Mercurius
Legend
A creative and community success, that is. I know, it is early, but the feedback on the Starter Set, Basic Rules, and Player's Handbook has been overwhelmingly positive, so much so that the negative views really stand out. We still need to see more reviews and give the community a couple months with the Player's Handbook, but so far I think 5E is quite a success with the fan base, and I just can't imagine anything like the debacle that we had with 4E.
Here's the "but" from the thread title (which is really more of a "What if"). What if it is a roaring success with the existing fan-base but isn't a massive financial one? In other words, what if the Mearls Plan doesn't succeed and the brand doesn't blow up with a massive new generation of players storming the gates to roll their first d20? What if none or few of the legendary "20 million" D&D boomers from the 80s doesn't come back?
I would imagine that D&D would continue as is indefinitely, although wouldn't expand in any way. We'd see a more moderate roll out of products, perhaps akin to the first few years of Pathfinder - a new hardcover two or three times a year, a new adventure once a month or two with the occasional setting supplement. In other words, business as usual and what one would have expected with 5E, but without the fulfillment of the promised vision of a new golden era of a diversified D&D brand. D&D would remain what it has been since the end of the 80s boom, a niche hobby with moderate ups and downs in creativity and financial success.
I don't have a problem with that and, in a way, think creative vitality is better retained with a smaller, or moderate sized pie. In other words, while it isn't an absolute rule, there seems to be a common inverse relationship between financial success and creative vitality in many artistic domains.
That said, I would still be curious what a new, golden era of D&D would be like.
So how could that work? I think the key is movies. It is the only media format that reaches beyond the "geek ghetto." Take my very non-geek wife. She has no idea what World of Warcraft is, who Drizzt or Elminster are, or what a d20 is. But she could probably name a half a dozen X-Men, knows what a Jedi Knight is, and which franchise the starship Enterprise is from.
Imagine if there could be D&D movies with similar production and creative values as the Marvel universe or Star Wars or Star Trek movies. The few D&D movies we've seen so far have done nothing to enrich the brand; if anything, they have turned some potential players away (I remember seeing the first one in the theater back when it came out in 2000. One of the guys I went with, a very hipster artist who used to play D&D in high school, was so embarassed that I think it snuffed out any thought of him ever playing again). But I don't think it is a foregone conclusion that "D&D" and "live action movie" is inherently doomed to artistic limbo.
I think the best chance D&D has of a creative movie is something epic, a Big Story. What comes most immediately to mind is the Dragonlance Chronicles. Another could be Icewind Dale (I hate to say it, but if done well Drizzt could make an impact on the big screen). Or perhaps something new.
This post is admittedly meandering - I just had some thoughts that I am hoping will encourage conversation. Take whatever element of the above, or whatever comes to you, and run with it.
Here's the "but" from the thread title (which is really more of a "What if"). What if it is a roaring success with the existing fan-base but isn't a massive financial one? In other words, what if the Mearls Plan doesn't succeed and the brand doesn't blow up with a massive new generation of players storming the gates to roll their first d20? What if none or few of the legendary "20 million" D&D boomers from the 80s doesn't come back?
I would imagine that D&D would continue as is indefinitely, although wouldn't expand in any way. We'd see a more moderate roll out of products, perhaps akin to the first few years of Pathfinder - a new hardcover two or three times a year, a new adventure once a month or two with the occasional setting supplement. In other words, business as usual and what one would have expected with 5E, but without the fulfillment of the promised vision of a new golden era of a diversified D&D brand. D&D would remain what it has been since the end of the 80s boom, a niche hobby with moderate ups and downs in creativity and financial success.
I don't have a problem with that and, in a way, think creative vitality is better retained with a smaller, or moderate sized pie. In other words, while it isn't an absolute rule, there seems to be a common inverse relationship between financial success and creative vitality in many artistic domains.
That said, I would still be curious what a new, golden era of D&D would be like.
So how could that work? I think the key is movies. It is the only media format that reaches beyond the "geek ghetto." Take my very non-geek wife. She has no idea what World of Warcraft is, who Drizzt or Elminster are, or what a d20 is. But she could probably name a half a dozen X-Men, knows what a Jedi Knight is, and which franchise the starship Enterprise is from.
Imagine if there could be D&D movies with similar production and creative values as the Marvel universe or Star Wars or Star Trek movies. The few D&D movies we've seen so far have done nothing to enrich the brand; if anything, they have turned some potential players away (I remember seeing the first one in the theater back when it came out in 2000. One of the guys I went with, a very hipster artist who used to play D&D in high school, was so embarassed that I think it snuffed out any thought of him ever playing again). But I don't think it is a foregone conclusion that "D&D" and "live action movie" is inherently doomed to artistic limbo.
I think the best chance D&D has of a creative movie is something epic, a Big Story. What comes most immediately to mind is the Dragonlance Chronicles. Another could be Icewind Dale (I hate to say it, but if done well Drizzt could make an impact on the big screen). Or perhaps something new.
This post is admittedly meandering - I just had some thoughts that I am hoping will encourage conversation. Take whatever element of the above, or whatever comes to you, and run with it.
