Will there be a "For Dummies" book at launch?

[mhensley]

Did anyone read the "DMing for Dummies" book? I looked at the table of contents; looked useful, but did it have any good advice/material in there?

You can read some of the material here-

http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/Sec...html?query=dungeons and dragons&index=article

Oh, and check out this video-

http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesTitle/productCd-0764584596,page-1.html

 

[Jack99]

You know, you're throwing this one right over the plate for me....


...but I will behave this time.

/does his best impersonation of DaveMage..

No need for a dummies book, since 4e seems to be entirely written for dummies...

 

[DaveMage]

/does his best impersonation of DaveMage..

No need for a dummies book, since 4e seems to be entirely written for dummies...

Nah, I don't hold ill will towards the *consumers* of 4e.

My beef is with the business decisions of the company.

 

[Jack99]

Nah, I don't hold ill will towards the *consumers* of 4e.

My beef is with the business decisions of the company.

I didn't mean to imply that either, merely that you thought that 4e in general was being dummed (is that even a word?) down..

Either way, no harm intended, I just couldn't pass it up with that first comment of yours.

Cheers

 

[Imaro]

I don't think they will, even if it's needed, since this would cast some doubts on the whole...simpler/streamlined/easier gameplay claims. Once the game is out for awhile however, I could see them doing this, since by then everyone who was going to purchase it has, and those who need the help would purchase these books as well.

All that aside, my personal feelings echo those above...if the game needs this then it probably failed badly at one of it's major design goals.

 

[ThirdWizard]

Then you won't need "D&D for Dummies".

I don't think the book series has really been about need. There have been several books on what I consider fairly simple subjects. They're mostly, I think, good books for people with very little or no familiarity with the subject matter who want to start simple. I think the main determinator of whether or not we'll see a 4e D&D for dummies will be how the previous ones sold and whether or not the Dummies people are interested in releasing another book about D&D again already. Remember, it was billed as Dungeons and Dragons for Dummies, not Third Edition Dungeons and Dragons for Dummies.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Yeah, that slavicsek guy might break an NDA.

I suspect he's busy at the moment.

 

[Ranger REG]

It would be a nice security blanket for newer folks. Three rule books that size is pretty intimidating to a new gamer.

Perhaps but should the newer folks have to spend $20 more than what we long-time veteran players spend to play the same game?

Maybe the authors should consider making the rulebooks less intimidating. Or is that an insult to the intelligence of my fellow veteran gamers here. I believe they consider "dumbing down" a derogatory term, yes?

 

[Roger]

I too have both the Dummies books and I've used them fairly extensively.

I've found them handy, both personally and as a resource for the other players.

I guess I kind of see them as a very extended FAQ. Since no one really knows what Questions will be Frequently-Asked until the game has been out in the wild for a while, my hope is that there won't be one immediately released. But it's hard to say.

Given the repetition of certain threads around the Internet, I'd be happier to see a Dummies Guide to the Open Game License and the d20 License, but now I'm just dreaming.


Cheers,
Roger

 

[pawsplay]

D&D For People Without a Veteran Gaming Group to Hold their Hand or Who Want to Seem Like a Mature Player Right Out of the Gate does not have the same ring to it, but that's the gist of it. Anyone who bags on the name "for Dummies" has really missed the point, since they're not for dummies; they're for smart, motivated people who simply haven't had the cultural advantages or natural brilliance in a subject that others might.