Besides burn the place down.
I would recreate a basic version of the game that covers levels 1- 10 , stripped of all the clutter and feats and garbage that made it complicated.
I would change modules to be built around tiers of play instead of adventure paths that go from 1-20. I'd package 1e modules into sandboxes to make the whole long enough to justify a hardback. Like Tales of the whatever portal but connected. (B2, T1, N1, B5, others) would make a nice first tier sandbox.
I'd release another campaign world or Three. These would not have every class or every monster but would be subsets to provide examples of how a DM can make a world feel different using existing rules.
Quote from: Ruprecht on October 27, 2024, 04:47:25 PMI would recreate a basic version of the game that covers levels 1- 10 , stripped of all the clutter and feats and garbage that made it complicated.
This is a bad idea. D&D learned long ago not to make two versions of essentially the same game.
Quote from: Ruprecht on October 27, 2024, 04:47:25 PMI would change modules to be built around tiers of play instead of adventure paths that go from 1-20. I'd package 1e modules into sandboxes to make the whole long enough to justify a hardback. Like Tales of the whatever portal but connected. (B2, T1, N1, B5, others) would make a nice first tier sandbox.
Many player groups I've seen lately consider a campaign's identity to be based upon one of the "super-modules" and don't really want a sandbox. What you propose will certainly appeal to old school and hardcore gamers, but I don't really think that is who 5e is trying to appeal to--the money is better found in hordes of more casual players.
Quote from: Ruprecht on October 27, 2024, 04:47:25 PMI'd release another campaign world or Three. These would not have every class or every monster but would be subsets to provide examples of how a DM can make a world feel different using existing rules.
Again, this is old thinking. Don't get me wrong, I would love to see such products, but that isn't how the game is commonly played these days.
Can I release everything to which WotC holds the rights as Community Content, and then burn the place down? ;)
Quote from: HappyDaze on October 27, 2024, 05:34:28 PMQuote from: Ruprecht on October 27, 2024, 04:47:25 PMI would recreate a basic version of the game that covers levels 1- 10 , stripped of all the clutter and feats and garbage that made it complicated.
This is a bad idea. D&D learned long ago not to make two versions of essentially the same game.
Quote from: Ruprecht on October 27, 2024, 04:47:25 PMI would change modules to be built around tiers of play instead of adventure paths that go from 1-20. I'd package 1e modules into sandboxes to make the whole long enough to justify a hardback. Like Tales of the whatever portal but connected. (B2, T1, N1, B5, others) would make a nice first tier sandbox.
Many player groups I've seen lately consider a campaign's identity to be based upon one of the "super-modules" and don't really want a sandbox. What you propose will certainly appeal to old school and hardcore gamers, but I don't really think that is who 5e is trying to appeal to--the money is better found in hordes of more casual players.
Quote from: Ruprecht on October 27, 2024, 04:47:25 PMI'd release another campaign world or Three. These would not have every class or every monster but would be subsets to provide examples of how a DM can make a world feel different using existing rules.
Again, this is old thinking. Don't get me wrong, I would love to see such products, but that isn't how the game is commonly played these days.
I agree that is what WotC says, and Designers & Dragons says, but I think they also lost a lot of gamers with these moves and it wasn't having two games so much as the way it was handled.
A basic game from 1-10 would basically be an OSR game that feeds into the normal game but could be played on its own as well. Not a separate system like BEXM. Modules by tiers would ensure you would have sandboxes for levels 1-5 and 6-10 which would then support OSR style play. You have the modules work for both versions of the game so you don't stopping those playing the full game from buying basic modules.
If the modules are designed to be usable in multiple settings you lose the main problem with multiple campaign worlds as well.
If 5e players want railroads start some that go from 5-20 the way Storm King's Thunder does with its disposable first chapter. I have no problem with that. They start with a 1-5 module and then move on to the longer railroad if that's what they want.
Quote from: Armchair Gamer on October 27, 2024, 05:42:52 PMCan I release everything to which WotC holds the rights as Community Content, and then burn the place down? ;)
Releasing the rights is a good idea but stockholders might raise holy hell.
I'd put 1st Edition AD&D Hardcovers, back in print, on store shelves. Exact reprints, with different print / binding options.
Re-release a greatest hits, of AD&D adventures, in exact replica packaging.
Cash in on nostalgia.
Remove all modern day Seattle politics from every product. Reissue all 5e (and beyond) books with classic heroic art. Make orcs and drow and other monstrous races evil again.
Probably get fired, as most of my ideas about what to do with D&D are the opposite of the strategies that have been working for WOTC for over a decade.
For D&D as a game, I'd probably take the stance that it isn't broken, and therefore doesn't need to be fixed. Maybe an occasional new printing of the rulebooks, with errata and minor changes, but I would genuinely try to keep the core rulebooks "evergreen" (at least for the foreseeable future).
I would diversify, but not by resurrecting the Basic line. Instead I'd make another game set in the Forgotten Realms that is designed to be precisely the kind of game D&D is not, kind of like what Heroquest was to Runequest. I might even make it a storygame. I'd probably also put out a sci fi game and maybe a horror one.
But I think I'd direct most of my efforts towards building D&D up as an IP. So first I'd re-release the better D&D novels, possibly with graphic novel adaptations, see who I could get to write some new ones, and then I'd start figuring out which stories to shop to Netflix/Amazon for an animated series. I'd also commission somebody like Larian or Owlcat studios to make a Planescape: Torment 2, and maybe reach out to Creative Assembly to see if I could get Dark Sun: Total War made. In general, I'd be leaning hard on Planescape, Forgotten Realms and Dark Sun. Mystara and Greyhawk are too similar to FR, and Spelljammer is too much of a mess.
The idea would be to build audience investment in the settings themselves, (characters, lore, factions, etc.), before I try to trade on them as RPG products. Faerun would remain the default setting for D&D, and become the canon Prime Material plane for Planescape, which I would eventually publish as an expansion for D&D, probably via a BECMI-style series of gazetteers. Dark Sun I would probably make its own game, with D&D-like rules, but explicitly not compatible with base D&D.
1) Simplify and strip down the 5e game as much as possible and then release a one-book version of the game.
2) Fire everyone working on the TTRPG and focus my energy on board games and video games with the emphasis on creating as much Hasbro-owned IP as possible: named characters, locations, new monsters, etc.
3) Hire 3rd party developers to create TTRPG adventures content using said IP.
Quote from: Man at Arms on October 27, 2024, 07:37:50 PMI'd put 1st Edition AD&D Hardcovers, back in print, on store shelves. Exact reprints, with different print / binding options.
Re-release a greatest hits, of AD&D adventures, in exact replica packaging.
Cash in on nostalgia.
Is it nostalgia if it's better? I do not wistfully think of AD&D, I play it because it's just better than the current offerings. We can't recreate the early 80s, that ship has sailed, but the play style...I think it's possible. A game, played with friends.
Quote from: Ruprecht on October 27, 2024, 04:39:11 PMBesides burn the place down.
Change the focus of direction so that VTT and in-person gaming is concentrated on while IP use in other projects become secondary until they prove to be profitable.
Don't fire the woke employees, but place a strict non-woke supervisor with common sense over them who has experience in the TTRPG industry to control them.
Open up third party support and monitor the products. Those that are successful or popular will have creators or whole creative teams which can be farmed for potential future employees.
New editon. But have it be a modernized take on BECMI. And bring back Mystara/The Known World.
As ever, release Rolemaster Standard System under the D&D brand name, scuttle all other editions and remove them from Drivethru Rpg. Watch the fans go to war the "the name D&D makes it sacred/The Company Is Always Right" crowd might even revolt a little.
Get fired on my second day in the job for maddening the Stranger Things tourists, the Holy AD&D1 grognards, and the shareholders of Hasbro at the same time.
Without being in the industry for years, I can't think of any good ideas to make proper products. I can only think as an enthusiast, and my brief tenure would involve:
- retconning lore of the D&D multiverse to clean all the mess of D&D4 and the woke people and restart the publication of all D&D settings;
- republishing a cleaned and fixed version of Basic D&D (Rules Cyclopedia);
- trying again to make AD&D3 out of AD&D2, with the knowledge of the monster that D&D3.x turned into;
- restarting the DragonLance SAGA line and also Alternity.
Three different fantasy role-playing games and a modern/futuristic game nobody remembers. Totally a good business decision.
Quote from: David Johansen on October 28, 2024, 12:07:47 AMAs ever, release Rolemaster Standard System under the D&D brand name, scuttle all other editions and remove them from Drivethru Rpg. Watch the fans go to war the "the name D&D makes it sacred/The Company Is Always Right" crowd might even revolt a little.
Isn't that what kinda happened with 3rd Edition? It was made mostly by a Rolemaster guy. The skill system, the painful math, the hit point inflation, the critical hits were all borrowed from Rolemaster
Set up a group of upper to middle managers to take responsibility of the day to day running of the creative department.
Collect a paycheck while doing as little work as possible.
If things go well, I attribute it to my excellent managerial skills.
If thing go badly, I blame it on my staff.
I would probably not be a good choice to take the job.
remove all wokeness
make a new version of dnd that enables you to configure power levels. i.e: one game can have a down to earth feel, the other involves planetary destruction left and right
Enforce non-Christian non-Western morality embedded into the framework of every world. For instance, slavery could be good in every world. As a start.
Shut down the TTRPG entirely and turn it into a line of toys, board/card/mobile games and plushie monsters. Also license it out to Netflix/Amazon/Disney for an animated series or five.
The actual TTRPG hobby would be vastly improved without the blue whale (it's too big to be a gorilla or even an elephant) first mover that is D&D crushing it. The D&D brand would be more profitable if it didn't have to cater to the superfans of TTRPGs. Make them go their separate ways.
1. fire all the activists and hire game developers
2. do a more stripped down version of 5e that has a lot less feature bloat and power creep
3. go through the catalogue for games to revive, hire authors to do novels
4. direct a team to make adventure modules of 20-30 pages
5. pursue a policy of joint projects and cooperation with indi developers and publishers
6. invest in/build gaming stores akin to GW stores
7. produce and market player/GM aids
8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Quote from: Ruprecht on October 27, 2024, 04:47:25 PMI would recreate a basic version of the game that covers levels 1- 10 , stripped of all the clutter and feats and garbage that made it complicated.
Pretty much. I was going to suggest a true rules light version of the 5.5e core rules as the basis for a component comprehensive starter set. If fans can strip down the rules and other smaller companies can make affordable starters with all the parts/components you can want for a campaign, why not WOTC? I'd keep it going as an old school style (artisitically speaking as it would still use the 5.x rules as a base and not OSR) product line alternative if sales warranted.
I'd also creative commons any settings that they have no real intention of supporting in any way that does the originals justice due to their now engrained extremist ideology (Dark Sun, I'm looking at you!) so that they can't take it back. I have no delusions that I'd be able to stem the tide of blue haired cowcatcher pierced weirdos in RPGs permanently in my brief tenure before being fired but I'd at least allow the community to support whatever however they wanted.
I would revive the various other non-D&D IPs from the 80s, 90s, and 00s under a connected brand that covers post-medieval genres where guns exist, with revivals of Urban Arcana, Gamma World, Dark Matter and Star Drive as poster children. The rules would be compatible with D&D and it would be possible for D&D characters to visit these settings using portals in Sigil.
Make a Neverwinter Nights 3 that allows you to create custom modules and stuff, then use that as the foundation for various premium modules exploring various D&D campaign worlds, including the settings with guns.
The Urban Arcana module would be handed over to ex-Troika devs like Brian Mitsoda to cash in on his association with Vampire Bloodlines. The plot would involve the PC starting off as a muggle who becomes aware of the Shadowkind, is recruited by Department-7, and is free to develop one of the different class options.
The Gamma World module would be handed over to them too since they worked on Fallout 1 and would be able to bring their characteristic humor, which fits perfectly with GW's over the top setting. The cryptic alliances would serve a similar role to the factions in Fallout New Vegas. The background would be a combination of the previous editions, featuring radiation, alien mutagens, and nanomachines as contributing to the apocalypse.
Same for the Dark Matter module, because the premise is inherently silly and it would be wrong not to; also, the conspiracies would be updated for recent events, with the World Economic Forum being the latest incarnation of the New World Order (own nothing, eat bugs, live in pods!) and most other politicians being in the pocket of the Final Church like that movie with Samara Weaving. The PC would be an employee of the Hoffman institute, with the structure starting off as investigating monster of the week events before an overarching plot starts.
The Star Drive game would probably be handed to ex-Bioware devs and channel some Mass Effect energy; the protagonist would be a Concord Administrator doing peacekeeping in the Verge after the Second Galactic War and encountering the vanguard forces of the Exeat.
Alien races from other games like Star Frontiers and Galactos Barrier would probably be folded into Star Drive until expenses could be justified on games just for those.
Maybe animated pilots could be made and posted to youtube in order to advertise and gauge interest.
Is there a D&D setting that actually is 'canon' for Magic the gathering? Seems like that would be a natural. Add a class that actually uses MTG cards in-game so you can sell to both groups. Yes, you can buy powerful cards, but you would actually have to play the RPG to level up so you can use them. Maybe lean into that Ars Magica vibe.
Create a kids friendly D&D universe, don't care if adults play in it, look into animation for it on streaming.
Create a dark/gritty adult D&D universe (not Dark Suns but will have a Dark Suns source book), look into animation with an indie developer/studio.
Make GM-less / solo a part of the system so that the 'GM strangle hold' is broken. Perhaps create an 'Advanced Dungeon' board game that is expandable ala Talisman that can integrate the RPG into structured game play with quests and board game play.
Mad science moment, create a hocky puck device with AI connectivity. Literally a combination of magic 8-ball and GM in a box using voice recognition and speech as its interface. Probably would have to be online, might need a modest subscription to justify the cost of use and/or pair it with a powerful enough PC for local operations.
Quote from: zircher on October 28, 2024, 10:53:21 AMIs there a D&D setting that actually is 'canon' for Magic the gathering?
Ravnica is a MtG setting that had it's own D&D setting book for 5e.
1st) Implement a neutral media policy. There will be no positive or negative discussion on race from the real world in game or any communication.
2nd) Merit based hiring for all projects and removal of DEI.
3rd) Work with Hasbro to get the American First lawsuit against Hasbro for racist hiring practices addressed, apologized and follow the policies set by the
4th) Set up two tracks of games, Basic being aimed at children with more whimsical children content like prom and barrista AND Advanced being aimed at adults with adult content.
5th) Work on culture, the culture of WotC is toxic. Move offices to the Midwest in a mid-sized city, like Ft Wayne IN or Cincinnati OH. The amount of race marxist staff that will quit, will fix a lot of problems
6th) Redesign XP advancement to lengthen earlier leveling. In 5E the designers increased monster XP by about 20% to 33% awarded compared to prior editions and decreased XP to advance, especially in the early game by 50%. It makes it very hard to run a starter campaign when by 20 hours everyone is level 4 if not 5. It should go to the the 30hr to 40 hr range to give players time to learn the basic rules of the game and their character.
7th) Release content for DM's, like good world building builds and then support with a full campaign from 1 to 12 for each released world.
None of this will take place, they are going to do everything they can to complicate the rules and remove world building ideas and dungeon creation to try to get customers to think they can only run their content, watch.
Quote from: zircher on October 28, 2024, 10:53:21 AMIs there a D&D setting that actually is 'canon' for Magic the gathering? Seems like that would be a natural. Add a class that actually uses MTG cards in-game so you can sell to both groups. Yes, you can buy powerful cards, but you would actually have to play the RPG to level up so you can use them. Maybe lean into that Ars Magica vibe
On a personal level, an official Dominaria setting is something I've wanted for years, though I'd rather they did it back during the 3.x era when they were still publishing proper gazetteers for their settings. On a business level, I suspect the reason WOTC wouldn't do it is for the same reason they wouldn't invest much into Mystara or Greyhawk. No matter how different they are in detail, the general audience is going to look at them as redundant next to Forgotten Realms. It's probably easier to sell a setting with an obvious gimmick.
A true Basic game line, with a large box set, and foldout maps. Such maps should show areas outside the included pre-written adventures; and encourage players to expand out, and create their own further adventures.
Quote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 08:32:02 AM8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Oh, fucking Hell, no!
Even with a sweeping staff change, I would not trust WotC to train new DMs.
I had a nice big long post for this interesting question then I realized I had to get past my "fan dreams".
The fact is the continued existence of WotC as an entity is against my personal interests. As long as WotC is part of Hasbro, it will never have the needs of the RPG hobby in its interests (nor should it). It will forever be seeking novelty on an annual basis for the purposes of seeking profit through "synergy" and everything that is unimportant for making the game good for its core audience. It's already happened. It helps that WotC no longer knows or cares who its core audience was, it's invented in their own mind - or conditioned them through adjacent media to accept the current drivel that forces this fun question to be asked in the first place.
I think a better question would be: WotC implodes and Hasbro decides to license the D&D brand and you get it.
If someone is as follish as given to me, free reign on the D&D IP, I would perform the following evil deeds :
- Offer a sum of money, large enough, to convinced Kevin Siembieda to reveal all the mysteries of his Palladium world, and make it the official default game universe of D&D, to the end of times ;
- Only hire women who are native French speakers (they would be, of course, gnerously compensated, in euros, not dollars) and only produce D&D books in French, and bans its translatation in any other language, except Japanese, Esperanto, Ancient Greek and Hebrew ;
- Make alignements great again, and reintroduce alignement language and making sure that everyone know that English is the language of the chaotic and the evil ;
- Make sure that the rules of the game are forever free to use, for anyone to use, for profit or not ;
- Give myself a generous monetary compensation, for I need my own James Bond villain island, and more, to gloat at the chaos I would unleashed by doing something that bring joy to me.
Quote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 08:32:02 AM6. invest in/build gaming stores akin to GW stores
8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Yes, and yes. Add Open Tables in those game stores. I'm sure there are a ton of gaming stores that aren't doing well that could be bought, or franchised or something.
Nuke it from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.
Quote from: jeff37923 on October 28, 2024, 04:12:42 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 08:32:02 AM8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Oh, fucking Hell, no!
Even with a sweeping staff change, I would not trust WotC to train new DMs.
This is a fantasy of "what would
I do." Refer to line 1. I would start by bringing a flame thrower to WOTC and do a purge. Then I would build a good company.
As far as DM instructors, I would hire some of the best DM/GMs I've known over the years as well as some of the better content creators that teach running games.
As for as current WOTC? Well, it needs that flamethrower first...
Quote from: Ruprecht on October 28, 2024, 05:32:56 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 08:32:02 AM6. invest in/build gaming stores akin to GW stores
8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Yes, and yes. Add Open Tables in those game stores. I'm sure there are a ton of gaming stores that aren't doing well that could be bought, or franchised or something.
One of the biggest things I've noticed is that there's a noticeable trend in things players and GMs bring and use that aren't sold by most FLGS.
food and drinks
pencils
paper
copy and printer service
dry erase stuff
I absolutely believe a FLGS combined with a pizza parlor would make money.
Fire everyone and start fresh.
Quote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 05:53:06 PMQuote from: Ruprecht on October 28, 2024, 05:32:56 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 08:32:02 AM6. invest in/build gaming stores akin to GW stores
8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Yes, and yes. Add Open Tables in those game stores. I'm sure there are a ton of gaming stores that aren't doing well that could be bought, or franchised or something.
One of the biggest things I've noticed is that there's a noticeable trend in things players and GMs bring and use that aren't sold by most FLGS.
food and drinks
pencils
paper
copy and printer service
dry erase stuff
I absolutely believe a FLGS combined with a pizza parlor would make money.
Greetings!
Hey there, BadApple! When I was active duty in the Marines, our base had a local E-Club. Some E-Clubs can be different, offering different features, but usually a restaurant, bar, pool hall, along with lounges and game rooms. A group of fellow Marines and myself would sometimes go to our local E-Club to game. We used one of the smaller game rooms, and had a waitress that would check on us periodically. We had a constant flow of pizza, sandwiches, sodas, and various snacks, from candy bars to French Fries, Nachos, and so on.
Just about every area of the base had their own E-Club. Some were bigger than others, and some offered different features. A very popular E-Club down the road a ways from my unit had a huge dance floor, a full bar, and Wednesdays through Sundays was *packed* with women from off base. That was definitely the place to go when you wanted to dance and mingle with the women. My local E-Club, besides having a restaurant, bar, pool tables, and game rooms, also had a small theater room--big screen for movies, and seating about 50 people or so. So, it was always fun! An E-Club over on Mainside--a very large section of the base, with the Navy Hospital and more--also had like, a 20-lane bowling alley! So, different E-Clubs sometimes provided different things. Always a good time going to the E-Club though! Understandably, it was a favourite place to hang out at!
Great times, for sure! *Laughing*
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK
Quote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 05:43:00 PMQuote from: jeff37923 on October 28, 2024, 04:12:42 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 08:32:02 AM8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Oh, fucking Hell, no!
Even with a sweeping staff change, I would not trust WotC to train new DMs.
This is a fantasy of "what would I do." Refer to line 1. I would start by bringing a flame thrower to WOTC and do a purge. Then I would build a good company.
As far as DM instructors, I would hire some of the best DM/GMs I've known over the years as well as some of the better content creators that teach running games.
As for as current WOTC? Well, it needs that flamethrower first...
I guess I just have a tough time seeing GM game mastery coming from a single game company. Some of my best lessons learned came from playing games made by different publishers and comparing/contrasting how they handled events in games with the rules.
Quote from: jeff37923 on October 28, 2024, 06:53:18 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 05:43:00 PMQuote from: jeff37923 on October 28, 2024, 04:12:42 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 08:32:02 AM8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Oh, fucking Hell, no!
Even with a sweeping staff change, I would not trust WotC to train new DMs.
This is a fantasy of "what would I do." Refer to line 1. I would start by bringing a flame thrower to WOTC and do a purge. Then I would build a good company.
As far as DM instructors, I would hire some of the best DM/GMs I've known over the years as well as some of the better content creators that teach running games.
As for as current WOTC? Well, it needs that flamethrower first...
I guess I just have a tough time seeing GM game mastery coming from a single game company. Some of my best lessons learned came from playing games made by different publishers and comparing/contrasting how they handled events in games with the rules.
I agree that a single source of game knowledge would be bad. The strange thing is, I believe that the best hope D&D has for growth is that WOTC start seeing all the other publishers as potential allies in a larger effort to grow the hobby and thereby grow the pool of potential customers. Friendly competition rather than aggression and economic warfare would be better for WOTC and Hasbro. (I also believe that they would be better off trying to expand the products they offer to the things that gamers use and consume that they currently don't offer rather than change the market into something else that they have more control over.)
Again, my version would be I would revamp and reintroduce FASRIP and other systems that TSR used to offer. While I would keep and market D&D 5e as the flagship product, offering other types of gaming experiences make a lot of sense to me.
WOTC is right now a massive waste of potential. It's sad to see something I loved years ago just rot away.
Quote from: JeremyR on October 28, 2024, 02:20:31 AMQuote from: David Johansen on October 28, 2024, 12:07:47 AMAs ever, release Rolemaster Standard System under the D&D brand name, scuttle all other editions and remove them from Drivethru Rpg. Watch the fans go to war the "the name D&D makes it sacred/The Company Is Always Right" crowd might even revolt a little.
Isn't that what kinda happened with 3rd Edition? It was made mostly by a Rolemaster guy. The skill system, the painful math, the hit point inflation, the critical hits were all borrowed from Rolemaster
Sort of? Kinda? They did it while leaving out the best parts and ditching the functionality of the system. No attack tables, no critical tables, no skill / category split, no skill costs by profession, no spell lists.
Quote from: yabaziou on October 28, 2024, 05:30:52 PMIf someone is as follish as given to me, free reign on the D&D IP, I would perform the following evil deeds :
- Offer a sum of money, large enough, to convinced Kevin Siembieda to reveal all the mysteries of his Palladium world, and make it the official default game universe of D&D, to the end of times ;
As a backer of Palladium's Robotech Tactics kickstarter who lost out on hundreds of dollars worth of minis after being mislead for five years until the clock ran out on their license for the product at which point they just threw their hands up and said oh well, I suspect he'd do the same with your sum of money as well. Zero stars, do not recommend.
Quote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 05:53:06 PMQuote from: Ruprecht on October 28, 2024, 05:32:56 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 08:32:02 AM6. invest in/build gaming stores akin to GW stores
8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Yes, and yes. Add Open Tables in those game stores. I'm sure there are a ton of gaming stores that aren't doing well that could be bought, or franchised or something.
One of the biggest things I've noticed is that there's a noticeable trend in things players and GMs bring and use that aren't sold by most FLGS.
food and drinks
pencils
paper
copy and printer service
dry erase stuff
I absolutely believe a FLGS combined with a pizza parlor would make money.
We have a few like that here in the Seattle area. My local gaming site sells booze (ciders and ales and whatnot) ice cream and toaster oven food like mozzarella sticks.
https://www.attgamepub.com/
Mox is straight up attached to a resteraunt.
https://www.moxboardinghouse.com/bellevue/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw7Py4BhCbARIsAMMx-_Lh7yioUpiH_CYtO2_4ONwjFdC4Y7DyCUVM2N6KkBd_E1kWrdiBDLgaAp4WEALw_wcB
Quote from: RNGm on October 28, 2024, 09:05:27 PMQuote from: yabaziou on October 28, 2024, 05:30:52 PMIf someone is as follish as given to me, free reign on the D&D IP, I would perform the following evil deeds :
- Offer a sum of money, large enough, to convinced Kevin Siembieda to reveal all the mysteries of his Palladium world, and make it the official default game universe of D&D, to the end of times ;
As a backer of Palladium's Robotech Tactics kickstarter who lost out on hundreds of dollars worth of minis after being mislead for five years until the clock ran out on their license for the product at which point they just threw their hands up and said oh well, I suspect he'd do the same with your sum of money as well. Zero stars, do not recommend.
Yeah,I was not fully aware of the shit show that is this specific KS, where Kevin and his associates have shown a great deal of incompetence, to say the least ... I am sorry you are part of this terrible shit show, but I still do admire Kevin Siembieda's body of works.
Quote from: David Johansen on October 28, 2024, 07:17:10 PMQuote from: JeremyR on October 28, 2024, 02:20:31 AMQuote from: David Johansen on October 28, 2024, 12:07:47 AMAs ever, release Rolemaster Standard System under the D&D brand name, scuttle all other editions and remove them from Drivethru Rpg. Watch the fans go to war the "the name D&D makes it sacred/The Company Is Always Right" crowd might even revolt a little.
Isn't that what kinda happened with 3rd Edition? It was made mostly by a Rolemaster guy. The skill system, the painful math, the hit point inflation, the critical hits were all borrowed from Rolemaster
Sort of? Kinda? They did it while leaving out the best parts and ditching the functionality of the system. No attack tables, no critical tables, no skill / category split, no skill costs by profession, no spell lists.
Yeah, I honestly think 3e would have been a better game is they had leaned more on making it a kind of Rolemaster lite. Instead of making classes predominantly defined by "class features" and leaving the skill system as a kind of afterthought, they should have stripped away most of those features and had classes be more defined by how they interact with the skill system.
Quote from: yabaziou on October 29, 2024, 05:09:40 AMYeah,I was not fully aware of the shit show that is this specific KS, where Kevin and his associates have shown a great deal of incompetence, to say the least ... I am sorry you are part of this terrible shit show, but I still do admire Kevin Siembieda's body of works.
Thanks and I agree with the appreciation for the works he created in the past though they're forever tainted for me now personally (and not just by the nonsensical rules anymore that I used to just laugh off and keep playing despite). The art (of Robotech and early Rifts) and worldbuilding kept me playing for about 15 years and his stuff was my first and, for most of that time, only real experience with RPGs outside of conventions.
Publish the entire TSR and WOTC catalogue to Creative Commons, late one afternoon. Then resign, the morning of the following day. (Sleep well, the night between.)
Quote from: ForgottenF on October 29, 2024, 08:04:17 AMYeah, I honestly think 3e would have been a better game is they had leaned more on making it a kind of Rolemaster lite. Instead of making classes predominantly defined by "class features" and leaving the skill system as a kind of afterthought, they should have stripped away most of those features and had classes be more defined by how they interact with the skill system.
The beautiful thing about RMSS is that just about everything is treated as a skill so there's only one (admittedly a bit complex) structure for buying things. Even when you get into Talents and Flaws they are generally described in the form of existing objects rather than creating entirely new rules for each thing.
What people don't seem to grasp is that every single special case rule increases the complexity and difficulty of balancing a game.
Quote from: Ratman_tf on October 28, 2024, 09:35:13 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 05:53:06 PMQuote from: Ruprecht on October 28, 2024, 05:32:56 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 08:32:02 AM6. invest in/build gaming stores akin to GW stores
8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Yes, and yes. Add Open Tables in those game stores. I'm sure there are a ton of gaming stores that aren't doing well that could be bought, or franchised or something.
One of the biggest things I've noticed is that there's a noticeable trend in things players and GMs bring and use that aren't sold by most FLGS.
food and drinks
pencils
paper
copy and printer service
dry erase stuff
I absolutely believe a FLGS combined with a pizza parlor would make money.
We have a few like that here in the Seattle area. My local gaming site sells booze (ciders and ales and whatnot) ice cream and toaster oven food like mozzarella sticks.
https://www.attgamepub.com/
Mox is straight up attached to a resteraunt.
https://www.moxboardinghouse.com/bellevue/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw7Py4BhCbARIsAMMx-_Lh7yioUpiH_CYtO2_4ONwjFdC4Y7DyCUVM2N6KkBd_E1kWrdiBDLgaAp4WEALw_wcB
Does this increase their foot traffic and cash flow? Obviously, you probably don't have any inside info on the success of their business but I can't help but be curious if my theory is true.
Quote from: BadApple on October 29, 2024, 05:53:50 PMQuote from: Ratman_tf on October 28, 2024, 09:35:13 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 05:53:06 PMQuote from: Ruprecht on October 28, 2024, 05:32:56 PMQuote from: BadApple on October 28, 2024, 08:32:02 AM6. invest in/build gaming stores akin to GW stores
8. hold DM training classes to onboard new DMs
Yes, and yes. Add Open Tables in those game stores. I'm sure there are a ton of gaming stores that aren't doing well that could be bought, or franchised or something.
One of the biggest things I've noticed is that there's a noticeable trend in things players and GMs bring and use that aren't sold by most FLGS.
food and drinks
pencils
paper
copy and printer service
dry erase stuff
I absolutely believe a FLGS combined with a pizza parlor would make money.
We have a few like that here in the Seattle area. My local gaming site sells booze (ciders and ales and whatnot) ice cream and toaster oven food like mozzarella sticks.
https://www.attgamepub.com/
Mox is straight up attached to a resteraunt.
https://www.moxboardinghouse.com/bellevue/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw7Py4BhCbARIsAMMx-_Lh7yioUpiH_CYtO2_4ONwjFdC4Y7DyCUVM2N6KkBd_E1kWrdiBDLgaAp4WEALw_wcB
Does this increase their foot traffic and cash flow? Obviously, you probably don't have any inside info on the success of their business but I can't help but be curious if my theory is true.
Yeah, I'm not privy to their numbers.
I'm most familiar with Around The Table, as it's been "my" game spot for about 15 years now.
They're almost always packed during peak hours. People playing RPGs and MTG and board and wargames. The counter is busy. People getting snacks and drinks during their stay.
I've been to Mox a couple of times when they hosted the occasional X-Wing Miniatures tournament. They seemed to be doing well.
Both survived the Covid lockdowns. I bought gift cards online from ATT during Covid to try and help them have a revenue stream while closed to the public.
I think the idea of a game pub/resteraunt is sound. I also think that location would be a significant factor. This is the pacific northwest, the home of WOTC and Magic The Gathering. Lots of nerdy tech types to draw a customer base from.
:D I'd redecorate wildly! We'd change up all the corporate office rented "professional modern art" with pillars padded with cork (like peg boards) to pin up sent-in fan art -- and beanbags arranged around them for people to appreciate them (likely when they're high and in the middle enjoying some munchies)! OOH! And we can have a DJ for each office floor playing down tempo muzak mash-ups. And we'd travel on adult-sized bounce balls with handles on them!
:) I'm not getting the job, am I?
Quote from: Opaopajr on October 30, 2024, 05:04:30 PM:D I'd redecorate wildly! We'd change up all the corporate office rented "professional modern art" with pillars padded with cork (like peg boards) to pin up sent-in fan art -- and beanbags arranged around them for people to appreciate them (likely when they're high and in the middle enjoying some munchies)! OOH! And we can have a DJ for each office floor playing down tempo muzak mash-ups. And we'd travel on adult-sized bounce balls with handles on them!
:) I'm not getting the job, am I?
Greetings!
"Travel on adult-sized Bounce balls". *Laughing* Hilarious, Opaopajr! As ridiculous as it seems, I can see that whole scene being very popular at WOTC. People bouncing down the hallways on bounce balls, while others lay around in bean-bag chairs, fresh from getting high, all chomping on munchies, and occasionally talking about games. Somewhat pretending to work. With the muzak playing on each floor. Yeah, that all makes a lot of sense!
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK
Quote from: Opaopajr on October 30, 2024, 05:04:30 PM:D I'd redecorate wildly! We'd change up all the corporate office rented "professional modern art" with pillars padded with cork (like peg boards) to pin up sent-in fan art -- and beanbags arranged around them for people to appreciate them (likely when they're high and in the middle enjoying some munchies)! OOH! And we can have a DJ for each office floor playing down tempo muzak mash-ups. And we'd travel on adult-sized bounce balls with handles on them!
I see you too have worked in Portland Oregon! Fun times.
There is an old story of a trick flee-covered dogs (wolves) would do. They'd take a stick in their mouth and slowly submerge themselves in water. The idea being the fleas would migrate to the stick to keep from drowning. The dog would then release the stick and fleas. I don't know if its true but it makes me wonder...
I mentioned initially about creating a basic version of the game. What if you left 5E as is with all the wokeness and connections to the VTT and that basic version wasn't a starter set but a stand-alone more OSR game that would compete and had access to all the old AD&D IP. Maybe even call it AD&D or something. Then allocate resources depending upon sales.
Quote from: Ruprecht on November 23, 2024, 08:55:52 AMThere is an old story of a trick flee-covered dogs (wolves) would do. They'd take a stick in their mouth and slowly submerge themselves in water. The idea being the fleas would migrate to the stick to keep from drowning.
I don't get it. Would the fleas drown any less if the dogs submerged themselves
without a stick?
Quote from: Zalman on November 23, 2024, 09:02:53 AMQuote from: Ruprecht on November 23, 2024, 08:55:52 AMThere is an old story of a trick flee-covered dogs (wolves) would do. They'd take a stick in their mouth and slowly submerge themselves in water. The idea being the fleas would migrate to the stick to keep from drowning.
I don't get it. Would the fleas drown any less if the dogs submerged themselves without a stick?
I think the stick is sticking out of the water.
Quote from: Krazz on November 23, 2024, 09:55:40 AMQuote from: Zalman on November 23, 2024, 09:02:53 AMQuote from: Ruprecht on November 23, 2024, 08:55:52 AMThere is an old story of a trick flee-covered dogs (wolves) would do. They'd take a stick in their mouth and slowly submerge themselves in water. The idea being the fleas would migrate to the stick to keep from drowning.
I don't get it. Would the fleas drown any less if the dogs submerged themselves without a stick?
I think the stick is sticking out of the water.
Yes, I understand that. So what? If there is no stick, what happens to the submerged fleas then? They still drown and die, just like they do when the dog with the stick lets go of the stick ... right?
So what benefit is the stick providing?
Quote from: Zalman on November 23, 2024, 10:00:33 AMQuote from: Krazz on November 23, 2024, 09:55:40 AMQuote from: Zalman on November 23, 2024, 09:02:53 AMQuote from: Ruprecht on November 23, 2024, 08:55:52 AMThere is an old story of a trick flee-covered dogs (wolves) would do. They'd take a stick in their mouth and slowly submerge themselves in water. The idea being the fleas would migrate to the stick to keep from drowning.
I don't get it. Would the fleas drown any less if the dogs submerged themselves without a stick?
I think the stick is sticking out of the water.
Yes, I understand that. So what? If there is no stick, what happens to the submerged fleas then? They still drown and die, just like they do when the dog with the stick lets go of the stick ... right?
So what benefit is the stick providing?
The dog can't stay submerged long, since it needs to breathe too, so without the stick the fleas would either cling to the dog or swim nearby, and once the dog comes back out of the water, it's got lots of fleas again.
The stick gives the fleas somewhere to, well, flee. They go to the dry end of the stick where they aren't drowning, but that's far from the dog. The dog then releases the stick and swims away, leaving the fleas behind.
Quote from: Krazz on November 23, 2024, 10:32:57 AMThe dog can't stay submerged long, since it needs to breathe too, so without the stick the fleas would either cling to the dog or swim nearby, and once the dog comes back out of the water, it's got lots of fleas again.
The stick gives the fleas somewhere to, well, flee. They go to the dry end of the stick where they aren't drowning, but that's far from the dog. The dog then releases the stick and swims away, leaving the fleas behind.
Yes Krazz is correct. Sorry to derail the discussion with that aside. I assumed most had heard the story or I would have gone into more detail.
Quote from: Krazz on November 23, 2024, 10:32:57 AMThe dog can't stay submerged long, since it needs to breathe too, so without the stick the fleas would either cling to the dog or swim nearby, and once the dog comes back out of the water, it's got lots of fleas again.
Aha! The dog not being to hold its breath long enough was the piece I was missing, thanks!
Beware the day fleas invent tiny snorkels.
Maybe make it a policy that disparaging the game, it's creators or, especially, it's customers is not acceptable. I'm actually not okay with people who work for us calling our game problematic and our customers racist. Get the hell out. Uttering the phrase, "If you don't like it, don't buy it" to potential customers would be grounds for immediate dismissal. I don't know why any company in any industry puts up with this stupid shit for an instant.
Find out who our customers actually are, what they actually want and make that. I don't mean the customers that the DEI people think we should be courting. I mean the people who actually buy our products. If it turn out that it's mostly a bunch of straight white guys who want classic D&D adventuring content, so be it. That's what we make and who we make it for. No more chasing a phantom audience. Time to start serving our actual audience.
Take a hard look at what actually sells and what doesn't. Make more of the former and stop making the latter.
DEI grifters don't matter. 12 psychos on Twitter making a lot of noise don't matter. These people don't matter. They would gleefully burn this business to the ground for internet clout and to stroke their own egos. Stop listening to them.
I would make more GM-non adventure books. I know that the money comes generally from things that players buy, since there are more players than GMs, but we know that WotC is doing well financially, so i would bring back either splat books like they had, or more settings. ALSO listen to the consumer, i hate that they got rid of things because they were "troublesome" its part of the lore, you cant ingnore things that are inherantly "bad" it waters down the setting a lot. I just fee like they are making chnages that no one asked form.
Quote from: radio_thief on December 05, 2024, 09:11:57 AMI would make more GM-non adventure books.
Now that you mention it, I'm playing in Forgotten Realms currently and if you want city maps you gotta buy up Rime of the Frostmaiden or Storm Lord's Thunder and even then you don't get them all. A cities of the Savage Coast would be nice (especially in a VTT) to help promote DM-created adventures.
So I would consider producing regional products that provide good maps of an area with the major settlements with interior maps of select important buildings. At a scale that is usuable when shoved into a VTT which is the future and far more visual than theater of the mind. A bit like the Harn folks did later when they merged cities of Harn into the different Kingdom's of Harn. Buy a Kingdom and you've got everything you need for adventuring there.