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<blockquote data-quote="Snarf Zagyg" data-source="post: 8728085" data-attributes="member: 7023840"><p>Briefly, the answer to your question is ... no. The books would <u>not</u> sell as well without artwork. </p><p></p><p>The first thing you have to remember is that RPG books serve many purposes, but they aren't novels. People aren't reading them page after page after page for the story. So art serves an important role in breaking up blocks of text and making the book more "readable" and "attractive." I would find it difficult to dig into any of the larger RPG books without the art. </p><p></p><p>Beyond that, art serves as a fire to the imagination. I'm currently running several threads asking about the pieces of art that have inspired people in the past. The book <em>Art & Arcana: A Visual History </em>does an amazing job of detailing some of the great pieces (and the history and evolution of art in D&D). </p><p></p><p>Finally, I think we tend to undervalue the presence of art and good design. Having nice ... having <em>beautiful </em>things makes our lives better. We often hear this debate pop up in other contexts, as well- such as spending money from the fisc for public art. But spaces devoid of art, devoid of beauty ... it lessens all of us. From the beginning (with cave drawings and making our own objects nicer) to now, art exists to elevate beyond the mere utilitarian requirements of existence. </p><p></p><p>Put another way- in life, art might not be the reason that you eat and breathe. But it is what makes eating and breathing worthwhile. And while art isn't the rules of the game, the existence of great art is inseparable from the exploration of those games- just like I cannot imagine AD&D without thinking of this-</p><p></p><p> <img src="https://www.enworld.org/attachments/players-handbook-jpeg.146904/" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>Does that picture change the system shock table? No. But can I ever think of D&D without it? </p><p></p><p>No.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Snarf Zagyg, post: 8728085, member: 7023840"] Briefly, the answer to your question is ... no. The books would [U]not[/U] sell as well without artwork. The first thing you have to remember is that RPG books serve many purposes, but they aren't novels. People aren't reading them page after page after page for the story. So art serves an important role in breaking up blocks of text and making the book more "readable" and "attractive." I would find it difficult to dig into any of the larger RPG books without the art. Beyond that, art serves as a fire to the imagination. I'm currently running several threads asking about the pieces of art that have inspired people in the past. The book [I]Art & Arcana: A Visual History [/I]does an amazing job of detailing some of the great pieces (and the history and evolution of art in D&D). Finally, I think we tend to undervalue the presence of art and good design. Having nice ... having [I]beautiful [/I]things makes our lives better. We often hear this debate pop up in other contexts, as well- such as spending money from the fisc for public art. But spaces devoid of art, devoid of beauty ... it lessens all of us. From the beginning (with cave drawings and making our own objects nicer) to now, art exists to elevate beyond the mere utilitarian requirements of existence. Put another way- in life, art might not be the reason that you eat and breathe. But it is what makes eating and breathing worthwhile. And while art isn't the rules of the game, the existence of great art is inseparable from the exploration of those games- just like I cannot imagine AD&D without thinking of this- [IMG]https://www.enworld.org/attachments/players-handbook-jpeg.146904/[/IMG] Does that picture change the system shock table? No. But can I ever think of D&D without it? No. [/QUOTE]
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