Dragon 326

[takasi]

The Ecology of the Rakshasa actually does have a sidebar on "variant breeds." The first is Rakshasas in Eberron, the second is Rakshasas in Monster Manual III.

All in all, the issue is very generic. What is included could be used in just about any D&D without the need to tinker.

Cool! I stand corrected. Thanks Thalmin!

 

[Erik Mona]

Felon,

I've just approved 5-6 Eberron articles by Keith Baker and 4-6 significant Forgotten Realms articles by Ed Greenwood to be published over the course of 2005.

We're also taking a serious look at all of the new "departments" that were introduced in Dragon 323 and will be cutting some of them over the course of the next few issues.

I urge you to stick with the magazine for a handful of additional issues. I'm making several changes I think you will appreciate.

If you like what was done with Dungeon, all I can say is the exact same brain is now tinkering with Dragon. If I guess correctly, you'll be a lot more pleased with the magazine with each passing issue.

#330 especially is shaping up to be a real beauty.

--Erik Mona
Editor-in-Chief
Dragon & Dungeon

 

[Sammael]

I've just approved 5-6 Eberron articles by Keith Baker and 4-6 significant Forgotten Realms articles by Ed Greenwood to be published over the course of 2005.

Woohoo!

Now we need a few Planescape articles by Monte Cook or Collin McComb and we're set.

 

[Corinth]

I received #326 about midway through last week. This is the first time in a few years that I've received my subscriber copy before the FLGS got their newstand copies, and it is about damned time. Getting it first is co-equal with the reduced price in terms of the primary reasons to subscribe to any magazine, so I'm glad to see some movement at last on this matter.

 

[IronWolf]

. It seems like Dragon is doing overkill on crunch for D&D (do we really need to have an article for every class every month?) and too much fluff for non-D&D (Dune, Warcraft, Final Fantasy?).

While not a fan of crunch, I have enjoyed the Class Act articles....

 

[cignus_pfaccari]

We're also taking a serious look at all of the new "departments" that were introduced in Dragon 323 and will be cutting some of them over the course of the next few issues.

If you don't mind, I'd like to vote in favor of keeping Class Acts. It's been pretty nice, to have a blend of fluff and crunchy stuff.

I would like to suggest that some new tactical feats might be useful for that section, too.

Brad

 

[Banshee16]

Since I didn't see any other thread covering this yet, here you go:

DRAGON 326 CONTENTS

• Dungeon Delver's Guide by Mark A. Hart and Jayce K. Purvis: The quintessential guide to dungeon crawling! Find out who and what to bring (and what not to bring), the spells to prepare, and the tricks you need to survive.
• Down the Drain by Chris DeKalb and Jacob Steinmann: It's a crappy job, for sure, but when the pipes start backing up somebody's got to go down there. Find out about sewage, sanitation, and survival under the city.
• Get Lost! by Kyla Ward: Lose yourself in the wonders of our world's historical mazes, from the grand Nekromanteion to the labyrinthine gate of Shuneh.
• Gladiator Pits of the Mad Overlod by Mike Mearls: An "Under Command" article featuring a variant D&D Miniatures skirmish game.
• World of Warcraft by F. Wesley Scheider: 4 feats from the World of Warcraft computer game.
• The Rite by Richard Lee Byers: A "Novel Approach" article, this features 2 NPCs from the FR novel of the same name (and by the same author!).
• The Ecology of the Rakshasa by Eric Cagle: This despite the fact there's already been an "Ecology of the Rakshasa" in the pages of Dragon before.
• Cantrips and Orisons of the Academy of Apprentices[/b] by Kieran Turley: 7 0-level spells.
• Nature Unleashed by Kieran Turley: 9 magic items related to nature.
• Chaos Feats by Julian Neale: 4 new chaos-based feats.
• The Shaper of Form by Monte Cook: A 10-level prestige class.
• Born of Fire by Jonathan Drain: A 3.5 update to Half-Elemental classes.
• Class Acts: Two Swords are Better Than One by Joshua Cole.
• Class Acts: Flaws for Clerics by Richard Pocklington.
• Class Acts: The Necromancer's Primer by Mark A. Hunt.
• Class Acts: Optional Special Abilities for Rogues by Hal Maclean.
• Class Acts: Strong Strategies by Christopher Campbell.
• Class Acts: The Wild Side by Joshua Cole.
• Class Acts: The Well-Equipped Sorcerer by Mike MEarls.
• Class Acts: Optional Ranger Combat Styles by David Schwartz.
• Class Acts: The Historical Holy Knight by F. Wesley Schneider.
• Class Acts: A Matter of Style by F. Wesley Schneider.
• Class Acts: Magic & Music by Mark A. Hart.
• Sage Advice by Andy Collins (this time focused on Hit Dice, Effective Character Level, and Level Adjustment).
• How to Write D&D Stuff for a Living by Mike Mearls: 3 steps to becoming a successfull RPG designer.

And the previews for next issue:

DRAGON #327

• The Plunderer's Handbook by Mal Maclean: Find out how to scrape eevry copper out of a dungeon, haul out all the loot, and keep it safe until you can spend it.
• Tomb Raider by Kyla Ward: "Grave robbing" is such a dirty term. Think of it as wealth recycling. Learn about tombs - their locations, traps, and treasures - from real-world examples. Design better tomb dungeons and keep them from becoming your PCs' graveyard using the advice form this article.
• With Friends Like These by Joshua Cole: The goodie-two-shoes paladin, the ne'er-do-well rogue - they're fun characters to play, but as anybody who's played with them knows, they can cause a lot of trouble in an adventuring party. Yet after reading this article, you'll know how to play any kind of cleft-chinned character or antihero PC without causing your friends grief.
• The Silverfish by Richard Lee Byers: Richard Lee Byers, author of several Forgotten Realms novels, presents a stirring short story involving characters from The Rite, second book in the Year of the Rogue Dragons series.
• Plus! The Ecology of Grimlocks, Class Acts, First Watch, Gaining Prestige, Heroic Feats, The Magic Shop, Sage Advice, Spellcraft, comics, and more!

Johnathan

What is the "Shaper of Form" prestige class? Someone that specializes in spells like Polymorph any Object and other spells that affect others?

Banshee

 

[Banshee16]

Woohoo!

Now we need a few Planescape articles by Monte Cook or Collin McComb and we're set.

I'd like to second that! Get some Planescape articles from Monte or Colin if possible..

One thing I'd love to see is a completion of the faction prestige classes etc. There have been some in Dragon mag, as well as some in the Planar Handbook...but I think still out of the 15 factions, only about 7-8 have been done so far. I'd love to see the rest.

An article on Sigil, similar to the detail from some of the other planar city articles (like the one in the Dragon mag themed on Shadow a few months back) would be very cool. Or heck, some of the other cities, like the City of Brass, or that city of glass that was on the elemental plane of water in Vortex of Madness (I think that was the book).

Lots of opportunities for interesting articles...even 101 planar adventuring ideas..

Banshee

 

[Felon]

Felon, I've just approved 5-6 Eberron articles by Keith Baker and 4-6 significant Forgotten Realms articles by Ed Greenwood to be published over the course of 2005.

Thanks for the response. This is fantastic news. I run an FR setting, so Greenwood's material would be a most welcome sight. I don't touch Eberron, but maybe reading more on it would sway me.

We're also taking a serious look at all of the new "departments" that were introduced in Dragon 323 and will be cutting some of them over the course of the next few issues.

Good to hear, assuming we're talking about the stuff that doesn't pertain directly to the RPG. I wouldn't mind the computer or minis gaming stuff if it occupied a smaller portion of the mag (but let's face it, you can find game reviews for free on the web pretty easily).

I urge you to stick with the magazine for a handful of additional issues. I'm making several changes I think you will appreciate.

I like a lot of what you currently have. Winning Races and Class Acts should definitely be keepers. the ecology articles are great too, especially when they deal with monsters that have some sort of definable relationship with other monsters and adventurers. I have nothing against articles that are crunch-free in terms of new rules, feats, etc. but they do need to serve as "idea mines". Articles about the historical origins of fantasy elements aren't much more than a curio. And please, let's never see another lengthy this-versus-that article that ends with the anti-climactic phrase "in the end, the better one wins".

If you like what was done with Dungeon, all I can say is the exact same brain is now tinkering with Dragon. If I guess correctly, you'll be a lot more pleased with the magazine with each passing issue. #330 especially is shaping up to be a real beauty.

I've been with you guys this far, so I suspect I will stick around. I wish you the best.

 

[Shade]

I think I'm in the minority here, but I'd love to see Class Acts go away. I usually find one, at most two of the classes articles in each issue worthwhile. The overabundance of flaws articles have really been the biggest waste. How can so much space be devoted to a variant rule from Unearthed Arcana, while epic, psionics, and Oriental Adventures are virtually ignored?

Winning Races has, on the other hand, been a delightful surprise. When I first heard about it, I groaned, thinking "gee, we need another playable race like a hole in the head". But seeing the grippli and lupins converted to 3E has made it more than worthwhile. This month's was a bust, though. I have no interest in Savage Species-style class progressions.