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Rocket your D&D 5E and Level Up: Advanced 5E games into space! Alpha Star Magazine Is Launching... Right Now!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="SMHWorlds" data-source="post: 7734935" data-attributes="member: 6853809">I think this <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFbCxuvknWM" target="_blank">conversation </a>is interesting. You may (or may not) find it interesting as well.I do think a great deal of the success is based on Matt Colville's community building and his engaging personality, which as others have said is fine.  I definitely think this is more evolution than revolution  and these changes have been coming for a while.  Just a few thoughts...Echoing some of the content from the video I shared, this kind of content via small and independent publishers is picking up the slack where the big publishers, specifically WoTC, are leaving gaps. It is now a very much "publish the game you want to play" era, building on the previous D20 craze. This is something that followed on the heels of the first rpgs back in the day. Then rpgs became, like anything, more corporate with their success and little people gradually either got jobs with the big corps or were pushed to the margins. So we have cycled around to a time when an indie publisher can, as Adam Koebel mentions int he video, sort of do their thing and not worry over needing to sell thousands of copies. You can do a small Kickstarter, fulfill it, and move on.Also significant, at least to me, is that Matt Colville has reintroduced a style of play to D&D family of games that while not dead, was certainly on the endangered list. Lost in all the talk of streaming is that this is gong to be a very professional third party splat book like we really have not seen since 2nd edition and even then, the stronghold stuff was just a nod to the B/X players and those who played in that style. My groups definitely did the name level and stronghold stuff, but I suspect we were mostly a minority. Well now a ost of people are intrigued by the idea and even if they are not, they might be once they receive the book. As for streaming D&D and rpgs, I think we have enough evidence to warrant some examination of what is and is not successful. Critical Role succeeds on a number of levels, but whatever its advantages (attractive personalities) it is still about the game, in this case D&D. This is significant because whatever else is going on, the we are still watching a game being played even with an emphasis on narrative play as opposed to heavy tactical play (a term that is used wrong IMO by everyone, but we will use what we have). In a way it feels subversive how much they do follow the rules whenever possible.  Now Colville is going to be attempting this with 'normal folks' and relying on a more tactical, though no less dramatic, style.  Will it succeed? I am not sure, but I think it will because I suspect it will offer up something different than CR or Acquisitions Inc or any of the D&D streams. I backed the KS for the book (not rich enough yet for the rest), but am glad that the stream will be going forward. Especially since the money allows Colville to remain (AFAIK) independent and not having to rely on a company like Geek & Sundry to survive and thrive. It is a good time to be an independent content creator.</blockquote>

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