Would YOU take the Magic Pill?

[Tami]

Please be honest. Kindly tell what you would do if you really could take a pill to become world-class overnight. The poll results are anonymous after all! Thanks a lot

There was not enough room to write the question in full. It should be "The Goddess of Go offers you a magic pill, that will instantly make you 9d. However, you will not know how you came to be so strong. Would you take the pill?"

[Marcus]

Heh ... I don't know why I'm 2/3/4k right now, so being 9d ad not knowig why wouldn't be a stretch. Perhaps the Goddess has some plan for me that I do not yet know ... bring it on!

[Kirby]

It's also interesting to think of this question with a different spin on it: Would you take a Magic Pill that makes everyone else in the world 30k, keeping you at your current rank?

[Joaz Banbeck]

Sure, I 'd do it. Without a second thought. It is then one more money-making skill.

Yes, I'd miss the challenge of learning go, but there is still the other 99.99999999% of the world that I don't understand. There would be something else fun and interesting to learn.

[daal]

It depends on how many pills there were to go around. If everyone could have one, I'd be glad to remain that rare breed of a true 6k . Otherwise... gulp.

[gowan]

Unless I have misinterpreted Tami's question the pill would make one play as a 9d but one wouldn't understand or know why the moves worked as they did. In other words you could make 9d moves but you couldn't explain why the moves were good or how they worked. If that's true it might not be much fun. Imagine that playing a game with a 9d player and reviewing it would be like trying to understand now a game between 9d players. So you could still enjoy the work of trying to reach 9d but it would be working to understand the moves you were already able to play. A different twist on the problem of becoming a strong player

[Vesa]

I don't normally take pills but this one I'd like to have. Don't worry about understanding why you can play as a 9d, with that strength it will all become clear.

Cheers,
Vesa

[Tami]

In light of Gowan's comment, I have edited the original post to make the question clearer.

[mw42]

No. I've watched enough Tales from the Crypt to know that one should never accept anything that promises greatness nor wish for anything, period.

Sure, the pill makes you 9d, but shortens your lifespan to 1 week or leaves you horribly crippled, &c. No, thank you.

[judicata]

Sounds boring. I would totally do it for a few days, though, and create a new Tartrate .

[hyperpape]

I enjoy go as a spectator sport, so of course I'd take it.

Kirby: I bet no one would take the pill you describe. Or at least they wouldn't admit that they would.

[Wanderling]

Yes.

[Hushfield]

Though tempting for about one second, it's a definite no for me. The pride and joy that comes with gaining one more stone through arduous labour is one of the best feelings there is, why would I squander all possibilities of ever experiencing such a thing again? If I can believe what I've heard about the difference between dan ranks being approximately similar to the difference betwen 30k and 1d, than there's still a lot of fun to be had improving.

Actually, I've experienced the effect of such a pill a few times before. With roleplaying video games, just entering a cheatcode to get you to the maximum level with all the best gear is the fastest way to make you tire of the game. Thank you for your kind offer, but you can keep your magic pill ^^

[Marcus]

Though tempting for about one second, it's a definite no for me. The pride and joy that comes with gaining one more stone through arduous labour is one of the best feelings there is, why would I squander all possibilities of ever experiencing such a thing again? If I can believe what I've heard about the difference between dan ranks being approximately similar to the difference betwen 30k and 1d, than there's still a lot of fun to be had improving.

Actually, I've experienced the effect of such a pill a few times before. With roleplaying video games, just entering a cheatcode to get you to the maximum level with all the best gear is the fastest way to make you tire of the game. Thank you for your kind offer, but you can keep your magic pill ^^

Wow, a game would have to be pretty linear to get boring in such a way ... at least, I don't think there are many games that would get tiresome to me* even if said cheatcode existed (and I'm sure many of the games I've payed have such cheats.

*I am not a typical gamer; there, I said it

[Kirby]

...

Kirby: I bet no one would take the pill you describe. Or at least they wouldn't admit that they would.

That's what I suspected, somewhat, and that's why it's interesting to me. In such a scenario, you would still be "world class" in the sense that you'd be better than everyone else in the world. The only difference is the level of knowledge, which seems pretty relative to me.

The only way I think such a pill might be different than the pill proposed by the OP is if having additional go knowledge, such as that of a 9d, makes the game more enjoyable for the said person compared to, say, a 5k player.

So if there is a distinction between the two pills, I would think that it would indicate some sort of enjoyment of the game that one rank gets over another rank.

Aside from personal pride, which is really separate from the game itself, do 9d get more enjoyment than 5k? I'm not sure.