Is D&D (WotC) flaming out?

[billd91]

One of the most obvious places to observe this is with the pre-generated characters provided with some modules. Compare the magic items they have. Then look at characters of similar level from 3e games. That's expected by the rules, and it's not a cosmetic difference.

I fail to see the the tell-tale difference you seem to see. 3e characters tend to have more magic items, but many of them are relatively weaker in effect, particularly when you look at a 3e character who happens to have gauntlets of ogre power, items much weaker than their 1e counterparts.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Oddly, we came with a lot of hiccups when the conversion to 3e took place.

Clearly, we had wildly different experiences!

Question for you: did your group have the Conversion Guide to use?

 

[Ariosto]

The lack of a mechanic for handling searches requires significant adjustment.

What lack? Either
(A) You open the closet and see the skeleton in it, or you don't and so you don't.
or
(B) There's a chance you might find something, so the DM rolls a dice.

Secret passages will be located on the roll of a 1 or a 2 (on a six-sided die) by men, dwarves or halflings. Elves will be able to locate them on a roll of 1-4. At the referee's option, Elves may be allowed the chance to sense any secret door they pass, a 1 or a 2 indicating that they become aware that something is there.

If that doesn't suit you, then change it; you are, after all, the Dungeon Master!

However, to claim that it does not exist is preposterous.

The result supported the fact that encounter design, not fundamental changes in gameplay, is the difference most people describe in 3E versus pre-3E play.

I think the really fundamental change makes a fundamental difference -- but admittedly not to what "most people" around here describe.

The "mechanical" giveaway to the magic-using classes (especially versus AD&D) would produce in any case the very problems that it has in the event produced. The common change in "play style" (already widespread in the 2e era) just exacerbated those.

If you design situations instead of plots, it's actually quite trivial to design non-linear printed adventures.

This was always a problematic usage of "adventure". "Dungeon module" or "scenario" suggests a situation.

An adventure, properly, was formerly a risky undertaking on the part of the players. It was events arising in play.

The association simultaneously with events and with a text almost inevitably suggests a plot instead of a situation.

 

[ExploderWizard]

I am sure more companies do it, those are just the ones I have experience with that I see do it fairly often.

Certainly. The common denominator with all of them is that they are (comparatively) small companies, which are privately owned that lack a battallion of lawyers dictating who can say what when and to whom.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

*Ahem.*

Lawyers do not dictate to their clients; we can only advise. The client is always free to disregard.

If anyone is telling WotC employees they cannot post here or elsewhere, it has to be someone with power over them. That means WotC or Hasbro mgmt.

 

[ExploderWizard]

*Ahem.*

Lawyers do not dictate to their clients; we can only advise. The client is always free to disregard.

If anyone is telling WotC employees they cannot post here or elsewhere, it has to be someone with power over them. That means WotC or Hasbro mgmt.

You missed the memo.

The emperor has dissolved the senate. The legal team now has direct control over their office managers.

There will be no one to stop them this time....................

 

[Cyronax]

They have some yes, but the ones that did it the most are no longer with WotC. Even when they did, I didn't see them post anywhere near the level that some other companies do. Mongoose for example you fairly often see one of them posting. ICE you see the posting just about every day. White Wolf back in the hey day you seen just about everyone working their actively posting in the forums. Paizo is the same as White Wolf. I mean just about every person that works there has thousands and thousands of posts.

I think any company that does that on a regular bases and engages their fans that way is smart. I mean lets face it we are a niche product and most gamers tend to be fairly smart and passionate. Letting us feel like we get a say in the game and our concerns, opinions etc are heard is a good thing.

I am sure more companies do it, those are just the ones I have experience with that I see do it fairly often.

Thanks for the info Dark Mistress. I specifically remember seeing Rouse on a lot. I remember giving him crap about skill challenge mechanics.

To be honest, after running 2-3 4e campaigns since mid-2008, I actually like how they have codified skill challenges (yes, multiple errata). DMG2 is one of the best 4e books because of its skill challenge section. So let me say Rouse was right I was an a$$.

Anyway, it'd be nice to interact with the WotC people here, but then again this isn't their site. I just don't feel the great need to post much on WotC's hydra-like boards/article discussions.

C.I.D.

 

[Cyronax]

You missed the memo.

The emperor has dissolved the senate. The legal team now has direct control over their office mangers.

There will be no one to stop them this time....................

I spilled hot coffee on myself while reading your post, consider yourself served.

Can I's haz yurz a'dress?

 

[Beginning of the End]

What lack?

Rules for finding traps did not exist until Supplement I. The rules for finding secret doors does not change that fact. Your ridiculous appeal to a Rule 0 Fallacy does not change that fact.

(You might want to dial down the "Pompous" on your posts.)

 

[M.L. Martin]

I fail to see the the tell-tale difference you seem to see. 3e characters tend to have more magic items, but many of them are relatively weaker in effect, particularly when you look at a 3e character who happens to have gauntlets of ogre power, items much weaker than their 1e counterparts.

Actually, I think you've struck on an example where the differences make it hard to compare.

A character with a 10 Str will get more out of a pair of 1E/2E gauntlets than the 3E version. But as Strength scores increase, the 3E version becomes much more useful. However, it's nearly impossible to compare because the scores don't even match nicely--a 1E/2E character has to have a 17 Str to get the same attack and damage modifiers as a 12 Str character in 3E/4E.