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Lawbaga
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Name: Law
Gender: Male
Interests: role-playing games, RPG, computers, internet, music, rock, progressive, ambient
Occupation: Accounting/Finance
Industry: Manufacturing
Message: message meEmail: email me
Member Since:
1/13/2006
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| Im getting annoyed with all the anti-4th edition DND that is all the rage on most forums.
1. there is nothing, no nothing, stopping any company or any individual doing what WOTC have done or are doing.
2. I am getting extremely pissed off with people comparing WOTC to being the McDonalds of the RPG industry.
We all know the health risks of eating any fast food, but the analogy is crooked and false, and simply doesnt work.
Im really looking for ammunition to use against these fools.
While Im not a fan of D20, I do realise its popularity and the importance is stresses on the adventure aspect of the game more than any other system out there.
Lawbag
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| Nothing new. A lot of games get 4th and even 5th editions.
Am I really worried or bothered by 4th edition DND? No not really, as I dont really play it that much. If I was hanging my lively hood on it then yes I would be worried.
Predictions;
1) it will be simplified, a kind of quick start play set of rules, guiding players AND gamesmasters through an entire adventure
2) it will contain miniatures, every monster and character you need to play your first few games
3) the target audience will be far and away from the existing methods of engaging new players, ideally in toy shops, along side famous boardgames.
4) that like a clever drug it will lead the player onto much harder versions of the drug and inspire them to create adventures they want to play
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| Seeing as GR now have the license they have announced on their forums that they will be using a brand new system, not True20 or GoO's Tri-Stat system to power the game.
Now seeing as GR have really tried hard to both bury then resurrect and then bury True20, you are left with a distinct confusion as to what system they will be using for this new game. Now I find this reaction from me and from others in that we are that worried as the system they will employ, as up until 7 years ago (before D20), it was a given thing that each company would pretty much reinvent the wheel when it came to a gaming system. There have been house systems, of which Chaosium's Basic Role-Playing (BRP) and White Wolf's Storyteller system have been reused, but its fair to say that each game had its own feel and character, it was expected that any RPG system would have a unique system which you would have learn.
It will be interesting to see where GR go with this, as not only are they trying to manage True20 and its less than perfect supplements and world books, but also developing WHFRP and also the new WH40K RPG, plus Thieves World, plus and D20 products they decide to push in the meantime.
Are they stretching themselves? Are they heading down the same route as Mongoose? Or are they trying to be one of the top 3 RPG companies at the expense of its fans and customers?
Time will tell.
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| Congratulation, I suppose to Green Ronin for getting the RPG license to George R R Martin's Ice and Fire epics. I saw the announcement on Chris Pramas' livejournal, and clicked the link to their website.
Now this is something they are very excited about (having lost other potential licenses recently), but nowhere is it mentioned that this game is nothing new. Hasn't Guardians of Order (GOO now defunct) already done this game? I dont mind them picking up the old game and making a new edition, but there is no mention in GRs press release which would suggest this.
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Role-playing games are no different from being affected by "flavour
of the month" than any other media form. So when Serenity (the sci-fi
movie based on the Firefly TV series) came out, fan boys rushed to
start playing the role-playing game based on it. Whether it was a
tabletop session, IRC online or PBEM effort. I witnessed many online
RPG PBEM games start and die in the same moment. Its a common enough
occurence. It happened with Babylon 5 and Battlestar Galactica.
So with this years big "geek" film being '300', a movie allegedly
based on the Greek era of history (but more accurately is can only
claim to be based on Frank Miller's graphic novel), suddenly everyone
want to play Greek-esque role-playing games.
So why do you need
an Official Serenity RPG to play Serenity? There has been a Serenity
game available for many years; Traveller, and a '300' role-playing for
as many years as well. Its safe to say that any of the main RPG lines
have had a Greek sourcebook written for them, whether its ADND 2nd
Edition, DND3.5, Rolemaster or GURPS, but fanboys still want to play
the official '300' game, its in their blood.
So why the sudden
interest in this era of history? Because most GMs are mentally
bankrupt, and require constant feeding. After the recent superhero
movie resurrection (Spiderman, X-Men trilogy and Superman), everyone is
wanting a decent superhero game and campaign. From a GMs perspective,
it helps them motivate their players, and provides a ready blanket of
material.
The only film (well, trilogy really) which bucked this
trend and failed to provide and sustain a role-playing legacy, is Lord
of the Rings. Despite a ready made fan base of new and existing
players, and the license having been stolen away from Iron Crown
Enterprises (ICE), this should have been a license for a game creator
to print money, but Decipher (the company who got the go ahead to make
a game of the franchise) managed to release a bad game, then killed it
with no support.
There is a good reason why there isn't a Harry Potter RPG, because
it would suck. Narrow minded game design, and limited replay value has
ensured that everyone would stay away.
Board games, yes, role-playing game, no. | | |
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