Dungeon Magazine Poll in Response to Jonny Wilson's statement

[arwink]

In what way?

I don't particularly like the writing style in many of them, and thematically they're very hit and miss in terms of things I'm actually looking for for my game.

It's a mild irritation. I certainly don't begrudge having it in the magazine in any way, I don't actually mind it being there, and I have taken stuff from it before and adapted it to my games(Blood Golems of Hextor and Knights of the Chase caught my interest). For the most part, however, it's the part of the magazine I skip.

Of course, there's always been parts of the magazine I skip. It just tends to change every three or four years. It's one of the side effects of putting together a magazine that appeals to a broad range of people

 

[Greyhawk_DM]

About the only thing I read from the Poly side is the News Section on gaming....I did like the Spelljammer and Gamma World redo's in previous editions, but on the whole I have no use for it.

 

[Mandeville]

I'm not entirely happy with the current state of the magazine. BUT...I think is heads and tales better then past incarnations. The magazine will continue to change and grow, it always has.

While I may not care for the Poly side of the mag, I still feel I am getting my dollar wort every month. I just extended my subscription a few months ago, and I can not see myself letting it lapse in the near future.

 

[Gez]

I'm not concerned, Dragon/Dungeon aren't shipped to the stores here.

 

[Ysgarran]

I'm pretty much the exact opposite. If I have the time for mini-adventures I use it to play around with different systems rather
than a d20 version.

I usually don't have the time and my friends have no interest in trying anything different.

Ysgararn.

my preference would be for them to keep Polyhedron and drop Dungeon.
i don't use canned adventures but i think the mini-games are just great.

 

[heirodule]

Living Greyhawk Journal

I don't care what they do with dungeon or poly as long as they keep publishing the Living Greyhawk Journal, which is the only reason I subscribed.

 

[Arnwyn]

Dump Poly. For me, that portion of the magazine is a huge waste of paper and ink. I'd like it dumped, and dumped fast. I have subscribed (for years) to Dungeon for Dungeon - if I wanted Poly, I would have bought Poly. (Also, as a note to the poll above - no feats, etc in Dungeon, please. That's not the place for it.)

However, with that said, I'd like to draw attention to the post by ColonelHardisson, which I've quoted below:

I've thought about this a bit. Dungeon is a great resource, and the best buy in RPGs. The thing I like about Polyhedron is the inclusion of the minigames. So, what if Dungeon went back to being all adventures, and the minigames were put out in a quarterly or semi-annual collection? Maybe even have some of them be OGL. The balance of Polyhedron's content could then become a leaner, monthly, exclusive magazine for RPGA members, sort of like it was originally. I know Polyhedron wasn't doing well; I guess the only recourse would be to reduce it down even more, or charge more for RPGA memberships. Still, Dungeon wasn't doing well either alone, and if Polyhedron helps it survive, then keep it.

I think this is a pretty good idea, and think this is a good compromise. Actually, to be honest, I don't need Poly to be right out - just 70/30 *every* month in favor of Dungeon. I'm flexible.

Right now, I like the way Dungeon is. Issue 100 is pretty close to the best one I've seen, and I've been with it since the beginning also. However, I find that I do miss the old issues with non-slick white paper and black and white art. It makes the adventures easier to read and use. Perhaps the slick paper and color throughout helps increase circulation; I don't know. I'm guessing it does increase the cost of the magazine's printing, though. If anyone with the hard facts shows up, maybe they could tell us. Anway, if Dungeon reverted back to non-slick paper and b&w art, that'd be cool with me.

This I agree with as well. I've heard Paizo's response to this, and I still don't agree with it. I believe that, in regards to their reasoning, they're aiming at their target market inappropriately.

With this crappy glossy paper of their's, I can no longer write notes in the margins, on maps, etc. This has severely decreased the utility of the magazine for me (and you know what, Paizo? I buy your magazine for the utility it provides me!).

 

[TiQuinn]

While I've enjoyed reading some of the Polyhedron mini-games, I've never used any of the material. And if the choice is between that, and possibly more adventures from Dungeon, then I say drop Polyhedron like a bad habit.

 

[Belen]

I buy Dungeon....for Dungeon. I have never liked Polyhedron. I used to get it with my membership to the RPGA and I trashed it then when it arrived.

Personally, I allowed my subscription to Dungeon lapse because the quality and amount of adventures disappeared. Now that we get more poly every other month, I just cannot see subscribing to the mag again. Maybe a 70/30 mix all the time would spark my interest and get me to subscribe again.

Polyhedron: Most of the mini-adventures in poly have been pretty useless. I really do not game once a week to play "scooby-doo." However, I do think that Paizo could really make some inroads with poly.

For example, rules that showed how to modify the existing core rules to suit your campaign would be wonderful. Articles on how to create a low or high magic game would be very helpful. Mini-games like hi-jinks are fairly useless.

Also, if people could stop writing Adventures that are completely geared towards specific worlds such as greyhawk or FR, then I would love it.

 

[Gallo22]

Keep in mind something very important about all this mess with Dungeon and Poly. Originally both magazines were produced and made for enjoyment purposes only. Dungeon was made to be an inexpensive supplement made by fans for fans, etc, etc. Poly was a RPGA support magazine made by fans for fans. Neither was originally made to make a profit but to continue the support of the hobby and break even. That changed when Hasbro took over the publications and now Paizo. It's now a profits game more than it use to be or ever was.

I don't mean this as a bad thing, as we are a capitalist country and the magazines would probably not survive without these changes, but I think this is the main difference between now and then. Pazio has to make a balance to all the different opinions that are out there and figure out how to make a good product to please as many as possible and still make a profit.

Their are so mant different opinions on this subject that hopefully Paizo will find a middle ground to please everyone. I hope so, because for the most part they are both very good publications.

I like them both. From time to time they don't always suit me but thats normal to any magazine or publication.

Good luck Paizo!

Gallo22
ps no, I don't work for them!