What makes people exceptional?

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Frank

Frank

Tonight at the office we were sitting around the lunch table talking about war and guns and other things that 3 guys and 1 girl with guns strapped to their hips talk about. Leo Major was brought up. Now, Leo Major is the single most bad ass Canadian that has ever lived and easily on the top ten of bad ass people of all time. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Major

I would quote the wikipedia with some bolds here or there but honestly, the entire God damn entry would be bold.

What makes someone a Leo Major? He's otherwise a pretty regular guy. Hard working and tons of willpower yeah, but he's just a man. Do we all have it in us to be a Leo Major?

This is just something I was chewing on today.
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
Bad ass? You call that bad ass? Shit, son! That guy makes bad ass look like pussies! Son of a bitch had nerves of steel and balls to match! How he lived through some of those assaults is a bloody miracle!
 
Chad Sexington

Chad Sexington

North_Ranger said:
In regards to military exploits... Simo Häyhä.

That is all.
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Yes but did he recapture a city after losing an eye, breaking his back, ribs and ankles?! I think not!

Seriously that story always impressed me, but I have to side with my Canadian guy, national interests and all. :p I will note, however, being nicknamed "White Death" is unbelievably awesome.
 
Cajungal

Cajungal

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I think that most people have the potential to be great... not necessarily crazy-badass, but great. Greatness comes in many sizes and packages; a lot of people probably do great things for smaller amounts of people. It's not as showy, but it all boils down to stepping away from distractions and putting all of your energy into being the very best version of yourself. This takes constant practice and evaluation. It's exhausting, and in a culture of rewarding ourselves with chocolate desserts or beer for doing the tiniest thing, it's hard to stay focused on not letting up (although rest is also important).

My own example of someone living up to their full potential: My brother. He was half living in New Orleans during his last year of college. He'd already made the decision to be a performer, but he wanted his degree as well. He slept in 1-2 hour shifts, lived on dehydrated foods he could keep in his car, and used all leisure time for either practice or physical activity. He lived from hour to hour, constantly reminding himself of what he could be doing in that moment to make himself greater. Now he is already an accomplished performer with a pretty good reputation. I know he will do more--not just because of his raw talent, but because he uses every single moment of his life for the purpose he's chosen. Nothing is wasted. It's an amazing sight.

Long story short: Potential is crap without action. Hours logged, sweat, and discipline make us truly great.
 
Denbrought

Denbrought

Dave said:
That's 3e & before. In 4e everyone has high stats.
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You mean the adventurers and villains do, or everyone in the game world? Adventurers are kind of a skewed pool to look at... It's all 4d6-drop-lowest-reroll-1s fault :mad: I advocate 3d6-reroll-1s and 4d6-drop-lowest.
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
In 4e the accepted norm (and used in the character builder most people use) is that all of your stats start at 8,10,10,10,10,10 and then you get 22 points to add to these, with higher stats costing more points to grow. (Example, going from 15 to 16 costs 2 points.) And then every 4 levels you get another point to add to your stats. It's very rare in 4e to find a character that does not have a 16+ stat. In fact, you have to be actively trying not to put it there.
 
Covar

Covar

Denbrought said:
You mean the adventurers and villains do, or everyone in the game world? Adventurers are kind of a skewed pool to look at... It's all 4d6-drop-lowest-reroll-1s fault :mad: I advocate 3d6-reroll-1s and 4d6-drop-lowest.
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My group uses 4d6 drop lowest, get complete reroll if you have a net modifier of -2.
 
sixpackshaker

sixpackshaker

Dave said:
Bad ass? You call that bad ass? Shit, son! That guy makes bad ass look like pussies! Son of a bitch had nerves of steel and balls to match! How he lived through some of those assaults is a bloody miracle!
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Not to mention, he survived 57 years of marriage.
Added at: 16:12
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_C._York

A pacifist that took out a company of Germans in WWI

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Francis_Burton

Polyglot explorer, England's greatest "swordsman" (in both meanings of the term,) First Englishman to visit Mecca and Medina (he would have been killed on sight if he was caught as an Englishman.) And the most bad ass of all his exploits... was struck in the face with a tribesman's lance, in one cheek and out the other, he continued fighting until he could retreat to the coast. The wound knocked out several of his molars, pierced both cheeks... He removed the lance himself and performed the surgery that saved his own life.
 
North_Ranger

North_Ranger

Staff member
sixpackshaker said:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Francis_Burton

Polyglot explorer, England's greatest "swordsman" (in both meanings of the term,) First Englishman to visit Mecca and Medina (he would have been killed on sight if he was caught as an Englishman.) And the most bad ass of all his exploits... was struck in the face with a tribesman's lance, in one cheek and out the other, he continued fighting until he could retreat to the coast. The wound knocked out several of his molars, pierced both cheeks... He removed the lance himself and performed the surgery that saved his own life.
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Don't forget, he also wrote extensively about Indian and Muslim sexuality and sexual practices in a time when sex ed consisted of "lie back and think of England".
 
C

Chibibar

I am not sure bad ass would even hold a candle to this guy. He is like all the action heroes (in movies) rolled into one real life person.
 
Tiger Tsang

Tiger Tsang

Lee Majors was an Astronaut and the first Bionic Man, I'd say that makes him pretty exceptional.



p.s. On a serious note, It never hurts to toss in Audie Murphy
 
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