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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Trickstergod" data-source="post: 1178743" data-attributes="member: 10825">No, you're not being snooty in my opinion. Personally, I much prefer a book that flows than one which drowns me in mechanics. This would be why of, amongst the number of RPG books I own, only three of them are actually from Wizards of the Coast - the original 3rd edition Players Handbook, Dungeon Masters Guide, and Monster Manual. The vast majority is put out by Sword and Sorcery Studios in one fashion or another, which is, of course, linked with White Wolf, known for (in my mind) it's flowery prose, so to speak. Seeing as how the vast majority of my gaming books never actually see much use in any games, I don't want some hunk of a how-to manual sitting around gathering dust at my home, laughing at the 20-30 dollars I blew on it. I'm curious as to just how much information other people use from their books as well; I can't imagine it being more than a fraction out of any book in particular, for the most part. For me at least, I want something that when I buy it, I'm going to use it - which for me, means that I can pull that fraction of useful stuff out, but even then, I can sit at home and read it quite happily, and months or even years down the line, I can pick it up again and just read it for the stories and flavor text. Considering edition changes and the like, flavorful books over mechanical ones become even more useful. I can still use just about everything in old second edition Ravenlofts Carnival with a minimum of up-dating, or even a good chunk of Planescape (Depending on how intensive I want to be with it), whereas something like, say, Unearthed Arcana or any of the number of Monster Appendixes just become a whole lot of headaches if I want to use most of it. So not only do I prefer flavor over mechanics, but those sorts of books also have a longer existence that can live on past an edition change or two (or more). I can go back to them, mine them for ideas, find inspiration, or just let them occupy my time on a quiet, rainy Sunday afternoon. And it's not like you can't integrate the two; a book of mechanics, that is still entertaining. For all their rules flaws in balance, ambiguities, and otherwise, Relics and Rituals and the Creature Collection still stand as excellent examples, in my opinion, of books that add mechanics (be it in spells, Prestige Classes, or alternate rules) but are interesting to read. It's a bit of a shame to hear the Book of Exalted Deeds doesn't quite mesh the two together; I'd been excited for it since I heard the Book of Vile Darkness was coming out. From the Book of Exalted Deed thread, it still sounds interesting, but then again, it's often in the delivery that something truly shines. I'll have to look at it myself, but I'll be a bit saddened if it turns out to be a fairly mechanical text. Not a surprise, I suppose - Wizards of the Coast stuff often seems to be fairly mechanical and story-less - but disappointing all the same.I am excited about Unearthed Arcana whenever that comes out, but I'm expecting that to just be a whole lot of crunch. I'd hoped for a bit more fluff from Exalted Deeds, however. Ahh well.At least the Termana hardcover's here to sate me. Heh.</blockquote>

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