D&D 5E I have a sneaking suspicion about how they are going to expand 5e via splatbooks....

[Evenglare]

So after going through all the unearthed arcana posts every month they do make it clear that the articles are kind of like the playtests. What I think will happen is that every year they are probably going to combine all those articles and make it into a splat book that basically just contains all the stuff they have put out the previous year via unearthed arcana. It won't focus on any one thing like psionics, or divine champions or whatever, but it'll just be more -stuff- of all kinds that you can use in your game. So basically one splat book a year that contains all kinds of stuff. Anyone think the same?

 

[Remathilis]

That is one possibility.

Option 2 is that the material will appear in Player Guides/appendixes for different Adventure Paths. The next AP after RoD could be something pirates of the sword coast, where the swashbuckler and storm sorcerer's final form will lie. Psionics might be the the madess of the far realms AP after that. Of course, that doesn't quite work for the Eberron stuff (yet) but we'll see.

 

[Lidgar]

Option 2 is that the material will appear in Player Guides/appendixes for different Adventure Paths. The next AP after RoD could be something pirates of the sword coast, where the swashbuckler and storm sorcerer's final form will lie. Psionics might be the the madess of the far realms AP after that. Of course, that doesn't quite work for the Eberron stuff (yet) but we'll see.

Given what WotC has said (i.e., focus on story telling), I think Option 2 is more likely.

 

[overgeeked]

That is one possibility.

Option 2 is that the material will appear in Player Guides/appendixes for different Adventure Paths. The next AP after RoD could be something pirates of the sword coast, where the swashbuckler and storm sorcerer's final form will lie. Psionics might be the the madess of the far realms AP after that. Of course, that doesn't quite work for the Eberron stuff (yet) but we'll see.

Given what WotC has said (i.e., focus on story telling), I think Option 2 is more likely.

And it solves the one perennial problem with modules, only DMs buy them. Far better from a business standpoint to include the player material in the first part of the module/AP itself rather than a separate and free player's companion.

 

[Saplatt]

Except that they are already providing it to players free via pdf. See, for example, what they did with the new spells and classes contained in the PotA adventure.

I think we'll see new subclasses, races, spells, feats, etc. on a modest "as needed basis" in upcoming adventure modules and in contemporaneous pdfs.

I do think we'll see an Unearthed Arcana compilation somewhere down the road, but I'd be surprised if it's an annual event. They just aren't putting out that much material at this point.

Now, if they combined Unearthed Arcana updates with Adventure rules supplements, then I think I think they'd have enough material to fill a supplemental rules book once a year or so.

 

[Jester David]

So far we have 39 pages of content from Unearthed Arcana. After a year we might have 78. It will take two year to produce enough content to fill a 160-page book, which is pretty darn small. And would still likely be pretty expensive, and a harder purchase to justify since we'd have seen the content before.

Plus, this wouldn't leave a lot of time to playtest and revise the later article.

 

[Kobold Stew]

So far we have 39 pages of content from Unearthed Arcana. After a year we might have 78. It will take two year to produce enough content to fill a 160-page book, which is pretty darn small. And would still likely be pretty expensive, and a harder purchase to justify since we'd have seen the content before.

Plus, this wouldn't leave a lot of time to playtest and revise the later article.

Plus, let's face it, everyone would complain that the book wasn't available in pdf...

 

[ko6ux]

I think it's more likely that the revised versions of all these "playtest" players options just wind up in future Unearthed Arcana articles.

Think Unearthed Arcana: Waterborne Options 2, with revised versions of the swashbuckler and storm sorcerer plus maybe a new subclass for a different class and an aquatic race like sea elves (which have been referenced in 5E materials, but so far not presented).

 

[Inchoroi]

That is one possibility.

Option 2 is that the material will appear in Player Guides/appendixes for different Adventure Paths. The next AP after RoD could be something pirates of the sword coast, where the swashbuckler and storm sorcerer's final form will lie. Psionics might be the the madess of the far realms AP after that. Of course, that doesn't quite work for the Eberron stuff (yet) but we'll see.

...I cannot begin to describe how happy the above would make me. Pirates of the Sword Coast makes me giggle in an unmanly fashion.

I find this Option to be most likely going forward, as well. I'm not 100% sure Psionics will become a part of one, though; it's too late to be included with Out of the Abyss in September, I would think, so, if we take Option 2 above as most likely, this means we might get a Psionics-focused AP, or a Dark Sun AP, which would also make me very happy.

 

[Evenglare]

I really hope they don't put them in the adventure path books... or at least not solely in there. I have absolutely 0 interest in buying someone else's story, and to spend 50 bucks for a few smattering rules.. that would be a big turn off for me. Hell, id be happy with a soft cover compilation yearly if it's not enough to warrant a full hardback.