Anthony Valterra breaks his silence

Folks,

Sorry about the delay in responding it was unavoidable. I am going to say one thing and then open myself up for questions. I will respond to these questions as regularly as I can. Keep in mind there are 100's if not 1000's of you and one of me. I hope that some of my cohorts will jump in occasionally as well. Okay - now my one statement:

Wizards of the Coast and I are parting company. This was a planned transition and we are parting amicably.

Now then - on to the questions!

AV

p.s. I am doing it this way because ther are so many threads that it would take me forever to hunt them all down.

I hope things go well for you out on your own. Thanks for all of your hard work while at WotC.

What sort of content, and how much of it (approx.) do you think will be OGC from the BoEF?

Thanks.

Alrighty-o. Glad to see you. I'll let the others start with the controversy, as they are better at it. But anyways, how are you doing, and who's going to be handling D&D at WoTC now?

First things first. Congratulations and good luck with your venture.

Now. I'll ask a couple common questions to get them out there. They, or some variation of them, have appeared on every thread about your book on every message board I've seen. So:

1) People have been speculating about improper use of the OGL, specifically in reference to your press release's direct mention of compatability with Dungeons & Dragons. What's your position on the matter?

2) Will the product be marked as age restricted?


Patrick Y.

I'm not completely surprised at you leaving WotC. I'm glad to hear that it was planned and going smoothly.

What can you tell about the BoEF's page count? And what approx. percentile will be text, as opposed to photos?

I hope all works out for you. It seems your departure is on good terms, so that's cool. A lot of the fear will come from people being unsure about the SRD updates being in capable hands. While the ELH and D&Dg are on the way, I know many want the MotP in as well.

As for your new controversial book (and boy is it), will it be softcover or hardcover? Black & white or color? Approx page count?

Personally, to me, it sounds like it'll be one of those books that will see little use, but it'll be nice to have it handy "just in case". It'll also make an interesting read (I'm 28 years old, married for 10 years without children.. yet). Also, while I couldn't stand the gory "icky" nature of the BoVD, this is something that I'm more comfortable (as well as my gamer wife) with.

Are there any other products that you wish to do that you're willing to mention?


Thanks for you time!
Chris Dickinson

Umm. I feel a little leery of asking question of "Valterrafromhome" who is a new member with only 3 posts. Can we get any confirmation this is not a spoof?

Anthony, what will your departure from WotC mean in regards to the placement of material into the SRD? For quite a while now, it has seemed that you were the driving force behind getting the SRD complete.

ColonelHardisson said:

Anthony, what will your departure from WotC mean in regards to the placement of material into the SRD? For quite a while now, it has seemed that you were the driving force behind getting the SRD complete.

Click to expand...

i concur. How will this affect the timetable that is setup for the rest of the pieces to move into SRD such as ELH, D&Dg and MOTP?

First, Anthony, thanks for all the hard work on the SRD and in helping D&D survive the problems at TSR. I feel that the OGL and the D20 movement has truly helped bring several new voices and ideas to the gaming community.

Anthony, thanks for responding.

Now for some questions.

1.) There has been some discussions on the use of the Dungeons and Dragons name brand in the press release for the BoEF. Does the use of the brand name in the press release indicate that WotC will allow other publishers, such as Necromancer Games and Green Ronin, to use the Dungeons and Dragon name in their advertising.

2) There seems to be different views of the Book of Erotic Fantasy. Some hope that sexuality and related topics (for example, tantric magic) will be handled in the manner that Gwendolyn Kestrel described: with humor, seriousness, and good tastes. Others fear that the BoEF will be something that will offend most of the gaming community, and will be lurid. From following the threads, you must know that opinions are all over the map? So what can you say about the book, its topics, the art work, and how the general approach of the Book of Erotic Fantasy.

3) In a previous thread, you discussed the possibility of a line of mature products. This has been compared by some as a line of products similar in tone to Heavy Metal Magazine, or the original movie of the same name? How would you describe the Valar project and the sorts of products you see it publishing?

4) What is your reaction to some of the threads that have appeared here and else where? Specifically, how would you answer those who worry about the BoEF having a negative impact on the gaming community. In one thread, an educator mentioned he would be reluctant to recommend D&D as a game while working in an official capacity. Another gamer I know, who is still in high school, faced an assistant principal who banned an RPG club from his school?

5)You mentioned that your leaving WotC was a planned transition? Can you comment on some of the reasons behind your leaving WotC? Also, what accomplishmets that you made at WotC have given you the most pride and satisfaction? Is there anything you wish you could have done differently?

(Privately, I do support your right to publish the book. However, I do not see it as really appealing to me. However, romance and sex have popped up in my campaign over the past two decades.)

Everyone, let us treat all the opinions expressed on this thread and those who post them with respect. Remember the tag line in my sig. So far, very good questions.

Perhaps some of the other people involved with the BoEF might wish to post to this thread as well.

Moderators: Perhaps it might be wise to update the front page, as many people have wished to hear Mr. Valterra's comments on the BoEF and other issues.