The New Rules Cyclopedia

[Cthulhudrew]

So, those marked down books on Amazon and the super cheap used ones at half price book store and ebay are not official?

They wouldn't be very useful if one wanted to run a startup game right away, or a spontaneous- "hey, wanna try...?" sort of thing. I think the utility of having some kind of starter set would supersede the wait for ordering books online, even at a cheap price.

And my local library system does have the books last time I checked. So, they could get lucky there.

If they're in Ohio, that would be fine. I just did a search on the library catalogs out here for LA County and Long Beach public libraries, and didn't turn up any PHBs. The only DMG and Monster Manual I found were both 3.0. I'm sure the same is true a lot of other places.

(On the upside, they've got a bunch of 2nd Edition books, and a heap of the Choose Your Own Adventure books, which I much enjoyed as a kid and have been wanting to read again.)

I think the idea of a Cyclopedia would be a good one- not something simplified like the Basic thingy they've got, but something possibly pared down, with everything you need in one place- some monsters, some player info, some equipment, some spells, some DM info. Possibly even some setting info, or at least some "generic" setting info (like a Greyhawk with the file numbers shaved off to go with the way they do the deities). It would be a way to get started, without breaking the bank. If they decide they like it, then they can upgrade.

 

[Cthulhudrew]

Plenty of high schoolers would find $100 to be a significant chunk of change.

Heck, as an adult I find $100 to be a significant chunk of change. Well, maybe not significant, but not something I'd be willing to shell out without some thought.

Sad, or frugal?

 

[Umbran]

Would you buy such a product if it was offered for 3E? How about as a 4E product?

All in one? As an entry product? I think not. Perhaps the biggest criticism of D&D at this point is that it is too complicated for entry as it is. Trying to bag all the supplements together sure won't make it less complicated, or make entry simple.

It makes no sense as a 4e product, to start with. Compilation of variants requires first a number of built up variants to compile, and that'll take time to produce for 4e.

I am not terribly likely to buy it as a 3e product, simply because I expect it would be too frelling huge to be useful. Rules are best absorbed and referenced in easy-to-digest blocks, imho.

 

[WayneLigon]

Couldn't you trim down the PHB to four classes (cleric, fighter, rogue, sorcerer), cut the spell list in half (or shorter), stick in two dozen monsters and a quarter of the magic items from the DMG and get pretty close to Rules Cyclopedia size, though?

I think such a thing would be a great boon to the hobby. I'm convinced you could produce a perfectly playable version in less than 200 pages, for about $15-$20 bucks. An entry level product needs to be clear, concise, easy-to-use, and cheaper than most video games.

 

[greywulf]

A new D&D Rules Cyclopedia? I'd bite your hand off, chew at your fingernails and rip it from the stumps.

Yep, I sooooooo want this product and I don't think it's impossible either. OD&D was no less complex than New D&D - it had huge combat tables remember, and an XP chart for each class, and lots of other fun stuff too.

The problem is that I want /exactly/ the OD&D Rules Cyclopedia, just updated to d20. I want classes, combat, equipment, mass combat, naval and aerial combat, monsters, spells, treasure, world details and more. They managed it then, so I can't see why we couldn't have it now too.

I don't think it would make a good entry-level system, but it would make the bestest one-book RPG system, ever.

Right now, that accolade goes to the original D&D Rules Cyclopedia. Which we still use.

You can have your hand back now.

 

[mmadsen]

Would you buy such a product if it was offered for 3E? How about as a 4E product?

I don't think a 3E Rules Cyclopedia would particularly appeal to the hardcore crowd here, who have all the books already.

I think the Rules Cyclopedia would make an excellent model for the 4E PHB though -- take the current PHB, strip out the less "core" material, add in the most "core" monsters and DM bits, and have D&D in one book.

 

[Chris Tavares]

I kind of feel like the True20 book is a lot like the old Cyclopedia in feel. One book, streamlined rules, everything you need in one place. Heck, it's even got four sample campaigns in there too.

True20 is a fairly "modern" RPG as opposed to the old-school design of the Cyclopedia, and so wouldn't appeal to those looking for the nostalgia factor, but I think it is an excellent example of "d20 in one book".

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Hmmm. Actually, isn't this pretty much what D&D for Dummies did?

Shoot, D&D for Dummies is longer than the PHB!

I think you can pull off a Rules Cyclopedia with the existing rules (how much space does the SRD take up, all told?)

You'd:

- Add pages (Say, max ~400)
- Cut some (lots of) artwork
- Reduce text size & backgrounds -- focus on readibility (1E DMG ... small font + plain background = legible)
- Cut monsters by 50%, at least (minimize varieties of demons, devels, giants, dragons ... stick with common/iconic D&D monsters)
- Eliminate a race or two (b-bye gnomes!)
- Eliminate a class or three (sayonara monk)
- Reduce equipment options (ditch most of the exotic stuff, for example)
- Cut spell lists (say 10 spells per level at levels 1-4, 8 spells per level 5-7, 5 spells per level 8-9)
- Reduce the number of feats
- Reduce the number of magic items
- Eliminate a lot of DMG "fluff" -- most planar stuff, epic, NPC lists, alternate rules, etc.
- Reduce some of the descriptive & fluff text

You could still have a self-contained, 20-level, campaign-playable game ... it would just have fewer stand-alone options than buying the three books separately, but mechanically it would be the same game. Someone new to the game could still pick up a supplement and understand/use it right along side of the 'cyclopedia. A majority of the PHB is really options (spells, feats, etc) as is the MM and DMG (magic items).

I'd add back in an "example of play".

Voila ... D&D 3.5 Rules Cyclopedia! Hey, WOTC -- for an appropriate fee, I'll do it for ya!

(Heck, we could do it ourselves as a "mini"-SRD. Would that be OGL legal?)

 

[scourger]

Yes, I would buy a d20 D&D Rules Cyclopedia. I recently bought an original RC just to try to get back to a simpler version. I also have Savage Worlds for the same reasons. I hope a simpler version does come out.

 

[MoogleEmpMog]

Honestly, I feel we already have this. It's called d20 Modern.

One core book all you need to play or DM: check.
(Somewhat) lighter and (much) cleaner rules: check.
Variant class structure: check.
Almost but not quite compatible: check.

Comparing d20 Modern to the RC, d20 Modern has in its favor:

A better class structure.
A unified resolution mechanic.
Superior compatibility with the 'advanced' game.
Three settings.
Monster creation rules, however barebones.

The RC has in its favor:

(Much) faster chargen.
A much larger bestiary.
A more detailed setting.
Somewhat lighter rules.

I'd say d20 Modern has more things in its favor, but the things the RC does better, it does substantially better.