DMG news from Rich Baker blog

[JoeGKushner]

Blue Booking is an excellent technique to get more 'feel' for the game between sessions and during the session while dealing with multiple players/plot lines.

I hope the DMG includes a section on it.

 

[Rechan]

Given that the DMG is going to have Tips and Gaming advice (see: DMGII), I don't see why people are complaining that it's going to have a starter town et al. It's likely not going to have a lot of stuff for experienced DMs unless they like reading DMing advice and suggestions.

 

[jdrakeh]

sounds cool - especially the info about the surrounding area and nearby towns and villages. With this and the dungeons in and under Fallcrest my players should be able to spend quite a few levels there...

Amen! Seems like they learned a lesson or two from DMG II. More useful material. Less random chartsy stuff.

 

[JoeGKushner]

Amen! Seems like they learned a lesson or two from DMG II. More useful material. Less random chartsy stuff.

Eh?

Random chartsy stuff is awesome.

Names. Character names, location names, tavern names, etc....

Weird treasures.

Pick Pocketing treasures.

Random gold/magic item roll ups.

Building types.

Town generators.

Dungeon Generators.

Random Monster Tables per level/ECL

Gems

Jewelry

It's great that WoTC is providing hand holding measures but I hope it's not a case of one or the other. I get a lot of use out of tables if in nothing more than inspiration for my own goods.

 

[Rechan]

I admit to never having used a random table to roll on a random table. I"ve read it and picked something off of it, but never do I choose something randomly.

 

[Brown Jenkin]

I am trying to think now but do experienced DMs even need to DMG anymore? Wealth by level is now out. Magic items are now in the PHB with levels covering the Wealth by level table in the DMG. XP is out as monsters in the MM all have fixed XP. If an experienced GM is running his own homebrew what is the DMG needed for at all?

 

[Mercule]

Amen! Seems like they learned a lesson or two from DMG II. More useful material. Less random chartsy stuff.

I hope you mean they learned what not to do. There were a few cool ideas in DMG2, but it is one of my least-used books. Everything before Saltmarsh was good. Saltmarsh was, meh, a city, but not a well-done example. Everything later in the book is crap.

That assumes that I remember the order of the chapters. I did say it was one of my least-used books. Basically, I liked the stuff on reading your players and planning your game, plus the new traps (though Dungeonscape trumps DMG2, there) and dungeon/encounter setup.

 

[Phaeryx]

Fallcrest? That's the name of a suburban neighborhood populated by upper middle-class white anglo-saxon protestants. I'm crestfallen.

 

[JoeGKushner]

I am trying to think now but do experienced DMs even need to DMG anymore? Wealth by level is now out. Magic items are now in the PHB with levels covering the Wealth by level table in the DMG. XP is out as monsters in the MM all have fixed XP. If an experienced GM is running his own homebrew what is the DMG needed for at all?

New system new rules.

1. NPC rules. We've heard that the NPCs are not going to be the same as the PC's.

2. Monster Construction Rules. I'm hoping that 4e can get this one MAJOR part of the system down to something more than a handwave and a science.

3. Planes.

4. Non-standard magic items. (I thought I heard regular magic items will be in the PHB). This would be things like artifacts and relics.

5. Advice on world building. (I'm really hoping that they'll keep the sell down and leave it in the various Dummies books as opposed to jamming it hardcore into the book.)

6. Recommended Reading List. I'd love it if this wasn't a listing of various WoTC books and actually had a few different eras of reading.

7. Chapter on Using the Internet: I'd love for some 'standard' sites to get the thumbs up when talking about role playing such as Roleplayintips.com, and of course En World.

8. Sample pregenerated NPCs of various levels.

9. Discussions on alternative rules and how to implement them.

10. Alternative technologies by era (I'm assuming that guns will not be in the PHB so I'd like to see an option for them in the DMG.)

There's all sorts of things that can be put into a DMG.

 

[Hussar]

Of course this is an iconic town: it's just been shortened from its more familiar name, Falcon Crest....

(I'm a BAAAAAAD boy....)

Naw, you're just an OOOOOllDDDDD boy. Nobody under the age of 25 knows what you're talking about.