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Message: <blockquote data-quote="woodelf" data-source="post: 2283477" data-attributes="member: 10201">You actually are supporting my point. It's precisely because D&D == RPG to a lot of non-RPer that a D&D for Dummies book shouldn't assume that everyone that picks it up is necessarily interested in D&D3E. As for it being WotC-driven: i was not aware of this. Looking at the Top 10 lists, i'm not surprised to learn this, however. I, perhaps foolishly, thought that it would be a good general intro, that it was pushed by the For Dummies folks, and that it would therefore take a useful, yet objective, view on matters--not be an ad for WotC. I was expecting an updated version of The Adventurer's Handbook, and with the name recognition and market penetration of the For Dummies line. Of course the title is gonna be "D&D For Dummies" not "RPGs For Dummies"--that's a given regardless of the focus of the writing. Would you expect a Champagne For Dummies book to not even mention the existence of California champagnes, just because they are legally "sparkling wines", and the champagne makers of France bankrolled the book?As for WotC's best interests: their own marketing survey, prior to the advent of D&D3E, showed that (1) most RPers played more than one game system, and (2) those who played more than one game system RPed for longer before giving up the hobby. Moreover, we all know that a fair fraction of RPers don't like D20 System, and many RPers eventually get tired of whatever system they are playing and want to try something else, if only for a while. And, of course, for most RPers their first system will be D20 System so if they're of the psychology to burn out, that'll be the system they burn out on. Now, when you get sick of the RPG you've been playing, there're basically two possibilities: switch, or give up RPGs. If you either don't know that other RPGs exist, or are under the impression that it'd take an inordinate amount of time and effort to learn a new one, you'll likely just stop gaming. And i think it is safe to say that the person who gives up RPGs is much less likely to pick them up again in the future, than is the person who continues RPing with a different system likely to return to their old system. Keeping gamers in the hobby, at all, is in WotC's best interests. And that's where (1) acknowledging that other RPGs exist (even if "there are hundreds of RPGs out there, tackling all different genres and settings, and with all sorts of different rules; this book will just deal with one, the most popular, Dungeons & Dragons" were the only mention in the entire book, it'd be sufficient), and (2) providing a good solid grounding in the part that is common to all RPGs--the roleplaying--come in.That was an unintentional red herring on my part. No, i don't expect them to give specific advice for previous editions of D&D--i was just being [overly-]specific in my writing. I don't expect specific advice for other RPGs. I expect some basic background in RPing, which would, of necessity, be general enough to apply regardless of what RPG you're playing.Exactly. And part of that faintest clue is how to roleplay. How to roleplay has nothing to do with what system you're using, or even, to a large extent, what genre. I was hoping for a section like Uncle Figgy's Guide to Good Roleplaying (<a href="http://www.dragondogpress.com/unclefiggy/rp/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.dragondogpress.com/unclefiggy/rp/index.html</a>) and/or Uncle Figgy's Guide to Roleplaying for Non-Roleplayers (<a href="http://www.dragondogpress.com/unclefiggy/rp4nrp/index.html)" target="_blank">http://www.dragondogpress.com/unclefiggy/rp4nrp/index.html)</a>. Now, at least a little bit of that sort of material is there. But, from hearing people talk, and from my cursory look in the store, not enough of it. [If I'm mistaken, and it covers those sorts of topics to roughly that depth, then i retract my complaint.]  As an introductory how-to book, it should start with the basics. And, frankly, once you're ready for feat-choice advice and optimal class picks, you're already beyond the basics of RPing (though not very far beyond, of course). As someone else said, i suspect this book is most useful for the prospective gamer who doesn't have a game group. As such, it should specifically include advice, etc., on those aspects that the rulebooks don't include, and that most of us learned from other gamers: how to roleplay. I'm not suggesting any of the existing content not be there (except maybe the less-helpful Top 10 lists), only that there also be content on the non-mechanical side of RPing.</blockquote>

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