Wizards of the Coast/Kenzer & Company License Agreements Expiring

[Pelenor]

Any idea how much of the stuff from the KODT comics are going to make it into the new Hackmaster? I always liked the sort of extreme rules lawyering that Brian pulled off (I'm not that type myself but it works very well as part of the comic) and I liked the idea of having a game that you could do that stuff in. The Hackmaster presented in the comics appears on the face of it to be an extremely complex system, probably more so than any game in actual production. Obviously it won't be possible to produce everything exactly as it is in KODT but how much of that will be likely to make it in?

 

[Nikosandros]

2) Not knowing what's needed to play. I assume from AD&D that one needs a PHB, MM, and DMG. That may not be the case, and if not, the information's not out there "in my face" enough to make me scour the websites to find out. The initial investment required for three hardback books all at once is higher than I'm willing to pay for an experimental perusal. [edit: Another thing I just thought of - I've assumed the books are still hardbacks - that is what I've seen in stores when I saw HM books the times I've been in stores. It only just this second occurred to me that there might be a softcover option.]

Actually the HM books are all softcover.

 

[Deuce Traveler]

Jolly, I just wanted to say that I've enjoyed your company's HM works, although I found them more fun to collect and read since I'm a KODT and OD&D fan. I am looking forward to playing your Aces and Eights game, however, and I've heard some very impressive things about it thus far.

 

[Mythmere1]

Actually the HM books are all softcover.

I'll be darned. I wonder why I thought they were hardback?
A couple of other points: the K&C website doesn't say one way or the other whether it's softcover or hardback, and Amazon doesn't seem to sell the current edition.

 

[ColonelHardisson]

I'll be darned. I wonder why I thought they were hardback?
A couple of other points: the K&C website doesn't say one way or the other whether it's softcover or hardback, and Amazon doesn't seem to sell the current edition.

There is only one edition of HackMaster. "4th Edition" is just what they call it, to perpetuate the joke/illusion of a long-running game line.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Jolly, sorry to see the WotC license end- I love the Kalamar stuff. I don't run it in its entire, but frequently used elements of it for my homebrews (esp. the Spellsinger and Shaman).

I look forward towards your future products. IMHO, your stuff for D20 tended to be better playtested & proofread than 90% of the 3rd party publishers' output. I can't speak to HM or A&8, but I'm sure they're of equally high quality.

Keep up the good work! I'll keep reading KoDT for news & updates.

 

[Kichwas]

Can you elaborate this, possibly on a separate thread? I've been going back on forth about getting this book, since gnomes and kobolds are both very important to my campaign, and I'd like to hear your issues with it.

making the Kobolds Hermaphrodytes / asexual with some kind of funky reproduction and no concept of a parent just did it in for me.

Kobolds were one of the races I was the most excited about in 3e ever since that first WotC module under 3.0, and the race I was most interested in seeing a rich culture and history for in KoK.

They were just made way too weird and alien, lacking in biological sense for a complex lifeform, nor even consistent with the illogic typical of DnD. Give me one or the other or both, but don't give me neither.

 

[Mark Plemmons]

making the Kobolds Hermaphrodytes / asexual with some kind of funky reproduction and no concept of a parent just did it in for me.

Kobolds were one of the races I was the most excited about in 3e ever since that first WotC module under 3.0, and the race I was most interested in seeing a rich culture and history for in KoK.

They were just made way too weird and alien, lacking in biological sense for a complex lifeform, nor even consistent with the illogic typical of DnD. Give me one or the other or both, but don't give me neither.

Well, there are real world examples of both lizards that lay eggs and then abandon them (most) and hermaphroditic lizards. Making kobold physiology and psychology just like gnomes, humans, and other mammals just does them a disservice, in my opinion. Most monstrous races SHOULD be "alien" from our human perspective.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

Eeeek! I just realized that this means I have to order the scary Kingdoms of Kalamar DM screen again, before the license expires. I had one, loaned it to a friend, and never saw it again. Best DM screen ever made, a heck of a lot better than the official WotC one.

The Auld Grump

 

[DonTadow]

Well, there are real world examples of both lizards that lay eggs and then abandon them (most) and hermaphroditic lizards. Making kobold physiology and psychology just like gnomes, humans, and other mammals just does them a disservice, in my opinion. Most monstrous races SHOULD be "alien" from our human perspective.

This makes a heck of a lot of sense to me. Kobolds are a lizard race and there are hundreds of lizard species that reproduce this way. I wish more races were different in these ways as it makes them more than just a few stat adjustments.