New WotC Product: The Complete Warrior

[kenjib]

Here are some topics they could conceivably cover in such a book:

1. Official mass combat and siege warfare rules (finally!)
2. Variant rules for armor as DR with a class/HD based defense bonus
3. More optional combat maneuvers -- throw, parry, riposte
4. Optional rules for parrying
5. New feat chains, such as feats that make polearms start working the way they should, feats for unarmored swashbuckler type fighters, and feats to use in combat formations (see #1).
6. Rules for the logistics of maintaining an army, supply lines, and morale, including full integration with magic.
7. Prestige classes or feat chains representing different fighting styles ala the PRCs in Swashbuckling Adventures -- cape and sword, berzerker, various dueling school techniques, slinger elite, light cavalry, main gauche and rapier, knife fighting. Note the new classification of PRC types in 3e revised, which now includes utility/special role PRCs.
8. Rules for using vitality/wounds in D&D -- fully integrated with healing magic.
9. Rules for piecemeal armor.
10. Rules variant for weapon and armor deterioration.
11. Rules variant for hit location and called shots.
12. Rules variant to give more advantage to numbers in combat (i.e. ten lower level people can more easily overpower a higher level character)

Who knows? There are tons of subjects that have yet to be covered, not just by WotC but for d20 in general.

I notice that it's complete "warrior" and not complete "fighter," which is some consolation. The title would be pretty confusing if the book were only about fighters and were followed up by books on the other classes. What would they call the other books? The complete roustabout? The complete scout? The complete thaumaturge? The complete holy warrior?

I don't know what this book will be, but I do think that making another book identical in function to Sword and Fist would also be very odd. As a result, I think it will cover new topics. Now, I don't think it will have the focus that I listed above since my preferences and WotC's don't usually coincide, but I suggested the above to show the possibilities that such a book could cover and still be very different from Sword and Fist. It is possible that the book will be a restart of the 2e days and the start of the slippery slope, but who can say at this point?

 

[Bendris Noulg]

Here are some topics they could conceivably cover in such a book:

1. [WotC] mass combat and siege warfare rules (finally!)
6. Rules for the logistics of maintaining an army, supply lines, and morale, including full integration with magic.

Personally, I really wouldn't care for rules from them to cover this. WotC's preference for making abstract rules over specific would make such rules less useful, overall, at least to me.

Jes me 2 'oppers.

 

[Wolv0rine]

Granted all I know is the supposed title of the book (if anyone else knows anything else, I'm not sure), but the title of Complete Warrior suggests to me that WotC could just be starting a line of books to cover the NPC classes in detail. The NPC version of the Fighter is, afterall, the Warrior.

 

[Ranger REG]

Ok, at gamingreport.com we get this news:

"Complete Warrior
Nothing just yet. More updates to follow. Word on the street is this is going to be a big old Quint type book like no one has seen before.
Release: November "

Now, this is a strange idea to me. They do Sword & First and the other splats, then go and do another range of class based books? WTF?

If you want a speculation here it is:

I think they're doing this to replace the Class Guidebook series, and update them to 3.5e rules.

Personally, it would have been better if they have revise the Class Guidebook series. Instead, they're revisiting the Complete Handbook series of the 2nd Edition Era. That means, the Complete Warrior may not have anything to do with monks like Sword and Fist.

I can hope that this new book will deal with all combat-oriented characters: Fighters, Rangers, Paladin, and hopefully the Monk.

* looks back at his bookshelf full of brown-covered Complete Handbooks series published by TSR ... with a face of disappointment *

I hope Wizards know what they're doing. Remember what happened to TSR, guys.

 

[Olive]

Granted all I know is the supposed title of the book (if anyone else knows anything else, I'm not sure), but the title of Complete Warrior suggests to me that WotC could just be starting a line of books to cover the NPC classes in detail. The NPC version of the Fighter is, afterall, the Warrior.

I really wouldn't mind seeing the complete NPC classes book. Probably just one. But I'd like to see the adept spell list expand.

 

[JeffB]

More splats...great......

I won't begrudge anyone their "crunch"...but geez...how about some fluff once in awhile

Oh well..I have the DL hardover to look forward too..and the revised core books...

The point no-one has brought up though...

As it is "Warrior" is an NPC class..what does this mean for the revision"? I know Monte had talked about some internal conversations re: the name "warrior" before the 3E release and said something to the effect of they (the designers) wanted things categorized, and avoided using the word "warrior" other than for direct reference of the NPC class..

So is the "Warrior" NPC class nixed?

Speculation?

 

[Pants]

Granted all I know is the supposed title of the book (if anyone else knows anything else, I'm not sure), but the title of Complete Warrior suggests to me that WotC could just be starting a line of books to cover the NPC classes in detail. The NPC version of the Fighter is, afterall, the Warrior.

Heh, if that's true then maybe we'll be getting The Complete Commoner a bit afterwards.
Imagine:
New, intense rules for plowing a field.
An example farm.
CR ratings for especially difficult crops
Special (New) Commoner feats such as Fast Plower, Mighty Hoeing
New Prestige Classes: The Farmer, the Town Drunk
Stats for common farming pests such as the Groundhog and the Rabbit
New magic items: Shovel of Mighty Digging, Hoe +4

 

[Drakron]

Strange as it might seen ... there would be DMs buying that book so their NPCs commomers would "follow the rules" ...

... and they would rollplay the world entire population during the session ...

 

[rounser]

Why do people seem to refuse to believe that most of the WotC designers like playing D&D?

You should go read the rant archives at Monte Cook's site. Some of them indeed don't play. Heck, from what Monte says, no-one at TSR played for some time.

Besides, even if the designers like playing, from what I gather they're not making the decisions on what products get released, and I doubt the strategic thinking of what's going to make the most money allows for much love of the game to creep in.

I hope Wizards know what they're doing. Remember what happened to TSR, guys.

Judging by the number of them that got released, and the number of bought copies I saw floating around my gaming group, the Complete splatbooks were probably some of 2E's best sellers.

So yeah, I think WotC know what they're doing.

 

[aurin777]

Yes yes, I happen to be one of those people who own ALL of the complete books. I even own the necromancers one just to finish out the collection. But I thought the groupings of books they did already (sword and fist, etc) were SUPPOSED to be the complete books. Why did we get short changed the first time, just for a complete book to come out later. If they do warriors, that means they will most likely continue down the line. WotC has so many more things they could be putting out (such as a hardbound planescape campaign setting, etc) or support for other products (d20 modern anyone?) that it seems like a waste. I already have to wait for one book a month to come out, and to wait many months for something worth buying (unlike the stronghold builders guide) to come out so I can pick it up. I just wish they'd make a worthwhile book everyone would like to see redone or support for an old book than to make yet another complete clerics handbook.
~~Brandon