Bottom 5 D&D and D20 items

[Mortaneus]

As a companion piece to the other thread, what are the WORST 5 D&D and d20 products you've seen? Let's stick to products that you can actually buy at a game shop, rather than just download pdf/webpage/etc.

(And yes, this is a place to rant about what you hate, but keep it within the dictates of the board)

My bottom 5 (descending towards the worst):


5. Sword & Fist - the typo's! My god, the typo's! A halfling outrider with no BAB, a Red Avenger that utterly sucks, a bunch of worthless feats, I can go on....

4. E-Tools- I can't make a single character from any of the games I've run, or am playing in. No prestige classes, lousy equipment creation. Only basic feats. And why can't a mithil shirt have an enhancement bonus???? And it's $35!!!!! What a waste of money. Just download PCGen.

3. Diablo II - This had so much potential....we could have gotten a world book describing the incredibly rich world of Sanctuary. Instead we got a board game. Blech.

2. That atrocious superhero supplement that came out right at the beginning. My brain has purged it's title from my memory, it's that bad.

1. Herobuilder's Guidebook - Other than the list of names at the back, this has to be the single most worthless piece of fetid dingo's kidneys I've seen yet. And it's by WOTC!

 

[Furn_Darkside]

Err.. I think this is in bad taste.

Other then stating that, I think I will pass.

FD

 

[Psion]

1. This thread.

 

[EricNoah]

Gotta say this kind of thread isn't my favorite either.

 

[Teflon Billy]

I really only felt burned by Sword and Fist, not just because of it's quality issues (and they were many), but becasue it was the first peek at how serious WotC was about not "Power Creeping" the game.

There was much commentary on the boards from WotC folk (if memory serves) about how important balance was in the new game. How they had tried really hard to create a game where there were no "game breakers" (like TWF in the 2E) and all that.

First supplement out : Power ups.

The aforemntioned rules gaffes and typos didn't help endear it to me either.

Everything since then has been pretty much fine. Once I knew that they weren't serious about trying to avoid the "Complete {Wahtever}" syndrome, it was less of a shock.

The less said about Foundation (that Superhero thing), the better.

 

[Wolfen Priest]

Now I almost want to buy Foundation, having never heard of it before. I love good, bad product.

 

[JeffB]

I'm not one usually one to play devil's advocate but...

If any of us are allowed to write a review on the product here on ENWorld and give it a poor review, I don't see the harm in starting a thread based on the same sort of thing....

I know that from the top-10 thread I'm more likely to take a look at soem products I would never ahve even thought of...I could see where a "controlled rant" could enlighten me to products I might need to avoid.

?

 

[Desdichado]

I'm not one usually one to play devil's advocate but...

If any of us are allowed to write a review on the product here on ENWorld and give it a poor review, I don't see the harm in starting a thread based on the same sort of thing....

I know that from the top-10 thread I'm more likely to take a look at soem products I would never ahve even thought of...I could see where a "controlled rant" could enlighten me to products I might need to avoid.

?

So far at least, the discussion here has been better than some reviews. There is a review of Foundation, for example, that just says "My five year old nephew could write this CRAP." That's the whole review.

 

[Furn_Darkside]

If any of us are allowed to write a review on the product here on ENWorld and give it a poor review, I don't see the harm in starting a thread based on the same sort of thing....

The difference is a review should give a complete view of the product and why the reviewer did not care for it.

A list is just taking pot-shots at products, writers, and publishers- a good handful that come to these boards.

FD

 

[Ristamar]

Personally, I think Sword & Fist and the Hero Builder's Guidebook both get a bad rap.

S&F had some pretty horrendous errata, but post-errata, it's a solid book, definitely in the upper echelon of 'fighter-type' books in terms of balance and usability.

I also think the HBG is great for players with no previous D&D experience, and especially for those new to RPG's in general. Heck, I actually applaud WotC for putting out the HBG. I think other games and systems could benefit from having a 'guide for newbies'. Sure, it's not the veteran gamer's cup of tea, but that was not WotC's target audience. Considering how often people bitch and moan about the suits not doing enough to make the game more attractive and accessible to newcomers, I'm surprised and disappointed by how much this book gets slagged by gamers.