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Message: <blockquote data-quote="El Mahdi" data-source="post: 4591642" data-attributes="member: 59506"><img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/rant.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":rant:" title="Rant    :rant:" data-shortname=":rant:" />Warning: Rant Follows<img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/rant.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":rant:" title="Rant    :rant:" data-shortname=":rant:" />  Well, let's break this down:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Fighters Handbook - written by Aaron Allston (Freelance Game Designer - not TSR staff - and acclaimed Fiction Writer).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Thief's Handbook - written by John Nephew (Freelance Game Designer and later creator of Atlas Games), Carl Sargent (Freelance Game Designer - D&D, Warhammer, Shadowrun, and Earthdawn - Fiction Writer, and Doctor of Psychology and Parapsychology<img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f60e.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":cool:" title="Cool    :cool:"  data-smilie="6"data-shortname=":cool:" /> - no longer writes due to injuries suffered in a car accident), and Douglas Niles (Game Designer and co-creator of Dragonlance, acclaimed Fantasy Author)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Priest's Handbook - written by Aaron Allston (see above)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Wizards Handbook - written by Rick Swan (Game Designer and Adventure Author, credits <a href="http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showcreator&creatorid=2063" target="_blank">here</a>)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Psionics Handbook - written by Steve Winter (Game Designer with a very large number of RPG credits listed <a href="http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showcreator&creatorid=498" target="_blank">here</a>)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Book of Dwarves - written by Jim Bambra (Freelance Game Designer for D&D and Warhammer, and Video Game Designer)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Bard's Handbook - written by Blake Mobley (TSR Game Designer with credits <a href="http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showcreator&creatorid=2781" target="_blank">here</a>, including Greyhawk Ruins - a labor of love obviously written by a GAMER)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Book of Elves - written by Colin McComb (TSR Game Designer and Author, credits <a href="http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showcreator&creatorid=908" target="_blank">here</a>) - One of my personal favorites.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Book of Gnomes and Halflings - written by Douglas Niles (see above) - another personal favorite, Loved the Forrest Gnomes.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Book of Humanoids - written by Bill Slavicsek (If you don't know who this guy is, then you aren't a real gamer - but just in case, his credits <a href="http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showcreator&creatorid=96" target="_blank">here</a>) - My absolute favorite of the series - an excellent supplement, written for gamers by an undeniable gamer, with clear concise rules on how to play monstrous characters for the very first time in the history of the game.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Ranger's Handbook - written by Rick Swan (see above)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Paladin's Handbook - written by Rick Swan (see above)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Druids Handbook - written by David Pulver (Freelance Game Designer for TSR but mostly Steve Jackson Games - GURPS - and Gaurdians of Order - BESM)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Barbarian's Handbook - written by Rick Swan (see above)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Complete Ninja's Handbook - written by Aaron Allston (see above)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Art by various artists such as Larry Elmore (a gamer) and Jeff Easley (also a gamer).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">With special acknowledgments throughout all of them for invaluable assistance, sustenance, and creative inspiration from the likes of Richard Baker, Wolfgang Baur, Elaine Cunningham, and Ed Greenwood. Every single one an extremely respected designer, writer and GAMER.</li> </ul>Every single one of these people are GAMERS, with many of them considered members of the who's who of gaming. I dare you to find a single "Suit" in the bunch. Every single one of these books were written by gamers, for gamers, with a lot of excellent material (both crunch and fluff) that were used by an extremely large amount of gamers, in their games, throughout many years and campaigns. Much of the information in these books were used as the basis for a lot of standard races and classes in future editions. I'm pretty sure they all universally felt there books were very COOL. I know I sure did. Denigrating and demonizing the GAMERS who wrote these books, and the books themselves, as simply the agents and products of "Corporate Suits" is unfair and uncalled for.  TSR failed because of gross mismanagement, not because of poor products. The "Suits" of TSR didn't know a damn thing about Role Playing. If you don't believe that, read up on the history of TSR's fall and subsequent purchase by WoTC. The ideas for these books were quite obviously the impetus of creative designers at TSR. In other words, GAMERS. I dare you to prove otherwise. These are books I still use as reference in my 3E games, and will probably continue to use with 4E (if I ever actually play it<img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f609.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)"  data-smilie="2"data-shortname=";)" />). I've gotten nearly 15 years of use out of these books and I still find them usefull, and I'm sure many other gamers have and do also. I think that's a pretty good argument against "Uselessness". Now, if you don't like splatbooks, that's a valid and understandable opinion. But demonizing them as the product of "Suits" in order to reinforce a dislike of them, come on<img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/erm.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":erm:" title="Erm    :erm:" data-shortname=":erm:" />. Yes, these products were made in order to make money for TSR, but that does not mean that they were only created for this purpose. TSR was a company that made products that people (sic. GAMERS) wanted. In order to be able to keep making products, they charged money for their products - just as every game company in the history of gaming has done. Did they need to be a completely altruistic charity and give all of their products away for free in order to not be labeled as money-grubbing suits? These were really good books used by a lot of gamers. They very thoroughly expanded on basic classes and races with class ideas from fiction and history, and races/sub-races described in Campaign books/boxes and also in Fantasy Fiction. Many of the ideas in these books ended up becoming core ideas in future editions. edit: That's not to say these books are without their problems, same as any rpg publication, but all in all, a lot of good material that shaped future designs./end  My gamer friends and I got a lot of mileage out of these books. It's too bad that you weren't able to. However, that does not make them USELESS SUPPLEMENTS, they were just useless to YOU. <img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/rant.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":rant:" title="Rant    :rant:" data-shortname=":rant:" />End of Rant<img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/rant.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":rant:" title="Rant    :rant:" data-shortname=":rant:" /></blockquote>

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