Monte's 3.75? (A sequal is on its way)

[ZombieRoboNinja]

I'd buy a book by Monte listing rules to remove from 3.5. Like AoO, iterative attacks, crit confirmations, etc. It would be cool to see one of the last edition's chief game designers detail what his take would be on a "Lite" version of D20. Like the Book of Expurgated Might, or something.

Book of Enervated Might?

Anyway, the whole idea of books like this is kind of beyond me. I get buying books for new classes and monsters and spells and such (heck, I did so myself), and I certainly get houseruling annoying stuff. But actually buying multiple rules supplements to significantly overhaul the core mechanics... it seems like it'd be way too confusing. You have to reteach everyone the whole system, except half of it is unchanged...

I'd rather just get a new edition with a complete rules overhaul every 6-8 years than a patch job every couple years (and yes, 3.5 counts in the second category ).

 

[scruffygrognard]

I'd buy a book by Monte listing rules to remove from 3.5. Like AoO, iterative attacks, crit confirmations, etc. It would be cool to see one of the last edition's chief game designers detail what his take would be on a "Lite" version of D20. Like the Book of Expurgated Might, or something.

I'd buy that for a dollar! Actually, I'd buy that for $9...

 

[Mr Baron]

New stuff from Monte

It will be interesting to see how Monte's stuff compares to 4th ed. PDF's are inexpensive, so count me in

 

[carmachu]

neevr mind....read the mods post after responding to the post.

 

[Amphimir Míriel]

Normally I really like and respect Monte Cook's work, but this honestly just sounds like "Oh, I'll rip off everything I like about 4th Edition and sell it a couple months before 4th Ed comes out!"

Well, if that way we can get some of the better 4e mechanics in an OGL 3.5 license, then I say more power to him... (Just kidding, I know he wouldn't do that)

I'd like to use some Saga-style mechanics in my homebrewed game, but since I have some illusions of publishing it someday as a pdf, then I'd better stick to my own design plus OGL stuff...

While I'm interested in Monte's product, what I'd really be interested in is a UA style product released after 4e, which incorporates the best of 4e in a modular plug-and-play style way for the 3.5e system. That would be excellent! Like you say, reverse engineer 4e for 3.5e.

That's exactly what the new WotC gaming license is designed to prevent.

There won't be any "4th ed Arcana Evolved", "4th ed. Mutants and Masterminds", etc...

The new license is (from what I have read) designed so third parties will only be able to use the 4th ed rulesets to publish Dungeons and Dragons supplements.

 

[Turjan]

It's just now that I looked into this thread because I suspected that it was one of these threads begging Monte to publish his houserules. So they will actually be published! Cool!

To me, the number one purpose of a 3.75 would be to, while keeping most of 3.5 intact, make high-level games smoother and easier to run. (Actually, from a publisher's standpoint, it would be to cut down on the size and complexity of stat blocks, but I suspect anything that accomplished one of these goals would go a long way toward the other as well.) I don't see anything that's been announced so far about this book that accomplishes that. So while I'll definitely pick it up (at nine bucks, why not?) and I'm sure there'll be some really interesting stuff in it, I doubt very much that it's the book the 3.75 crowd wants.

I have a great respect for Monte's books, and AU/AE and the Complete Book of Eldritch Might are some of my favorite books of the 3.x era, but I agree: Usually Monte's solutions complicate things and don't make the game easier. Nevertheless, I'm looking forward to seeing what he came up with. 83 pages is not long, and I guess that much space in the booklet will be taken up by spell lists, sorting the SRD spells into 20 levels.

Honestly, I don't expect this to be halfway to D&D 4.0. I guess it will be a few minor twists to 3.x (I think Monte stayed with some kind of version "3.25" for his own games). That's fine with me, but might disappoint a few people who expect more from this.

Anyway, this "Monte rips off 4.0" talk makes me chuckle. As Mike Mearls mentioned, game design in the D&D world doesn't happen in a secluded cloister cell. Some stuff has its origin already from the time when 3.0 was designed, but was dismissed as too radical then. I'm curious. Let's see whether I will like it .


Edit: One thing I forgot: The title is absolutely horrible. Book of Experimental Might? *shudder*

 

[Imaro]

Hey, after seeing the magic system he designed in MCWoD and alot of the changes he implemented in that game (which seem close to alot of 4e tidbits) I"ll pick it up...especially since I'm not sure if I'm switching to 4e or not yet.

 

[Aus_Snow]

Edit: One thing I forgot: The title is absolutely horrible. Book of Experimental Might? *shudder*

Worst thing about it: it ends up as BoEM. Just like the Book of Eldritch Might did. Next time, think of the marketing, you dunce.

Yeah, I expect it's really more 3.33++ or maybe 3.5++. Which, really, is what a lot of people have been clamouring for. Not so much a bridge between 3.5 and 4.0, as a totally independent expansion and improvement of 3.5.

I am very curious to see what this book is like.

 

[Hrothgar Rannúlfr]

Worst thing about it: it ends up as BoEM. Just like the Book of Eldritch Might did. Next time, think of the marketing, you dunce.

No problem for me, Aus... This new book's abbreviation shall be BoXM (at least, according to me... Or, is it the Helm.... Darn thing has a mind of its own, most of the time...).

I'm looking forward to The Book of eXperimental Might.

 

[Aus_Snow]

No problem for me, Aus... This new book's abbreviation shall be BoXM (at least, according to me...).

I'm looking forward to The Book of eXperimental Might.

Yeah. Don't mind me, just being daft.

I'm definitely picking up a copy, whatever the letterisation.