10 years later: NOW is it time to use MTG IP with D&D?

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Having a pile of content is not sufficient to justify the thing. More's the question - given the content, is there enough of a market?

I have a sneaky suspicion that the peak market for the thing has long-since passed.

Running a series of articles adapting MTG to 4E on the virtual Dragon and Dungeon sites would be a great way to get an idea of it. If they get as many (or more) hits than other content, that would suggest there's sufficient interest. Conversely, if no one wants to see Serra Angel's D&D stats, then they can quietly kill the series off and not commit to a print run of books.

 

[frankthedm]

I thought the reasons why this did not happen were...

If all players are Planeswalkers:
The setting would be “epic”{very high level} risking not selling well.
The players would likely be fighting against one another.
If it is close enough to the M:tG experience it would literately compete with the M:tG game.[big no-no for a business]
Thus D&D team says no to PC Planswalkers

If the players are not Planeswalkers, the Planeswalkers must be present at their strength as presented in the card game or product identity is diminished. Having those beings fighting one another on your home-world is really bad for PCs. They would live in constant danger of;
Being called and forced to do the bidding of those god like Planeswalkers. I say called, rather than summoned, since their bodies stick around after they are killed.
Being obliterated in one of the numerous creature sweeping / world destroying affects the Planeswalkers have at their command.
Thus the M:tg team says no to M:tg settings without Planeswalkers as powerful as presented in the M:tG Product Identity, and the D&D team says that’s too unfun for our D&D edition.

 

[WhatGravitas]

I thought the reasons why this did not happen were...
Thus the M:tg team says no to M:tg settings without Planeswalkers as powerful as presented in the M:tG Product Identity, and the D&D team says that’s too unfun for our D&D edition.

But the last edition introduced planeswalkers as card type... and made them a wee bit more mundane - they're just "big mages", at least the ones you can use in-game.

However, I think MtG is too fractioned now (setting-wise). The last years had so many different settings (Mirrodin, Kamigawa, Ravnica, Dominaria - the original world, and now Lorwyn), the thing that holds Magic together is the game mechanics, the flavour is spread out on many settings (and planes).

Cheers, LT.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

The setting I'd most like to see ported over from Magic to D&D is the setting for the Ravnica block of Magic. Now, I don't play Magic, but I have friends who do, and they told me enough about this setting to get me really jazzed about it. There's this whole planet that is one big city, and it's being fought over by several different guilds. I love how the different elements play into the setting, and it seems like it's custom-built for urban adventuring, political intrigue, and crazy fantastic magic.

There's a bit about Ravnica on the Wikipedia. I've often thought about setting my next D&D game there (just for fun) and it seems like there's a lot of neat stuff to be done with it.

I just read the Wikipedia article. That does look like a good -- and different -- D&D setting.

 

[HellHound]

The Warcraft books that produced almost a dozen titles and most of which eventually sold out didn't do well?

I'd be willing to go out on a limb and say - not by WotC's numbers, no.

Check the print run sizes of Warcraft vs D&D and you'll probably discover that selling out a print run for White Wolf's d20 division is a very different thing than selling out a print run for WotC's D&D division.

After all, WotC sold off the rights to these products in the first place.

 

[catsclaw227]

I'd be interested in taking a look at it.

The Warlords CCG took their setting and made a world from it -- though I think it was a homebrew setting that became a CCG.... hmmm I don't know. Anyway, despite a few the wonky mechanics and some need for errata about a few things, it's an AWESOME setting and mega-adventure.

I imagine that the MtG settings would be better developed because of the ginormous fan base.

 

[frankthedm]

However, I think MtG is too fractioned now (setting-wise). The last years had so many different settings (Mirrodin, Kamigawa, Ravnica, Dominaria - the original world, and now Lorwyn), the thing that holds Magic together is the game mechanics, the flavour is spread out on many settings (and planes).

TBH I would love a Kimigawa setting for 4e D&D's 'Oriental Adventures'.

 

[blargney the second]

Never played MTG, but the art has been cool enough on the cards that I've seen that I'd at least have a look at a MTG campaign setting.
-blarg

 

[Gwathlas]

Once upon a time, M:tG would have been a poor fit for the fairly staid swords-and-sorcery RPG. Now, with "martial power sources," cleric healing auras, warlords, and such, the time may have come.

It already has! Powers and auras sounds like mtg. Get your magic healing rocks here and choose the right class, red, blue, or white for eladrim, red, green, or black for dwarves....

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I'd be willing to go out on a limb and say - not by WotC's numbers, no.

Check the print run sizes of Warcraft vs D&D and you'll probably discover that selling out a print run for White Wolf's d20 division is a very different thing than selling out a print run for WotC's D&D division.

After all, WotC sold off the rights to these products in the first place.

WotC had a Warcraft product?