D&D General Why grognards still matter

[GothmogIV]

I am a master grognard (first game in 1981). D&D the brand is very different than D&D the concept. In other words, there is a company selling an iteration of the D&D game (5.5?), and that's the brand: the books, D&D Beyond, plushie owl bears, beard oil, etc. Then there is D&D the concept: the idea of Dungeons&Dragons which so many of us know and love.

D&D the brand is not for me. It's not bad, or wrong, or less than, or worse. It is fundamentally a different game than the one I used to play. Everything changes (insert picture of serene Buddha). D&D the concept lives in my heart forever. I have enough disposable income to buy pretty much whatever I want, and I buy a lot of TTRPG stuff since this is, literally, my only hobby. I do not buy WotC books anymore because I don't like the new iteration of the game (and also WotC/Hasboro sucks). I play other systems now (Star Trek, DCC, Castles&Crusades, Dragonbane, Call of Cthulhu, soon OSE and Runequest) and love them all.

So long live D&D, the greatest game ever created! Fair winds and following seas to those who are first coming to the game and enjoying the current edition!

 

[Cergorach]

I think your definition of a 'Grognard' is way too positive!

But I'll translate it to "Why old people still matter (to WotC)."... Two things:
#1 We 'make' the next generation of D&D players, sometimes literally.
#2 We tend to have more money, the question is IF we want to spend it on D&D. As an example, I've bought most 3e and 4e when it came out and collected most of 2e when I was able to afford it. I never actually played 4e, but I play 5e and only bought the PHB 2014 back in the day, only bought the DMG/MM at the end of 2023 and bought the five Foundry VTT official D&D modules (no physical books) and we now play D&D5e 2024... In the last decade I did buy some big miniatures, like the huge Tiamat and some smaller dragons, so they get a part from Wizkids. BG3 was bought. WAY, way less then what I bought during 20-30 years of age...

Many in my group do buy more books though, but some have given away most of their collection to young family members who where playing more often then us and just had way less disposable income.

While we tend to have more money, we also have more things to spend it on, and often less time to play. So it really depends on the 'old person' what their spending habit is. I remember a time when I was young that just about any little bit of cash went into D&D (or other RPGs)...

What I would call a 'Grognard' wouldn't play any current D&D, wouldn't buy any of the new D&D products, they would continue to play their old collection. So zero benefit to WotC, even introducing new players to D&D in general would probably do more damage then good. Often their vitriol at anything current D&D or WotC would just alienate any new player to 5e/WotC. OR they would just play the best game ever made: "Heroquest is the best game ever made!", and not that new fangled stuff!

 

[NN]

Im more interested in “why should Hasbro matter to ‘grognards’”?

 

[Bedrockgames]

......and the only consolation is that one day it'll be their turn to complain about it.

This will happen much faster than any of them realize. Twenty years flies by and your an old man before you know it

 

[DEFCON 1]

My question would be "Why does it matter to someone that they matter?"

I find it to be psychologically unhealthy if a person is all that concerned about "mattering" to a company, organization, or hobby. Because that person is spending time trying to get the attention of an inanimate thing that doesn't see individuals at all.

People will be much happier in their lives if they only concern themselves with the things they can control (like their table and their game) and have the wisdom to let go of the things they can't (like what a corporation like Hasbro chooses to do.)

 

[jasper]

you cannot defend my grandmaster grognard d20 with 0-9 twice which I inked in Aug 29,1980. My the power of my d20 i will defeat your ducky d20.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

I’ve been RPing for a long, long time. Since the late 90s. I bought one book: phb 3.5.

If purchasing power is the only thing that matters to the hobby, I practically don’t exist.

 

[ezo]

I practically don’t exist.

Who are you, again? (j/k)

 

[DEFCON 1]

I’ve been RPing for a long, long time. Since the late 90s. I bought one book: phb 3.5.

If purchasing power is the only thing that matters to the hobby, I practically don’t exist.

Which is exactly why selling product isn't the only thing that matters... despite the naysayers who complain that everything WotC does is about just selling more books. Life is not that simple.

 

[Parmandur]

I didn't say anything about starting a revolution, nor am I complaining or asking WotC to pay attention to me. I'm just pointing out that grognards of different stripes, as a demographic, represent a lot of purchasing power -- especially once you go beyond the core rulebooks. They matter to WotC's bottom line and thus shouldn't be entirely ignored.

Well, first. Probably less significant a percentage yham you imagine, and second, they do like all the time: they just reprinted OD&D and published a compilation of Adventures from the 70s and 80s, and have a Keep on the Borderlands Starter Set and Forgotten Realms products in the pipeline.