yes, I said it....because I celebrate it.

Wow, way to miss the point spectacularly and take this down an avenue it REALLY doesn't need to go. Expressing mild surprise that Turbine appears to be associating Festivult with a specific religion is ENTIRELY different from civil rights or people exploiting that for attention. Way to marginalize civil rights by throwing out the "race card" comment which is typically (not always) a comment used by people trying to marginalize actual concerns about race relations.

Are you aware that you are implying that only "beyond special" people "play the race card" with your comments and do you understand how that comes across? I'm sure you were just trying to express your disdain for what you perceive to be people making much ado about nothing (which we aren't) but ironically your rather careless statement only serves to exacerbate the issue and open a new can of worms. At least keep your analogies relevant to religion if you must make any at all.

Maybe you should "Take a moment to think about what you are breathing life into in these forums by even stating such a thing"?

There is no "Advent" in Eberron. There really isn't a "Festivult" either, but at least they tied in an in game event with the lore (Vult being the 12th month in Eberron) while at the same time giving players an in game way to celebrate the holidays, whether or not they are religious. This is common across several MMO's and to my memory MMO's have usually avoiding associating with any particular religion or giving the impression that they are.

Calling something on the DDO store an "Advent calendar" calls into question Turbine's neutrality in terms of religion since, at this time of year that term refers to something very specific within Christianity. It's something I don't remember them doing before, therefore it was remarkable to me.

[Andrash]

Well, advent means "forthcoming", so as long Turbine stays neutral on "what is coming?" or means the forthcoming of the jester guy, i do not find it offensive.

However when it becomes like: "turbine is adding a new cleric spell: Anointing..." heck, im gonna start playing WoW.
Har-har-har. :D

[Andrash]

Honestly thats most of my problem with it. Bugs me that most people don't know their own history and blindly swallow truths that are fictional.

I totally agre!

I still remember that biology lesson, when the teacher tried to convince us about "things between a man and a woman".

He totally ignored the storks!

[brian14]

"things between a man and a woman"...
...are usually made of latex.

[69firebird]

There is no "Advent" in Eberron. There really isn't a "Festivult" either, but at least they tied in an in game event with the lore (Vult being the 12th month in Eberron) while at the same time giving players an in game way to celebrate the holidays, whether or not they are religious. This is common across several MMO's and to my memory MMO's have usually avoiding associating with any particular religion or giving the impression that they are.

Calling something on the DDO store an "Advent calendar" calls into question Turbine's neutrality in terms of religion since, at this time of year that term refers to something very specific within Christianity. It's something I don't remember them doing before, therefore it was remarkable to me.


This is exactly what my point was...because it wasn't written into a previous Ebberon book, or game, it can not exist? Don't be absurd.

The word Advent has nothing to do with Christianity, and they could have used numerous other words meaning the same thing, that is a poor argument toward your point. The theory of the world ending, and the calendars being produced for that could be called Advent Calendars. A count down of days until your favorite band releases their new album, yup, could be called an Advent Calendar.

Advent is a neutral term. Thats like saying they can't use pine trees in game, because they would represent Christmas. Or no red armor, it makes me think of Santa Clause, how about no halflings because they look to much like Santas elves?
Should we ban gift giving in game too?

Your statements make my point more than they make yours, you are taking a harmless, should be fun in game event, and adding your own religious opinions to it, and making Turbine the bad guy. If you think they intend to offend you then by all means, go play another game that doesn't...good luck, WoW celebrates holidays too.

[69firebird]

Well, advent means "forthcoming", so as long Turbine stays neutral on "what is coming?" or means the forthcoming of the jester guy, i do not find it offensive.

However when it becomes like: "turbine is adding a new cleric spell: Anointing..." heck, im gonna start playing WoW.
Har-har-har. :D

Actually during Christmas WoW introduces wands, and spells that turn people into snowmen, and summon flying reindeer. And they also give out gifts, so if you are looking to get away from Christmas, WoW would be a wrong turn.

[Falco_Easts]

Just throwing this out there. Until reading this thread I never associated Advent Calendars with Christianity. Christmas yes but not Christianity specifically. That being said I don't associate Christmas with Christianity either.

Yes I know the history. I know where it comes from. Do you honestly still believe that's what it's about now though?

Maybe I’m ignorant but I am more surprised people relate Advent Calendars to Christianity then I am Turbine used the word Advent at this time of year.

[hityawithastick]

(A) Who cares?

(B) Fail.

[/QUOTE]
Wanting to turn something inside a game into a religous debate is beyond "Special".

Take a moment to think about what you are breathing life into in these forums by even stating such a thing, next thing you know, you will be using the race card because there are no/or not enough black people in the game.

Get a grip on reality and sit back and enjoy the fantasy.

Oh, and Merry Christmas...yes, I said it....because I celebrate it.
[/QUOTE]

Way to ramp up the holiday spirit, firebird. :D

[Andrash]

Actually during Christmas WoW introduces wands, and spells that turn people into snowmen, and summon flying reindeer. And they also give out gifts, so if you are looking to get away from Christmas, WoW would be a wrong turn.

Wow, You know much about the WoW! *traitor alert*;)

Expect Turbine S.W.A.T agents swarming your home soon. :P

[Ciaran]

This is exactly what my point was...because it wasn't written into a previous Ebberon book, or game, it can not exist? Don't be absurd.

The word Advent has nothing to do with Christianity, and they could have used numerous other words meaning the same thing, that is a poor argument toward your point. The theory of the world ending, and the calendars being produced for that could be called Advent Calendars. A count down of days until your favorite band releases their new album, yup, could be called an Advent Calendar.

Advent is a neutral term. Thats like saying they can't use pine trees in game, because they would represent Christmas. Or no red armor, it makes me think of Santa Clause, how about no halflings because they look to much like Santas elves?
Should we ban gift giving in game too?

Your statements make my point more than they make yours, you are taking a harmless, should be fun in game event, and adding your own religious opinions to it, and making Turbine the bad guy. If you think they intend to offend you then by all means, go play another game that doesn't...good luck, WoW celebrates holidays too.

You should check your understanding of what is actually being discussed before running off at the mouth and confusing the situation.

That there exists an in game event that coincides with the holidays isn’t what’s under discussion. Nobody is saying that there shouldn’t be an in game event during the holidays or that we don’t want to celebrate the holidays. MMO companies have typically included holiday celebrations that make sense in their game world during the winter holidays since UO and probably before. It would be odd and upsetting to the playerbase for them NOT to do so. As an aside, I particularly love Festivult and I’m glad it exists, but again, in game events to celebrate the holidays is not what’s being discussed here.

My point was that Turbine wisely tied in their holiday event with the existing Eberron lore, tweaking it a little to make sense in their game world instead of calling it “Christmas” or “Hanukkah” or any other specific religious holiday. They rightly assumed doing so would very likely alienate some of their players. By tying in a celebration of the holidays with in game lore, they created a holiday that EVERYBODY could take a part in, irrespective of what real life winter holiday they may observe (if any). This is a good thing and the right way to do it. Using things that still have strong connotations with a specific religion is the wrong way to do it. The associations that Christmas trees, Yule logs, Twelfth Night, etc have with Germanic paganism is little more than a passing curiosity to most people, so those religious associations are much weaker. Maybe it's a matter of opinion, but I don't think Advent Calendars are quite there yet.

Since you don’t seem to understand what’s actually being discussed here, let me post it for you:

Check the DDO Store’s Advent Calendar every day to unlock a new item and get 50 percent off the regular price at the DDO Store. December 1st through December 31st.

People have expressed, for the most part, mild surprise and disbelief that Turbine would choose to use the term “Advent Calendar” on the DDO store as that carries with it very strong connotations of Christmas, which is a specific religious holiday (despite how increasingly secular it has become over the years). Again, as I stated earlier, defaulting to the etymological root of a word doesn’t change the strong associations it has. To suggest otherwise demonstrates ignorance of how language works. Yes, “Advent” can refer to things outside of the sphere of Christianity, but usually when it’s used during the winter holidays, it’s referring to something pretty specific that is associated with a certain religion.

This doesn’t need to be as big of a deal as you are making it out to be. You are severely overstating and confusing what’s actually being said, which only serves to exacerbate things. This started out as a few people stating their opinion that referring to the calendar for their sales as an “Advent Calendar” seemed to favor a particular religion. Nobody is threatening to storm Turbine HQ unless they remove Festivult completely. Hell, for that matter nobody is even clamoring for them to change anything.

[GreyFalcon70]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Religion_distribution.png/800px-Religion_distribution.png@wikipedia



http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=p3&chd=t:99,1&&chs=650x200&chtt=&chco=FF0000&chl=DDO%20Players%20Who%20Dont%20Care|Trolls


Not Saying.......Just Saying.

[69firebird]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Religion_distribution.png/800px-Religion_distribution.png@wikipedia



http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=p3&chd=t:99,1&&chs=650x200&chtt=&chco=FF0000&chl=DDO%20Players%20Who%20Dont%20Care|Trolls


Not Saying.......Just Saying.

Nicely not said!

[Yaga_Nub]

It's that time of the year again! The Festivult Jester is making a return to Stormreach! You can already find copper, silver and gold coins in chests, and the Jester himself will soon be ready to exchange those coins for goodies! Read more about this year's celebration by clicking here (http://www.ddo.com/news/1269-celebrate-the-season-with-festivult)!

Sorry. It might say Cordovan but you're still Jerry to me.

[Cordovan]

I just had a lot of fun putting together some special DDO Lotteries for the weekend...
Don't forget to check out the available lotteries for the chance to win a holiday-themed prize pack!