D&D 5E Mike Mearls interview - states that they may be getting off of the 2 AP/year train.

[Corpsetaker]

Also I still wonder how long Paizo is going to hold out before they update some of their old APs for 5e OGL - if the 5e market is as huge as people are saying then it seems silly for them to not try to take some of that share?

Could be that the 5E market isn't as big as some would like you to believe. I mean what exactly is there to compare it to? Also, Pathfinder is doing wonderful on it's own so it doesn't need to get into that market.

What separates current Pathfinder from current D&D is the fact that Pathfinder customers don't complain about the number of products and rules because they know how to actually only buy and use what they feel they need for their own games. Sure they may not like some options, but there is always others who do.

 

[Corpsetaker]

Laugh Mistwell laughed "with" this post.

I wasn't laughing in the post so who exactly are you laughing with?

 

[DEFCON 1]

I wasn't laughing in the post so who exactly are you laughing with?

I imagine it was your supposition that Pathfinder fans were so knowledgeable about what they wanted, how they wanted it, and how they could get it that they never complain.

I mean, I can't speak from any experience because I don't care about PF and thus never go on any of their boards... but I'd probably find it a bit laughable as well to think that PF fans never complain about anything.

Gamers will complain about anything. Regardless of the game.

 

[Irda Ranger]

Except it's chok a block full of cool things I can use. Not just one or two little things.

I get your point, but mine is that I see a ton I can use.

I guess part of the problem then is it's not terribly transparent what sort of "adventure chunks" are easily portable out of the AP into another campaign. The only AP I own is Curse of Strahd, so that's what I know. Looking at it I can sort of see what you mean; I could re-use the Ruins of Berez, Amber Temple, or Argynvostholt as locations in another campaign. I guess the monastery at Krezk, Van Richten's Tower, and Old Bonegrinder too, but those are such small locations I could DIY things like them fairly quickly.

I hadn't really thought about it before, to be honest, because I cannot preview what sort of content is in the other APs to judge how useful they'd be for content fodder. And I'm not going to spend $50 to find out when I know I don't want to use them for their intended purpose.

I might spend $50 on a book that was explicitly a collection of locations, together with adventure hooks and maps, as long as I could see a detailed lists of what those locations are and judge whether they fit in my campaign.

But it may be moot. They may very well be working on what you'd like. Maybe.

That would be cool. I may yet buy Tales from the Yawning Portal too, if it looks like my schedule will allow time to run it.

One question, why does it need to be from WotC?

It doesn't have to be WotC per se. There are other indie imprints I think produce quality content. I just don't want to wade through all the DM's Guild material myself and spend the mental effort judging whether the encounters are balanced, the treasure reasonable, absent obvious rules errors, etc. I'm at a point in my life where I have more money than free time (three small kids are like that), so I'm willing to pay WotC (or whoever) to sort through it all and provide some editorial quality control.

 

[happyhermit]

I guess part of the problem then is it's not terribly transparent what sort of "adventure chunks" are easily portable out of the AP into another campaign. The only AP I own is Curse of Strahd, so that's what I know. Looking at it I can sort of see what you mean; I could re-use the Ruins of Berez, Amber Temple, or Argynvostholt as locations in another campaign. I guess the monastery at Krezk, Van Richten's Tower, and Old Bonegrinder too, but those are such small locations I could DIY things like them fairly quickly.

I hadn't really thought about it before, to be honest, because I cannot preview what sort of content is in the other APs to judge how useful they'd be for content fodder. And I'm not going to spend $50 to find out when I know I don't want to use them for their intended purpose.

I might spend $50 on a book that was explicitly a collection of locations, together with adventure hooks and maps, as long as I could see a detailed lists of what those locations are and judge whether they fit in my campaign.
...

SKT IMO has exponentially more easy to steal locations and encounters and they can work in so many settings with almost no effort. If you are paying 50 I am guessing it is at a bricks and mortar store (it's 25 USD on amazon right now), so a quick flip through should make it very apparent.

I am still trying to figure out exactly why but I have found material in SKT to be more useful that products I have purchased before that are focused on one particular aspect. Useful so far; tons of locations, NPCs that I might not have considered as much (lots of diversity), airship "rules", and a few encounters.

 

[Reynard]

It boggles my mind that D&D has not aped the Paizo monthly subscription model. I get that they aren't staffed for it, but they could farm it out (as they have with most of the APs) and I imagine it would sell like gangbusters. You could easily split up any of the APs over 6 issues and add setting info, NPCs and a bestiary. Hell, you could even showcase some DM Guild work in there to drive sales that way.

Like I said, it boggles.

 

[Irda Ranger]

SKT IMO has exponentially more easy to steal locations and encounters and they can work in so many settings with almost no effort. ... Useful so far; tons of locations, NPCs that I might not have considered as much (lots of diversity), airship "rules", and a few encounters.

Good to know. Thanks.

 

[darjr]

It's laughable because his points are easily proven fallacious. For instance Paizo started a core book only track of Pathfinder Society to deal with this very issue.

 

[Oofta]

It boggles my mind that D&D has not aped the Paizo monthly subscription model. I get that they aren't staffed for it, but they could farm it out (as they have with most of the APs) and I imagine it would sell like gangbusters. You could easily split up any of the APs over 6 issues and add setting info, NPCs and a bestiary. Hell, you could even showcase some DM Guild work in there to drive sales that way.

Like I said, it boggles.

What do you think that would accomplish that dmsguild.com does not? If they don't have an editorial staff, would it not be the same quality (or lack therein)?

As far as how profitable it would be, that's hard to say. I have no insight into the internals of Paizo's financials. In addition, what works for one company may or may not work for another.

While I subscribed to Dungeon/Dragon magazines back in the day, the world has moved on and I have as well.

 

[Reynard]

What do you think that would accomplish that dmsguild.com does not? If they don't have an editorial staff, would it not be the same quality (or lack therein)?

As far as how profitable it would be, that's hard to say. I have no insight into the internals of Paizo's financials. In addition, what works for one company may or may not work for another.

While I subscribed to Dungeon/Dragon magazines back in the day, the world has moved on and I have as well.

The dmsguild is pro-am at best. But even grating high quality materials there, finding that wheat within the chaff is close to impossible. Moreover, it is not a perfect bound book that shows up at your door monthly.

As to financial reasons, I am sure that's the heart of it. Paizo built a business around the model. WotC would have to adapt to it, and adaptation is always more difficult and expensive.

To you last point: good for you. Obviously there is a large cohort that prefers print products still.

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