WotC Vecna Eve of Ruin: Everything You Need To Know

WotC has posted a 19-minute video telling you 'everything you need to know' about Vecna: Eve Of Ruin.

• Starts at 10th level, goes to 20th.
• Classic villains and setting, famous characters, D&D's legacy.
• Vecna wants to become the supreme being of the multiverse.
• Vecna is a god of secrets and secrets and the power of secrets are a theme throughout the book.
• A mechanical subsystem for using the power of secrets during combat.
• Going back to Ravenloft, the Nine Hells, places where 5th Edition has been in the last 10 years.
• It would be a fun 'meta experience' for players to visit locations they remember lore about.
• Finding pieces of the Rod of Seven Parts, pieces throughout the multiverse.
• Each piece in one of seven distinct planes or settings.
• Allustriel Silverhand has noticed something is wrong, puts call out to Tasha and Mordenkainen, who come to her sanctum in Sigil.
• The (10th level) PCs are fated to confront Vecna.
• Lord Soth and Strahd show up. Tiamat is mentioned but doesn't appear 'on screen'.
• Twists, turns, spoilers.
• It's a 'love letter to D&D'.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I guess I'm revealing to my group that my homebrew adventure that uses milestone leveling was all just a marketing gimmick then, as have been all my adventures since well before milestone leveling was even named (I'd just give everyone enough XP to get to the next level after defeating a significant foe). Thanks for giving me the words to tell them that it's been a sham all along!

Something can be a marketing gimmic, and also your preference. Also, a company can latch onto an existing idea and use it as a marketing gimmic.

 

[Reynard]

Something can be a marketing gimmic, and also your preference. Also, a company can latch onto an existing idea and use it as a marketing gimmic.

I am not sure how milestone leveling acts as a marketing gimmick specifically. I have never seen "Level Up Every Session!" emblazoned across the back cover copy.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I am not sure how milestone leveling acts as a marketing gimmick specifically. I have never seen "Level Up Every Session!" emblazoned across the back cover copy.

Well, it's not my idea, but I think the concept is you set up a bunch of arbitrary points in your published adventure for milestone leveling, maybe fiddle with CR a bit, and that allows you to advertise basically whatever level range you want the adventure to have without having to figure out xp totals. I'm speculating here.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Milestone levelling is just a marketing gimmick that allows them to claim an adventure goes X levels then give paper thin adventures and act like they gave you substance. It's false advertising and why I stopped buying their adventures.

My group voted unanimously for milestone levelling in our home game, not running WotC adventures. It’s how people prefer to play these days.

 

[Micah Sweet]

My group voted unanimously for milestone levelling in our home game, not running WotC adventures. It’s hope people prefer to play these days.

Really? You speak for "people" and can therefore make this not-at-all broad generalization?

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Really? You speak for "people" and can therefore make this not-at-all broad generalization?

It was somewhat of a surprise to me too to see how strongly the whole group was in favour of milestone levelling. I had to push to convince them to use point buy stats.

 

[TwoSix]

Really? You speak for "people" and can therefore make this not-at-all broad generalization?

Anecdotal, but my observations across several dozen players over the last 10 years certainly points in the direction of milestone being the default choice.

Could start a poll, I guess. Although I wouldn't be shocked if it's been done before.

 

[Micah Sweet]

It was somewhat of a surprise to me too to see how strongly the whole group was in favour of milestone levelling. I had to push to convince them to use point buy stats.

Well, those two concepts can and often do exist separately, so I wouldn't assume being in favor of one means being in the favor of the other. Besides, using milestone is less work for the players. Not surprising they'd go for it.

My actual issue was you stating that "people" prefer milestone. You cannot possibly know that, nor do you speak for "people".

 

[Parmandur]

I'm sure XP Leveling is still very common, but milestone is very normal nowadays.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Anecdotal, but my observations across several dozen players over the last 10 years certainly points in the direction of milestone being the default choice.

Could start a poll, I guess. Although I wouldn't be shocked if it's been done before.

You can believe that, but you can't just say that's what "people" believe, not unchallenged.