S_Dalsgaard
First Post
Out of curiosity, are there actually any examples of that happening (a rpg successfully branching out into other markets)? I can't think of any, but I have been away from the hobby for a number of years.
D&D 5E Why such little content (books) for Dnd 5e?
- Thread starter Nostromo
- Start date
Out of curiosity, are there actually any examples of that happening (a rpg successfully branching out into other markets)? I can't think of any, but I have been away from the hobby for a number of years.
miniaturehoarder
First Post
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miniaturehoarder
First Post
TSR did it before internal politics and middle management types dragged it down to Hell
. D&D had a Children's cartoon that lasted for three seasons[video=youtube;mfif5DiGMYc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfif5DiGMYc[/video]
A D&D toyline
http://www.toyarchive.com/DungeonsDragons.html
Gygax was trying to strike movie deal but office politics...
Gary Gygax said:
Later Lorraine Williams would strike a deal, but the damage from that one is yet to be undone.
Battletech got a children's cartoon and a toyline as well.
[video=youtube;A-_-8D8R4CU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-_-8D8R4CU[/video]
http://www.ebay.com/bhp/battletech-tyco]B-tech toys
Oh and it's visual style seemed to be mimiced by TWO different movies.
The Robots looked pretty darn to B-tech style, but maybe that's coincidental or just from similar source material.
[video=youtube;8Kd642Ix5ks]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Kd642Ix5ks[/video]
[video=youtube;IBAUacDVwJo]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBAUacDVwJo[/video]
RPG companies often could get paperback fiction books to shelves, though that was/is a glutted market.
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miniaturehoarder
First Post
That's why they've been licensing the minis out. They get the guaranteed profit of licensing out the property while the GF9 and Wizkids takes any risks.
What you are saying requires two things to be true:
1) Additional supplements will not be profitable (or else that evil profits-are-everything company Hasbro would insist on more supplements.)
2) A smaller operation will not care about making a profit and will put out those supplements anyway.
I don't see those both being true....
Mistwell
Crusty Old Meatwad
1) There is a lot of content in the Adventure Paths, much of which isn't specific to the Adventure Path but which can be used in any game, and much of which is free in the free player supplements;
2) There is a lot of content in the Adventurers League, including good one-shot adventures and additional content that can be used in any game;
3) There is a free Dragon+ Magazine that has usable content
4) There is a TON TON TON of third party material for this game (including an excellent magazine from this very website). In fact I think in less than a year of 5e being out thre is already more 3rd party content for it than there was for the entire run of 4e! I don't know why people don't count third party material, as if only the word "official" matters for game support - but game support is real when it comes from professional game designers in the RPG Industry for this game, and that's who is making most of this third party content. It counts, for a lot. Ignoring it is your choice, but pretending it doesn't exist isn't really a rationale choice.
5) There is a ton of "official" content from the 5e playtest which is easily adaptable to the current 5e game - many one-shot adventures, conversion documents for prior adventures of prior editions, etc.. all of which is pretty easy to obtain still today.
6) 5e is very easy to convert things to - pick up any 1e or 2e module, and it's a pretty simple task to convert it to 5e.
That is a ton of content. It's more than you could go through by this point, even if you were playing the game every single day.
2) There is a lot of content in the Adventurers League, including good one-shot adventures and additional content that can be used in any game;
3) There is a free Dragon+ Magazine that has usable content
4) There is a TON TON TON of third party material for this game (including an excellent magazine from this very website). In fact I think in less than a year of 5e being out thre is already more 3rd party content for it than there was for the entire run of 4e! I don't know why people don't count third party material, as if only the word "official" matters for game support - but game support is real when it comes from professional game designers in the RPG Industry for this game, and that's who is making most of this third party content. It counts, for a lot. Ignoring it is your choice, but pretending it doesn't exist isn't really a rationale choice.
5) There is a ton of "official" content from the 5e playtest which is easily adaptable to the current 5e game - many one-shot adventures, conversion documents for prior adventures of prior editions, etc.. all of which is pretty easy to obtain still today.
6) 5e is very easy to convert things to - pick up any 1e or 2e module, and it's a pretty simple task to convert it to 5e.
That is a ton of content. It's more than you could go through by this point, even if you were playing the game every single day.
Bayonet
First Post
One thing I'd like to point out is that having a mountain of material is a bit off-putting to prospective new players. If all I have to do to start playing is grab a PHB and join a game, I'm much more likely to give it a try. If I need dozens of splatbooks just to stay relevant and know what's going on, I'm likely not going to bother.
I know this might seem ridiculous to some of you guys who have been playing for years, but this is the exact situation that kept me out of the game for years. When you're on the outside looking in, the game and the culture surrounding it are a bit foreign. If you add a splatbook arms race to the mix, you're going to turn away a lot of people.
I know this might seem ridiculous to some of you guys who have been playing for years, but this is the exact situation that kept me out of the game for years. When you're on the outside looking in, the game and the culture surrounding it are a bit foreign. If you add a splatbook arms race to the mix, you're going to turn away a lot of people.
bedir than
Full Moon Storyteller
Totally agree with [MENTION=6780018]Bayonet[/MENTION]. When the splat books come, I'm certain they will just later, don't make characters built using them more powerful. Make them more unique. That way a neophyte can still make a Basic Rules character and be just as effective in combat, exploration, social as one built using something that combines AP, UA and Splat 5th edition.
Odd. I made a 9th level Cleric (Death), a 9th Level Wizard (Evoker), a 7th Level Warlock (Old One), and a 7th Level Paladin (Oathbreaker) in about 15 minutes total for the Temple of Elemental Evil.
I think part of the problem is that you're over thinking it. Don't be slavishly devoted to the EL stuff. Just take what's there and figure out what CR it would be. If you need to tweak it a bit to make the CR fit the same difficulty you probably just add/remove a creature or two. Otherwise tweak the monster using the chart. Of course, monsters with classes from 3E might be trickier.
Remathilis
Legend
I didn't wade through all of this thread (and to be honest, I don't think I need to if it goes anything like how these threads typically go) but I'll toss in my 2 coppers.
1.) When they said "light release schedule", they meant it. Discounting UA (which is more playtests than actual rules right now), we've had one supplement (EE Player's Guide), and it was a free PDF. While I'm relieved to be off the "book of the month club" release schedule, I had really hoped we'd get SOMETHING other than Princes of the Apocalypse and Out of the Abyss as this year's purchase options...
2.) There is really a sense of WotC not knowing what else to do with the game. They have said that they aren't particularly interested in campaign settings and splat/option books, nor have they seemed interested in doing smaller (non AP) modules. There have been hints at further projects (like where those UA rules are going when they reach final form) but WotC is playing things so close to the chest, it is maddening!
3.) I think the Mountain-out-of-a-molehill flack Mearls got for "cancelling something we didn't previously announce" (IE the Adventurer's Handbook) led to A LOT of this radio silence. We got no warning/hype for Dragon+ for example; you'd think the spiritual successor to Dragon Magazine would have gotten some fanfare! I'm convinced if there is a non AP book coming out this year, it will be announced at GenCon and be ready for sale in Sept/Oct.
4.) Focusing solely on the TTRPG for the moment, I'm getting a feeling WotC/Hasbro considers it obligatory/legacy support; hire a design studio to make a tie-in module for the RPG, but the primary focus is now the Neverwinter/SCL modules, the WizKids minis, the Board Games, etc.
5.) Lastly, I think the plans for D&D changed circa Midnight, January 1st, 2015. Right at the time Mearls shut down Legend's and Lore, the last real "talk to the fans" avenue for WotC closed. With that silence game some odd reversals: Adventurer's Handbook (and the concept of accompanying books for APs Mearls' talked about) faded and died. The OGL/fan publishing idea that was discussed for "this spring" has disappeared. The conversion guide awaits final verdict. Sure there is twitter, but those 140 character tweets are light on "here is what we're thinking/doing" and heavy on "we got something, stay tuned".
When most of us heard "light release schedule", we thought "Ok, a splat book, option book, or setting guide, a monster manual, and two APs" I'm wagering few thought two APs and nothing else for the TT...
1.) When they said "light release schedule", they meant it. Discounting UA (which is more playtests than actual rules right now), we've had one supplement (EE Player's Guide), and it was a free PDF. While I'm relieved to be off the "book of the month club" release schedule, I had really hoped we'd get SOMETHING other than Princes of the Apocalypse and Out of the Abyss as this year's purchase options...
2.) There is really a sense of WotC not knowing what else to do with the game. They have said that they aren't particularly interested in campaign settings and splat/option books, nor have they seemed interested in doing smaller (non AP) modules. There have been hints at further projects (like where those UA rules are going when they reach final form) but WotC is playing things so close to the chest, it is maddening!
3.) I think the Mountain-out-of-a-molehill flack Mearls got for "cancelling something we didn't previously announce" (IE the Adventurer's Handbook) led to A LOT of this radio silence. We got no warning/hype for Dragon+ for example; you'd think the spiritual successor to Dragon Magazine would have gotten some fanfare! I'm convinced if there is a non AP book coming out this year, it will be announced at GenCon and be ready for sale in Sept/Oct.
4.) Focusing solely on the TTRPG for the moment, I'm getting a feeling WotC/Hasbro considers it obligatory/legacy support; hire a design studio to make a tie-in module for the RPG, but the primary focus is now the Neverwinter/SCL modules, the WizKids minis, the Board Games, etc.
5.) Lastly, I think the plans for D&D changed circa Midnight, January 1st, 2015. Right at the time Mearls shut down Legend's and Lore, the last real "talk to the fans" avenue for WotC closed. With that silence game some odd reversals: Adventurer's Handbook (and the concept of accompanying books for APs Mearls' talked about) faded and died. The OGL/fan publishing idea that was discussed for "this spring" has disappeared. The conversion guide awaits final verdict. Sure there is twitter, but those 140 character tweets are light on "here is what we're thinking/doing" and heavy on "we got something, stay tuned".
When most of us heard "light release schedule", we thought "Ok, a splat book, option book, or setting guide, a monster manual, and two APs" I'm wagering few thought two APs and nothing else for the TT...
