Stranger Things 5 has offended me by referencing the sorcerer class, introduced in the 3rd edition of D&D in the year 2000, while the characters would have been playing either 1st or 2nd edition in the 1980s. Having them split hairs that Will is not a wizard but more of a sorcerer feels lazy and is a further indicator that the 1980s aesthetic and the overall quality of the writing have fallen off.

Egregious.

I also don’t have actual problems right now, so I guess this is what I’m doing. So, you know, bear that in mind.

  • UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world
    22·
    6 days ago

    So, there’s technically a precedent for this, as Sorceror was the level title for a 9th level magic user back in the 1e extended ruleset.

    Level Title

    For example, a first-level magic-user is known as a Medium. At each subsequent level they become known as a Seer, Conjurer, Theurgist, Thaumaturgist, Magician, Enchanter, Warlock, Sorcerer, Necromancer, and, at 11th level, a Wizard. Thereafter they are simply known as a 12th-level Wizard, 13th level Wizard, and so on.

    Sorceror, Wizard, and Magic User were also used interchangeably in the early D&D inspired stories and inspiring source material. As another example, Conan and the Sorcerer would be contemporary to the setting and would describe a spellcaster as such.

    I think the name might have just sounded better as an episode title than Wizard (which implies old guy with beard) or Magic User (generic and clunky). But for the old heads who actually played the game across multiple editions, I get it rubbing the wrong way.

    • sbv@sh.itjust.works
      15·
      6 days ago

      The characters make a distinction between innate and learned ability. Your take is generous, but OP is right.

    • Mediocre_Bard@lemmy.worldOP
      4·
      6 days ago

      This is a fair point. I’m going to assume that the writers have this level of knowledge. Thank you, I may finally rest.