Some D&D Insider bits (Update 9/13: Lots of new info)

[Jared Rascher]

I'm not saying they shouldn't make money. I've not complained the the tabletop will cost money to access. What bothers me is that with each bit of really cool functionality that they bring up, they also bring up another fee, that is not part of the base, that you will have to pay to make their product as cool as they say it will be.

So, they won't be charging enough with the monthly fee, and the fee for unlocking the book content to be able to maintain the site without also charging for virtual minis?

And heck, as long as I'm brining up nickel and dime things here . . . why are they charging us to get a preview of something they are trying to convince us to buy this winter?

 

[hong]

Heh. There are worse things than Blizzard buying WotC. Imagine if EA bought WotC....

 

[Glyfair]

Another post from Dider today. Nothing really new here, but it does drive home the fact that the virtual table won't adjudicate rules.

I'm going to quote the original questions here.

f the Wizards really want to streamline gameplay, and this is one of their selling points for 4th ed, then they should develop a Game Table which will be capable of calculating
1. Areas of effect
2. Cover modifiers and range modifiers for ranged attacks
3. Effects of terrain on movement
4. Object hardness and hit points (meaning you should be able to try and break down a door, and the software should do the math)
5. Basically everything that is covered by the rules and can be simulated in a virtual environment.

This is not our approach, and we never mentioned anything about streamlining gameplay. How do you streamline a game that is based on the imagination of everybody involved? You simply can't...

asically something similar to a turn based PC game (Fallout comes to mind).

This would be the only improvement over a normal battle mat and miniatures, things like "light sources" I can live without.

I know that there are house rules, but it's not that difficult to incorporate a feature where the DM can change the built-in rules.

If you want to charge people 10$ a month for a set of virtual tools then these tools should do something beside having pretty 3-D models.

They do domething new: these tools allow people that can't meet in the same room to still be able to play the game through the internet.

The D&DI applications are not a game, they are simply a new way to continue playing when players can't get together. This is the goal we are set to achieve, no more, no less.

 

[Pale]

"Buzz!" Wrong answer!

How much THREE-DIMENSIONAL artwork does Wizards have lying around, ready to "recycle"?!?!?

Recycling art was a huge deal in the TSR days of 2nd Edition, and it drove me nuts. Wizards has used very little recycled art in their 3rd Edition products (there certainly are a few pieces), so why assume they are going to start with 4th Edition, other than to simply be negative?

Even if they base a THREE-DIMENSIONAL model on an existing TWO-DIMENSIONAL piece of artwork (which they currently do with the physical D&D minis), this isn't recycling and certainly isn't at no cost to Wizards.

How do you know it's three dimensional? And I'm not being negative, I don't see why they would bother rendering a bunch of three-dimensional art and will simply use the art commisioned for the books. They'd be doubling their profit.. it's good business sense. All they've got to do is make "stand up".

Since I've defended myself from the rude accusation of being negative. Perhaps you could tell me why you're being excessively rude and belligerent to me.

 

[Dire Bare]

And heck, as long as I'm brining up nickel and dime things here . . . why are they charging us to get a preview of something they are trying to convince us to buy this winter?

Uh, what? D&D Insider is completely free right now. And will be until 4e releases next spring. This has not only been stated repeatedly, but you can go there RIGHT NOW and register at no cost. There's not much there at the moment, but more will be added every month.

 

[Dire Bare]

How do you know it's three dimensional?

Because I've watched the demo that's been available on D&D Insider since GenCon. Check it out.

 

[Pale]

Because I've watched the demo that's been available on D&D Insider since GenCon. Check it out.

That's alright, 3D or not, I won't be subscribing to the DI or paying for Virtual Plastic Crack. WotC has had the same business model for collectables going since MtG, I didn't buy into it then, or when they did the minis for 3E or what they're going to do for 4E ( <- that's me being pessimistic).

 

[Morrus]

And heck, as long as I'm brining up nickel and dime things here . . . why are they charging us to get a preview of something they are trying to convince us to buy this winter?

You're currently paying for D&D insider? Wow, I must have some sort of special account - I'm getting all the preiew stuff for free! Yay, me!

 

[Ds Da Man]

Its funny to watch everyone get so ticked at stuff they haven't really seen yet.
1. Got a pc, so does everyone else I know, don't know a single person who has Linux or Mac, so don't care. Bet if DDI is successful enough, they make Mac and Linux versions.
2. Don't mind paying a small fee if it allows players who cant be there to play. I also understand there may be some small bugs that will have to be worked out.
3. Willing to bet every book you buy, you'll get the virtual minis of monsters, characters, etc. from book. Right now I get nothing but the book, so big bonuses.
4. My group meets and plays at a table, so probably won't really need any of this.
5. I only use WotC/D&D books. Feats and prestige classes got to retarded to keep track of, so I have no problem with this. Another company wants their stuff to be used, pay WotC, or make a better app.

 

[Hussar]

Something to remember is that they have said that you can use tokens. That means, most likely, that you can make your own tokens, a la maptool. Sure, they'll be 2d and won't be as pretty, but, you'll be able to use them.

For those who want to go whole hog and have accurate 3D minis and representation, they can for a fee. For those who are content with somewhat less pretty presentations, we can use free stuff. Not a bad tradeoff.

I do HATE the idea of fees for the gaming table though. Loathe the idea with a passion. There are already perfectly functioning VTT's out there for free. If the DM already has a D&DI account, his players should play for free. It's effectively advertising for WOTC. Sorry, I don't like the idea of paying for the privelege of selling your books.