New Ampersand - future stuff (DDi)

[darjr]

I do prefer this to a 4.5, if this is indeed what is going on. For instance the PHB will continue to get errata. It isn't obsolete in the least, and it isn't replaced like the 3.0 players handbook.

Nice. Especially if it means that 4.0 gets to live on. Which I think is the hope, especially with the essential series.

 

[I'm A Banana]

I like the new stat format. Easier to find stuff.

The way of continually updating 4e (so that each year is a point! We're in 4.3!) is nice, though I do wonder about the "obsolete" books.

Not a huge concern for my DDI self, but that could be part of how DDI is sold: books for when you need 'em, DDI when you want to be RIGHT.

 

[Zaukrie]

I like the new stat block. I'm uncertain how the Essentials and our existing investments will both be supported...but I'm not going to worry about it until given a reason to.

My pocketbook likes the complete lack of anything much of interest the last four months of the year, not to mention the meltdown of the minis line so far this year.

 

[malraux]

I can see the advantage of the new format, especially for more complex monsters. If it was mentioned in the article, I missed it, but will this change get retroactively applied to all the monsters in the DDi database? That would really make life sweet, almost like a whole new MM.

 

[Rechan]

One of the canards of the "We want more fluff in our MMs" is that if a Newbie picks up an MM with little fluff, he's nto going to know these monsters and how to use them, etc etc.

My bet: the Monster Vault will talk about a lot of fluff. And will likely be fairly focused (Heroic tier, perhaps mid Paragon).

 

[catsclaw227]

From what I've seen in the Ampersand articles: I'd expect the "ones" to stay in print. I'm not so sure about the "twos" and "threes".

The sad part about this is that the "ones" are the ones that need a reprint the most. I'd I'd also love to see them fix the "\/" classes and make them "/\" classes, but that's a whole different discussion.

Count me in with the guys that like the new statblock. As a DM, I sometimes forget about the immediate reaction/interrupts and minors when the battle is pitched and furious... This makes all that MUCH easier to catch.

The Ankheg entry is SO much easier to read.

 

[Wormwood]

I do prefer this to a 4.5, if this is indeed what is going on. For instance the PHB will continue to get errata. It isn't obsolete in the least, and it isn't replaced like the 3.0 players

Honestly, with the full DDI suite, every single bit of crunch in all my books can be invalidated and I don't think I would care. Heck, our group hasn't cracked a book to look up a rule since the Compendium was released.

The fluff, thankfully, never gets updated.

 

[Dire Bare]

The sad part about this is that the "ones" are the ones that need a reprint the most. I'd I'd also love to see them fix the "/" classes and make them "/" classes, but that's a whole different discussion.

I don't see why if the PHB1, DMG1, and MM1 stay in print, the new printings wouldn't include the new errata. WotC usually does include errata in new printings, I don't see why they'd stop.

And if the errata ever gets to the point of not "fitting" into a simple reprint (which I don't think we're at or even near), nothing wrong with a new PHB1 "Revised" which could simply be the PHB1 with all errata and revisions, and a new graphic layout. That wouldn't qualify as a "4.5" in my book! They did it for 2e they can do it for 4e!

 

[MrMyth]

True--but with the latest round of errata, the PH1 is already beginning to look disturbingly obsolete.

Wait... what precisely do we mean by obselete? Are you saying more recent material is better, so no need for the PHB1? I don't think many would really agree with that. Or are you saying that too much content is now wrong due to updates, and so the book is useless?

Except... how much of the book has actually been 'updated?' A good chunk of the errata is largely minor changes to clarify intent or correct typos. Looking at the PHB updates, there are maybe 20 powers or so that have undergone real change. Out of... say, 700 powers in the book? 2-3 feats out of 150? 2-3 items out of hundreds?

We're looking at maybe 2% of the book being 'obselete'. I just... don't see that as a cause for concern. Especially given that even that material just requires either grabbing the errata online, or ignoring it and playing with the book as it is anyway. I can appreciate the concerns of those who find it a pain to deal with, but it seems silly to forecast this as the onset of 4.5 or the obsolescence of the PHB.

 

[darjr]

I can appreciate the concerns of those who find it a pain to deal with, but it seems silly to forecast this as the onset of 4.5 or the obsolescence of the PHB.

Yea, I agree. In fact I remember something about them stating that later in 2010 was the planned start of the big push to broaden the base of players and DM's to new folks.