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Alisttair
Great Reader
Canada
3054 Posts |
 Posted - 08 Apr 2010 : 14:44:31
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quote:
Originally posted by Brimstone
True, but that is kinda Scary.
Unless they left Ed and the Freelancers do all the heavy lifting.
Please WotC keep the setting away from your in House Designers.
Let them build 5E, and let Ed and Co work on the setting.
And my heart says please pump out a realms product monthly, while my wallet says every three months. |
Karsite Arcanar (Most Holy Servant of Karsus)
Anauria - Survivor State of Netheril as penned by me:
http://www.dmsguild.com/m/product/172023 |
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Thauramarth
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
729 Posts |
Posted - 09 Apr 2010 : 20:24:44
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quote:
Originally posted by Mr_Miscellany
What people seem to forget is that, since its publication, the Realms have served as both backdrop and inspiration for DMs to do what DMs like doing best: creating NPCs, dungeons, encounters, epic story arcs, new lands and an overall fun time at the gaming table.
Since the start, people have bought Realms material so they could practice their creativity in the setting, and port in other material to add to their campaigns in the Realms (Dragon and Dungeon magazines, various 3rd party products, stuff they saw on TV or read in a novel or comic book, etc...).
The Realms strength lay in that it assisted and inspired DMs to do *their* work.
Because the setting was so filled in, the Realms stifled a DM's ability to create, which is (as the kids in the States say these days) hela fun.
Instead of making stuff up, you have (well, had) to look it up in all those many sources you (Wooly) have twice bought.
I wouldn't be surprised to learn most Realms DMs did what I still do: ignore all but one our two useful sources and create everything else.
The Realms as it exists now is very similar to the Realms of the late '80s, with lots of unknown areas and plenty of open space for DMs to practice their craft.
Well... yes and no. The problem was not that the Realms had become too cluttered. Despite a great number of sourcebooks and supplements, there were still VAST tracts of land left for development by individual DMs.
It's true that in order to use my favourite campaign area (Waterdeep, Daggerford, and spreading out to the Sword Coast lands north of the Winding Water as well as the Savage Frontier), I can do with only a limited number of thise supplement. Personally, I've never cared for the Shining South, for instance. So I could make do without many of the supplements (I still used them indirectly, to bring NPCs from the faraway lands of Thay, Rashemen, Mulhorand, et al. into the campaign area to slug it out with the PCs, and I did the occasional trip to other areas). So, basically, I could have done with the Grey Box, Waterdeep and the North, the North boxed set, the Savage Frontier, and Volo's Guides to Waterdeep, the Sword Coast, and the North.
The Realms' problem was not that there was too much lore - as Mr Miscellany correctly pointed out, there's a way of playing in the Realms and yet ignore 75% of all supplements ever written.
It's that there were not enough open spaces, and neither was the motive for overhauling the place. Matter of fact, the "contraction" of the maps for 3E was motivated by the perceived need to reduce the vast tracts of open space.
But, I think, neither was the actual motive behind the overhaul. I am paraphrasing, but I believe the avowed reason was to "make room to tell new stories". Which, in my interpretation, always meant "we have had so many Epic Events take place that we really need to figure something out, or the place will split apart." So, if in rapid succesion, you have the return of Netheril and the transformation of Anauroch, the Rage of Dragons (out of sync), an invasion from the sea, the retaking of Myth Drannor and the offing of, say, Khelben (note to Steven Schend - Blackstaffwas a wonderful book, but I'll never forgive Khelben's demise; just so you know ), then, yes, suspension of disbelief starts to get more difficult, if you want to keep pouring on the Epic Realms-Changing Events.
The problem is not too much lore, or too little - the problem was that the tendency in the last years pre-4E was that it seemed that the Realms needed to change radically. And THAT created problems for everyone, because (and I am hammering at the same nail again), there needs to be a minimum of stability in the setting, and that did not happen anymore.
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
I never felt that there weren't enough open spaces and unknown areas in the Realms. I think there's more of an issue with the argument that such was lacking than there was with the amount of detail present.
To me, the amount of detail present served as a framework more than anything else -- there was enough detail to tell me the shape of an area (so to speak) without filling it in completely. Take Undermountain, for example: two boxed sets and three modules, yet even the uppermost levels had at most a third of the rooms detailed.
If that's not enough room for a DM to play, then what is?
True that. Even the core area for my campaigns (from Waterdeep to the Winding Water) has so much open space that I probably can fit just about every generic adventure (and a lot of non-FR world specific adventures, from Ravenloft, Greyhawk, Dragonlance, etc.) into that area. |
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Julian Grimm
Seeker
86 Posts |
Posted - 09 Apr 2010 : 20:29:21
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| With all they did at the end of 3e I would have rather seen the reset button hit for 4e. Go back to the Greybox and start over. It would have made more sense than one more mega-RSE and a major fanbase split. |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 10 Apr 2010 : 02:07:16
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quote:
Originally posted by Julian Grimm
With all they did at the end of 3e I would have rather seen the reset button hit for 4e. Go back to the Greybox and start over. It would have made more sense than one more mega-RSE and a major fanbase split.
I agree... well, there's always 5E... |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
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sfdragon
Great Reader
2285 Posts |
Posted - 10 Apr 2010 : 02:43:01
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| 5e Wont see my cash..... |
why is being a wizard like being a drow? both are likely to find a dagger in the back from a rival or one looking to further his own goals, fame and power
My FR fan fiction
Magister's GAmbit
http://steelfiredragon.deviantart.com/gallery/33539234 |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 10 Apr 2010 : 05:14:13
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quote:
Originally posted by sfdragon
5e Wont see my cash.....
For me, it will all depend on what they do with it... both the game mechanics and the Realms. If the mechanics look good (my definition of which I won't go into here, except to say that it far more closely resembles Pathfinder than it does 4E), then I might pick up the 5E core books, if I have the cash. If the Realms get the reset I'm hoping for (ideally back to the end of 2E, but I wouldn't complain if they went right back to the OGB and 1357 DR), then I'm definitely on board with 5E Realms, regardless of the core ruleset I end up using. I think it will largely depend on the publisher... if the publisher remains the same, I see little hope for the future. And that's where I'll leave this; I'm having fun working on my divine genealogy right now, and I don't want to lose my happy, productive mindset.  |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 10 Apr 2010 : 05:51:22
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quote:
Originally posted by Jakk
quote:
Originally posted by sfdragon
5e Wont see my cash.....
For me, it will all depend on what they do with it... both the game mechanics and the Realms. If the mechanics look good (my definition of which I won't go into here, except to say that it far more closely resembles Pathfinder than it does 4E), then I might pick up the 5E core books, if I have the cash. If the Realms get the reset I'm hoping for (ideally back to the end of 2E, but I wouldn't complain if they went right back to the OGB and 1357 DR), then I'm definitely on board with 5E Realms, regardless of the core ruleset I end up using. I think it will largely depend on the publisher... if the publisher remains the same, I see little hope for the future. And that's where I'll leave this; I'm having fun working on my divine genealogy right now, and I don't want to lose my happy, productive mindset.
Agreed almost all the way across -- especially on rebooting to the end of 2E (and then picking and choosing what to keep, what to lose, and particularly what to rewrite from 3E).
I've not lost all hope on WotC as a publisher -- they did save D&D back in the day, and did a lot of good stuff after that. I am not, however, as optimistic as I would be if WotC wasn't a part of Hasbro. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31772 Posts |
Posted - 10 Apr 2010 : 08:53:29
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I'm content to spend money on Wizards products that I like or need. And that's a policy that I've maintained since the time they purchased TSR.
For example, I'll likely pick up the upcoming Psionic Power tome, because, like previous editions of the D&D game, psionics has long been a mainstay of my campaigns. And I'm intrigued by what this new system might offer my oft hodge-podge rules-set.
Plus, with the August release of the new DARK SUN update, I get the feeling that my players are going to ask me to resurrect some of those old DS adventures I ran for them back in the late 90's. So this material will be a requirement. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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Jorkens
Great Reader
Norway
2950 Posts |
Posted - 10 Apr 2010 : 09:25:29
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quote:
Originally posted by Julian Grimm
With all they did at the end of 3e I would have rather seen the reset button hit for 4e. Go back to the Greybox and start over. It would have made more sense than one more mega-RSE and a major fanbase split.
That would have been a dream for me personally, but I think the fan-split would have been just as great with this solution. |
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Zorro
Seeker
Germany
82 Posts |
Posted - 10 Apr 2010 : 13:10:01
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
I've not lost all hope on WotC as a publisher -- they did save D&D back in the day, and did a lot of good stuff after that. I am not, however, as optimistic as I would be if WotC wasn't a part of Hasbro.
Well, at the end of the day a company is the sum of its employees, and the company of today has little in common with the one that took over the franchise from TSR - and almost none of the designers or the policy and decision makers. The business conduct and methods, the public relations, the design philosophies are completely different because WotC of today is composed of completely different people.
Zorro |
I think that God in creating Man somewhat overestimated his ability. - Oscar Wilde |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 10 Apr 2010 : 15:45:37
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quote:
Originally posted by Zorro
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
I've not lost all hope on WotC as a publisher -- they did save D&D back in the day, and did a lot of good stuff after that. I am not, however, as optimistic as I would be if WotC wasn't a part of Hasbro.
Well, at the end of the day a company is the sum of its employees, and the company of today has little in common with the one that took over the franchise from TSR - and almost none of the designers or the policy and decision makers. The business conduct and methods, the public relations, the design philosophies are completely different because WotC of today is composed of completely different people.
Zorro
True, but that doesn't mean that the current batch of people are any more or any less creative than those that came before. The biggest difference betwixt then and now is that then WotC was independent and thus free to pursue whatever business plan they chose. Now, with Hasbro in the picture, they've got to answer to a much larger parent company. And there's a world of difference between how large multinational corporations are run, compared to how smaller, more focused companies are run. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
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froglegg
Learned Scribe
317 Posts |
Posted - 12 Apr 2010 : 04:02:13
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Milith holder of HB8
It's entirely true that Wizards cut away old portions of the painting and left us a blank white canvass and an empty feeling in our hearts, but at the same time, it is a blank canvas. We can fill that with new and old ideas, mixed together to create something that may even surpass the original.
For example, what sort of cultural things have come about in the past hundred years? What sort of things can we fill in here and there? I don't see what's wrong with us filling it in.
I didn't become a fan of the Realms because of the blank spots -- I became a fan because of all the spots that were filled in.
If I want a setting that is a blank canvas for me, I'll go to a new one. I actually think the 4E Realms would have stood quite well on their own, as an entirely new setting -- if they'd called it something new, and not tried to make it a continuation of the old, I think they'd have had a lot more fans, and certainly wouldn't have caused such a rift in our community.
I think you hit it right on the head with that quote sir!
John |
Long live Alias and Dragonbait! Kate Novak and Jeff Grubb the Realms need you more then ever!
On my word as a sage nothing within these pages is false, but not all of it may prove to be true. - Elminster of Shadowdale
The Old Grey Box gets better with age! |
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Alystra Illianniis
Great Reader
USA
3750 Posts |
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sfdragon
Great Reader
2285 Posts |
Posted - 12 Apr 2010 : 05:09:08
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quote:
Originally posted by Alystra Illianniis
I've not seen enough of 4th ed Realms to say one way or another, but what I have seen just did not have the same feel to it. It looked like a watered-down Realms. Or worse, an FR and Greyhawk hybrid. *Looks at setting book* "Hey, you got Greyhawk in my Forgotten Realms!" From what I'm seeing here, does this mean there will be a 5th ed? I'd like to know.
This is what even my problem with it is.
DnD may not be needing a 5th edition, but they could reprint the 3.x campaign setting to use with 4e rules. |
why is being a wizard like being a drow? both are likely to find a dagger in the back from a rival or one looking to further his own goals, fame and power
My FR fan fiction
Magister's GAmbit
http://steelfiredragon.deviantart.com/gallery/33539234 |
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Kentinal
Great Reader
4688 Posts |
Posted - 12 Apr 2010 : 06:02:29
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Well WotC promised there will not be a 5th Edition, because 4th is living and evolves (or something to that effect) as a core product. There again IIRC those statements were posted by persons, for the most part, no longer in employment or under contract with WotC. *Shrugs* They will do what they will do, for two years (or more) WotC kept 4th Edition plans NDA for the few that knew, and let other WotC workers believe a 4th Edition was much further away.
I do not see WotC ever returning to 3.X because of the OGL, they could tun into internal conflict of converting 3rd to 4th as to it being under 3rd legal rules or 4th legal rules.
In part this is why attorneys are required to sort out these things. |
"Small beings can have small wisdom," the dragon said. "And small wise beings are better than small fools. Listen: Wisdom is caring for afterwards."
"Caring for afterwards ...? Ker repeated this without understanding.
"After action, afterwards," the dragon said. "Choose the afterwards first, then the action. Fools choose action first."
"Judgement" copyright 2003 by Elizabeth Moon |
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3287 Posts |
Posted - 12 Apr 2010 : 07:40:11
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There will be a 5TH Edition. They will announce it at a Gencon in the future.
During the 10 or so months it takes to get released, WotC will want people to continue buying the 4E products while they bad mouth how broken, how terrible, how unplayable the 4E Rules were. While also saying how awesome, how cool, how bad *** 5E will be. Sound a little familiar?
I think have become cynical now. |
"These things also I have observed: that knowledge of our world is
to be nurtured like a precious flower, for it is the most precious
thing we have. Wherefore guard the word written and heed
words unwritten and set them down ere they fade . . . Learn
then, well, the arts of reading, writing, and listening true, and they
will lead you to the greatest art of all: understanding."
Alaundo of Candlekeep |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 12 Apr 2010 : 11:13:07
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quote:
Originally posted by Brimstone
There will be a 5TH Edition. They will announce it at a Gencon in the future.
During the 10 or so months it takes to get released, WotC will want people to continue buying the 4E products while they bad mouth how broken, how terrible, how unplayable the 4E Rules were. While also saying how awesome, how cool, how bad *** 5E will be. Sound a little familiar?
I think have become cynical now.
I have to agree -- especially after the way they point-blank denied the existence of 4E while they were still playtesting it and were just months away from announcing it. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
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Thauramarth
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
729 Posts |
Posted - 12 Apr 2010 : 11:24:29
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quote:
Originally posted by Brimstone
There will be a 5TH Edition. They will announce it at a Gencon in the future.
During the 10 or so months it takes to get released, WotC will want people to continue buying the 4E products while they bad mouth how broken, how terrible, how unplayable the 4E Rules were. While also saying how awesome, how cool, how bad *** 5E will be. Sound a little familiar?
I think have become cynical now.
Provided that paper-based D&D survives (not sure about that one), it's inevitable that there will be something labelled "5th Edition"; if only for the fact that if WotC continues to issue core books on a yearly basis, at one point, it will become necessary to reset the baseline (can you imagine, ten years from now, people entering into the hobby will need to get PHBs 1 to 10? Talk about barrier to entrey). Let's not forget that OD&D went trough 4 editions (I think) in about two-thirds the lifetime that it took AD&D to get to 4th. Ne |
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Brimstone
Great Reader
USA
3287 Posts |
Posted - 12 Apr 2010 : 11:42:26
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| DDI is the Future... |
"These things also I have observed: that knowledge of our world is
to be nurtured like a precious flower, for it is the most precious
thing we have. Wherefore guard the word written and heed
words unwritten and set them down ere they fade . . . Learn
then, well, the arts of reading, writing, and listening true, and they
will lead you to the greatest art of all: understanding."
Alaundo of Candlekeep |
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Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3243 Posts |
Posted - 15 Apr 2010 : 14:19:02
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A part of me just gave up a little more...
I had been keeping a thread asking about the Fansite Policy alive over on the WotC forums by bumping it every so often. Since we're approaching the 2 year anniversary of the new edition, I had been 'bumping' the thread everyday for the last month, hoping to get SOMEONE to give us some news.
Well, the admin over there finally got sick of my spamming and locked the thread and instructed me to send a message to Customer Service with my questions. So, now I put it to you, my fellow sages: go to the Wizards Customer service page and send them an email.
Subject: Fansite Policy
Message: Can we have a clearly delineated policy showing what fansites may or may not publish to the public?
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I actually DO know everything. I just have a very poor index of my knowledge.
Ashe's Character Sheet
Alphabetized Index of Realms NPCs |
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ZeshinX
Learned Scribe
Canada
210 Posts |
Posted - 15 Apr 2010 : 17:13:57
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quote:
Originally posted by Ashe Ravenheart
A part of me just gave up a little more...
I had been keeping a thread asking about the Fansite Policy alive over on the WotC forums by bumping it every so often. Since we're approaching the 2 year anniversary of the new edition, I had been 'bumping' the thread everyday for the last month, hoping to get SOMEONE to give us some news.
Well, the admin over there finally got sick of my spamming and locked the thread and instructed me to send a message to Customer Service with my questions. So, now I put it to you, my fellow sages: go to the Wizards Customer service page and send them an email.
Subject: Fansite Policy
Message: Can we have a clearly delineated policy showing what fansites may or may not publish to the public?
I would love to help, but much to my great regret, I am no longer a fan of WotC's D&D and its related products.
If this would help with fansite content for pre-4E material, let me know and I'll head on over right away and send that email. :) |
"...because despite the best advice of those who know what they are talking about, other people insist on doing the most massively stupid things."
-Galen, technomage |
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sfdragon
Great Reader
2285 Posts |
Posted - 15 Apr 2010 : 17:39:05
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| You know, it might help with both |
why is being a wizard like being a drow? both are likely to find a dagger in the back from a rival or one looking to further his own goals, fame and power
My FR fan fiction
Magister's GAmbit
http://steelfiredragon.deviantart.com/gallery/33539234 |
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Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3243 Posts |
Posted - 15 Apr 2010 : 18:18:05
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quote:
Originally posted by ZeshinX
quote:
Originally posted by Ashe Ravenheart
A part of me just gave up a little more...
I had been keeping a thread asking about the Fansite Policy alive over on the WotC forums by bumping it every so often. Since we're approaching the 2 year anniversary of the new edition, I had been 'bumping' the thread everyday for the last month, hoping to get SOMEONE to give us some news.
Well, the admin over there finally got sick of my spamming and locked the thread and instructed me to send a message to Customer Service with my questions. So, now I put it to you, my fellow sages: go to the Wizards Customer service page and send them an email.
Subject: Fansite Policy
Message: Can we have a clearly delineated policy showing what fansites may or may not publish to the public?
I would love to help, but much to my great regret, I am no longer a fan of WotC's D&D and its related products.
If this would help with fansite content for pre-4E material, let me know and I'll head on over right away and send that email. :)
Actually, that's exactly what it's for. |
I actually DO know everything. I just have a very poor index of my knowledge.
Ashe's Character Sheet
Alphabetized Index of Realms NPCs |
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arry
Learned Scribe
United Kingdom
317 Posts |
Posted - 17 Apr 2010 : 15:32:57
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| Unfortunately I don't believe that esteemed WotC want fan-sites in any way shape or form. In my opinion all any corporation wants today is uncritical consumers. |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2010 : 00:14:44
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quote:
Originally posted by arry
Unfortunately I don't believe that esteemed WotC want fan-sites in any way shape or form. In my opinion all any corporation wants today is uncritical consumers.
But wouldn't fansites promote that?   Erm... no, not if you allow dissenting opinions, which is hard not to do in a democracy that values freedom of expression...
And that is why P&P gaming is dying. Most of us old-school gamers are members of the same demographic that got the hobby started on an entrepreneurial level as well... people who think outside the box and aren't afraid to have (and express) their own opinions. The instant you combine that with a massive multinational corporation that cares about nothing but its bottom line and (by extension) people's willingness to suck up whatever it produces, you achieve paradox. I'm not sure exactly what the future of P&P role-playing is, and after my predictions regarding 4E went (imho) so horribly wrong, I don't want to hazard a guess. 
Re: earlier posts: If we do see 5E, your guess is as good as mine what form it takes... but my money is on something that you'll need a gaming console with an online account to play. As you can probably tell, I'm begging to be proven wrong here. If you always expect the worst, all of your surprises will be pleasant ones. |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
Edited by - Jakk on 18 Apr 2010 00:17:55 |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2010 : 00:41:00
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quote:
Originally posted by Jakk
And that is why P&P gaming is dying.
Actually, I think it's because the world we live in now simply doesn't encourage or make easy the option of getting a handful of friends together on a regular basis, for several hours at a time.
And that's why an online gaming table -- which we were promised, and which became vaporware -- would go much, much further towards saving the hobby than a new edition would. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
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Alystra Illianniis
Great Reader
USA
3750 Posts |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2010 : 04:11:02
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quote:
Originally posted by Alystra Illianniis
Actually, I would like to see both. Both could go a long way toward saving the game we all love.
All the new editions in the world can't get people to the gaming table if it's too hard to coordinate a group gathering with your local friends.
A virtual gaming table, on the other hand, allows people to sit down in front of something they've already got and join up with people across the world, just to play D&D. And unlike regular PnP gaming, all participants can do it from the comfort of their homes. That's why MMOs dominate, now, not because of shiny graphics or nifty gameplay -- though those things certainly add to it. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
Edited by - Wooly Rupert on 18 Apr 2010 04:12:02 |
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Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3243 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2010 : 05:14:09
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Alystra Illianniis
Actually, I would like to see both. Both could go a long way toward saving the game we all love.
All the new editions in the world can't get people to the gaming table if it's too hard to coordinate a group gathering with your local friends.
A virtual gaming table, on the other hand, allows people to sit down in front of something they've already got and join up with people across the world, just to play D&D. And unlike regular PnP gaming, all participants can do it from the comfort of their homes. That's why MMOs dominate, now, not because of shiny graphics or nifty gameplay -- though those things certainly add to it.
The only problem is developing a table that is open to all rules and games. |
I actually DO know everything. I just have a very poor index of my knowledge.
Ashe's Character Sheet
Alphabetized Index of Realms NPCs |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 18 Apr 2010 : 06:08:57
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quote:
Originally posted by Ashe Ravenheart
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Alystra Illianniis
Actually, I would like to see both. Both could go a long way toward saving the game we all love.
All the new editions in the world can't get people to the gaming table if it's too hard to coordinate a group gathering with your local friends.
A virtual gaming table, on the other hand, allows people to sit down in front of something they've already got and join up with people across the world, just to play D&D. And unlike regular PnP gaming, all participants can do it from the comfort of their homes. That's why MMOs dominate, now, not because of shiny graphics or nifty gameplay -- though those things certainly add to it.
The only problem is developing a table that is open to all rules and games.
It's not a problem. You develop a simple system -- a white board that can be set with squares or hexes, a text chat system, a voice chat, and a dice roller -- all integrated. Simple markers for PCs, NPCs, and monsters. The DM can draw out whatever floorplan he needs, and from there you use it like simple graph paper. The voice chat lets everyone talk, the text chat simulates passing notes, and everyone uses the dice roller.
And that's all you need -- you sell it on a subscription basis, just like that, a simple system that will support any ruleset and any house rules for any game -- because the rules aren't integrated into it.
For expansions, you sell monster and specialized PC/NPC icons, and things like the tilesets they pushed for the minis. You sell a basic template set for things like fireballs and lightning bolts, and maybe a customizable set for other stuff.
And you can integrate rulesets in for another fee.
The table itself is a subscription-based service, but the expansions and rulesets are one-time fees and go with the buyer.
Doing all this allows you to capture almost all of the advantages of an MMO -- including the monthly subscription fee -- without having to print a single book. And keeping it simple, without integrated rules, means you can use it for any game system -- any of the flavors of D&D, or Runequest, or BattleTech, or Shadowrun, or any other system you can name.
The objective of the virtual gaming table isn't to take anything away from PnP games -- the objective is to move them from the table in the den or the basement to a global table. Players still need their books and such, this just gives them more people to game with. |
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What happened to Open ,Free and Spirited Debate?
