D&D 5E So what exactly is Wizards working on?

[Reynard]

On the thread subject, I found this. There is a lot of speculation in there, but a few specific tidbits. TL;DR it looks like next up is the 5E version of Dungeonland. I can't say I'm excited.

 

[delericho]

I thought it was Bill Slav?

Yep. Bill Slavicsek was Director of R&D at the time 4e was put together and until he left WotC in June 2011, at which point Mearls took the helm.

After which I count 5 D&D RPG products for 4e: Mordenkainen's Magnificent Emporium, the Neverwinter Campaign Setting, Heroes of the Feywild, Heroes of the Elemental Chaos, and the Dungeon Survival Handbook. (I may, of course, have missed some.)

 

[delericho]

Ever try getting started with Warhammer? Ever walk into a Games Workshop store? A whole shop dedicated to the stuff?

Have you seen Games Workshop's recent financials? They're really not an example of anything WotC want to follow.

 

[HobbitFan]

Bill Slavicsek was in charge of 4E D&D before Mearls.

 

[I'm A Banana]

But it didn't so I'm not going to play the "what if?" game.

The what if game is pretty essential to seeing the world as it truly is instead of as we want to perceive it, so if you're not willing to play it, I suppose it's pointless to have a conversation with you on this topic.

 

[DaveMage]

If its as simple as Wizards experiementing with a new support model, then why aren't they talking to the community to help puzzle that out?
Seems like there has to be more to it than that....

They may be using the Adventurer's League to help determine popularity. If the AL numbers grow, then they can continue their current light schedule. If the numbers shrink, then they will have a decision to make.

As someone wrote upthread - if they can sell 1 million copies of 1 book it's better than selling 500,000 each of 2 books.

 

[Trickster Spirit]

But it didn't so I'm not going to play the "what if?" game.

The "what-if" game is essentially what you're asking all of us to play, though. Mearls has said they have fan base surveys and sales data indicating that releasing a lot of product is bad for the game, and you're saying "what if that's BS, though?" Either Mearls is lying, or you could be flat-out wrong. Who to believe?

Mearls seems like decent, likeable guy. I follow him on Twitter, listened with interest to his description of proto-5E with the Penny Arcade guys back in 2012, read his articles, and participated in his Reddit AMA. He oversaw the team that put out a pretty kickass version of D&D that is my favorite to come out of the game's forty year history, and gets that the modern instant gratification landscape D&D finds itself in is one in which it will have to compete against videogames, apps and low-effort board and card games for players' attention spans. He's the kind of guy I'd like to be in charge of the D&D division.

You on the other hand, are a self-proclaimed internet stranger. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and lend some actual weight to your decades of experience playing RPGs, following game designers and talking to store owners and players on forums and in real life (all things that most on this board can lay claim to, as can Mearls). You're not an idiot and could very well be right about the amount of support the RPG needs, but that doesn't change the fact that you come across as overly critical, combative and dismissive of other people's opinions and arguments when they contradict your worldview.

So when faced with the prospect of choosing who to believe, Mearls or you, I'm going to go with Mearls every time. Unless of course you start presenting some stronger arguments that support your position than "because I could be right" and dismissing others out of hand as BS.

 

[neobolts]

On the thread subject, I found this. There is a lot of speculation in there, but a few specific tidbits. TL;DR it looks like next up is the 5E version of Dungeonland. I can't say I'm excited.

Yeah, the Alice in Wonderland and Against the Giants Revisted modules have been hinted at. Everything else in that article is just the author playing "If I Were King", with the author admiting it is "baseless speculation" late 2016 on.

 

[DEFCON 1]

The what if game is pretty essential to seeing the world as it truly is instead of as we want to perceive it, so if you're not willing to play it, I suppose it's pointless to have a conversation with you on this topic.

Considering I asked him another rather simple question that he could not or would not answer and had to deflect to "you're not making any sense!"... I think this being a pointless conversation is right on the money.

 

[Manchu]

As for the vendor hall? What would they sell if they had a booth? 3.5, 4e products? Why would they, they are publishing 5e now and at the time only the PHB and the Starter box set were out. Why set up a booth to sell 2 things?!?!

You have nicely laid out my case for me there. GenCon rolls around and WotC has practically nothing ready to sell and makes no announcements. And this is the 5E launch GenCon. Pretty much reflects that D&D is an afterthought as far as WotC is concerned.