Blandest d20 Product?
- Thread starter Sir Elton
- Start date
Desdichado
Hero
It's funny; when I wrote my review of the ELH here for the site, saying essentially that it was incredibly bland, uninspiring and poorly done (with the exception of the monster chapter) I had people all over my case saying I was a troll, and my review should be pulled.
I guess that opinion's stood the test of time based on the responses here. Where were all you folks then, I wonder?
I guess that opinion's stood the test of time based on the responses here. Where were all you folks then, I wonder?
Dark Jezter
First Post
Hero Builder's Guidebook, Enemies & Allies, and the Living Greyhawk Gazeteer.
Arcane Runes Press
First Post
Joshua Dyal said:It's funny; when I wrote my review of the ELH here for the site, saying essentially that it was incredibly bland, uninspiring and poorly done (with the exception of the monster chapter) I had people all over my case saying I was a troll, and my review should be pulled.
I guess that opinion's stood the test of time based on the responses here. Where were all you folks then, I wonder?
I remember that, and I remember lots of folks jumping down my throat for saying the ELH wasn't inspiring, and didn't have that certain spark that it should have.
But that's the way of the internet, really. And the way of tastes - one man's garbage is another man's treasure, and all that.
For myself, I also say the Epic Level Handbook (other than monsters, that is), in a tie with Deities and Demigods - crunchy like saltines, and just as bland. I think you'd have to work hard to make another book with so much potential so bland.
Hero Builder's Guidebook
50 percent of the issues of Dragon
the d20 guidebook to Nebraska
Epic book pretty close to blandness
50 percent of the issues of Dragon
the d20 guidebook to Nebraska
Epic book pretty close to blandness
SOLD titles
The only way I can respond to this is to give the books I've sold or traded as an indicator of blandness, in order of most bland to least bland:
#1 - Gamma World. Terrible. So inferior to Omega World that I immediately sold it after reading it. There were a couple of small design and story nuggets, but that's it.
#2 - Farscape. Never saw the series. I don't know what I was thinking when I bought it.
#3 - Everquest. Never played the computer game. Again, I don't know what I was thinking when I bought it.
#4 - Oriental Adventures. Some good flavor, but overall a snoozer for me.
#5 - d20 Modern. What can I say? It just didn't do it for me. Should have known from reading most of the SRD online.
#6 - Slaine. A work with some good flavor completely overwhelmed by a sick preoccupation with blood sacrifice. Too bad, the adventures would probably have been fun to run; but I just couldn't have the players in a race for victims. Really sets the hobby back.
Honorable Mention - Conan. It should have been awesome, but there was too much useless crunch overwhelming the awesome fluff. I gave it away, but it made its way back to me. But The Road of Kings is great, so maybe the property will do better in the hands of a true fan.
The only way I can respond to this is to give the books I've sold or traded as an indicator of blandness, in order of most bland to least bland:
#1 - Gamma World. Terrible. So inferior to Omega World that I immediately sold it after reading it. There were a couple of small design and story nuggets, but that's it.
#2 - Farscape. Never saw the series. I don't know what I was thinking when I bought it.
#3 - Everquest. Never played the computer game. Again, I don't know what I was thinking when I bought it.
#4 - Oriental Adventures. Some good flavor, but overall a snoozer for me.
#5 - d20 Modern. What can I say? It just didn't do it for me. Should have known from reading most of the SRD online.
#6 - Slaine. A work with some good flavor completely overwhelmed by a sick preoccupation with blood sacrifice. Too bad, the adventures would probably have been fun to run; but I just couldn't have the players in a race for victims. Really sets the hobby back.
Honorable Mention - Conan. It should have been awesome, but there was too much useless crunch overwhelming the awesome fluff. I gave it away, but it made its way back to me. But The Road of Kings is great, so maybe the property will do better in the hands of a true fan.
Last edited:
Acid_crash
First Post
The blandest and most boring d20 game book I have ever read is Kingdoms of Kalamar. Sure the splatbooks and ELH aren't as useful, but at least they didn't put me to sleep upon reading the introduction. KoK was a setting I did want to like, and if another DM would want to run it I would play it...but my god is that book hard to read. It makes the Greyhawk Gazateer (my 2nd place finisher) easy to read, and I fell asleep during that one too.
Desdichado
Hero
From Kalamar, I seem to hear pretty consistently that it's either a great traditional D&D setting, even so far as to hear plenty of people say that's the only one they'll run again, or folks think it's as dry as dust.
I guess there's a real niche kinda aspect to it; if you're the kind of person who likes the mock history, linguistics and anthropology, then it's great, otherwise, it's as boring as reading real history, linguistics or anthropology.
Me, I'm definately in favor of it. I mean, one of my favorite books that I reread every coupla years or so is J.P. Mallory's In Search of the Indo-Europeans fer cryin' out loud.
I guess there's a real niche kinda aspect to it; if you're the kind of person who likes the mock history, linguistics and anthropology, then it's great, otherwise, it's as boring as reading real history, linguistics or anthropology.
Me, I'm definately in favor of it. I mean, one of my favorite books that I reread every coupla years or so is J.P. Mallory's In Search of the Indo-Europeans fer cryin' out loud.
Similar Threads
