D&D 4E Are you happy with the coverage of 4e so far?

[Olaf the Stout]

I'd like to see a bit more information personally. What I don't like is that I seem to find out more information here on EN World than I do on the WotC site. Morrus is doing a great job of keeping me up to date with all the little tidbits that are coming out about 4E.

The problem is that the information is so disparate with little snippets of information coming from blogs here and posts there. I wish WotC had a central bit on their site where you could quickly find out what the latest news was.

If that is what DnD Insider is supposed to be then I am a little underwhelmed at the moment. I understand it is still early days but, having said that, I don't see why WotC can't be doing the exact same thing that Morrus is doing (i.e. the "Latest 4E Update" stuff that you see at the top of every page on the messageboards.

Olaf the Stout

 

[Nikosandros]

I'm a bit torn on the issue... on one hand, I'm really curious about the new edition, on the other hand I would actually like to have some surprises when I read the manuals.

I realize that I'm a bit weird, but I actually like to read and study rules and when the 3e PHB came out I felt that too much of it had already been spoiled...

 

[Dinkeldog]

The level of coverage is fine. What it is uncovering is not.

Then kindly remember that we've got 20-some odd forums that you'll continue to enjoy. Please go and enjoy them.

Seriously, life is too short, and it definitely isn't good for your health and well-being to be negative about everything. Talk about stuff that you're interested in, and avoid the stuff that you're not.

--Dinkeldog/Moderator

Change is scary. I'm feeling pretty good with most of what's come out, and there's other things that I'll probably remove straight out. My most fervent wish is that the PH and DMG both come with explicit statements of Rule 0, the single most important rule in the game.

I'm also feeling pretty comfortable with the amount of information coming out right now, although I'm going to hope for more later--and looks like that's going to be released through the D&D experience in February. So the game is set to be released in May. If they released everything they had now, then there'd be nothing to look at until the May release--that would be 8 long months of not being able to keep enticing me to wait. Instead, they could just release it as soon as it could get to the printers. Clearly that's not the plan.

 

[delericho]

I think the amount of coverage is fine. There are some specific areas I wish they would cover more, and I would really like to see a completed character sheet at some time in the near future. For the most part, though, they're doing fine.

I'm torn on a lot of the changes that seem to be being made. Some of them are great (flipped saves), some of them not so great (not keen on a further increase to the rate of advancement).

One thing I don't like about the coverage is that it does seem overly anti-3e at times. Now, I'll readily admit that 3e had some significant flaws, and will readily accept that WotC are making an earnest effort to fix them. But one or two of the comments have just gone a bit too far, IMO. I'd much rather see them talk about the strengths of the new game, rather than the weaknesses of the old, thanks.

 

[Sun Knight]

Care to elaborate?

The amount of information available I think is quite a lot and allows people to make good judgments where the game is going. I just don't like where it is going.

 

[Arashi Ravenblade]

Im not happy with it. Im keeping an eye on it, and going to try and give it a decent chance, but they arent doing a very good job at convincing me. If 4e came out today i'd be sticking with 3e until I had a chance to read the PHB or see some FREE spoilers of whats going on in detail. So far i dont like what we have seen.

 

[Cadfan]

I think they're releasing an adequate amount of material given the present date.

Sure, I'd like more. In fact, I'd like a preview copy of the players handbook, and designer notes on whatever else is in the pipe. But since there's about 6+ months to go before the official release, I don't expect any more material now than I'm getting.

 

[Styracosaurus]

We have too much fluffy propaganda and not enough concrete examples of what is possible.

For 3e, we had black pages detailing the new full attack option and Weapon Specialization, etc.....

So far, 4e is just names of various components or new classes but no meat.

john

 

[SavageRobby]

I waffled between "I'm happy with the coverage" and "Its too early". I voted "I'm happy" because, well, as much as I'd like more details, I don't think they have them to give.

I'm with Celebrim on some of his points, though. Its hard for me to take the designers seriously when they say "We've fixed X" when they're still developing and testing the fixes. I'd believe, "We think X is a problem, and we're testing ways to fix it", because I think that would be far more accurate.

I also have an intense distrust of their timeline. They're just starting external playtesting now? Unless they've figured out a way to print and distribute the books in record time at a low price, I'm not convinced the quality of the 1st release of the books is going to be up to snuff. I get this feeling they'll be rushing late second rules changes through editing to get them off to the printer in time, and that is the kind of thing that causes sloppy work (and revisions and errata).

 

[Wormwood]

I'm terrifically excited about both the quality and the results of the coverage so far.

Morrus's preview page is my freakin' home page for the first time in, well, ever. Take that, Google!

As for the changes announced so far, I am thrilled. There isn't a single thing the dev team has announced that I don't support, and my only remaining fear is that they may scale back the scope of revisions because their fear of alienating conservative gamers.

I want this team to show audacity, boldness and conviction.

If 4e is as good as they say it is, then all the hype will have been justified and we'll all enjoy a fresh injection of gaming adrenaline!

And if it sucks, I've got enough existing gaming stuff to keep me happy forever.