You are D&D's Bible Keeper - What do you do?

[Moon-Lancer]

rycanada is pretty close. I don't know if something that would be simply fixed by a low magic setting (but not low powered pc's), or if its something more profound that that.

 

[Ry]

I'd recommend checking out Ars Magica for an alternate idea for magic - it feels more esoteric somehow. Also, if you're willing to trade off easy-to-adjudicate for mysterious, an old game called Everway might be able to accomodate (although it's too far afield for my tastes).

 

[Mercule]

So, if you were to be put in charge of D&D, you'd make enemies and hurt your own sales at the same time? Good plan!

Like I said, business sense would probably stop me from killing FR. I hate drow enough that I might not be able to resist. At the least, drow would be removed from the MM1 for 4E and relegated to either FR source or MM2 so they were available but not core. They would also not make it to the next version of the SRD (actually, I'm not sure if they're currently in there).

 

[Mercule]

Monster write-ups without any background material would be a very boring read, though.

I don't disagree. I like a bit of flavor, but not too much. The biggest thing that I miss about Gygax's writing is that he had a way of hinting at flavor without actually giving you anything that didn't have to be customized.

The 1E DMG was a masterful product for simple idea generation. I still use it. Which reminds me, there's a passage in there I need to read before my Tuesday 3.5 game.

If you read this, thank you, Gary. Your writing is still entertaining me after two and a half decades and has provided me with more fun and use than any other author's.

 

[drothgery]

Okay, I can't change the rules of the game (lots of people in this thread seem to want to do that), just flavor. So I'm going to do some things that hardcore D&D fans will either love or hate, and which just may be a bad business move. The only near-rules change I'm making is nuking the silly DMG demographics which say almost everyone is a 1st level commoner, and replacing it with a chart where average, competent, working adults are 3rd-5th level.

I'm launching a new setting to replace Greyhawk as the default D&D standard. I'd just use Eberron, but Keith Baker says it's too wonky to make core, and I'll defer to him on this. And it's not going to cover any major new conceptual ground; the major point of the new setting will be that, unlike Greyhawk (or the Realms, for that matter), but like Eberron, the new setting will be designed from the ground up to work with 3.5 mechanics. This setting will contain as much OGL content as possible; the world map, cosmology, short summaries of nations, and major NPCs will be out there for any publisher to use.

You'll be able to get the basics of the new setting in a revised PHB (new art, include all errata, swift/immediate actions, add artificers, add archivists, drop monks, drop barbarians, remove polymorph, add duskblade, find a good light-fighter class and add it, drop half-orcs and half-elves). And they'll be an inexpensive 160-page or so Players Guide to NewSetting for people who don't want to buy a new PHB.

To make Greyhawk diehards happy, and tell them we're not abandoning them, we'll release a nice, 300 page or so full-color Greyhawk Campaign Setting at the same time the revised PHB hits print.

Neither Greyhawk nor the new setting are going to get a lot of dedicated support. I'll work out some sort of licensing deal to let Pazio put out Greyhawk material (I'll be charging a lot less than WotC would, though I will be grabbing part of the profits). And the new setting will largely be supported the way Greyhawk is now -- through core materials.

And I'll institute a policy of moving new rules content to the SRD six to nine months after it's available in print.

 

[jefgorbach]

* Maintain the watermarked PDF releases, reducing the price to reflect savings on lack of paper/transport/etc costs; 30% ?? Include the novels for the thriving ebook community.

* finally update the Dragon Magazine CD as originally promised
** consider a Dungeon Magazine CD

* Update Greyhawk, Dark Sun, Planescape, etc to v3.5 for cross-planar campaigns, otherwise whats the "point" of a mutliversal spanning astral plane?

* Do old style Gazeteers for each of the FR/Eberron nations; at least as PDF's

* Redo D20 Modern/Future for compatablity with D20 or provide conversion rules.

* Talk with Hasbro's other product heads on how they make action figures with moveable parts, removable equipment, vehicles, etc AT a profit then revise scale for possible cross-line sales. (Sure GI JOE vs Cobra is interesting, but how much more so had Cobra secretly been Yuan ti?) Consider d20 tie-ins for each line (d20 GI Joe, d20 Transformers, etc)
** Find out who currently owns the Battletech license to do as both action-figure minitures and a d20 Future accessory

* have the GI Joe/Transformer cartoonists animate some of the classic campagin arcs - G1-3/D1-3, Elemental Evil, Tomb of Horrors, Age of Worms, etc. as another way to advertise and renew/increase interest, especially between the generations.

 

[Steel_Wind]

OK, you wake up, and you're in charge of the D&D brand - not the rules, mind you, just the content (chromatic / metallic dragons, Hieroneous, Pelor, Vecna, etc).

You've been told to take it wherever you like, nothing is sacred, but you need to work with existing elements (changing, remaking, etc. rather than introducing totally new things).

What do you do with this awesome power?

Hire Erik Mona as my 2iC, take credit for his work, give myself a raise and go on vacation.

 

[Ry]

And they'll be an inexpensive 160-page or so Players Guide to NewSetting [...] To make Greyhawk diehards happy, and tell them we're not abandoning them, we'll release a nice, 300 page or so full-color Greyhawk Campaign Setting at the same time the revised PHB hits print.

Neither Greyhawk nor the new setting are going to get a lot of dedicated support. I'll work out some sort of licensing deal to let Pazio put out Greyhawk material (I'll be charging a lot less than WotC would, though I will be grabbing part of the profits). And the new setting will largely be supported the way Greyhawk is now -- through core materials.

And I'll institute a policy of moving new rules content to the SRD six to nine months after it's available in print.

That's a lot along the lines of what I'd be thinking. But how much would the NewSetting and Greyhawk have in common?

 

[Nightfall]

Steel,

I think that's been tried before...

Mystery magic?! What's next mystery meat?! Sorry but I want magic that won't blow me up just cause I can't speak Draconic. Then again, wild magic is fine, but it's just more fun to watch than be a part of.

Jef,

I like the action figure ideas. Think we could get them to invest in some Kyuss and/or Lord Soth action figures?

 

[Angel Tarragon]

Steel,

I think that's been tried before...

Mystery magic?! What's next mystery meat?! Sorry but I want magic that won't blow me up just cause I can't speak Draconic. Then again, wild magic is fine, but it's just more fun to watch than be a part of.

Jef,

I like the action figure ideas. Think we could get them to invest in some Kyuss and/or Lord Soth action figures?

Mystery magic = shadow magic.

Interesting take.