Forked Thread: The Great Wheel

[resistor]

IME, the 38 infinite planes, with multiple layers, leads to analysis paralysis. Unless the players are somewhat familiar with the planes, ie they are into the PSCS, then there is too much info for a DM to pass along. Making the default setting a bit simpler helps make plane-hopping relevant to more players and thus more groups.

I ran a successful PS campaign from first to about tenth level where none of the players had ever so much as looked at a PS book or the MotP. The trick is to give them only a very high-level view upfront, and fill in the details as necessary.

 

[Shemeska]

Not that this should be surprising. 4e is only a bit over a year old. It hasn't had time to have the same level of development in either alternate rules or fluff.

Except when they've had the chance to add more fluff, they've added very, very little. The MM had probably the lowest amount of flavor text for any MM of any edition to date. And even setting books where you expect gobs of fluff and detail, they've been providing less than other editions - the 4e FR campaign guide had less detail than its earlier edition counterparts (and the higher point font didn't exactly make up for less words...).

 

[Keefe the Thief]

And thank god. The "cram as much background information into the books as possible" mindset has to die. Spread it out, make way for cleaner layout and more pictures. Heck, i´d have bought the corebooks with 100% more art and respectively less text. At least they got a layout this time that deserved the name.

 

[AdmundfortGeographer]

It's very easy to ignore the cant in PS, I recommend a few approaches.

Each of your 4 approaches work if you don't mind being bothered with translating the cant. To be able to translate it you need to learn it. I didn't want to have to learn it.

It's not such a big deal, I'm glad there are Planescape fans out there that love it deeply. As I said, they made me quite a bit of money when I eBayed my box sets.

And as this thread is on the Great Wheel, Planescape didn't affect my appreciation of the Great Wheel much at all. I just prefer something else.

 

[Imaro]

And thank god. The "cram as much background information into the books as possible" mindset has to die. Spread it out, make way for cleaner layout and more pictures. Heck, i´d have bought the corebooks with 100% more art and respectively less text. At least they got a layout this time that deserved the name.

Sooo, you wanted an art book, instead of the core rules??? Yeah I'll pass on that one, I want gaming material not a picture pages book.

 

[Fallen Seraph]

Actually it be neat to have a D&D artbook, bring together all the famous D&D artist from all the different editions and make one big artbook of their old work and new work they made exclusively for the book.

I personally would be looking forward to Tony DiTerlizzi stuff, *drools* all his Planescape art in one book.

 

[M.L. Martin]

Actually it be neat to have a D&D artbook, bring together all the famous D&D artist from all the different editions and make one big artbook of their old work and new work they made exclusively for the book.

I personally would be looking forward to Tony DiTerlizzi stuff, *drools* all his Planescape art in one book.

They used to produce artbooks--see the old Art of Dungeons & Dragons, Art of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons and The Worlds of TSR books, as well as the Art of Dragon Magazine (TSR and Paizo versions), Art of the Dragonlance Saga and Masters of Dragonlance Art.

Note that the titles on the first two are misleading--the covers for the Gazetteers are in the AD&D book, the covers of several Dragonlance products and I6 Ravenloft are in the D&D book. Also note that only Masters of Dragonlance Art has anything after about 1993.

 

[ProfessorCirno]

And thank god. The "cram as much background information into the books as possible" mindset has to die. Spread it out, make way for cleaner layout and more pictures. Heck, i´d have bought the corebooks with 100% more art and respectively less text. At least they got a layout this time that deserved the name.

So...you're saying that the rulebooks should have no rules, and the campaign setting guide shouldn't be geared towards guiding someone through the campaign setting?

 

[Keefe the Thief]

Sooo, you wanted an art book, instead of the core rules??? Yeah I'll pass on that one, I want gaming material not a picture pages book.

I want a corebook that inspires and gives you enough rules to start a simple game. For most gamers, D&D Core still contains way too many rules. More art, four classes with expanded powers list, four basic races = enough for core.
I want the idea "it was in earlier Cores, it has to be in this one" to die.

 

[ProfessorCirno]

I want a corebook that inspires and gives you enough rules to start a simple game. For most gamers, D&D Core still contains way too many rules. More art, four classes with expanded powers list, four basic races = enough for core.
I want the idea "it was in earlier Cores, it has to be in this one" to die.

Well, others like well detailed, well crafted, believable worlds that share more then just a name with the previous settings. Why on earth would you get a campaign setting book if you didn't care about the campaign setting...?