Why _DON'T_ You Buy Dragon Magazine?

[jokamachi]

I let my subscription run out a month ago.

In my opinion, there's not enough 'fluff.' If we could see more setting specific information, especially for the World of Greyhawk, then I would be persuaded to come back into the subscriber fold. A classic setting like that deserves attention, and I think Dragon and Dunegon are its only hope right now.

Also, maps would be really cool. I subscribed to Dungeon when I heard about the huge Flanaess map which is on the way, and I think a lot of others did, too, so why not try that for a while. Something like that for Dragon would recapture a lot of subscribers, I think.

Lastly, lose the crunch. We're up to our eyeballs in feats and prestige classes. I already have hundreds that I will never use, so why continue to beat us over the head with such stuff?

Here's hoping for a rebirth of an excellent magazine,


Jokamachi

 

[Breakdaddy]

Yeah, let us know when the changes you are implementing take effect, Erik. I eagerly await details!

 

[Napftor]

Well, I do subscribe to Dragon, but I'm going to respond anyway. Not to beat the horse, but there really is too much crunch and ejecting the fiction would ensure my dollars continue to flow to Paizo.

Although the changeover now has Dragon as player-only oriented, why not bridge the gap between it and Dungeon by having a monthly feature about "First Time DMs." Show those players who haven't stepped behind the screen how they can try their hand at it. I think the most simple and rudimentary advice would be refreshing even to experienced DMs.

 

[gigz]

My take

I guess it's time for me to chime in. I currently susbscribe, and don't have any plans to let it lapse in the near future. Not that I am completely happy with the magazine, but I fully believe that it will get better and better as it begins to find a solid direction. Already I have seen articles (both Fluffy and Crunchy) that were well worth the time it took to read. The most recent example was the article on the 7 deadly sin domains. That type of material is what I think is most needed. Crunchy, with a very flavorful Fluff to make it interesting. Same goes with the Ecology of (insert monster here).

To agree with some others:
Fiction (plain fiction with no game relevence) is fairly usless to me (both as a player and as a DM).
Fewer PrC and Races: While the occasional one is a fine idea, I only make a few characters a year so giving me 12 when I only have time for 2 is overkill.

To disagree with some:
Comics - I miss some of the earlier ones (KotDT, DragonMirth) and wouldn't mind a few more thrown in.
Class Acts - I love these. These are one of my favorite parts, when they're done well. I think they work best when some of them are crunchy, and others are background and fluff (in the same issue)

My $0.02

/gigz

 

[Geoffrey]

I used to buy several Dragons a year. I haven't bought any since it became 3rd edition stuff. Beyond that, it all seems so crunchy and rules-lawyery. There is very little magic and wonder left in it. It also seems too video gamey.

I know there's no way you'd ever start supporting OD&D or AD&D, but perhaps if you started running a lot of Castles & Crusades articles, I might be enticed to buy some issues.

 

[scourger]

I've got the last 70 issues of Dungeon, but only about 10 or fewer total issues of Dragon. Here's why, by way of answers to your question.

1. Why don't you buy the magazine?

2. What sort of changes would make you more likely to give it another look?

1. I don't buy Dragon because it has too much crunch. I see many other posters share this same basic view, but I repeat it nonetheless. I think it's because Dragon is styled as the player's magazine. Players seem to love new crunch. I like some, but it gets overwhelming. I really don't need or want any new feats or prestige classes--even when I play but especially when I DM. I purchased and subscribe to Dungeon to get adventures. Fitting, since it is a DM's magazine.

Of the Dragon issues I have for d20, here were my reasons for buying:

#310 - DM's screen.

#309 - 15 tips to speed up combat (also intirgued by Sun Tzu's D&D startegies)

#298 - I have no idea. Probably the battlemat.

#297 - DITTO.

#296 - It must have bee the Greyhawk gazetteer index.

#295 - Likely the tower dungeon tiles.

#294 - For the write-up of Greyhawk gods, particularly Rao.

#285 - RTTTOEE tie-in information (but I never ran the module).

Unfortunately, I used none of this information to any appreciable extent in my D&D game except the DM screen. The screen was not particualrly well-done, but I have used it. I recently borrowed a deluxe DM screen and may very well upgrade to it (it had better information and the landscape layout is preferable to me).

2. I would give Dragon another look if it had more DM-friendly content. After all, the DM is a player, too. I don't suppose Dragon could run adventures, but even an annual Dragon adventure issue would probably get my attention. Dragon could offer mini-campaign settings or revisions of old settings. Birthright would get a look from me. It doesn't have to be complicated. In fact, it shouldn't be. It should build on the core game in new & creative ways. I don't need a dozen new feats and prestige classes for a mini-campaign setting; I need the flavor text (the fluff) to make the setting compelling.

Perhaps some ideas for running a core D&D game with low magic and high adventure in the vein of authors like Robert E. Howard (without stepping on any licenses) with ideas on how to limit spellcasters and a simple presentation of two oppposing deities in the setting (like a good, healing god and a bad, corrupting snake god). Standard D&D foes are presented in gritty fashion, but the emphasis is on human, non-magic heroes (especially barbarians) battling strange mystics and their monstrous servants. Now, you have my attention.

Or a mini-campaign setting describing how to run a more modern D&D game set shortly after the turn of the 20th century in which the player characters are all associated with a university that has a group that investigates paranormal incidents remniscent of the writings of Howard Lovecraft (here again being careful not to step on any licensing toes). Maybe the PCs are restricted to the NPC classes in the DMG (but can't just can't advance as adepts without studying dangerous tomes of ancient or alien lore) but can have guns per the rules described in the DMG. Maybe you throw some modern craft, knowledge and prefession skills in the mix and a pilot skill. The monsters of the MM take on a more horrific element when encountered in the non-fantasy setting with character f weaker classes. Now, my interest in that issue is piqued.

The early d20 mini-games in Polyhedron based on the D&D rules were great (especially Omega World) and similar articles would be worthwhile for Dragon (although I suspect many readers don't want non-sword-&-sorcery content in their magazine). Simialrly Star Wars RPG content, especially adventures, could get me to look at Dragon. (Same concern, though.)

Tie the Dragon content to Dungeon adventures. If there is a new Adventure Path in Dungeon, put some setting information in Dragon. NOT new feats, etc. that make the Dungeon adventure useless (or less useful) without the Dragon information; but maybe an area map or a secret set of runes in which messages may be written in that setting. The article on dwarven dethek runes from an old Best of Dragon (# IV, I think--the only one I've got) is one of my favorites. Articles on subjects like runes add a lot of flavor to many games.

Whatever you do with Dragon, you've got to promote it. Here and Dungeon are good ways to reach consumers like me. Otherwise, I don't give the magazine much of a look. I haven't this calendar year.

So, that's my advice for Dragon.

 

[CronoDekar]

The big thing for me is the $40 price tag for the year's subscription -- if it were $20 I'd most likely subscribe (maaaaybe $25 -- what can I say, I'm a pennypusher). Other than that, it's that I rarely see something that stands out to me. Certain articles just have that something which makes me really enjoy reading them. I'll think about it though, look at the issue, and ask myself "do I really want to pay $7 just for this one or two articles?" The answer has never been "yes."

Thinking about what have had that "something" for me: the bard prestige classes back in 270-something, the ninja core class, the article with that system from Oathbound (where you pay XP and get abilities -- that was neat), those old "road to Eberron" or whatever articles, and the article on the Quori (the last one gets me close to buying it).

It's not really a crunch/fluff thing-- there's some of each I like and some I don't like. Sometimes there's crunch that's completely not something I need (the article involving the seven sins come to mind). The only "theme" I can really think of is Eberron -- I love the setting and would like to see more on it, though too much would certainly be overkill. Sooooo, I really can't anticipate any additions you can do besides the price change that'd make me want to buy them -- there'd just have to be stuff I happen to find interesting that's consistently in the issues.

Things that come to mind that I almost never read when I flip through it at a newsstand: fiction, Sage Advice, letters (why read opinions in a magazine when I can go online to read them?), those "articles-by-class" articles whenever they mention flaws or unoriginal character concepts (you can be a fighter WITH HEAVY ARMOR AND A SHIELD ), anything dealing with minis, anything dealing with "this video game/movie/novel is so cool so let's write some stuff on it!" (though I was humored by the chocobo stats), and fiction again. I don't mind the prestige classes, magic items, and spells so much, but I wish they'd be kept to ones that are particularly interesting, useful, unique, and (in the case of prestiges) adaptable.

Oh, and do continue doing that thing where you give suggestions for using material in the various settings -- such little info can make a big difference. In fact, I'd like to see more of stuff like this in various articles.

 

[Faraer]

So Erik has to find out what current readers want, what potential readers want, then please people who want (to be dualistic for the sake of argument) more roolz and less; more named-setting support and less; a more traditional tone and a 'cooler' one; short stories and no short stories; articles with context/depth and stand-alone 'tools philosophy' pieces. And shift more of the cultural locus of D&D away from ENWorld and other online forums.

Some task, and some good suggestions above on how to do this impossible-sounding thing. Just now the two that come to mind are

-- Get writing that sounds as if the author cares, that is not written according to a rigid style guide like a GURPS book. I would say about a half-dozen consistently first-rate authors have appeared in the magazine in the last few years; you can't afford to let them go, or to make potentially good new authors think they have to regulate themselves. I wouldn't choose which campaign to play in according to what ruleset it used, and (here's another dualism) you have to keep the D&D focus but, in most cases, an article that's only interesting if you use the D&D rules is not a good article.

-- Make people understand that an article in an existing setting is not less transportable than one in an unnamed, unknown 'generic' setting.

I certainly side with "Bazaar of the Bizarre" against "Magic Shop", good gods. And girdle against belt, phaerimm against phaerimms. It does no good if everyone understands if nobody cares.

Re "Faiths of Faerûn", the original idea was to have multiclass paths and only occasional prestige classes, but it switched to prestige classes only because they're supposed to be popular.

 

[OregonGM]

Done with Dragon

Add my voice to the list of people dropping Dragon for Dungeon.

Everything I read Dragon for is now in Dungeon. I don't need 15 more PrCs or Magic Items or whathaveyou. Don't change Dragon on my account, there is a need for these things for a lot of players. I, however, am not one of them. I started with Dragon #63 and I'm utterly burned out on that kind of thing.
The niche left unfilled for me is the REAL practical stuff. Where is the best place to buy graph paper? "How to organize your campaign" "who makes the most reliable mechanical pencils".

 

[francisca]

Some more thoughts:

I'd like to see monthly coverage for Greyhawk, which is probably asking too much. How about a tri-monthly rotation where month 1 is a Greyhawk article, month 2 is Forgotten Realms, and month 3 is something else, either an old setting (Mystara, Lankhmar, Planescape, etc..) or a new setting, such as Midnight or even the Scarred Lands. Then rinse and repeat.

Also, I know his health isn't what it used to be, but I for one would like to see Gygax in Dragon again.

So yeah, more Greyhawk, more Gygax. less fiction.

Oh, and hand Rich Burlew a check and put Order of the Stick in Dragon.

and less fiction.