Unearthed Arcana!

[Tortoise]

Nice. My only problem is that it won't show in the CB or compendium.

There should be a little hidden checkbox to enable it.

I'm in full agreement with you on this. They could easily include this in CB the same way everything else is and allow DMs to check the box the same way everything else can be checked on or off.

Rather annoying of them not to support it in the CB.

 

[Squire James]

My thoughts run something along the lines of: if WotC is no longer publishing all their bizarre game elements to the Character Builder, the software makers have more time to do something else, like...

... fill in a couple more circles on that Adventure Tools menu.

... make another AT title image that doesn't have that ugly BETA wax blob on it.

... or best of all, craft a way for US to add OUR bizarre game elements (aka house rules) to the Character Builder that's actually worth a dam*!

As it is, I imagine a lot of their programming staff's time is spent trying to incorporate all that Dragon magazine stuff in addition to all those books they come out with, and I'd like them to have time to do something else.

 

[Ainamacar]

Another quite logical reason why Unearthed Arcana stuff wouldn't appear in the Character Builder is that there's a chance that some of the stuff that will be introduced isn't in the same game format as the official rules, and thus would be incapable of being programmed into it. And if given the choice between programming only some of Unearthed Arcana (the parts that are equatable to current 4E game mechanics, like for instance "gunpowder weapons" probably would be) while leaving other articles out to dry... versus just leaving all UA out of the programming so as to not create the differentiation in people's minds that "well, maybe some of this is more official than other bits because it's in the CB"... the latter is probably the better choice.

Keep the entirety of UA out just makes it more official and less like to generate arguments about what is official-optional and optional-optional.

This. Creating off-the-wall rules that can explicitly break any particular assumption about the game, and implementing it in a program that assumes those rules still hold, is an invitation for disaster or at least effort better spent elsewhere. The character builder operates within the framework of the game, and changes to that framework can (and sometimes definitely will) require additional effort to make it work. In some cases the difficulties will be easy to see, and in others it will be something subtle that crops up...something I expect most gamers (and every coder) should be able to appreciate.

WotC can control the amount of effort put into its articles and into the character builder. I'd rather they didn't limit the creativity (mechanically or otherwise) of these new articles to what they feel they can reasonably risk implementing with the existing software tools.

It also allows them to examine ideas with very limited appeal (another resource tradeoff), or that ignore the most basic assumptions of the game's implied setting(s) even if it is compatible with the mechanics. Guns, mecha, and many other genre mashup elements fall into that category -- things at least some people want, and end up doing entirely themselves right now.

Hopefully we'll see some zany risks, without too much of the slop to which it could give rise. If the articles become a dumping ground of half-baked ideas that could easily have been polished and supported in the normal way, then I'll have a problem with the execution.

 

[Neverfate]

Reading Ainamacar's statements about has me wondering a few things. When you load adventure tools, you'll see, other than the Monster Builder, there isn't much else. Perhaps there will be an Unearthed Arcana tab put in one day, which while compile the extra, fringe rules, in an easy to manage place (as it would be adventure based, thus Adventure Tools and be it's own tab all together).

Obviously, I'm just taking a shot in the dark. For all I know those tabs will never get filled or just be for more generalized campaign things. Also, I doubt we'd see anything like that for a long while, but it's an idea. I don't think it would be a difficult idea to implement. Just have the tab in Adventure Tools read something like this, "Unearthed Arcana: Optional Rules for your campaign" or something of that nature. And have it just be a compilation of the material.

Or, you know, nothing like that at all. Just ideas.

 

[Zaukrie]

IF this replaces play tested material, and the content continues to thin, I'm really wishing I could stop the Dragon part of my subscription and pay less money. I want WotC material playtested. I want it in the character builder. That's the advantage of it being WotC material, frankly.

IF this is additive (to the thinning content), I'm cool with it. But, right now, not happy about it at all.

I have no interest in going back to updating things on character sheets by hand. I like to role play, not fill out stat sheets by hand.

 

[Camelot]

I'm now wondering...what did the original Unearthed Arcana contain?

 

[Bold or Stupid]

I'm now wondering...what did the original Unearthed Arcana contain?

It was AD&D 1.5 and included many often claimed to be broken options like the barbarian and the cavalier. Has anyone else ever wonadered about how few original classes were represented in the old D&D cartoon?

 

[Scribble]

I'm now wondering...what did the original Unearthed Arcana contain?

Drow!

Lots n lots of pole arms...

Lots n lots of errata.

Lots n lots of pages that fell out.

 

[Aegeri]

The curses article is now up and I must say I really like the mechanics. I will almost certainly be using these in my games. Sadly no turning anyone into a newt, but they are definitely different enough and interesting enough compared to diseases to be usable IMO.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

I still don´t like medium checks to improve on the disease track. I want hard checks there.