Delemental
First Post
Well, now that I finally got my Temporal Subscriber Line (TSL) connection fixed (no thanks to ComQwest), I can finally post my review of the newly-released Sixth Edition.
Here are my complaints:
1. Cost. Come on; $550 dollars for a book that's only 1500 Print-Page Equivalent? I mean, the 35th book in Jordan's Wheel of Time series had almost as large a PPE, and cost half that. This is almost more than I paid for my WinBook in the first place! And don't give me that "large press vs. niche industry" line; it's not like we're dealing with real paper here (not that there are enough trees left to print a book, but that's another rant for another board). At least they combined the core books into one disc; otherwise I'm sure I'd be paying $250 each for three of them.
2. Artwork. Okay, why couldn't they pay someone for some new art? I'm still looking at the same 'spiky-punk' characters I've been seeing for years. Sure, now they're 3-D holographics with animation, but that doesn't help. And of course, no option to downgrade or eliminate the artwork from the book. I think that the artwork alone eats up 20% of my WinBook's base memory; if I could erase them, then I could download 3-4 more supplements without having to buy a memory upgrade. Don't tell me that the merger between Hasbro and Microsoft has nothing to to with that.
3. Classes. I really, really wish that the designers had taken a stand on the "more core, less prestige" vs "less core, more prestige" debate. Instead, we get both systems, which just upped the PPE count and is sure to cause confusion. At least it seems that converting between the two systems isn't that hard.
4. Skills. This part I like. Some people may balk at the new skills added, bringing the total up to 127 (not including the separate categories for Knowledge, Profession, Craft, and Perform), but it adds a realism I think the 5.75E lacked. Besides, with the Skill Cluster Proficiency system, it eases the bookkeeping a bit. It would have been nice to find more evocative names for the proficiency clusters than things like Moving Skills, Thinking Skills, Working Skills, Sneaky Skills, and so forth.
5. Feats. Again, I like more options. I can already hear the 6E detractors whining about having to track 1200 different feats, but I say that's why the WinBook has the Search, Filter, and SmartLink features.
6. Combat. Well, no real surprises here, and not a lot's changed since 5.75. Of course, the use of DigiMinis is so integrated into the rules it's almost required to use them; no coincidence that WotC just released their new version of D&D DigiMini Battles. And, for those who are sure to ask, they have still not officially clarified if you can Cleave off an AoO.
6. Magic. Unlike a lot of people, I never agreed with the idea of eliminating the split between arcane and divine magic. Clearly, though, I've been in the minority since 5E came out. Still one spell list, surprisingly only about 40 new spells added. The old Vancian magic system is still in place (some sacred cows just won't die) though this time around they were nice enough to put in the point costs for each spell for those using that popular alternate ruleset.
(As an amusing aside, I notice that they still list the damage for Fireball as d6 per level, even though the game doesn't even use six-sided dice any more. Sacred cow, indeed. Oh, well, I suppose we'll just have to wait for errata.)
7. Psionics. Though they've been part of the core rules since 5.5, I see they still haven't merged psionic powers in with spells. Why not make things simple and merge all three? I suppose it's to allow people to ignore this section if they don't like it, though that has become harder to do in recent years ever since WotC made Eberron its default setting.
8. Magic Items. Still here, of course, and still just as vital to the game as ever (that's been obvious ever since 4.875E, when they got rid of "Starting Gold" for new PCs and replaced it with "Starting Magic Items"). Plenty of new items to take full advantage of the new body slots available (four rings, earrings, tongue stud, armbands, two toe rings, the 'clothing' slot separated into 'shirt', 'pants', 'socks', etc). And that's assuming you don't take the Additional Magic Item Space feat, which is no longer an Epic feat. Yes, you too can look like you were hit by a tornado while standing in the middle of Claire's Boutique.
9. Advertising. I still dislike seeing this in my books. The typical ads are there; Dragon Online, Dungeon Online, subscription to ENWorld. They even include an voting form for the Ennies; hook up to the net and download each year's nominees, then vote. I'll probably get a lot of use out of this, even though I'm still upset that the Ennies organizers decided to move the ceremony to Aruba after it became bigger than GenCon. Like I can afford a trip to Aruba!
10. Digital Character Sheets. I have to say, they've really improved the DCS. They finally added the feature we've been crying out for for years; a DM CheatChecker. No more hacked characters! At least, until the hackers figure out a way to beat the CheatChecker, though WotC promises regular upgrades.
Overall, I'd give 6E three and a half stars out of five. See you all in six months for the review of 6.1!
Here are my complaints:
1. Cost. Come on; $550 dollars for a book that's only 1500 Print-Page Equivalent? I mean, the 35th book in Jordan's Wheel of Time series had almost as large a PPE, and cost half that. This is almost more than I paid for my WinBook in the first place! And don't give me that "large press vs. niche industry" line; it's not like we're dealing with real paper here (not that there are enough trees left to print a book, but that's another rant for another board). At least they combined the core books into one disc; otherwise I'm sure I'd be paying $250 each for three of them.
2. Artwork. Okay, why couldn't they pay someone for some new art? I'm still looking at the same 'spiky-punk' characters I've been seeing for years. Sure, now they're 3-D holographics with animation, but that doesn't help. And of course, no option to downgrade or eliminate the artwork from the book. I think that the artwork alone eats up 20% of my WinBook's base memory; if I could erase them, then I could download 3-4 more supplements without having to buy a memory upgrade. Don't tell me that the merger between Hasbro and Microsoft has nothing to to with that.
3. Classes. I really, really wish that the designers had taken a stand on the "more core, less prestige" vs "less core, more prestige" debate. Instead, we get both systems, which just upped the PPE count and is sure to cause confusion. At least it seems that converting between the two systems isn't that hard.
4. Skills. This part I like. Some people may balk at the new skills added, bringing the total up to 127 (not including the separate categories for Knowledge, Profession, Craft, and Perform), but it adds a realism I think the 5.75E lacked. Besides, with the Skill Cluster Proficiency system, it eases the bookkeeping a bit. It would have been nice to find more evocative names for the proficiency clusters than things like Moving Skills, Thinking Skills, Working Skills, Sneaky Skills, and so forth.
5. Feats. Again, I like more options. I can already hear the 6E detractors whining about having to track 1200 different feats, but I say that's why the WinBook has the Search, Filter, and SmartLink features.
6. Combat. Well, no real surprises here, and not a lot's changed since 5.75. Of course, the use of DigiMinis is so integrated into the rules it's almost required to use them; no coincidence that WotC just released their new version of D&D DigiMini Battles. And, for those who are sure to ask, they have still not officially clarified if you can Cleave off an AoO.
6. Magic. Unlike a lot of people, I never agreed with the idea of eliminating the split between arcane and divine magic. Clearly, though, I've been in the minority since 5E came out. Still one spell list, surprisingly only about 40 new spells added. The old Vancian magic system is still in place (some sacred cows just won't die) though this time around they were nice enough to put in the point costs for each spell for those using that popular alternate ruleset.
(As an amusing aside, I notice that they still list the damage for Fireball as d6 per level, even though the game doesn't even use six-sided dice any more. Sacred cow, indeed. Oh, well, I suppose we'll just have to wait for errata.)
7. Psionics. Though they've been part of the core rules since 5.5, I see they still haven't merged psionic powers in with spells. Why not make things simple and merge all three? I suppose it's to allow people to ignore this section if they don't like it, though that has become harder to do in recent years ever since WotC made Eberron its default setting.
8. Magic Items. Still here, of course, and still just as vital to the game as ever (that's been obvious ever since 4.875E, when they got rid of "Starting Gold" for new PCs and replaced it with "Starting Magic Items"). Plenty of new items to take full advantage of the new body slots available (four rings, earrings, tongue stud, armbands, two toe rings, the 'clothing' slot separated into 'shirt', 'pants', 'socks', etc). And that's assuming you don't take the Additional Magic Item Space feat, which is no longer an Epic feat. Yes, you too can look like you were hit by a tornado while standing in the middle of Claire's Boutique.
9. Advertising. I still dislike seeing this in my books. The typical ads are there; Dragon Online, Dungeon Online, subscription to ENWorld. They even include an voting form for the Ennies; hook up to the net and download each year's nominees, then vote. I'll probably get a lot of use out of this, even though I'm still upset that the Ennies organizers decided to move the ceremony to Aruba after it became bigger than GenCon. Like I can afford a trip to Aruba!
10. Digital Character Sheets. I have to say, they've really improved the DCS. They finally added the feature we've been crying out for for years; a DM CheatChecker. No more hacked characters! At least, until the hackers figure out a way to beat the CheatChecker, though WotC promises regular upgrades.
Overall, I'd give 6E three and a half stars out of five. See you all in six months for the review of 6.1!
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