Quote from: Benoist;533781Whatever it is, it can't be good. Monte Cook is not a drama queen. It's got to be a pretty significant disagreement to make him throw the towel and quit.

Have tried to not give too much of a shit,

But this seems correct.  It would also be a nearly irrevocable achievement in his resume to once again churn out The D&D Savior edition.  Understand it from his viewpoint in terms of what he could have been achieving.  

No small thing to make him leave that behind.

Quote from: Marleycat;533786Love him or hate him he is a very good designer and it really isn't good news for 5e from an outsider's prospective.

I don't have a strong opinion either way, but the vote on that is far from unanimous. Nowadays when I think of Monte, the first thing that comes to mind are the Wizards columns in which he revealed that he isn't exactly what one would call "aware" of the D&D rules.

Quote from: Halloween Jack;533795I don't have a strong opinion either way, but the vote on that is far from unanimous. Nowadays when I think of Monte, the first thing that comes to mind are the Wizards columns in which he revealed that he isn't exactly what one would call "aware" of the D&D rules.

I really think it was less a case of him being unaware of the rules and more a case of him not understanding where the current edition landmines are and speaking too casually on the subject.

Quote from: Benoist;533781Whatever it is, it can't be good. Monte Cook is not a drama queen. It's got to be a pretty significant disagreement to make him throw the towel and quit.

Exactly, which is why with this announcement my interest in 5e has gone from "somewhat skeptical but interested" to "extremely skeptical and somewhat disinterested."

Double post.

Quote from: BedrockBrendan;533800I really think it was less a case of him being unaware of the rules and more a case of him not understanding where the current edition landmines are and speaking too casually on the subject.

Exactly. Heck, I think just by doing 5e Wotc is starting to learn this finally. Let's hope it isn't too late for 5e, them, and with those two things, us in the bargain.

Hmmm. I expressed reservations over the quality of a next generation of D&D based merely on the business methodology of WotC under Hasbro. Monte then says

QuoteMy decision is one based on differences of opinion with the company. However, I want to take this time to stress that my differences were not with my fellow designers, Rob Schwalb and Bruce Cordell.

Hmmm. Looks like I might not have been the only one.

At any rate:
FaithIn5eNotBeingAPileOfShit--;

Cordell is pretty hit-or-miss with his work.  Mostly miss.

hmm no mention of Mearls in that, maybe a falling out

Quote from: Halloween Jack;533795I don't have a strong opinion either way, but the vote on that is far from unanimous. Nowadays when I think of Monte, the first thing that comes to mind are the Wizards columns in which he revealed that he isn't exactly what one would call "aware" of the D&D rules.

Since WotC was flushing 4th, why should he give a shit about rules that nearly tanked the brand?

Frankly, this is good news for me. Let it die already.

I want to see WOTC fade away from RPGs altogether. I want to see the geriatric Gibbering Mouther of D&D as a brand to be pulled from life support and solemnly buried in a forgotten catacomb. We don't need a brand to PLAY D&D. We don't need a brand to keep the hobby alive. All this pandering to WOTC's existence is pure nonsense.

With all the clones, the OGL, and the ability to mimic any edition or combination of stuff from any edition I hardly see why 5e is needed. You can hobble together all kinds of awesome kit-bashes right now.

There are HUNDREDS of RPGs currently in print or available in some form. The online community exists outside any company. The OSRIC/Old School movement has grown and thrived with small companies and FANS making games/modules for enthusiasts.

You can play D&D the way you want. Right now.

One one side we have our frothing-at-the-mouth desire for high gloss color art super thick hard back collectible tomes and the other we have a desire to pay bottom dollar for them. We have throngs of pop valley-girl-accented near-do-gamers who build clout by sharing pictures of straining bookshelves filled with games they'll never play. Our hobby has derailed into a Hollywood BLVD caricature of itself. It's become a fucking mess.

I think the hobby needs to migrate back to a full-on cottage industry. Let's make cool shit, sell it to each other, and play the fucking games. Let's focus on having fun (and supporting each other in having fun).

Maybe this industry is not fit to pull 50 million bucks a year. Who gives a shit? Have you seen what small publishers can accomplish these days? Why do you need a million dollar budget to make awesome? You don't. I'm confident with the technologies and talent available today we will still see awesome stuff produced by awesome people that blows our minds. All without some corporate [strike]suit[/strike] fucktard looking over our shoulders.

D&D as a brand needs to be shelved for 10, hell 20 years! The sabbatical would do it, and our hobby, some good.

Just my two cents...

Quote from: CRKrueger;533820Since WotC was flushing 4th, why should he give a shit about rules that nearly tanked the brand?

If the 4e rules are that unpopular, presumably he'd want to know what those unpopular rules are, so that he doesn't, y'know...do the exact same thing?

Quote from: CRKrueger;533820Since WotC was flushing 4th, why should he give a shit about rules that nearly tanked the brand?

As much as I hate 4e, it did provide some useful rules innovations.  Rituals are my personal favorite part of the system.

Quote from: Halloween Jack;533822If the 4e rules are that unpopular, presumably he'd want to know what those unpopular rules are, so that he doesn't, y'know...do the exact same thing?

Give it a fucking rest already.

The problem was mostly that he didn't necessary bother to attribute design elements to their origins in 4E, or didn't mention 4E elements if they weren't of special relevance to his point.

The real problem there is internet princesses who are so pathetic they identify themselves with their taste in consumables.

If people want to mindlessly choose a side and cheer for it, I don't know why they don't just go in for football.

Bickering online is a sport for nerds.