Are you buying Dragon Magic?
- Thread starter johnnype
- Start date
TerraDave
5ever, or until 2024
I was also pleasently surprised by it when I browsed through it. Nice combination of flavour and crunch, with a fair amount of "I could use that", even if it is still less then 50% of the book.
Of course, I didn't actually buy it. I don't buy much these days. But it is on my list of definate maybes.
Of course, I didn't actually buy it. I don't buy much these days. But it is on my list of definate maybes.
Nonlethal Force
First Post
I really don't understand why the naming of the book is considered to be such a bad thing. It isn't like the statement of WotC was made to be sneaky and underhanded in an attempt to dupe people into buying a bad book! If the intent was to pull the wool over people's eyes I doubt they'd have even mentioned it!
On the other hand, I think it is neat that they explained how the book was named. Yes, they are about making money - they're a business! But the statement about the naming also says that they are interested in their audience. To me, recognizing that dragons and magic are their two biggest draws and then making a book that involves both elements is an outstanding way of showing that people's interests are important to WotC. I think its a shame that people immediate interpreted that action as some sort of underhanded and sneaky way of getting people to buy a bad product.
The same thing is done with all the Complete books. The first one to come out was Complete Warrior. My guess is that when they were lining up that series they asked themselves what types of characters do people have the most experience. That would be fighters. Almost everyone at least starts with a fighter (or paladin, ranger, etc). So they thought to make a book that would be devoted to the brutes of the world. That's great marketing and wonderful business sense. The series has continued with great success! I don't resent them for targetting people who like to play fighters (or any other class covered by the remaining Complete series).
I flipped through the book and thought it was great. I do think that those people who legitimately don't like dragons will not be inspired by the book and probably shouldn't buy it. But that doesn't mean the book is bad. I don't like Eberron and don't buy any of those books. But that doesn't make Eberron bad - just means I don't like it.
Dragon Magic is a solid book, up there with the Complete Series in authorship. It isn't quite as powerful as Draconomicon, XPH, and PHB II ... but those books set a very high standard. When my copy of Dragon Magic comes, it will be a welcome addition to the library.
On the other hand, I think it is neat that they explained how the book was named. Yes, they are about making money - they're a business! But the statement about the naming also says that they are interested in their audience. To me, recognizing that dragons and magic are their two biggest draws and then making a book that involves both elements is an outstanding way of showing that people's interests are important to WotC. I think its a shame that people immediate interpreted that action as some sort of underhanded and sneaky way of getting people to buy a bad product.
The same thing is done with all the Complete books. The first one to come out was Complete Warrior. My guess is that when they were lining up that series they asked themselves what types of characters do people have the most experience. That would be fighters. Almost everyone at least starts with a fighter (or paladin, ranger, etc). So they thought to make a book that would be devoted to the brutes of the world. That's great marketing and wonderful business sense. The series has continued with great success! I don't resent them for targetting people who like to play fighters (or any other class covered by the remaining Complete series).
I flipped through the book and thought it was great. I do think that those people who legitimately don't like dragons will not be inspired by the book and probably shouldn't buy it. But that doesn't mean the book is bad. I don't like Eberron and don't buy any of those books. But that doesn't make Eberron bad - just means I don't like it.
Dragon Magic is a solid book, up there with the Complete Series in authorship. It isn't quite as powerful as Draconomicon, XPH, and PHB II ... but those books set a very high standard. When my copy of Dragon Magic comes, it will be a welcome addition to the library.
Voadam
Legend
Not buying.
It sounds interesting and I will be using the preview dragon adept variant warlock, but I don't buy hardcovers anymore and do not buy DRM pdfs.
I'll have to satisfy myself with what I have for my dragon focused sourcebooks: Role-Aids Dragons, FFG's Draconic Lore, AEG's Dragons, The Dragon Magazine anniversary issue with the racial levels, and Goodman Games' Complete Guide to DragonKin. And perhaps the dragon magic elements from Bastion Press' Spells and Magic. Poor me.
It sounds interesting and I will be using the preview dragon adept variant warlock, but I don't buy hardcovers anymore and do not buy DRM pdfs.
I'll have to satisfy myself with what I have for my dragon focused sourcebooks: Role-Aids Dragons, FFG's Draconic Lore, AEG's Dragons, The Dragon Magazine anniversary issue with the racial levels, and Goodman Games' Complete Guide to DragonKin. And perhaps the dragon magic elements from Bastion Press' Spells and Magic. Poor me.
Stormborn
Explorer
I haven't got it yet, but a friend of mine did and I got to look through hers. Very solid book, very intersting. I have Dragonomicon and Races of the Dragon and love them both (primarilly the later for the material on kobolds) but at the moment don't have much use for them in game. I have been thinking about a campaign for the future that really emphasizes Dragons, and if that ever comes to fruition I will likely get it.
Crothian
First Post
It has been a while I have reviewed a Wizards of the Coast book and it has also been a while that a book I bought I was so excited about after reading iut and using it that I needed to review it. Dragon Magic is that book. My little review on the book
Got it
I got it because I placed a huge order on Amazon.com of all the D&D stuff coming out recently (I'm a collector). Once it got here, it was one of the most disappointing things I've read in a while. Some of the spells looked interesting, but the book shares alot of the same problems of other splatbooks.
At some point, players have to stop poring through books to do their homework. Tracking spells across five books, for example, was one of the major reasons that Spell Compendium was designed and released. Players have to stop designing characters and actually play them from time to time.
Sure, there were lots of options for characters of all stripes and specialties. If you like character options, the book has them. But nothing really jumped off the page at me, nothing made me think, "hey, that's cool, I'd like to make a character with that for my next game!" For a dragon-themed campaign, Draconomicon stands head and shoulders above Dragon Magic for my dollar.
I got it because I placed a huge order on Amazon.com of all the D&D stuff coming out recently (I'm a collector). Once it got here, it was one of the most disappointing things I've read in a while. Some of the spells looked interesting, but the book shares alot of the same problems of other splatbooks.
At some point, players have to stop poring through books to do their homework. Tracking spells across five books, for example, was one of the major reasons that Spell Compendium was designed and released. Players have to stop designing characters and actually play them from time to time.
Sure, there were lots of options for characters of all stripes and specialties. If you like character options, the book has them. But nothing really jumped off the page at me, nothing made me think, "hey, that's cool, I'd like to make a character with that for my next game!" For a dragon-themed campaign, Draconomicon stands head and shoulders above Dragon Magic for my dollar.
Whizbang Dustyboots
Gnometown Hero
It depends on the campaign. I like Draconomicon, but it's of little use when the primary antagonists in my campaign are a warren of kobolds that used to be the servants of a green dragon with ambitions of having an empire, but she's now vanished mysteriously. The prestige classes and spells in Draconomicon are essentially useless without a dragon around.Dykstrav said:
Dragon Magic, on the other hand, has a ton of ways for me to give the Green Mountain Kobolds draconic flavor, including a base class that says, pretty explicitly, that these are dragon-worshippers. (I'll be swapping in an acid breath instead of fire breath by default, but that's a minor change.)
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