D&D 5E WotC Sept 2023 player survey is live.

[overgeeked]

It was supposed to be in the same post. Since they asked me all about my income and spending habits, my gaming history, and my favorite campaign settings, I'm hoping they will read between the lines. "Hmm, this guy loves Mystara, and he spends hundreds of dollars a month on 5E stuff. Maybe we should connect the dots..."

Honestly though, I don't know if I want Wizards of the Coast to do a full release of the entire Mystara setting. As much as I love it, some of it really hasn't aged well and other parts of it would never get a green light from a cultural sensitivity expert. (And some of it needs to be completely rewritten IMO, but anyway.) If they released something small, like an updated 5E Creature Catalogue with all of the monsters from the old BECMI modules converted to 5E, or maybe an updated version of "Keep on the Borderlands" or "Rahasia," I would be all over it.

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These, but updated for 5E? Yes please!

I'm pretty sure someone did (or is doing) a conversion of the Creature Catalogue to 5E over on RPG.net.

 

[Pedantic]

I spend a lot of money on 3PP product, is mostly what I'm learning here. Shame that WotC doesn't seem to want any of it.

 

[Parmandur]

Honestly though, I don't know if I want Wizards of the Coast to do a full release of the entire Mystara setting. As much as I love it, some of it really hasn't aged well and other parts of it would never get a green light from a cultural sensitivity expert. (And some of it needs to be completely rewritten IMO, but anyway.) If they released something small, like an updated 5E Creature Catalogue with all of the monsters from the old BECMI modules converted to 5E, or maybe an updated version of "Keep on the Borderlands" or "Rahasia," I would be all over it.

OK, so I'm a bored baby mattress right now, so for my amusement, I present a Mystara 5E Slipcase pitch:

A 3 book slipcase along the lines of Spelljammer and Planescape, the first being a general overview of the Known World, inspired by the OG but, like, modernized as needed and not married to certain 80's-isms: surely plenty to fill a solid volume without goong intonoverwhelming detail.

I am no expert on Basic, but I am sure B/X and BECMI and all those modules and the 2E Monstrous Compendium must have enough unrepeated material for a decent Monater book. I know.some of this stuff was a bit lighter and for lack of a better word, whimsical, so thar can be marketable as distinct.

And finally a Campaign centered around the Princess Ark, providing the unique selling point of the Setting product: Mystara is the travelogue world, the point is to fly into "Greek City-State Land", have an Advebture, and then fly off to "1001 Arabian. Ights Lamd" and then "Viking Land." Make it.the Settong of travel and diversity, rather than stereotypes (which it seems was an occasional pitfall of the original).

I would buy it.

 

[Parmandur]

I spend a lot of money on 3PP product, is mostly what I'm learning here. Shame that WotC doesn't seem to want any of it.

WotC is farming salmon, not hunting whales.

 

[Pedantic]

WotC is farming salmon, not hunting whales.

One, that's actively insulting, and two, "whale" has implications about the nature of the market I'm shopping in. Whales are enticed by the opportunity to spend massive amounts of money in predatory situations, like microtransaction-drive video games and casinos.

I buy something like two small splatbooks a month and the occasional larger accessory purchase which admittedly over the 6 month timescale they asked about adds up, but is pretty normal hobbyist spending.

 

[Parmandur]

One, that's actively insulting, and two, "whale" has implications about the nature of the market I'm shopping in. Whales are enticed by the opportunity to spend massive amounts of money in predatory situations, like microtransaction-drive video games and casinos.

I buy something like two small splatbooks a month and the occasional larger accessory purchase which admittedly over the 6 month timescale they asked about adds up, but is pretty normal hobbyist spending.

...?

That sort of spending is actually quite a bit beyond the norm, and is what is referred to as being a whale. That's not offensive terminology.

WotC prodict strategy is aimed at Teens and twentysomethjngs that buy something every blue moon, not people who buy multiple books a month.

 

[Maxperson]

Otherwise known as 'the end of all productivity'.

Until the middle of January!

 

[Quickleaf]

Faulty survey, at least from what I'm noticing.

I get question 15: What is the main reason(s) you haven't played fifth edition D&D in the last 12 months?

To which I have to explain: This is a faulty survey – I played fifth edition D&D one month ago. It's interpreting my answer to "14. When was the last time you played any edition of tabletop D&D other than fifth edition?" being "Within the Last 12 Months" to mean I have not ALSO played fifth edition within those last 12 months. Faulty survey.

 

[Stormonu]

Funny, I didn't get that question even though I answered that I'd played a non-5E edition recently (in my case, 2E).

As for proposing product, I'd suggest a return to Spelljammer for the big thing that was missed - a boardgame/wargame pitting ships against each other in fleet actions, along the lines of X-Wing or Armada. Put 3-4 prepainted plastic ships in the box, and some 3D fold-up/acrylic token ships to go with it, and sell other ships as add-ons individually or in "fleet" packs. They did some of the ships when they released the box set, but didn't really give those of us who want to focus on the wargame side anything to do with them, so at best they were expensive tokens. Wizkids does Attack Wing (and did do a D&D version), so this would be right up their alley to carry out. I'd buy the silly out of it, myself.

 

[Charlaquin]

...?

That sort of spending is actually quite a bit beyond the norm, and is what is referred to as being a whale. That's not offensive terminology.

Whale absolutely is offensive terminology; it reduces the people to whom it refers to mere sources of revenue. Which is exactly the intent, because in reality the people to whom it refers are victims of extremely predatory marketing tactics. Calling them “whales” simultaneously dehumanizes them and disguises the fact that they are most often children with illicit access to parents’ credit card information and adults with gambling or shopping addictions.