D&D 5E D&D Next Art Column: June! And July!

[Klaus]

My favorite maps are from Karen Wynn Fonstad's The Forgotten Realms Atlas. Nothing makes me want to run a FR game like those maps.

I generally prefer maps that look like they could exist in the game-world. Drawn by hand if possible.

I don't have any particular fondness for the old school blue grid maps or the new school computer generated tile maps. Neither is very evocative, they're just functional. I have never and will never purchase packs of dungeon tiles. Doesn't really add anything, imo.

Dungeon tiles add a lot, IMHO. Seeing details like ledges or alcoves, the players get immersed in the battlefield. Whenever I use a more detailed physical battlemap (tiles or poster), there is more roleplaying during combat, as the characters begin to react to their surroundings.

 

[Hussar]

As someone who plays via virtual tabletop all the time, I can honestly say that pretty maps make or break a session. Sure, I could throw together some very basic skeleton outline - black lines on grid sort of thing - but, having a map that is full of detail and is pretty is such a huge bonus.

 

[Kaodi]

The last column for June is up: Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game Official Home Page - Article (Judged by Its Cover) .

 

[GX.Sigma]

Great to hear a tiny hint that they're going to be publishing ebooks again.

Very very depressing to think that it'll be a "DRM"-mired abomination of iPad, Kindle, or whatever terrible choice they end up making.

Anyway, I think they should definitely not sacrifice the book cover's quality for the sake of the digital thumbnail. Definitely separate images if necessary. The book's cover needs to be inviting, captivating, dramatic, etc. The digital version doesn't even need a cover.

 

[Stormonu]

• Should the cover design have different versions for brick-and-mortar stores and for digital presentation?

I don't think so, I believe that would only cause confusion over what the customer is getting.

• Should the use of art change depending upon the sales channel?

Definitely not. I don't want to be trying to figure out if this is the "Walmart collectible cover #3 " or any of those sort of shenanigans. Nor do I want to wondering if version X is an "updated with errata" version or "with bonus content (even if it's alternate art) only available through channel X". I want it clear that what I'm getting is the PHB, DMG or whatever. When my group sits down at a table, all the front covers of the PHB better damn well look the same so I know we've all got the right book.

• Does a change of cover treatment cause confusion with the buyers?

It can. Covers should be consistent in a given version. D&D has had a history of changing the covers in a given version over time, but I think it'd be a buyers hell if there were many different cover versions available at the same time.

• Do they notice or care about the differences in a cover from one version of the book to the next?

I'd look back at the sales difference between the PHB's of the original 1E/recovered 1E version, the original 2E/black cover 2E, the 3.0/3.5 version and the 4E/Essentials version. Personally I don't care if the cover changes, as long as it looks "good". In fact, personally I didn't buy the original 1E DMG because the cover made me uncomfortable. I liked the recovered 1E version better (the one with the "DM" opening the doors).

• Does the role of the cover have a different purpose to the consumer in the different mediums, or it simply a business issue?

To me, it's a business issue - a lavish cover doesn't make me drool and increase my desire to have a book, but a simple cover (say a title on a faux leather background) for a digital book screams to me "I'm trying to be cheap!"

• Should a digital cover try to look like a book cover on the virtual bookshelf, or is that an antiquated concept

3E tried to make it's cover look like reference books - and they were actually just god-awful ugly. I imagine the same is true of a digital cover trying to emulate a book cover. What is needed is something that is clear and legible, not necessarily an attempt to replicate what it is not. If the artwork is going to be so tiny as to be a pixelated mess, simplify it where possible.

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[Hussar]

Gonna go point by point as well.

Should the cover design have different versions for brick-and-mortar stores and for digital presentation?[/quote

Yes, of course. You cannot have the same cover, it simply doesn't work. For one, again, you're looking a much smaller thing to read on - Iphone for example. So, if you look at a, say, 3.5 PHB, or, even worse, a 4e PHB, that's not going to work in a titchy little image. Different mediums require different presentations.

Should the use of art change depending upon the sales channel?

Abso-freaking-lutely. Tables don't work on a smaller e-reader like a smart phone. They just don't. I don't want big honking pictures in my ebook - I don't want any pictures at all. They serve little to no purpose and make reading very difficult. Also, the layout of the book MUST be different. Three columns DON'T WORK on e-readers.

Does a change of cover treatment cause confusion with the buyers?

Possibly, but, we're talking about different venues here. If I'm looking for, say, a Monster Manual, I'm probably not going to buy the books cold. I'm already going to know what a Monster Manual is. And, if the e-retailer site is up to snuff, it should explain exactly what I'm buying anyway. I mean, look at novels. How many covers are there for, say, Harry Potter novels? I know of at least half a dozen for each novel - all targetted at different audiences. And the e-versions are also different as well.

Do they notice or care about the differences in a cover from one version of the book to the next?

I'm not sure what this means honestly? You mean, like Monster Manual 1 or 2, or do you mean an electronic vs print version?

Does the role of the cover have a different purpose to the consumer in the different mediums, or it simply a business issue?

Again, absolutely. A print book's cover is there to attract your eye. You're looking at that wall of books, and a cool cover brings people over to look at it. Plus, having a last name begin with H or thereabouts usually puts your book at eye level in most book stores. But, an Ebook buyer probably already has some idea about what he or she is looking for. Sure, people "browse" e-retailers, but, I think it's much more likely that you get people who are hitting certain author's or related works. That sort of thing.

Should a digital cover try to look like a book cover on the virtual bookshelf, or is that an antiquated concept?

I have tried pretty much every e-reader program for the Iphone/Ipad. The I-reader app blows chunks. The absolute best one is Stanza. Which doesn't have a "virtual bookshelf" per se. It shows the little cover images down the left with the book titles in big letters in the right. Works great. My opinion would be no, but, then again, Kindle and Apple would disagree with me, so, hey, they probably know better than me.

 

[Klaus]

Should the cover design have different versions for brick-and-mortar stores and for digital presentation?

Yes. Take, for instance, the 1e PHB (ruby-in-the-eye idol cover). The physical book can use the whole image, etc, but a digital copy would be better off as a close-up of the idol's head, with the thieves trying to pry out the eye, and a shortened version of the title.

Should the use of art change depending upon the sales channel?

To an extent, yes. While you want the digital version to load quick, you also want both versions of the book to equally navigable. Art, in this context, is used as "bookmarks" that help break the wall of text.

Does a change of cover treatment cause confusion with the buyers?

Only if the treatments are radically different. Otherwise, small variations to mark "digital version", "print version", etc, are okay.

Do they notice or care about the differences in a cover from one version of the book to the next?

Some will notice, some will not.

Does the role of the cover have a different purpose to the consumer in the different mediums, or it simply a business issue?

An e-book's cover will never match a print cover in the "details that drag you in" department. Compare LP and CD covers, which went through a similar process.

Should a digital cover try to look like a book cover on the virtual bookshelf, or is that an antiquated concept?

Since I never experienced a virtual bookshelf, I'll refrain from answering this.

 

[Mercutio01]

Will the virtual bookcase use larger images? Will animated images come into play? (Egad, I hope not! Can you imagine a browser page full of animated covers?)

Not to mention e-readers like the Nook and the Kindle can't really do animated anyway.

In the world of print, the cover plays a major part in the buying process

This is my major beef with shopping digitally. I consume most of my books digitally now, but I tend to shop physically at the bookstore, figure out what I want, and then go home and purchase it on my Nook or Kindle. I hate shopping at Amazon.com. I frequently pick books up in the book store, read the back text, look at the cover, and thumb through the inside skimming a few pages here and there before I make a decision.

Should the cover design have different versions for brick-and-mortar stores and for digital presentation?

No. I think that feels gimmicky and sort of shady. Even if it's not done just to trick people into buying the same book twice or to nail completists, it will have that effect. Although I haven't yet bought one myself, I have several times received books I've already owned because covers changed.

Does a change of cover treatment cause confusion with the buyers?

It has in the past for some people.

Do they notice or care about the differences in a cover from one version of the book to the next?

I tend to notice. I even make comments like "They changed the covers of X title again." Has happened frequently with Redwall books, for instance.

Should a digital cover try to look like a book cover on the virtual bookshelf, or is that an antiquated concept?

On my virtual bookshelf is a different concept than on Amazon's digital bookstore. I don't really care for the cover once I've purchased a book, to be honest.

 

[I'm A Banana]

Things should be designed for their medium. What this means about e-books I'm not so sure, since iPads and suchlike are luxuries for me, but I do know that those design requirements will be different than what you can do on paper. It's not a direct 1-to-1 translation. Just using PDF files, things like bookmarking and OCRing makes the world a much better place. Cover-design wise, I think the cover should be recognizable and iconic across media, so that if someone sees the cover for THE PLAYER'S HANDBOOK or whatever they can recognize it. But the design is probably subtly different.

 

[Leatherhead]

For the digital copies, I would like easily snagable art for use as character portraits and locations.