Bottom 5 D&D and D20 items

[ColonelHardisson]

I gotta tell ya - Sword and Fist was more than worth the price simply for the huge debate over the Mercurial Greatsword it caused. Seriously. That debate gave me so many good ideas, I'm still sorting them out. Plus, anything that uses Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun series for inspiration can't be all bad.

 

[Teflon Billy]

I gotta tell ya - Sword and Fist was more than worth the price...{snip}

Wierd, I don't usually disagree with you

 

[ColonelHardisson]

Wierd, I don't usually disagree with you

Ah, but you don't, I'm guessing. Think about what I said in the stuff you snipped - I have pages of solid campaign material that I wrote as a direct result of that debate. Stuff that wouldn't have occurred to me otherwise.

It may be worthless to you, but certainly not to me...an important distinction given your post 3 above this one.

 

[Teflon Billy]

...It may be worthless to you, but certainly not to me...an important distinction given your post 3 above this one.

Hah!...Point taken, and frankly it's one I probably should have made.

When asked for my opinion you get my opinion. It's not supposed to be a unified field theory for everyone, and I'm not implying it is the one true faith

I disliked S&F for the reasons I listed previously. The Colonel found a good deal of use from it.

These points aren't contradictory

 

[ColonelHardisson]

When asked for my opinion you get my opinion. It's not supposed to be a unified field theory for everyone, and I'm not implying it is the one true faith

Damn...you know, is it possible that the reason quantum theory and relativity can't be satisfactorily reconciled with each other is that they both do apply, but only according to which god you're talking to?

 

[mearls]

While I, possibly, have your eye- any planned updates of Digital Eidolon?

It has been a good resource for the CoC/Spycraft game I am putting together.

Hey,

Just an FYI that if you're looking for more d20 CoC stuff, there's a Delta Green article at d20weekly.com this week. Though I'm not credited, I wrote all the open game content (a new monster and a new tome with three versions.)

 

[Ulrick]

While I have bought crappy gaming were I want my money back, I haven't bought five crappy books for d20.

The Hero Builder's Guidebook was kinda blah.
There's been a couple modules: "The Fall of Constantiple" by Avalanche Press and another having to do with a Succubus bride that I've bought I wish I hadn't. Yet "The Fall of Constantople" gave me some good idea so I should cross it off the list.

But I can't name five for d20.

Why?
Because of EN World reviews. I want to thank the people who do reviews for gaming products. You've saved me time and money.

I will however name the top five crappiest gaming things I've bought in my 13 years as a gamer.

5. 1 year membership to RPGA. In the summer of 2001 some of you may recall a topic called "RPGA: Good, Bad, or Inbetween".
Well, I was convinced that it was good. I was looking forward to getting the Polyhedron and the Greyhawk Campaign Journal.

Soon afterwards they make the announcement that both magazine are getting shoved into Dungeon and Dragon--and that I'd be getting Dungeon with Polyhedron...which I didn't want.

But I took a gander at Dungeon and thought why not? So I waited for the subscription that never came. Yet I did get a refund.

I rate it number five because I don't like getting jerked around by the old "bait and switch" whether it was intentional or not.

4. That damn zombie troglodyte Chaimail miniature. Let's just say part of the flesh from my finger is now on the body of the mini, and still the arms and the weapon won't glue together!

3. The Warhammer Boxed Set (6th ed?) Anyway, I bought it last summer. And after playing those god awful rules and painting some of the minis, I got fed up. But I was warned by my friends that it was a horrid game. I should have listened.

2. Spellfire. Remember the game that TSR cooked up in a weekend to compete with M:TG??? I do. I invested a small chunk of money in it right before the announcement came wasn't going to support it anymore.

1. The Wizard Player's Screen--The DM has a screen, why not you? It had 'essential' tables that your wizard could use. No need to look the stuff up in the PHB. It came with a few sheets of spell lists for ease of use.

For about 5 bucks I bought this item that wasn't a screen at all, it folded in three places much like those desert flyer things on a Perkins table.

I opened it up, folded it, looked at it for a few minutes, and thought to myself "That was the worst five bucks I've spent on D&D stuff. Why is TSR putting out such crap???"

To this date, it is the only gaming supplement I've thrown away...

Cheers.

Ulrick

 

[jollyninja]

it's not like anyone is mentioning anything that is new here. we have all had time to let our hatred grow for certian books that we bought and let the fire burn out for others. if i were to go right now and post a review of rings of power scalding it with my white hot tongue, who would read it? nobody! it's old! in one sentence i have told you why i hate the book. not enough meat, to much boring text. i could have elaborated but i did not and do not see the point of stretching it to 3 paragraphs, the book is not worth it.

 

[tburdett]

Yeah, what he said!

I have to echo what Ulrick said about reading reviews.

I've always been careful to read reviews and spend some time reviewing a product myself, in the store, before I decide to make a purchase.

Sometimes I'll take a chance on a product that has received poor or mediocre reviews if I can find a used copy for sale in my FLGS.

Because I'm only paying a fraction of the new price, I can't and don't complain if a product doesn't meet my expectations or needs. I just give it away or toss it.

So far I haven't brought anything home that left me feeling cheated or ripped off.

Well, except for a few issues of Dragon or Dungeon, but I guess that's to be expected.

 

[Tsyr]

I've always felt S&F got a bad rap. Yes, it's buggy as heck. Yes, the designers attitude in the early days cheesed me off. But once it DID get errata, it's actualy a pretty good book. Of all the splatbooks, the only one that I think has more usefull information is Masters of the Wild, personaly.