WotC Spring 2009 Catalog

[CharlesRyan]

Am I understanding this correctly ... to have cards for all of the classes (in just the PHB1) you would need to buy eight different decks?

Exactly how many cards do you want for ten bucks? A typical PHB class has, what, 80? 90 powers? That's half again as many cards as in a typical CCG deck. For a price that's maybe 25% higher than a typical CCG starter deck.

If you're really going to play every class in the PHB, good on ya! But it seems kind of unreasonable to think that fully kitting out for such a broad undertaking wouldn't carry a price tag. $10 a deck is hardly a rip-off, assuming a halfway decent product, so $80 for 8 decks (600 to 700 cards!) doesn't really seem to merit your "disgust."

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Exactly how many cards do you want for ten bucks? A typical PHB class has, what, 80? 90 powers? That's half again as many cards as in a typical CCG deck. For a price that's maybe 25% higher than a typical CCG starter deck.

If you're really going to play every class in the PHB, good on ya! But it seems kind of unreasonable to think that fully kitting out for such a broad undertaking wouldn't carry a price tag. $10 a deck is hardly a rip-off, assuming a halfway decent product, so $80 for 8 decks (600 to 700 cards!) doesn't really seem to merit your "disgust."

And it's not like every player has to have all decks. Unless you play in 8 campaigns at the same time, and in each campaign, you all play just one class

It seems to me the price is pretty fair. There are approximately 80 powers per class, and if each class powers are included twice, that means 160 cards per deck

Thalmin thread-forked and noticed that the "2 per counter display" has nothing to do with the contents of the deck. So strike that. (I assume the fork happened accidentally)

 

[Brown Jenkin]

Of course randomization would be good because it would prevent stores from worrying about which classes are more popular than others and save them from being left with unpopular stock, plus they would only have one SKU to worry about and display space would be less [/sarcasm]

 

[Imaro]

"if you are too lazy to make your own" I think you missed that line because getting an index card and writing on it is hardly rocket science or even printing out some of the wonderful ones produced by members of this site.

but for £5 a pop probably £5.99 I might splash out on a set, its only the price of 2 pints after all.

Yeah... sucks that you can't play the game without them, or make your own, or find free ones if you want to.

Wow, so you can't have an opinion on whether something is worth the price or not... because you can "do it yourself"? This is the same justification I saw people use to defend WotC producing those terrible character sheets, and it's a cop out. I can make my own classes and powers... so does that mean if I am disappointed in how WotC designs the Martial Power book... I don't have a right to be since I could "do it myself"?

Personally I won't be buying them because there are already great cards on the internet for free... however if they meet the requirements below I may purchase them...if not, I do not think they are a particularly good deal.

Exactly how many cards do you want for ten bucks? A typical PHB class has, what, 80? 90 powers? That's half again as many cards as in a typical CCG deck. For a price that's maybe 25% higher than a typical CCG starter deck.

If you're really going to play every class in the PHB, good on ya! But it seems kind of unreasonable to think that fully kitting out for such a broad undertaking wouldn't carry a price tag. $10 a deck is hardly a rip-off, assuming a halfway decent product, so $80 for 8 decks (600 to 700 cards!) doesn't really seem to merit your "disgust."

I will say you could be right... if we get some good artwork on these cards (and no I'm not talking about reprinted artwork)... and the official errata for all the powers I would say they may be worth it. But if it's just the exact layout of the powers from the books printed onto cardstock, with no errata... yeah I'd be pretty disappointed at $9.99 per class. It's not like there is rule design & development, playtesting or anything else involved with the cards...like there was with Inn-Fighting and Dragon Ante.


SIDE NOTE: I think this it's also a case of WotC really waiting too long to get these out there, though this again causes me to consider these as firmly targeted at new players, just like the character sheets.

 

[Echohawk]

Thalmin, when you have a chance, would you mind checking the novels in the catalog against this list?

January
Canticle (reissue) [Forgotten Realms, Cleric Quintet 1]
The Amber Enchantress (reissue) [Dark Sun, Prism Pentad 3]
The Elven Nations Trilogy Omnibus [Dragonlance]
The Fanged Crown [Forgotten Realms, The Wilds 1]
The Legend of Drizzt Collector's Edition, Book III [Forgotten Realms]
Brass Dragon Codex [Mirrorstone]
A Practical Guide to Faeries [Mirrorstone]

February
Agents of Artifice [Planeswalker -- is this Planescape?]
The Last Sacrifice: Sentinel Marshals [Eberron]
The Silent Blade (reissue) [Forgotten Realms, Legend of Drizzt 11]
The Sleep of Reason [Ravenloft?]
Unholy [Forgotten Realms, Haunted Lands 3]

March
Corsair [Forgotten Realms, Blades of Moonsea 2]
In Sylvan Shadows (reissue) [Forgotten Realms, Cleric Quintet 2]
Obsidian Oracle (reissue) [Dark Sun, Prism Pentad 4]
Renegade Wizards [Dragonlance, Tracy Hickman presents the Anvil of Time 3]

April
Downshadow [Forgotten Realms, Ed Greenwood Presents Waterdeep 3]
Madness in Harmony: A Novel of the Mists [Ravenloft?]
The Spine of the World (reissue) [Forgotten Realms, Legend of Drizzt 12]
The Threat from the Sea Omnibus [Forgotten Realms]

June
Dragon War (hardcover) [Eberron, The Draconic Prophecies 3]
Green Dragon Codex [Mirrorstone]

July
The Crystal Mountain [Forgotten Realms, Empyrean Odyssey 3]

August
Goblin Nation [Dragonlance, Stonetellers 3]
The Fate of Thorbardin [Dragonlance, Dwarf Home 3]

September
Silver Dragon Codex [Mirrorstone]

October
The Ghost King [Forgotten Realms, Transitions 3]

 

[doctorhook]

It's worth mentioning, what of "powers" that aren't "powers" in the PH? For example, I've made cards for Second Wind, I've made cards for class features, (Sneak Attack, Arcane Implement Mastery, Warlock's Curse, Combat Challenge, and more). And of course, what about Magic Items?

When can we expect to see these things in card form?

I'm intrigued by these cards. If they cover all my bases, I'll likely buy them. However, until I'm certain they do cover all my bases, I'll be sticking with my own system, for consistency's sake.

 

[Darkwolf71]

Exactly how many cards do you want for ten bucks? A typical PHB class has, what, 80? 90 powers? That's half again as many cards as in a typical CCG deck. For a price that's maybe 25% higher than a typical CCG starter deck.

If you're really going to play every class in the PHB, good on ya! But it seems kind of unreasonable to think that fully kitting out for such a broad undertaking wouldn't carry a price tag. $10 a deck is hardly a rip-off, assuming a halfway decent product, so $80 for 8 decks (600 to 700 cards!) doesn't really seem to merit your "disgust."

To lessen confusion, It was I who claimed 'disgust', not tomBitonti.

Now technically, sure. I'll cede the point that, 10 bucks for 80 cards is not a horrible price. My disgust comes from the realization that the game was designed with this in mind. They have made D&D into a game that practically requires the use of minis and cards. Which convieniantly, oh look... they just happen to sell.

It's no longer D&D, it's fraking Magic: The Role Playing Game.

 

[The Little Raven]

My disgust comes from the realization that the game was designed with this in mind.

A game was designed with the ability to produce supplements in mind? HOLY SHADES OF EVERY EDITION OF THE GAME, BATMAN!

 

[Darkwolf71]

A game was designed with the ability to produce supplements in mind? HOLY SHADES OF EVERY EDITION OF THE GAME, BATMAN!

Is that the best you can do? Really, if you have a different opinion fine, please share it. If you're going to reply with flame bait, go do it at gleemax.

 

[Imaro]

A game was designed with the ability to produce supplements in mind? HOLY SHADES OF EVERY EDITION OF THE GAME, BATMAN!

Yeah, but there is a line between the game being centered around these things (minis, dungeon tiles, power cards) and a game that uses them as enhancing elements. IMHO, 4e falls into the category of being centered around these things.).

4e was touted as playing faster... but if you don't have your powers on some type of card it plays way slower than previous editions.

People claim it is just as mini-centric as 3e... but IMHO, it is definitely more mini-centric and requires some sort of grid to track spatial relations.

There are numerous marks and conditions which continually change on a round per round basis and thus require various types of marker for each. And I have no doubt WotC will sell official markers for these at some point.

In fact my opinion is that the game was designed to push people towards using the DDI... but still be just manageable enough that one can play it... with all these "optional" enhancements. I also think WotC is banking on alot of people sooner or later coming to the realization that, "Wow! It would be cheaper and less space if I just use the DDI". Too bad they haven't pulled it together yet.