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How about we define settlements by something more relevant to the play experience than population size. It doesn't matter how many people are there*; it matters how many plot seeds are there. How many moving pieces. Let's try defining settlements in terms of the number of NPCs with unique...

I think his comment there unpacks like this: He's talking about what they're thinking of doing to penalize firing at range into a melee. They strongly prioritize simplicity and ease of use. So he says: "Right now if your allies are in the way they can provide cover to the monster. We think...

I feel it would be kind of a copout to choose a slightly different retroclone so I'm going to choose 3.5 with some of the later classes replacing the traditional classes. And a copy of DM Genie.

The most ridiculous thing about this article is the balance of emphasis on the fact that he plays RPGs vs. the fact that he's filed for bankruptcy twice in two years and is getting divorced. I mean it actually seems reasonable to me to criticize the character and capacity of a judge while...

As @ delericho mentioned, there are several editions where a different core product scheme has been used, including the two most recent (essentials and Pathfinder). They're definitely going to consider it. I think buying a box set would feel more traditional than say, buying three books in pdf...

I haven't run TOEE but I am familiar with running 1e adventures generally. Nope. Just treat the town like a dungeon and an NPC's house or whatever like a dungeon room. As mentioned above the plot seeds are embedded in the town NPCs, so just work that in as you roleplay the interaction...

I'm not tied to the "trinity". I would like to see the ~64pg beginner box thing be THE core product. Sounds crazy but you could do it by moving most of the monsters, spells, items and character options online. Then offer people the choice to access that stuff via subscription or buy compilations...

No, it's more like respecting a chef after visiting their kitchen and getting to know them even if you still don't like their food. It's not about precedence but about the process and motivation behind the decisions made. When I said that you must choose a side it was tongue in cheek.

makes sense.

"AD&D 3" by Christopher Perkins is pretty cool. I prefer it to Castles & Crusades.

I agree. But I am more sympathetic to the 4e diction now after thinking that it had an aesthetic motivation, rather than just being done to "dumb down" the language of the game. Fair point. I said classic D&D but I was really thinking of Gygaxian D&D, especially the material that first...

Old D&D is more complicated in some ways and less complicated in others. It tends to be more complicated in areas where it doesn't bother me and I think most people overstate its impact (descending AC, using different dice for different mechanics), and less complicated in areas where it does (DM...

True, I think the classic D&D setup is to use Anglish for mundane things like place names and hyper-Latinization for some spells, magic items and character options associated with magic-using characters. I like this and I think if I were putting together a "flavor bible" for a new edition, I...

e.g. shadowfell, feywild, macetails, bloodspikes, etc. James Wyatt believes fantasy should be written in "Anglish"*, which is English that only uses Anglo-Saxon (i.e. Old English) words. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglish I like some Anglish words: birdlore instead of ornithology, worldken...

I gather that you'd like to keep these rules buried in YOUR past, but in no sense are they buried in THE past. All D&D editions are widely available and are currently being played and enjoyed by people. Not kidding either. I don't think of them as restrictions so much as "handcrafting"...

How about Palace of the Vampire Queen? The first published adventure ever.

Well that would still be the conservationists. Hunters do more for animal welfare, but in an accidental, uncaring way. That's what capitalism does, basically. It gets people to help other people without requiring that they care about them.

As long as reproductive rates are nonrandom, we're evolving. People generally underestimate the impact of sexual selection (genes that make you more sexy rather than necessarily better adapted to your environment). Blue eyes, for example, probably became widespread in some populations due to...

I think evolution is the right concept, provided it's understood that much of the evolution in D&D has been the result of top-down designer bias rather than necessarily what would make the majority of players happy most of the time. Artificial selection vs. natural selection. Basically modern...

My favorite classic module campaign is: Start with L1 and U1, using Restenford in place of Saltmarsh. Make the smugglers slavers instead. Put maps for the isle from A3-4 and X1 in the pirate ship, as well as the hook to sell exotic beasts in Specularum. The players may now choose to: Stay in...