Worst book WotC made for 3.0?

[Slomoot]

Stupid double postings.. ::sigh:: Sorry

 

[Dr_Rictus]

Exhibit G: Book of Challenges -- how to construct traps that do not logically fit with the technological achievements of the age.

So little of that book consisted of traps that I have to wonder if we read the same book. Like it or not, but it certainly wasn't a book about traps by any stretch.

 

[Apok]

Hero Builder's Guidebook.

Damn, boards are running like crap...

 

[rounser]

Why do we need the stats of all these aviatars?

Those magnificent men in their flying machines...

So little of that book consisted of traps that I have to wonder if we read the same book.

More evidence that those who are voting for it perhaps don't own it? If they're voting for it out of ignorance and assumption, I wonder what's so offensive about the concept of it...

 

[woodelf]

I really can't think of anything that was actually just plain bad.

My 'worst' would have to go to the Hero Builder's Guide, even though I do find it handy. It just doesn't have a huge amount of really useful material; the tables and name lists are okay, but nothing amazing. Still, it's handy for new people (or older players that are not very strong in establishing background), and the name lists are nice if you don't have access to a namegen or something similar.

If that's what you want it for, pick up the Players' Survival Guide for Over the Edge--best single character-development resource i've seen in print, and emminently applicable to any game system. Has the complete rules for OtE, and a tourist's introduction to Al Amarja, as an added bonus.

 

[woodelf]

It's listed on the poll, and I mentioned it as getting my vote. Ever since I bought it, I've increasingly found it less and less inspiring. It's too specific in its treatment of psionics; I was looking for a system that would model the type of psychic abilities you read and see in popular culture and folklore, and this just didn't seem to do that.

or, perhaps it's too general? That is, i think what makes it not feel like psychic powers is what it includes, moreso than what it excludes: displays, the entire metacreativity discipline, some other stuff. IMHO, there are a lot of things that magic can do, that psychic powers shouldn't be able to do. There are very few things that psychic powers can do that magic shouldn't be able to do, but psionics should do some of them better.

 

[woodelf]

Interesting that the two biggest rules expansion excursions (PsiHB and ELH) seem to be largely considered flawed. Maybe it's not so easy to successfully expand on D&D as it seems?

If so, i don't think either of those books really demonstrates it. Neither strayed very far from the core. In the case of the Psionics Handbook, that was exactly the problem: it sucked because it was "just like magic". I am, of course, hyperbolating. But, in addition to some serious balance issues (displays are more of a hindrance than components; need to have all your stats high unless you're a specialist), the degree to which it overlapped/resembled the PH, and failed to resemble psychic powers as generally depicted in fantasy/sf literature was what really killed it.

As for the ELH, again, it was mostly morer and bigger, rather than something really new. Epic spellcasting is the one major exception, and DMs' Option: High Level Campaigns did it better, IMHO. And, in any case, it just didn't seem like a very good fit for the D&D3E magic system, in several ways.

 

[woodelf]

But my biggest question is... what the hell is Manual of the Planes doing here? That book is simply my favourite! I want to know the explanation from the ones who voted it...

Where you stand depends on where you sit, as they say. From my POV, i was hoping for a lot more of the "toolkit" elements, and a lot less space "wasted" on the Great Wheel cosmology and attendant stuff. And, if you're gonna spend all that time on the Great Wheel, you cannot ax the modrons in favor of some lame ant-people.

As a toolkit, Manual of the Planes had to live up to The Primal Order: Chessboards--that's the yardstick for fantasy multiverse toolkits. And it barely scratched the surface of the topic. If you're gonna have a fairly bland, straightforward toolkit (as was included in MotP), then you may as well just skip it, IMHO--it wasn't particularly impressive, rules-wise, and wasn't at all inspirational. All the options are quite bland, and in several areas (how planes interact, frex), it didn't even explore all the obvious possibilities, much less the fantastical.

So that leaves it as mostly a book about the Great Wheel cosmology--which is fine, but i thought it was pretty lightweight in that area, too, with nowhere near enough depth.

So, in short: so-so exploration of the Great Wheel (which, btw, i don't care for as a cosmology, to boot), and very lackluster toolkit. Only redeeming feature was some of the example alternate planes, IMHO. And they weren't enough (in either pagecount or quality) to redeem a book of that size.

 

[buzz]

So, in short: so-so exploration of the Great Wheel (which, btw, i don't care for as a cosmology, to boot), and very lackluster toolkit. Only redeeming feature was some of the example alternate planes, IMHO. And they weren't enough (in either pagecount or quality) to redeem a book of that size.

I generally liked MotP, but I'll admit that I found the "teaser" planar material that was in the issue of Dragon that was published prior to its release *way* more interesting than most of the stuff in the actual book.

I have a feeling that WotC wanted to release someting that was essentially the Planescape setting, yet still looked like a generic resource, and ended up with something that was really neither. I still liked the book, though.

As for the HBG, I think people are being too hard on it. It was intended as an introductory text for newbies, and it does that pretty well. Considering that the 3.0 PHB had zero introductory content, the HBG could be pretty useful. That, and it's a fairly inexpensive book (only $11 from Amazon.com).

 

[Remathilis]

I voted Book of Challenges, but Even that had its good parts.

SONG AND SILENCE! Man that book stank. The least PrCs with the most boring or poorly done ideas, one bard PrC (which was better for a sorc/rogue anyway,) Trap information that should have been in the DMG (yeah 3.5!), Some less than useful feats (though some gems do exist.) and a handful of bard spells (a few gems, but those also made it into 3.5) The one thing that made that book salvagable was the alternate rules for MW instruments.

Runners up include Allies and Enemies (most the NPC's are not generic.), Defenders of the Faith (wonky PrCs, why no errrata?), and The Hero Builders Guidebook (though I like the name list and backgorund charts.)