Book of Vile Darkness is really unnecessary...

[Moe Ronalds]

But don't you people see!?!?!? *THIS* Is the book that will teach us how to sell our souls to satan and burn forever in the core of hell, our flesh slowly peeling as we're eaten alive by fiery piss worms and poked by all the demons and devils of HELL!!!!!! Where we will cry as we slowly burn and we're dragged deeper and deeper into the black, painful abyss... Don't let yourself be brainwashed!!! Head for the hills!

Disclaimer: No. I'm not on drugs, but I probably should be. And No, this is not serious. And yes, this probably is off-topic, and yes, it's possible that this will be deleted for that soul reason.

 

[Nightfall]

No offense Moe but it's SOLE, not soul. Course you want a soul reason, give me yours and I'll make you a great deal on it!

 

[333 Dave]

Nightfall, I think you missed the pun.

 

[Nightfall]

maybe but I wasn't trying to go for just one point.

pun=punt Get it?

 

[shadow]

IMO The BoVD is Wizards' new marketing strategy for D&D. Let's face it, as much as we like D&D, D&D really isn't that big of a money-maker compared to the "card crack" games like Magic: the Gathering and Pokemon. Hasbro, who owns Wizards has been demanding an increasingly large profit from them. In spite of D&D's profit, it just hasn't done well enough to please Hasbro. (Anyone remember Monte's last rant.)

This is where BoVD comes in. I suspect the purpose of this book (From Wizard's perspective) is twofold. The first purpose is to generate some controversy. D&D owes a lot of its popularity to the controversy back in the 80's. Even if the actual content of the book isn't all that bad, I doubt that it would really matter. (Do you really think that Jack Chick or Pat Pulling actually "read" the Player's Handbook?) The back cover burb is all that they need to complain about it. Wizards is trying to generate some controversy to "advertise" D&D.
Second, I suspect, that Wizards is trying to atract the White Wolf crowd. As much as I hate to say it, D&D has lost a lot of players to White Wolf (Alas!). To many White Wolf players see D&D as a childish Hack n' Slash filled romp. With many of the White Wolf players (and other darker game systems, too) dark is in. The darker the better. Releasing an "edgy" and dark source book might be Wizards way of appealing to this crowd.

 

[Wikidogre]

Straight from Monte Himself

I found this for, everyone who thinks the BoVd is going to be a Necronomican type book for DnD,

Monte Cook says:

If I wrote a book called The Book of Vile Darkness, I would fill it with the most hideously evil spells, feats, prestige classes, magic items, artifacts, monsters and NPCs that youd ever want to put in a D&D game. I would include rules for the benefits evil cultists get from sacrifices, new poisons, diseases, and so on.

I would also include plenty of DM advice on running evil villains, villainous plots, evil organizations, and so on. I would include a little, but not a lot of, discussion on running evil PCs.

Oh, and did I mention that the "monsters" that I would put in there would include all the major archdevils and demon princes? And their various minions, and those that revere them almost like gods?

Thats what I would do. If I wrote a book called the Book of Vile Darkness.

 

[Olive]

1) none of us have read this book, but yet heaps of us feel free to comment on whats going to be in it... this i don't get.

2) Given that I'm not a christian, i'm not to worried about it offending christians. thats just the way my mind works. And given that I don't live in the states, US fundamentalists have very little effect on my life. most of my friends thinkt hat DnD is a hopelessly nerdy way to spend ones time, and the BoVD isn't going to make them think it's anything except that.

3) i like my games to make sense. right now I can't think of very many rules benefits from being a demon worrshiper in DnD, or at least in DnD as put out by WotC. Now, I liek the idea of having crazing demonic cults in my game. As a result, I'd like good solid rules on how this is going to work. I liked the PrCs in the last issues of dragon for monster cultists. If the BoVD is going to have similar ideas, then I'm all for it. I like having rules structures to explain the wierd things that happen. And I trust Monte Cook to make these rules work. Plus I like having extra devils and demons, and I think there will be a few of those in here.

So do we need it? not really. Do I want it? Hell (if you'll excuse the pun) yes! In fact it is probably my most keenly awaited release from WotC or any other publisher at the moment...

 

[Xarlen]

Well, I hope that not *all* the monsters are the Superfiends.

I'd like some other nice crunchy monsters.

 

[Olive]

i'm hoping for more yugoloths and other demons and devils too...

basically more evil outsiders.

 

[VoodooGroves]

Dipped in chocolate...mmmm crunchy monsters.


My same point on another board on a side topic applies here....
if you don't like it, don't buy it

Frankly, IMO this is fictional info, right? (Unless the folks at WoTC have some sort of real-world diabolical insight and demons affect the real world in exactly the way we'd expect them to in a D20 system....) That said, it may be dark. There may even be some pretty vile mojo described and included.

Its all more fodder for the paladins and other heroes to thrash. Frankly, some fiction bores the crap out of me with their "there is no good or evil - only endless shades of grey" or other "monster as victim" mentality. Sure, that's grand if I'm playing Vampire: The Masquerade. But I find there is SPACE for games to have things which are measurably and without argument evil. From what I can tell, the BoVD simply will go into a bit more background about the things that fall into these categories. I guess we can all dream our cleric of Rao will tame all the hosts of Baatezu into becoming redeemed do-gooders. Then again, is it so horrible to have a recognizable foe every once in a while?