D&D 3E/3.5 3.5e Publishing Models in a 4e world

[EP]

Morrus, would it be possible to promote Burning Sky as a campaign for wrapping up 3.5? WotC came out with an adventure designed to destroy a campaign world just before they released 3.0 for that very reason. Not to say that Burning Sky would end with the obliteration of the world, but that it could be worked out in a way to account for adapting to 4E in a campaign.

There are quite a few DMs out there (myself included) that would love to integrate a story into the transition to 4E.

 

[DM_Jeff]

Not even close.

Our sales are up.

--Erik Mona
Publisher
Paizo Publishing, LLC

Hmmmmm. A smile 10 miles wide just crossed my face.

-DM Jeff

 

[ShinHakkaider]

Yeah, that's the direction I'm thinking. FANTASY MONEY did really well, and we have a novel trilogy out (well, two of three).

Yeah, for the record?

FANTASY MONEY was AWESOME.

 

[Greylock]

Well, yes, if we survive the year and a half of being pretty much closed for business (Aug 2007 - Jan 2009).

That right there is the single biggest thing that bugs me about the 4E OGL model. They are telling all the small publishers, basically, to find a new game to publish, or flip burgers for a year. Bugs me immensely.

Oddly enough, I've ceased all purchases of 3.x hard and softbacks, personally, but still continue to pick up online only PDFs that intrigue me. The latter is because I'm still trying to support the small publishers, but the former is because I haven't actually played 3.x in over a year, and Wizard's last several releases left me feeling cold. Not worth the money. But the small publishers still offer a good value.

 

[kensanata]

Living in Switzerland means that I'm paying lots postage. At the same time, I don't like PDF-only products. I've bought a few and found that I never browse them when I need to look at stuff, and I never use them at the table.

That's why I never got into War of the Burning Sky. I was very interested at first, but I was also interested in a Paizo subscription. I was never going to have enough time to play both... I also tried Open Design, and found that it was not for me. I was just interested in the adventure. It's too expensive if I don't care about the polls and the essays.

I'm still buying a lot of 3.5 material; most of it is unopened and comes via ebay.de, ebay.com, amazon.de marketplace, or abebooks.com. New material will have to compete with excellent material from the past. Just think: I will be able to buy new 3.5 material, or I can hunt down all the old Dungeon Crawl Classics. I'm assuming the market will be very difficult for new 3.5 material.

 

[Morrus]

At the same time, I don't like PDF-only products. I've bought a few and found that I never browse them when I need to look at stuff, and I never use them at the table.

That's why I never got into War of the Burning Sky..

But WotBS isn't PDF only.

 

[RangerWickett]

Morrus, would it be possible to promote Burning Sky as a campaign for wrapping up 3.5? WotC came out with an adventure designed to destroy a campaign world just before they released 3.0 for that very reason. Not to say that Burning Sky would end with the obliteration of the world, but that it could be worked out in a way to account for adapting to 4E in a campaign.

There are quite a few DMs out there (myself included) that would love to integrate a story into the transition to 4E.

Without spoiling anything, the end of War of the Burning Sky can easily signal a transformative moment in the history of a world, either a rebirth or a cataclysm, depending on if the heroes win.

Plus, I think we've managed to use every piece of the core rules against the PCs at least once. Even the age penalties.

Still, I worry that after a year of ads, people who haven't already gotten into the campaign might not be interested in started. Do you have any ideas on how to promote the campaign saga as a good way to end 3e? Bonus points if you can do it without making people unwilling to buy a 4e conversion of it.

 

[jmucchiello]

That right there is the single biggest thing that bugs me about the 4E OGL model. They are telling all the small publishers, basically, to find a new game to publish, or flip burgers for a year. Bugs me immensely.

What bugs me is do I even bother trying to release something in the gargantuan (Colossal? Do size categories still exist?) FLOOD that will occur in Jan09?

 

[jmucchiello]

But WotBS isn't PDF only.

I'm not sure if you're saying you wouldn't touch it because it's pdf, or because you don't like the idea, but we also sell print copies: http://stores.lulu.com/enpublishing

Perhaps this should be your focus for future WotBS ads?

 

[jmucchiello]

I really do wish EN Publishing would have kept doing the Arsenal series, I still get good use out of them. There are very few releases that cover a topic as well as they did. (Same with Joe's Book of Enchantment as well) For me material like these are proving to be most useful as I step away from WotC products and start creating my own world for campaigns. Thanks guys!

I don't know if I should says thanks or sorry since I'm the reason ENArsenal never had a spears book. I never did finish writing that thing.