"Are the Authors of the Dungeon & Dragons Hardcover Adventures Blind to the Plight of DMs?"

[Guest 6801328]

The challenge, I think, is in trying to write single products to appeal to all audiences. They've got this plan where every X months they roll out a new Adventure Path, and they want everybody to buy it. So each one is a little bit linear, a little bit sandboxy, and little bit for beginners, and a little bit for veterans.

I for one wish they would put out different flavors of targeted supplements and be explicit about who they're for.

 

[Old One Eye]

I for one wish they would put out different flavors of targeted supplements and be explicit about who they're for.

Does DMsguild not fill the niches for you? I've enjoyed all kinds of interesting gems from it. Abeit, there is a fair amount of wading through the drek.

 

[AaronOfBarbaria]

I for one wish they would put out different flavors of targeted supplements and be explicit about who they're for.

If they did that, they'd either have to be less successful as a business by having significantly higher costs without significantly higher income (by hiring enough people to perform at the current pace and level of quality, but not raising sales by the same factor because people would still be only buying the book that is "for them" enough to justify the purchase, so any book "not for them" goes unpurchased), be less successful as a business by splitting the current number of man-hours into more pieces and thus inherently reducing the time spent on each project which would impact quality, or be less successful as a business by putting out products at the current pace and with the current quality - but with each being so focused on a particular "who they're for" group that others don't buy it, thus making some potential purchasers more likely to lose interest or get frustrated because literal years could pass by design before a product comes out that has anything they are interested in included.

 

[pogre]

On the other hand, the observation that it's a lot easier to buy an AP than to write your own from scratch is some pretty wet water, too.

True enough. I own all of the APs - so I definitely resemble that remark.

 

[MNblockhead]

Does DMsguild not fill the niches for you? I've enjoyed all kinds of interesting gems from it. Albeit, there is a fair amount of wading through the drek.

DMs Guild is good, but lots of new and even experienced players don't use it, either out of ignorance or dislike of digital media. New players, in particular, are not going to be comfortable wading through the sea of content in DM's Guild or DTRPG. I think that republishing AL material in biannual or annual hard-cover bound compilation of the "best" content, covering all four tiers. That would give more exposure to this great material for customers who primarily purchasae DnD content at FLGS and Amazon.

I would also like to see more AL content readily available for purchase in the various VTTs (Fantasy Ground, Roll20, d20Pro), in DnD Beyond, and RealmWorks.

Give FLGS coupons to give to those who buy the hardcover books to download some promo AL or Guild Adept material. Give FLGS a financial incentive to educate customers about DMs Guild; some added value they can provide that Amazon can't.

I know that WotC highlights DMs Guild in Dragon+, Dragon Talk, and on a lot of the streams, but for new players who get the starter set or the core books, jumping to a hard-back AP is quite a jump and more can be done to direct them to online material that is easier for new DMs to run.

 

[MNblockhead]

If they did that, they'd either have to be less successful as a business by having significantly higher costs without significantly higher income (by hiring enough people to perform at the current pace and level of quality, but not raising sales by the same factor because people would still be only buying the book that is "for them" enough to justify the purchase, so any book "not for them" goes unpurchased), be less successful as a business by splitting the current number of man-hours into more pieces and thus inherently reducing the time spent on each project which would impact quality, or be less successful as a business by putting out products at the current pace and with the current quality - but with each being so focused on a particular "who they're for" group that others don't buy it, thus making some potential purchasers more likely to lose interest or get frustrated because literal years could pass by design before a product comes out that has anything they are interested in included.

Except, they have lots of create content in DMs Guild that with just a bit of additional layout and editing could be compiled and printed without running into the issues you highlight. Of course, the big question is whether there is enough demand. Tales from the Yawning Portal makes me think that there is a demand for material you can get in PDF repackaged into nice hard covers.

 

[Old One Eye]

It always amazes me how often folks are concerned about the accessibility for new gamers. Perhaps the undue taint of shallowness leads me to only be concerned about my home game, but I do admire the concern so many have for openness of the hobby.

 

[CubicsRube]

My biggest bugbear with all hardcover products are no thumb cut outs on the page edge for the various sections. Anyone remember encyclopedia britannica? That's what i mean.

To be able to in an instant flip between various sections would be a steady improvement, regardless of other layout options.

My second issue is a lack of handouts. I remember getting the old ultima gamess and getting full colour maps and various knick knacks, and it was glorious!

If i by tomb of anihilation, i want npc cards, maps, letters (like an exploration certificate), cultish tokens, all the kind of stuff i dont have the time to make. If i want to run an adventure id love to be able to hand out cool stuff to the players and see their little eyes light up with joy! Then i know its money well spent

 

[CubicsRube]

It always amazes me how often folks are concerned about the accessibility for new gamers. Perhaps the undue taint of shallowness leads me to only be concerned about my home game, but I do admire the concern so many have for openness of the hobby.

On that note, itd be cool to see more aps with 5l6 pregen characters that can be used as npcs should the players choose not to use them. This can be great for new players as they can choose something done for them and specifically tailored and tied into the ap at hand, and they can provide great backup characters should the first characters...ahem....retire

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I would like a ring binder with inserts format, which I think they did with some 2nd edition products.