Urban Arcana

[Razuur]

Is there anyone else who was completely unimpressed with this?

Maybe I wasn't paying attention closely enough, but mixing DnD w/ modern world was one of my biggest peeves in the artwork of the D20 modern core book.

I personally think the idea is majorly stupid. What does everyone else think?

I think something along the lines of Dark Matter, or something should have been out the gate first.

Razuur

 

[Ranger REG]

I disagree. Instead of making it a completely different game for a completely different audience the way TSR would have approached it, Wizards try to entice their huge consumer base (the D&D fans) to try a different take of fantasy: the modern world.

One of the many rules of business and performance: don't go looking for new audience when you got one already.

To me, Urban Arcana is a toolbox to expand the FX, whether it is fantasy magic, horror, or even psionics (yep, got some more rules on psionic). It bridges their popularly known product (D&D) with their new one.

But hey, I'm just one person who became a recent owner of the book. Modern Fantasy is just one or a few take of the whole slew of modern-day genres. You determine what kind of campaign you want to play using the ruleset.

 

[takyris]

Raz, it's not my cup of tea, but I can certainly see it working well for groups that have never played anything but D&D. It allows for a step-by-step process to move them from "Just D&D" to anything else that the GM wants them to try.

Or, in other words, what the Ranger said.

 

[Felon]

Well, I thought the idea had potential, if they had attempted to take in some fresh and interesting directions. They didn't. It's D&D with superficial adjustments.

As for appealing to their huge core D&D audience, the look of the book is certainly not a step in the right direction. The cover in particular, which apparently tries to appeal to the average gamer by presenting three drow twerps dressed-up like hip-hop street trash (that one on the right especially). I, for one, don't want to play one the little foul-mouthed punk-ass teenagers that makes my subway ride to work every morning more annoying. I ask for heroes and they give me hoodlums.

Then again, from taking a close look at the central character depicted on each of the covers for D20M, UA, and the forthcoming D20 Menace, perhaps I can infer that WotC's marketing department has concluded that my group of age 30+ white males is no longer representative of that core audience.

 

[Ranger REG]

perhaps I can infer that WotC's marketing department has concluded that my group of age 30+ white males is no longer representative of that core audience.

Speak for yourself, oddly-named Felon (especially regarding the comment about those drow "hoodlums" on the Urban Arcana cover).



--a thirtysomething gamer.

 

[Doc_Souark]

UA was supposed to be an expansion of the UA campaign idea preasented in the core book. As a possible campaign it's up to the GM and her players if thats the direction they want to take with thier game. You could also use it with Shadow Chasers as well I guess. It's the same with Gentech and PsiForce choose one campaign or both if they work. Or go really wierd and throw all 4 togather.

 

[tsadkiel]

Or go really wierd and throw all 4 togather.

Along with anything else you happen to think is cool. That's my method.

 

[MThibault]

Well, being in my mid-30s, I don't feel alienated by the youth-culture look and feel of UA. The last thing I want is for my heroes to look like me! Well, that Mickelthwaite fella looks a bit like me, I guess, but he isn't on every page.

UA is probably the close to the best choice for a d20 Modern FX campaign setting for a couple reasons:

1) Core audience familiarity. As detailed in previous posts.

2) It is generic. Sometimes it is fun to read campaign settings where the world is dominated by insect-like alien shapechangers. Usually these are only fully embraced by a small number of players and the rest either don't buy it or get limited use out of it. By presenting a Generic D&D Fantasy (and I don't think that is an oxymoron) spin on the modern world it can hit all of the familiar highlights and tweak and translate them for use in a modern campaign -- mostly by introducing technology into the conventions.

3) It is broad. Because it covers pretty much the entire gamut of generic modern-fantasy, you can easily define different campaigns by what you exclude, rather than having to add to it. If you want a demon hunting campaign, you can leave out all of the magitech stuff and pick two or three of the organizations that suit the feel that you are going for. If you are going for more of a pulp feel, leave out the magic using advanced classes (mystic, mage, acolyte, etc.) and emphasize the ritual elements of the Incantations. If you want a more Buffyesque feel you add in the Exotic Weapon Master advanced class and mix some Undead in with the Fiends. It is always easier to take things out of a system than to add them, so broad and generic is probably a more functional choice for a stand-alone product than narrow and unique.

As with D&D campaigns, if you want your setting to be really unique you are going to have to do some work yourself because most of the big names (FR, Greyhawk) are generic. Lifting elements from them will only take you so far. I wouldn't expect anything too different from that in a d20 Modern setting.

Cheers

 

[Felon]

Speak for yourself

I always do.

(especially regarding the comment about those drow "hoodlums" on the Urban Arcana cover).

Riiiight, lots of gamers out there are fantasizing about playing a scummy-lookin' teenage skank.

The last thing I want is for my heroes to look like me! Well, that Mickelthwaite fella looks a bit like me, I guess, but he isn't on every page.

Now don't go too far out of your way to miss my point.

My characters don't look exactly like me either. But they are predominantly of my gender and ethnic appearance, and I'd dare wager the same is true for most gamers regardless of their own sex or race. WotC's apparent decision that the central character on the covers of a D20M product will not be a white male implies that they are either going against the common wisdom of "core-audience-familiarity" that Ranger spoke of, or that the core audience is everything but white males.

Either way, they're not doing D20M a real service with that PC nonsense, which is a cryin' shame since it's a very good system.

 

[Bran Blackbyrd]

Riiiight, lots of gamers out there are fantasizing about playing a scummy-lookin' teenage skank.

Some of the people on the board may dress like those "scummy-lookin' teenage skanks". They don't look that bad to me. I've seen worse. At least their pants aren't around their ankles.

My characters don't look exactly like me either. But they are predominantly of my gender and ethnic appearance, and I'd dare wager the same is true for most gamers regardless of their own sex or race. WotC's apparent decision that the central character on the covers of a D20M product will not be a white male implies that they are either going against the common wisdom of "core-audience-familiarity" that Ranger spoke of, or that the core audience is everything but white males.

Either way, they're not doing D20M a real service with that PC nonsense, which is a cryin' shame since it's a very good system.

Mm hmm...
It's always been my opinion that WoTC should cater to middle-aged white males. I mean, come on, who else matters?
Quick quiz; You're making a book about fantasy creatures, who do you put on the cover.
A: A white guy
B: A black guy
C: A woman wearing clothes! *gasp*
D: A FANTASY creature?!?

[Sarcasm]
As a pasty white guy I felt marginalized when I didn't see a pasty white guy on the cover of Savage Species... What the @$%* were they thinking ignoring me like that?

Then again, from taking a close look at the central character depicted on each of the covers for D20M, UA, and the forthcoming D20 Menace, perhaps I can infer that WotC's marketing department has concluded that my group of age 30+ white males is no longer representative of that core audience.

Well, the central character on the Menace Manual appears to be iconic Gunslinger Adam Swift, though I could be wrong. He looks suspiciously like a Native American, which is bad for us whities. Putting a fantasy creature on the cover of urban arcana instead of a Caucasoid tax assessor was a bad move IMO. As for the Core D20M book, I don't know what they were thinking putting a black guy on there. Despite all the pale-faces in the book it just tainted the whole experience for me. Don't the publishers know that, as a white guy, my group should be represented most prominently? You're right, it really is a cryin' shame. It could have been a good set of rules.
[/sarcasm]