Why Dragon Magazine?

[Arnwyn]

I have an honest question: Why do you buy Dragon magazine?

What does Dragon offer? If Dragon is the players' magazine, what does it offer to players that they want/need? Yet more PrCs, feats, core classes, spells, or something else?

This is a genuine question from a guy with an obvious DM-bias here, but I would like to hear your responses.

I'm a DM, and here's why I buy Dragon:

- Faint hope that they'll regularly publish FR material (Impiltur! Cities of the Realms! Anything by Ed - MORE please!)
- Demonomicon. 'Nuff said.
- the annual Campaign Classics issue
- any tie-ins with Dungeon's Adventure Path (brilliant marketing, BTW!)
- odds and ends that might be interesting (the 'travel' article in July's issue, the Inner Planes stuff in August's)

I despise new feats, PrCs, spells, and magic items, and that's why I quit subscribing for a year or two before Mona et al got going with it. The Matt Sernett years at Dragon were absolutely dismal, and I cheered when he left.

 

[Krelios]

OotS, and other great pictures.

I read OotS for free online.

 

[Crust]

A question.

How much of a given Dungeon magazine do you use? And do you play in the Adventure Path modules?

Sure, I can't use all the modules in a Dungeon mag, but each one serves as inspiration, and each one can be used in the future if I need an extra quest or two. Also, I can snatch a map, a monster boss, and NPC from a module that I won't necessarily use, and place them in my campaign. Dungeon doesn't screw around. It's three solid modules for active DMs, and that's what I want. I also enjoy the mini articles in the back. There's always some great tidbits in those short articles.

And yes, my group is in the middle of the Three Faces of Evil module from the Age of Worms path.

Dragon isn't a bad magazine, and I often buy single issues when I find one that interests me. It's not worth it for me to subscribe, though.

 

[KB9JMQ]

Dungeon is a tool that I use in my games.
Dragon is just a good read that may affect my gaming.

 

[Captain Howdy]

I have a slightly off topic question: Has Orcus been featured in the Demonomicon series in Dragon yet? I don't subscribe, but I will definetly buy that issue.

To answer the question of the OP: As a DM, I don't find any use for Dragon beyond the occasional tidbit of inspiration I will get from an article. If I was a player, I could probably get some use out of the PrC's and feats, but not too much.

The main thing that kept me subscribing to Dragon for about 5 years is the fact that the articles are just interesting to read. Honestly, I never used a whole lot of stuff from Dragon, but I read a lot of cool articles. It's the same reason I subscribe to any other magazine, it's something to read when I'm bored... Plus it has nice art, and the occasional extra like dungeon tiles or maps.

 

[JoeGKushner]

I like options.

I was very happy when the new Creature Catalog hit.

Some great new monsters there.

I also enjoy some of the comics. I'm very glad that they have Order of the Stick now.

Enjoyed Wormfood too for what it's worth and hope they do something similiar with Savage Tide.

 

[Arnwyn]

I have a slightly off topic question: Has Orcus been featured in the Demonomicon series in Dragon yet? I don't subscribe, but I will definetly buy that issue.

Not yet!

 

[Nightfall]

Dragon, for my Orcus fix! Dungeon for my "Orcus wants you to buy this to bash some pesky adventurers' skulls in and enslave them for him."

 

[Angel Tarragon]

My spending habits on RPGs has been curbed due to fiscal problems, but $80 a year for a subscription to both is just too hard to pass up, plus it is new material on a monthly basis.

Dragon = Idea mining and inspiration.
Dungeon = Plenty of adventures to choose from.

 

[mhacdebhandia]

I read OotS for free online.

But you can't read the strips printed in Dragon there.