Mike Mearls' official 4E blog

JongWK · August 22, 2007, 10:54:16 AM

FYI: http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=906391

:cool:

James J Skach · August 22, 2007, 10:59:07 AM

Quote from: WotC_Mearls3e got a lot of things right, but anyone who has played it for a time knows that it gets things wrong. There are also legacy issues with the game that have persisted unquestioned for years. 4e is all about taking the things that work in D&D, keeping them in the game, and fixing everything else.

Looks like Warthur nailed this one right on the head..check out the bolded line.

This says, to me, there's lots of stuff they held on to but are now ready to dump. The question will be: what goes, what stays...

JamesV · August 22, 2007, 11:03:46 AM

That ain't a blog, that's a sticky thread. I need feeds and stuff.

Oh, well, I guess I read it anyways.

Last thing, I speculate that saving throws to be up on the block for a serious rebuild or drop.

John Morrow · August 22, 2007, 11:13:41 AM

Quote from: James J SkachThis says, to me, there's lots of stuff they held on to but are now ready to dump. The question will be: what goes, what stays...

The problem there is that while there are some elements of D&D 3e that are almost universally condemned by everyone, including the fans, there are many other places where one person's "issue" is another person's good time. They can easily wind up tossing the baby out with the bath water here.

Drew · August 22, 2007, 11:24:57 AM

I like the analogy he draws between 4e and the Marvel 'Ultimates' line. It's probably the most concise summation of their overall approach so far.

jrients · August 22, 2007, 11:28:59 AM

Quote from: DrewI like the analogy he draws between 4e and the Marvel 'Ultimates' line. It's probably the most concise summation of their overall approach so far.

Yes, but disconcerting to guys like me who collect bronze age back issues rather than buy the sleek new glosses of their favorite superheroes.

James J Skach · August 22, 2007, 11:31:39 AM

Quote from: jrientsYes, but disconcerting to guys like me who collect bronze age back issues rather than buy the sleek new glosses of their favorite superheroes.

Or you are not a comics kind of guy...I have no idea what his comment means. I mean, I can kind of glean it from context, but the reference is lost on me.

Drew · August 22, 2007, 11:32:27 AM

Quote from: jrientsYes, but disconcerting to guys like me who collect bronze age back issues rather than buy the sleek new glosses of their favorite superheroes.

I imagine he'll get a huge amount of flack over it at some point, probably by people who confuse content with approach. Comic fans will be ranting about how 4e is doomed to failure because they didn't like the implementation of Ultimate Spider-Man. Ah well.

Drew · August 22, 2007, 11:36:14 AM

Quote from: James J SkachOr you are not a comics kind of guy...I have no idea what his comment means. I mean, I can kind of glean it from context, but the reference is lost on me.

The idea is to take the iconic characters and reset the clock to year zero, offering a new take on their origins, powers, relationships etc. The comics remain recognisably the same, just reinterpreted with modern sensibilities. It also has the advantage of jettisoning the decades of accumulated backstory and legacy items that no longer serve any purpose beyond tradition.

"Well it's always been that way" is no longer a good enough reason to keep something in.

James J Skach · August 22, 2007, 11:47:11 AM

Quote from: DrewThe idea is to take the iconic characters and reset the clock to year zero, offering a new take on their origins, powers, relationships etc. The comics remain recognisably the same, just reinterpreted with modern sensibilities. It also has the advantage of jettisoning the decades of accumulated backstory and legacy items that no longer serve any purpose beyond tradition.

"Well it's always been that way" is no longer a good enough reason to keep something in.

Thanks for the translation - now I understand the reference.

Ahh..the wisdom of youth.

Caesar Slaad · August 22, 2007, 11:48:19 AM

Quote from: John Morrowtossing the baby out with the bath water

Those were the first words that ran through my mind when I read Mearls' statement. Invariably, someone will like something that gets tossed. Smelling the whiff off of Bo9S and SWSE (supposed "experiments" for 4e), I can't help but feel I'm gonna be one of those someones.

Drew · August 22, 2007, 11:59:55 AM

Quote from: James J SkachAhh..the wisdom of youth.

As I understand it most of the people in 4e design team are in their 30's and 40's, whilst many of the Marvel honchos are older than that.

I don't really think it's an age thing, to be honest.

Blackleaf · August 22, 2007, 02:07:17 PM

Quote from: Mike MearlsOne of the things I've emphasized to people is that while we're looking at new mechanics, the core of the game remains the same. You'll have fighters, spells, feats, and skills. A lot of the stuff on a 4e character sheet will look familiar to you. Even the "new" stuff has familiar mechanics and D&Disms within it. In a lot of ways, 4e is like the line of Ultimate Marvel comics. If you went back to the core of what makes D&D interesting, started over in a few areas with new takes on mechanics, where would you end up? We questioned a lot of assumptions about D&D mechanics work, and the results are interesting.

Form the July 2007 Comics Sales Charts & Market Share Report:

#10 AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #542
#16 UNCANNY X-MEN #488
#17 X-MEN #201
#25 ULTIMATE SPIDERMAN #111
#38 ULTIMATE X-MEN #84

Warthur · August 22, 2007, 02:37:03 PM

Ah, but the "Ultimates" have the handicap that they run in parallel with the original series. There won't be two different games called "Dungeons & Dragons" around at the same time - there'll be "Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition" and TERRA (Third Edition Rules for Roleplaying Adventure), or whatever the 3.X version of OSRIC/C&C ends up being called.

EDIT TO ADD: Woo!!! 666th post! :emot-rock:

Blackleaf · August 22, 2007, 02:50:47 PM

Quote from: WarthurAh, but the "Ultimates" have the handicap that they run in parallel with the original series. There won't be two different games called "Dungeons & Dragons" around at the same time - there'll be "Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition" and TERRA (Third Edition Rules for Roleplaying Adventure), or whatever the 3.X version of OSRIC/C&C ends up being called.

EDIT TO ADD: Woo!!! 666th post! :emot-rock:

All that tells us is that if there's only 1 edition/series for a product in publication, it will be the top selling edition/series of that product each month from that point on.