D&D 4E 4e, Gleemax, and DDI info from GAMA Trade Show

[Fobok]

They have a smaller margin to shut casuals out now. Before, they dragged the discussions down to pointless minutiae that few people knew about and just about only the die-hards cared about. Now, it becomes more of a game of interpretation. Everyone has access to the same material and there won't be the kind of information overload that paves the way for die-hard fan- domination.

But, at least with Forgotten Realms and Eberron, there's no reset happening. FR has changed, yes, but in a time jump forward. Discussions of historical events will just be as laden with previous edition info as before. Eberron isn't even getting a time jump, so all those old books are just as applicable too. So there'll be just as many discussions as before.

Also, remember Living Forgotten Realms. There'll be tons of adventures in that for people to discuss, and on DDI. Just because there's only 3 setting books doesn't mean there won't be a ton of information elsewhere.

 

[Sammael]

"On demand" in the sense that they are, much like RPG books, written to a specification, as a result of job orders issued by the publisher. That covers about 90% of D&D novels published in the last decade or so that I have had a chance to see. Their literary "quality" speaks for itself.

 

[Mouseferatu]

"On demand" in the sense that they are, much like RPG books, written to a specification, as a result of job orders issued by the publisher. That covers about 90% of D&D novels published in the last decade or so that I have had a chance to see. Their literary "quality" speaks for itself.

While there is indeed a great deal of dross among D&D (and other shared world) novels, there's a surprising amount of gold scattered throughout.

My experience is that anyone who refuses to consider a book just because it's a shared world property is doing themselves a great disservice. As with all other novels, you should let the plot description and the author guide your choice--not whether the book happens to have "Eberron" or "Forgotten Realms" on the cover.

(And BTW, while I've never worked on either FR or Eberron, my understanding is that there's a fair bit of creative freedom on the part of the authors. WotC may say "We need a book that includes details X and Y," but the bulk of how to go about it rests in the author's hands. There's not much in the way of micromanaging.)

 

[RandomCitizenX]

Three books per setting makes me happy since it will allow me to keep up with the settings without getting bogged down with too many books, as well as freeing up WotC's schedule to allow more settings to come out.

 

[Henry]

Let's face it, if a reader wants the next No Country for Old Men or Five People you Meet in Heaven, there are better places to look than the next FR Novel or Eberron Yarn. However, they can still provide both a fun read and maybe a pretty good character development and surprise you in the end.

 

[Cam Banks]

"On demand" in the sense that they are, much like RPG books, written to a specification, as a result of job orders issued by the publisher. That covers about 90% of D&D novels published in the last decade or so that I have had a chance to see. Their literary "quality" speaks for itself.

I should note that this wasn't my experience at all. My Dragonlance novel's plot was my idea, and while my editor and I went back and forth on various plot details and framing the story within the larger series that it's part of, I think I had a heck of a lot of creative freedom.

The quality, of course, is up to the individual reader to decide. It's entertainment, not a Comp Lit thesis.

Cheers,
Cam

 

[AllisterH]

I've always considered the typical D&D novel perfect airline/long bus travel reading. Am I alone in that assessment?

 

[Fobok]

Let's face it, if a reader wants the next No Country for Old Men or Five People you Meet in Heaven, there are better places to look than the next FR Novel or Eberron Yarn. However, they can still provide both a fun read and maybe a pretty good character development and surprise you in the end.

Totally agreed. I read novels for entertainment. I don't go looking for literary masterpieces, I look for books that give a fun read. I don't like every D&D novel out there, of course, but many are very entertaining.

 

[Saishu_Heiki]

I don't always want my fiction to be Machiavellian and horrendously complicated. When I do, I read Jordan or Martin. Sometimes I like to go back and read some simpler, but just as enjoyable fiction - like the Azure Bonds trilogy.

Alias, Finder, and Dragonbait may not be the most complicated characters ever, but I still enjoy reading those books, even through over a dozen rereads. Not many books can hold my interest past the first read through.

 

[Andor]

Spelljammer! Awesome^3. As long as it has Giff. It's just not Spelljammer without gun toting anthropomorphic hippos with british accents.

Tinker gnomes and space hampsters I can live without however....