Pay no attention to the man in the hat. It's really the Hat that's in control of Trollhalla.
This is a revision of a rant that I did back in 2009. It’s really here for our newest members, those who haven’t quite gotten into the swing of Trollhalla yet, or for those who don’t yet understand how crazy I am. If you’ve read all this before, and fully understand it, skip this, and get on into the Inner Sanctum where you belong.
We have a lot of new members in Trollhalla lately, so I am going to say a few words about the points I seem to be obsessed with. Part of my personal philosophy is that life is a game. It is not a zero-sum game with one winner and one loser–instead, it is an open-ended sort of game, and the most that can be said is that you are doing well, or doing poorly. The game does not end until you die, and sometimes it does not end then. If you achieve any sort of fame in your lifetime, the game goes on. The bigger Game of Life contains many smaller games–some are quick, brutal, and zero-sum like chess. Others are more like the Game of Life itself–open-ended. Some games you choose to play, and some games play you whether you like it or not.
Membership in Trollhalla is such a game, and it needs a way to keep score. Trollhalla rewards players who do things. I use Trollish Victory Points and Trollish Glory Points as the measure of how much you are doing for Tunnels and Trolls and Trollhalla itself. You can earn Trollish Victory Points for many things. The more you get, the better you are doing in the Trollhalla game. Here is a semi-complete list of how you can get TVP.
SHOW UP! Logging in each day is worth 100 tvp. Posting each day on the trollwalla is worth 28 points. Even if you just say Ugh, let people know that you were in Trollhalla. You only get this score once a day, so don’t go hog wild. In regards to posting, there is a random award of 700 points called BLTG (Better Lucky Than Good) that I give out once or twice a day to people who posted exactly 7 entries before I did.
MAKE THE WALLA INTERESTING FOR OTHER PEOPLE. You do that by posting. Some things will get you extra TVP; some will not. Each line of poetry is worth 10 points. Jokes may be worth 50 points if I think they’re good enough. If I didn’t think it was funny at all, I won’t give it joke points.
BUY THINGS. Buy from the Trollgod or from any of our members who are providing games through the web. Every penny spent with the Trollgod is worth 1 TVP. Every five cents spent with the companies listed on the menu is worth 1 TVP. Do you want a copy of T & T 7.5? Buy it from the Trollgod for $30.00 and get 3000 TVP. Or buy it from Fiery Dragon or Flying Buffalo and get 600 TVP. Buy a copy of WHAP from Peryton Press, tell me, and you’ll get TVP. Buy a copy of BEAN, the d2 rpg by Jeff Freels (Grumlahk). It’s simple. Support T & T and you will flourish in Trollhalla. It is a Win/Win situation.
RESPOND TO TROLLMAIL. When the Trollgod asks you a question, just hit reply and answer it. Faster is usually better. Be heard. Let me know what you are thinking.
INFORM US. Put interesting links on the walla. Embed art and videos and music if you can. Do creative typography. Tell us when you write a blog, or create an adventure. Right now I’m giving away 1000 tvp to blog writers who use Trollmail to tell all Trollhallans that their new blog is up. Wotta deal! You get readers and tvp at the same time. Links are worth 100 points. Embeddings are worth 300 for a music video, 500 for a movie trailer or cartoon, and 500 for static art.
Edit your profile at least once a week. Every Sunday night 1000 points are given to those who have edited their profile that week.
Click the links on the Trollhalla Menu. Some of them are worth a few extra TVP. All of our sponsors are.
Send a postcard to the trollgod. The address is: Ken St. Andre, 6560 N. 17th Ave. #234, Phoenix, AZ. 85015. Each one is worth 4400 tvp. For that matter, send any sort of gift to the trollgod, and get the full cash value plus postage in tvp. Trollgod is ancient and insecure. Getting stuff in the mail makes him feel good. :) Yesterday member Grrralf sent a copy of Trollhalla the board game and it will get him 5210 tvp.
Other chances to win tvp may spontaneously appear. Take advantage. The more tvp you collect, the better you are doing in this game. You know the saying, “You can’t win if you don’t play.” I’ve turned it around a bit for Trollhalla. ”If you’re playing, you’re winning.”
TROLLISH GLORY POINTS
Trollish glory points are slightly different. Glory points are awarded for making a lasting contribution to the benefit of T & T. When Trollhalla’s Wizard, Khayd haik changed the Trollhalla programming to enable me to post, edit, and change links on the menu, I gave him a point. When the various issues of TrollsZine came out, I gave all the contributors and editors glory points for their work. When Dekhurrrsio started Tunnelsandtrolls.com he got a glory point. Each time he posts something really significant there, he gets another one. Do you see how it goes? Do you want to know who is really powering the T & T engine? Look at the glory points for that. Glory Points are awarded for exceptional contributions. Art, games, service of any sort to either the Trollgod, Trollhalla, or the wider world of Tunnels and Trolls can be rewarded with Glory Points. I am the Trollgod, and I decide what merits glory and how much.
Each glory point translates into 1000 tvp. They can be used to improve your attributes. Glory Points are subtle. They represent not the day-to-day struggle, but the longer-lasting contributions that make Tunnels and Trolls a better game, or Trollhalla a better place.
(A side note on fame: Some people go through their lives and never do anything noteworthy. I feel sorry for those people. In my humble opinion, people should contribute in some way–any sort of contribution is better than just passive acceptance. I do not care what your field is really–all I really want to know is do you shine in it? Volunteer! Help others in some fashion! Make a name and a place for yourself! I like to think that a lot of Trollhallans do that.)
So, now you understand that the points are basically for keeping score. How well are you doing at the Trollhalla game? Just look at your score! If you really do not care, your score will be on the bottom. If you do a lot for us, your score will be on or near the top. That is why I keep track of my own points in this club. I want you all to know that I am playing the game right along with you. I will never get a chance to game with most of you in person, but if you are in Trollhalla, that is what you are doing. Can you beat Ken at his own game? We shall see…
–Khenn Arrth
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Where might we find a catalog or list of what the Trollgod has available for sale?
Oh, and shouldn’t the copyright notice below say something about violation being punishable by death?
*jeep! and God Bless!
–Tzhett
I don’t think I would be that interested in Trollhalla if it wasn’t for TVP. TVP keeps me going. In fact, it makes me want to check in & see what’s new and what everyone is doing.
Well, they ARE crunchy and tasty. But they usually need a little garlic.