S&SS Update: CC4 Open Prosposal Call!

[Crothian]

Something fun I hope Nar.

Duncan, go with the completist side. Sanity is over-rated.

Shouldn't you be partying in the street? Big upset, and you didn't go to the game?

On the thread side, I really have enjoyed the Creature Collections, and as long as they are as good and creative as the first two, I'll be buying numbers 8 and 15 as well

 

[Nightfall]

Crothy,

In the non-thread related issue, no I didn't go to the game for two simple reasons:

1) I prefer to watch the game on TV and it's damn cold tonight to watch it.
2) It's much more fun to listen to how the announcer teams use some of the stuff that happens here. Such as couch burning. IF there was as much couch burning as they said, I could have kept warm.

But if you're asking me I'm out of my skull happy? Hell yeah! I hate VT even BEFORE they were a ranked team. But being ranked does help. I would have been MUCH happier however if WVU had held on to win against Miami. THAT would have been much nuttier.

In the thread related issue:

I'm sure it will be. Both CC3 and CC4 should be fun and well themed.

 

[Holy Bovine]

Hmmmm...

I'm a big fan of Scarred Lands, but I think that 3 monster books is enough! More than enough, actually.

So, do I go with my completionist side and buy this, or with my sanity side that says I have more than enough monsters to play with....

Duncan

Hey, if you get something accepted to CC4 you'll probably get a free copy or two!

I hope to be able to get something together for this one. I only put in 2 monsters for CC3 and neither were accepted (mainly because, well, neither were very good!).

 

[Trickstergod]

Hmmmm...

I'm a big fan of Scarred Lands, but I think that 3 monster books is enough! More than enough, actually.

So, do I go with my completionist side and buy this, or with my sanity side that says I have more than enough monsters to play with....

Duncan

Well, the question is, do you intend, at some point, possibly running a game in, or playing a game in Asherak, Fenrilik, or, much as it makes me shudder and roll my eyes, the Dragon Isles (or Land of the Dragons, or Archipelago of the Dragons, or what have you)?

As these are the places the fourth Creature Collection is meant to cater to. Which also, in my mind, is ample enough reason to make a fourth Creature Collection. While, unlike with the supposedly linked Forgotten Realms, Maztica, Kara-Tur, and company, the extra continents of Scarn do have a sense of connection, they're still different enough that they warrant their own ecology and the like.

Just like one might expect a Monsters of Al-Qadim book were Wizards to print out that setting again, a fourth Creature Collection is, to a degree, another support book for a different region of Scarn.

Not to mention that monster books tend to be just this side of universally usable, unlike setting books such as Termana and Ghelspad. So, to a degree, it's just good business sense to produce a book which will likely be bought by a good chunk of Scarred Lands fans, and then also end up in the hands of a number of individuals who could otherwise care less for the setting itself.

 

[Mouseferatu]

Heya, folks.

Considering that I'm the guardian at the gate, past whom your submissions need to win, I thought I'd drop in and say a few words.

(In plain English, I'm co-developer of CC4, and I'll be handling the Open Call submissions.)

First off, cash incentives are accepted at the following address, and...

No, wait. That's not what I meant to say at all.

First off, and I really, truly, honestly mean this--make sure you follow the submission rules. This includes saving your proposals to the proper file/attachment type, and labeling them as requested. Any submission that comes in that doesn't follow the guidelines will not be considered. I probably don't need to say that, since it says so in the actual Open Call, but I wanted to say it anyway, because I'm going to be a stickler about it.

Second, make sure you've got a firm grasp on the 3.5 monster creation rules. Obviously, this won't come up during the proposal process, but if you're selected to actually write for the book, it's a major deal. If I contract you for a monster, I don't expect perfection in the submission (though it would be nice); after all, even the pros make mistakes. That's what developers and editors are for. However, I do expect a monster that is properly thought out and follows the rules of the latest edition. If you're still playing with 3.0, go download the 3.5 SRD or buy a 3.5 MM. I want to see monsters with the proper number of feats and skills, written in the proper format, and with a relatively accurate CR.

Third, be creative. The Open Call suggests a few sorts of things we're looking for, but those are just that--suggestions. I'm more than happy to consider anything (so long as it's not totally inappropriate for the Scarred Lands feel).

Fourth and finally, have fun with this. I know the above commentary sounds like I'm going to be standing over this project with a whip, but honestly, I'm mentioning the above for your sake as much as my own; I don't want to reject your work, or tear it apart during redlines, any more than you want me to do so. So long as everyone involved makes an honest effort, that's all I ask, and we're going to get along just fine.

Feel free to ask questions along the way, if you think something in the rules is unclear. And happy monstering.

 

[Voadam]

Feel free to ask questions along the way, if you think something in the rules is unclear. And happy monstering.

Any quick summaries on these targeted new lands we can easily access to inspire apropriate ideas? All we've got from the form is arctic, desert, and dragon influenced south of the desert.

 

[Mouseferatu]

Any quick summaries on these targeted new lands we can easily access to inspire apropriate ideas? All we've got from the form is arctic, desert, and dragon influenced south of the desert.

Well, to an extent, we want to keep the descriptions light, because we don't want to stifle creativity. The more suggestions we give, the more structured the lands become in people's minds.

That said, here are a few thoughts off the top of my head. Keep in mind these are just thoughts, and are in no way to be considered requirements--or shortcuts to acceptance.

For Asherak, you might consider critters that are in some ways thematically linked to the divine, rather than the majority of them being titan-spawn. And visually, it wouldn't hurt to think Sumerian, Babylonian, or Persian.

Fenrilik is trickier. Think arctic, but don't think Norse. Norse is cool, but it's not what we're looking for here. One thing about the titans is, horrible and destructive as they may be, most of them are about life in some form or another. Take that concept and see how you can tweak it to an environment hostile to most forms of life as we know it, see what you come up with.

The Dragon Isles, well... Let's just stick with "draconic" for now...

 

[Upper_Krust]

Hi all!

I have to try and keep my winning streak alive in the Creature Collections.

I just looked at the proposals and wrote down ten ideas, maybe by tonight I'll have about 30 and then whittle it down to the best dozen or so.

I must say though, two and a half weeks is a bit short notice (if you have other things on the boil).

 

[Nightfall]

Thank you Mouse.

Upper Krust, some how I doubt you can do better than Slacerian Dragon...but we'll see.

 

[Gez]

We'll see in December, in a first time.


Is the author of the Bleak Crow (the preview published in the insider) someone who frequents these boards?