What d20 author do you buy sight-unseen?

[WizarDru]

Currently, not many.

These fellows make my list: Erik Mona, Keith Baker, Ryan Smalley, Kevin Kulp.

 

[Psion]

Here are some of the things that he has authored and/or designed

For DND
Psychic's Handbook (Green Ronin)
Shaman's Handbook (Green Ronin)
Witch's Handbook (Green Ronin)
A Little More Familiar (Dragon 280)
Do it Your Self Deities (Dragon 283)

He also did Mind Lords of Talaron in 281. An almost all fluff peice, but one of my favorites to this day.

 

[BryonD]

Also a "none".

Will immediately look at closely:

Mike Mearls
Steve Kenson
Ben Durbin

 

[Sir Trent]

Tony Lee

 

[blargney the second]

Rich Burlew, Mike Mearls, and Keith Baker.

 

[Warbringer]

Steve Kenson (as long as he has a good editor), Mike Mearls and Sean Reynolds....

They'd also be my three for 4e

 

[Michael Tree]

Steve Kenson (regardless of what it is) and Monte Cook (if the topic of the book interests me).

 

[Monte At Home]

I've heard rumblings than an old TSR study showed that in terms of sales an author's name means nothing (no real measurable effect on sales). I don't think that's quite as true these days (especially when you factor in PDF sales) but it's still a given that subject is usually more important than author.

Heh. "TSR" and "study" are two words that don't go very well next to each other. I imagine this "study" went like this:

Exec #1: Do you think that an author's name is important in sales?
Exec #2: It better not be. If it did, we'd have to show those guys in the back some respect and give them raises.
Exec #1: Ew. That'd be horrible.
Exec #2: Darn straight.
Exec #1: So we'll stick with the idea that the cover art is the only thing that matters in sales, and not the text.
Exec #2: Text? Are we still putting text in those books?
(He hunts for a book. Can't find one. He gets his secretary to get one for him. Rather than go back to the scary place where there are lots of D&D books, she hunts until she finds one in a conference room, under a potted plant, and gives it to the executive. He opens the book--the cover creaks and crackles, having never been opened.)
Exec #2: Huh. Whatayaknow.
Exec #1: Yeah, it's a lot of gobbledegook. All that +1 magic THOOCO stuff.
Exec #2: But nobody looks at that crap.
Exec #1: Right.
Exec #2: Where'd my glass of champagne go?
Exec #1: Here, let me open a new bottle.
(clink of glasses)
Exec #2: To evil!

At least, that's what it would have been like while I was there. TSR didn't do studies. They didn't care what role playing game buyers liked or disliked. They didn't like role playing games. They didn't like role playing game authors. They sat in jaw-droppingly expensive office chairs in front of expensive hardwood desks and never came back to the dingy cubes where the real work was done.

I'll defend a lot of TSR products, product lines and decisions and I'll point out a lot of half-truths and misconceptions about TSR*, but there were a lot of things screwed up there and the people in charge of D&D throughout the late 80s and early 90s were probably even worse than you've heard. I don't believe for a moment that TSR would spend money on such a study.

*TSR did not, for example, attempt to Trademark the word "nazi."

 

[philreed]

Heh. "TSR" and "study" are two words that don't go very well next to each other.

Well, I'm just repeating information that came from ex-TSR employees.

You're scenario strikes me as a few likely series of events in how the information was "gathered."

 

[Alzrius]

Exec #2: To evil!

It's Mr. Black!

At least, that's what it would have been like while I was there. TSR didn't do studies. They didn't care what role playing game buyers liked or disliked. They didn't like role playing games. They didn't like role playing game authors. They sat in jaw-droppingly expensive office chairs in front of expensive hardwood desks and never came back to the dingy cubes where the real work was done.

I'll defend a lot of TSR products, product lines and decisions and I'll point out a lot of half-truths and misconceptions about TSR*, but there were a lot of things screwed up there and the people in charge of D&D throughout the late 80s and early 90s were probably even worse than you've heard. I don't believe for a moment that TSR would spend money on such a study.

*TSR did not, for example, attempt to Trademark the word "nazi."

Wow...I've heard a lot of bad things about what TSR was doing around the time 2E came out, but this is one of the most damning testimonies from one of the most credible people I've seen to date (Gary notwithstanding).

Seriously, someone should put together a file or something, filled with first-hand tales from people who worked there about the truth of TSR during those days. I know it was pretty bad, but separating fact from fiction is always a nebulous task.