[WOTC] Revised Corebooks for July confirmed with info

[WizarDru]

Curse their black hearts! Daring to (gasp) TURN A PROFIT!

Don't they know the de rigeur of the gaming industry is to eek out an existence before going out of business entirely? The fiends! Why, I bet they were in it to make money all along!

 

[Qlippoth]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Curious...

3 editions? I smell a snarky fanboy, 'cause that's flat-out nonsense. 3 "official" editions, fine. Quite a few unofficial revisions in the first couple of years. Remember when each extra success on the attack roll used to add to damage for all forms of attacks, not just firearms? That lasted about 10 minutes. Ah, how I miss my street-fighter vampire with pipe-cleaner arms, but coordination out the yin-yang.

How much did White Wolf charge you for "unofficial revisions"?

 

[Kichwas]

This is serious right? This isn't a late April fools entry or anything?


It's great news where I stand, if it makes the revisions I desire (have to go read that list again).

Or it could be bad news, if it doesn't.


As long as Bioware puts out an extension with revisions to Neverwinter Nights to match it I'll be happy.

Though I imagine that chances of that are just slightly greater than the chances of Bill Gates ever needing to beg me for some spare change...

 

[The Halfling]

Hasbro claim that 25% will be new material and all three books combined will cost $90. So by their own figures, if you have the three current books, you'll wind up paying $90 for $22.50 (= 0.25 x 90) worth of new stuff. Ergo:

Ha$bro = T$R

This seems to be a rather knee-jerk reaction, to say the least.

T$R received this moniker for many reasons, the main one being that many of their products required and/or referenced many other T$R products. Thus forcing you to purchase additional products if you wanted to play the game complete.

WotC understood this, and so tries to keep each book as free-standing as possible. Any material referenced from another source or book has been included. But even this has caused consternation as the perception of rehashed/repackaged material floats about.

It just shows that no matter what anyone tries to do, you just can't please everyone. You try to please/appease the majority.

Now reprints WILL eventually have to be done for ALL of the books, and errata and errors should be corrected in those reprints. Now given the chance to make some minor adjustments to rules flaws that nearly 3 years of real-world gaming have uncovered, WotC decides to do so.

Given that the price of the current core books is already MSRP $29.95 ea, WotC decides to increase the size of the page count for all of the books, yet keep the pricing stable. Corrections, adjustments, rules pulled from other sources, and even some truly new material will all be included.

Why? Yes, to sell more core books. WotC has always stated the to 3 books (esp. the PHB) are always the best sellers. I can't fault them for this. Nor can I argue with it. Clearer rules, good presentation, and more material will sell this book, especially to new players.

 

[Kichwas]

I bet ... and there's yet ANOTHER version of polymorph self.

They could always save that for a monthly Dragon article...

This month's version of Polymorph Self...


I'd like to see a revised skill list for the sorcerer to take advantage of Charisma being their prime stat, and maybe something present in their level chart, even if it was just useless goodies for flavor. But mostly, the skill list revision.

 

[Psion]

Don't they know the de rigeur of the gaming industry is to eek out an existence before going out of business entirely?

"Eek" out an existence? There's one for the homonym/disfigure of speech file, as well as an interesting mental picture to boot.

FFR: eke
eke1
tr.v. eked, ek·ing, ekes

1. To supplement with great effort. Used with out: eked out an income by working two jobs.
2. To get with great effort or strain. Used with out: eke a bare existence from farming in an arid area.
3. To make (a supply) last by practicing strict economy. Used with out.

 

[EricNoah]

Clearer rules, good presentation, and more material will sell this book, especially to new players.

Spot on.

From what I've read and from what I am guessing, I believe the new revised edition is not really made for "people like us." We're connected, we know where to find errata, we know how to look up the D&D FAQ. We know how to get questions answered, and we know how to find house rules for some of the more "iffy" core D&D rules.

I believe that the revised edition will be more for people who have gone these two (and it will be nearly three by the time the books come out) years without ever logging on to the WotC website. And even moreso it will be for the (hopefully) ever-present group of new players who have yet to crack open a D&D book.

I can see how it rankles -- some of the "value added" stuff put in specifically to lure "people like us" into buying the revised edition will be new. And now they'll be core rules, where they weren't core rules before. How WotC plans to share those things with those of us who are connected remains to be seen, but my bet is on an updated SRD if nothing else. And that will be adequate for "people like us" who already have most of the rules and just might need some of the extra stuff for future use.

 

[jgbrowning]

Certainly it should be. My statements here are in context of all the fear and loathing being leveled at the books here. I certainly don't think that new campaign advice is something that is going to throw a monkey wrench in current games, like some possible revisions could.

I don't think its so much fear and loathing as annoyance in the method of presentation. I'd like the option of not paying 90$ even if 25% of it is utterly completely new. This line in particular bothers me....

- Editorial coverage throughout Spring 2003 in Dragon and Dungeon magazines.


Hrm.. what do they need editorial coverage for? Are they leaving good stuff out intentionally to see more Dragon product? Are they aware that somethings aren't quite right already and they'll just fix them in dragon instead of figuring them out beforehand? Or do they just know that they'll be things they didn't think of that need to be clarified? I'm interested in seeing which (or all) of the above are what they're talking about.

joe b.

 

[Ashrem Bayle]

I'm just waiting on The Psionics Handbook 1.1.

In my opinion, that is the one book that puts all other to shame when it comes to broken rules, crooked concepts, and imballances.


Followed closely by Sword and Fist...

I would however also like to see a hardback compilation of all the splatbooks.

Hey, I can dream can't I?

 

[Negative Zero]

I'll happily buy the new books IF they're bound more solidly than the last batch. My 21 year old 1E PHB has a rock-solid spine; my lightly-used 3E PHB is ready to disintigrate at a touch.

what are you doing with yours??? mine's still pristine and up until a month ago, i played 3 times a week, every week. now i'm down to once a week, tho once the season is over it'll go back up to a nice regular twice weekly schedule.

~NegZ