Where do we go from here..?

[Hand of Evil]

Super-modules (for lack of a better name) are still waiting to hit, the only one I know of is Necroplis. Two others that could fall in with this would be Dungeon World and Oathbound (does not sound right) but those are campign settings.

Settings I think would sell but they would have to be different. Culture books could be neat but still has to be a demand and something new.

Maybe varient rules are the way to go.

 

[d20Monkey]

Now super-modules are an interesting notion. With examples like Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil and City of the Spider Queen, the larger format modules could very well be a sign of things to come. Especially in todays choosier marketplace.

I know that I am becoming very selective in the products I buy and smaller modules do not carry much weight with me. A larger, more extended session spanning adventure however is much more of a value to me.

I am still a fan of the setting supplements. I have the firm opinion that if you publish a campaign setting, support it. For DMs today who have families, jobs and other aspects of a life, the more information that a publisher provides on his campaign setting of choice the better. Scarred lands and Ravenloft are good examples of this mentality.

 

[Terath Ninir]

Since my book was mentioned at the start of the thread (the Elements of Magic -- tEoM) I feel safe in doing a shameless plug here.

[shameless plug]In case anyone isn't in the know, tEoM is a replacement magic system for d20. You take out the "Vancian" fire-and-forget spell system, and plug it in. Instead of individual spells, you learn spell lists that go from level 0 to level 9. Instead of preperation, you use magic points to fuel your spells (as are used in many, many quest-style video games). It allows for a much more free and loose style of magic, like they have in most books and movies I've seen. The PDF, by the way, will be on sale within several hours of my posting this. [/shameless plug]

I don't know if new rules books are going to be the new trend. I didn't know about Monte's new book until late last week, and I'm sure he hadn't heard of my book until then, either. But they might inspire others to start such a trend. Most of the d20 books I've seen have new feats, prestige classes, spells, etc. My book and Monte's book have a new way of looking at the rules. I think, if others follow the same path, we'll see a lot of innovation in what d20 rules gamers use. You can do a lot with the rules, while still keeping the game familiar enough that you don't have to teach people a whole new game.

 

[vraad]

As I've read this thread one thing has REALLY caught my attention, culture books. This would be a fantastic thing for me and I can almost guarantee I'd buy a bunch of these. As I've designed my world, I've really tried to stay away from giving the entire thing a medieval European flavor. I've incorporated things like ancient Rome, ancient Egypt, the Vikings, and the Aztecs. While history books are good, their historical point of view means a lot of reading to get what I'm looking for. If these books contained things like maps of famous buildings, examples of architecture, common foods, common weapons, deities, common dress, and social structure they would be a terrific source for DM's everywhere.

That's my two coppers