Dark Sun Community Question - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Dark Sun Community Question

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
Oninotaki
Jan 19, 2006 22:23:50 Ok here are some numbers before I ask you guys all my question:

146,076 ebberon total posts
10,845 threads
13.46 posts per thread

156,210 forgotten realms total posts
12,367 total forgotten realms threads
12.63 posts per thread

113,436 star wars total posts
9,263 star wars threads
12.24 posts per thread

95,131 d20 modern total posts
7,092 total d20 modern threads
13.41 posts per thread

43,987 total dragon lance posts
3,224 total dragon lance threads
13.64 posts per thread

40,625 total Dark Sun posts
2,256 total threads
18.00 posts per thread

As you can all the currently published currently published settings (dragon lance counts cause it still gets novels and 3.5 books) have very close posts per thread count. As far as I can tell out of all the Non-core D&D boards Darksun has the highest post count by a large margin. So I'm wondering how popular everyone here in the community thinks darksun would be if it had its own published 3.5 line. Would it stay ahead in the numbers game, average out like all the other lines or fall behind?

I would like to think it would maintain one of the highest post counts, but i really think it would probably fall behind the average as set by the other major lines.
#2
ruhl-than_sage
Jan 19, 2006 22:34:17 I think one of the reasons for the numbers in the case of darksun, is the level of devotion that many of the fans have to the setting. I would imagine that their are a higher number of heavy posters for the setting than any other.

Also, the differentness of the setting and the mystery of it probably contributes. There is a lot more to say about it.

I don't think the numbers indicate as large of a darksun following as you might think.
#3
Zardnaar
Jan 20, 2006 0:01:52 Theres a certain core of Darksun posters who reply to alot of threads. Theres also virtually no flaming and most people here are very well read on DS's history, setting etc. I'm sure I've managed to offend one or two people here though. Dedication and alot of feedback.
#4
xlorepdarkhelm_dup
Jan 20, 2006 9:30:39
Ok here are some numbers before I ask you guys all my question:

146,076 ebberon total posts
10,845 threads
13.46 posts per thread

156,210 forgotten realms total posts
12,367 total forgotten realms threads
12.63 posts per thread

113,436 star wars total posts
9,263 star wars threads
12.24 posts per thread

95,131 d20 modern total posts
7,092 total d20 modern threads
13.41 posts per thread

43,987 total dragon lance posts
3,224 total dragon lance threads
13.64 posts per thread

40,625 total Dark Sun posts
2,256 total threads
18.00 posts per thread

As you can all the currently published currently published settings (dragon lance counts cause it still gets novels and 3.5 books) have very close posts per thread count. As far as I can tell out of all the Non-core D&D boards Darksun has the highest post count by a large margin. So I'm wondering how popular everyone here in the community thinks darksun would be if it had its own published 3.5 line. Would it stay ahead in the numbers game, average out like all the other lines or fall behind?

I would like to think it would maintain one of the highest post counts, but i really think it would probably fall behind the average as set by the other major lines.

We are catching up with Dragonlance. HOWEVER, like the others had said, this forum has an unusually high number of dedicated and very knowledgeable people who regularly post here, and it is curiously one of the more civil boards I participate in.
#5
Pennarin
Jan 20, 2006 9:53:45
snip
...and it is curiously one of the more civil boards I participate in.

It is? What other boards have you found to be unrully? (I only check DS and the general boards like psionics and spells.)
#6
xlorepdarkhelm_dup
Jan 20, 2006 11:03:39
It is? What other boards have you found to be unrully? (I only check DS and the general boards like psionics and spells.)

The other boards I am referring to are not part of the Wizards.COMmunity. The Dark Sun forum is the only WotC forum I check.
#7
jano
Jan 20, 2006 12:20:14 Hi,
So I'm wondering how popular everyone here in the community thinks darksun would be if it had its own published 3.5 line. Would it stay ahead in the numbers game, average out like all the other lines or fall behind?

I would like to think it would maintain one of the highest post counts, but i really think it would probably fall behind the average as set by the other major lines.

I don't think so. DS is to exotic. And requires a lot of work to start playing and running it (I know from my example). Every one knows how Forgotten lokes like - semi medieval land with knights and stuff. And DS needs a bit of checking in the books about ancient cultures, how desert lokes like. And many more things we all know because we're playng DS . And, last but nat least, it's a system for older gamers (I think): slavery, seduction, etc. Proof? I think I'm the youngest here
#8
monastyrski
Jan 20, 2006 14:23:19
And, last but nat least, it's a system for older gamers (I think): slavery, seduction, etc.

One can play slavery, seduction, etc. in every setting. DS has smth. else.
#9
darksoulman
Jan 20, 2006 14:36:10
One can play slavery, seduction, etc. in every setting. DS has smth. else.

You can...but I think what Jano was saying is that the setting will seem all the darker if you do. Can't remember seeing any other settings that put weight on themes as equally dark as DS (apart from Ravenloft, which I think is a way worse setting). Let's face it, the main themes in DS are none too cuddly
#10
darksoulman
Jan 20, 2006 15:05:53
DS is to exotic. And requires a lot of work to start playing and running it (I know from my example) (...) DS needs a bit of checking in the books about ancient cultures, how desert lokes like. And many more things we all know because we're playng DS

NO ! I was (and still am) a bit shocked at the amount of work required to make a DS campaign tick. Terrain, peoples/races, culture, equipment, crunchy stuff, naming (how do get the guy who always plays a melee character to actually use the proper name of the macahuitl? How do you get the players to use the proper idioms? [Yes, I'm exaggerating a bit]), tone (getting players to be relatively serious a lot of the time can be hard - especially working guys who don't have too much free time and love to joke around) and of course, all the usual DM stuff that all settings share (NPCs, adventures etc).

Wow, that's a horrible sentance

And still, I've always loved the setting and have very high hopes for the campaign
#11
monastyrski
Jan 20, 2006 17:21:53
You can...but I think what Jano was saying is that the setting will seem all the darker if you do. Can't remember seeing any other settings that put weight on themes as equally dark as DS (apart from Ravenloft, which I think is a way worse setting). Let's face it, the main themes in DS are none too cuddly

I do not like the word "dark". I can (and do) play Greyhawk games with just the same troubles as typical DS game has.
The difference I see is not the "darkness", but the less freedom the characters have. There are few persons whose wishes make sense on Athas, and neither PCs nor SKs are among them.
#12
darksoulman
Jan 20, 2006 18:38:28
I do not like the word "dark". I can (and do) play Greyhawk games with just the same troubles as typical DS game has.

I think you may be in the minority then

Not that there's anything wrong with being the outsider...nooooooo, not at all....

:D :P
#13
ruhl-than_sage
Jan 20, 2006 22:52:13
I think I'm the youngest here

Just out of curiosity, how old are you? I'm one of the younger regular posters at 24 and problably the youngest to have started playing the game with the original box set.
#14
jon_oracle_of_athas
Jan 21, 2006 3:18:59 I'm 24 too, and I started playing with the original boxed set. So, you're not the only one.
#15
Zardnaar
Jan 21, 2006 3:38:50
I'm 24 too, and I started playing with the original boxed set. So, you're not the only one.

I thought you were older. I'm 27 and got the impression you're older than me.
#16
Kamelion
Jan 21, 2006 4:01:56
I thought you were older. I'm 27 and got the impression you're older than me.

That's just his aura of cool oracular confidence and nordic savoir-faire :P ...
#17
jano
Jan 21, 2006 6:29:46
Just out of curiosity, how old are you? I'm one of the younger regular posters at 24 and problably the youngest to have started playing the game with the original box set.

I'm still 23 . 24 in July. I never got occasion to play orginal boxed set.Long story short: I've heard of DS in 95' but I was playng Warhammer then. Finally I've got some of the documents (Athas.org, PDF Boxed set) in 2002. And finally I've got time to play it in 2005. A long journey, huh? . It could be shorter if there was polish edition :P
#18
kalthandrix
Jan 21, 2006 6:39:18 One thing that I noticed when checking out a few of the other boards like the DL one, is that the fans there will talk about stuff- endlessly debating some point that is far from the established written material- which then sets off the fans that think that if it was published in the book- any of them- that it is canon and cannot be altered- which sets off all kinds of back-and-forths. Also the fans of some of the other settings do not really go out of their way to make things for their own setting- they are content with just waiting on the next book to get published.

On the flip side, you have us here on the DS board- we debate because there is a lot of contradiction in the written material and so we try to find the happy median and/or some kind of plausible explanations. And IMO we have some of the most active creation process of any of the boards- just look at the Archive sticky at the top of the DS threads- all of that material, and most likely more, has been created by those of us here. And aside from the material released from Athas.org, all we have is outdated rule sets that just scream for conversion to the coolness of 3.5- but we got no one else to do the conversion for us, so we end up doing it our selves or with others from this board.
#19
Zardnaar
Jan 21, 2006 14:25:49
I'm still 23 . 24 in July. I never got occasion to play orginal boxed set.Long story short: I've heard of DS in 95' but I was playng Warhammer then. Finally I've got some of the documents (Athas.org, PDF Boxed set) in 2002. And finally I've got time to play it in 2005. A long journey, huh? . It could be shorter if there was polish edition :P

We might have a volunteer for a polish translation then. Convert all f Athas.org work to polish. Since I'm a nice guy you've got a week to do it :D

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Oninotaki Jan 19, 2006 22:23:50	Ok here are some numbers before I ask you guys all my question: 146,076 ebberon total posts 10,845 threads 13.46 posts per thread 156,210 forgotten realms total posts 12,367 total forgotten realms threads 12.63 posts per thread 113,436 star wars total posts 9,263 star wars threads 12.24 posts per thread 95,131 d20 modern total posts 7,092 total d20 modern threads 13.41 posts per thread 43,987 total dragon lance posts 3,224 total dragon lance threads 13.64 posts per thread 40,625 total Dark Sun posts 2,256 total threads 18.00 posts per thread As you can all the currently published currently published settings (dragon lance counts cause it still gets novels and 3.5 books) have very close posts per thread count. As far as I can tell out of all the Non-core D&D boards Darksun has the highest post count by a large margin. So I'm wondering how popular everyone here in the community thinks darksun would be if it had its own published 3.5 line. Would it stay ahead in the numbers game, average out like all the other lines or fall behind? I would like to think it would maintain one of the highest post counts, but i really think it would probably fall behind the average as set by the other major lines.
#2 ruhl-than_sage Jan 19, 2006 22:34:17	I think one of the reasons for the numbers in the case of darksun, is the level of devotion that many of the fans have to the setting. I would imagine that their are a higher number of heavy posters for the setting than any other. Also, the differentness of the setting and the mystery of it probably contributes. There is a lot more to say about it. I don't think the numbers indicate as large of a darksun following as you might think.
#3 Zardnaar Jan 20, 2006 0:01:52	Theres a certain core of Darksun posters who reply to alot of threads. Theres also virtually no flaming and most people here are very well read on DS's history, setting etc. I'm sure I've managed to offend one or two people here though. Dedication and alot of feedback.
#4 xlorepdarkhelm_dup Jan 20, 2006 9:30:39	Ok here are some numbers before I ask you guys all my question: 146,076 ebberon total posts 10,845 threads 13.46 posts per thread 156,210 forgotten realms total posts 12,367 total forgotten realms threads 12.63 posts per thread 113,436 star wars total posts 9,263 star wars threads 12.24 posts per thread 95,131 d20 modern total posts 7,092 total d20 modern threads 13.41 posts per thread 43,987 total dragon lance posts 3,224 total dragon lance threads 13.64 posts per thread 40,625 total Dark Sun posts 2,256 total threads 18.00 posts per thread As you can all the currently published currently published settings (dragon lance counts cause it still gets novels and 3.5 books) have very close posts per thread count. As far as I can tell out of all the Non-core D&D boards Darksun has the highest post count by a large margin. So I'm wondering how popular everyone here in the community thinks darksun would be if it had its own published 3.5 line. Would it stay ahead in the numbers game, average out like all the other lines or fall behind? I would like to think it would maintain one of the highest post counts, but i really think it would probably fall behind the average as set by the other major lines. We are catching up with Dragonlance. HOWEVER, like the others had said, this forum has an unusually high number of dedicated and very knowledgeable people who regularly post here, and it is curiously one of the more civil boards I participate in.
#5 Pennarin Jan 20, 2006 9:53:45	snip ...and it is curiously one of the more civil boards I participate in. It is? What other boards have you found to be unrully? (I only check DS and the general boards like psionics and spells.)
#6 xlorepdarkhelm_dup Jan 20, 2006 11:03:39	It is? What other boards have you found to be unrully? (I only check DS and the general boards like psionics and spells.) The other boards I am referring to are not part of the Wizards.COMmunity. The Dark Sun forum is the only WotC forum I check.
#7 jano Jan 20, 2006 12:20:14	Hi, So I'm wondering how popular everyone here in the community thinks darksun would be if it had its own published 3.5 line. Would it stay ahead in the numbers game, average out like all the other lines or fall behind? I would like to think it would maintain one of the highest post counts, but i really think it would probably fall behind the average as set by the other major lines. I don't think so. DS is to exotic. And requires a lot of work to start playing and running it (I know from my example). Every one knows how Forgotten lokes like - semi medieval land with knights and stuff. And DS needs a bit of checking in the books about ancient cultures, how desert lokes like. And many more things we all know because we're playng DS . And, last but nat least, it's a system for older gamers (I think): slavery, seduction, etc. Proof? I think I'm the youngest here
#8 monastyrski Jan 20, 2006 14:23:19	And, last but nat least, it's a system for older gamers (I think): slavery, seduction, etc. One can play slavery, seduction, etc. in every setting. DS has smth. else.
#9 darksoulman Jan 20, 2006 14:36:10	One can play slavery, seduction, etc. in every setting. DS has smth. else. You can...but I think what Jano was saying is that the setting will seem all the darker if you do. Can't remember seeing any other settings that put weight on themes as equally dark as DS (apart from Ravenloft, which I think is a way worse setting). Let's face it, the main themes in DS are none too cuddly
#10 darksoulman Jan 20, 2006 15:05:53	DS is to exotic. And requires a lot of work to start playing and running it (I know from my example) (...) DS needs a bit of checking in the books about ancient cultures, how desert lokes like. And many more things we all know because we're playng DS NO ! I was (and still am) a bit shocked at the amount of work required to make a DS campaign tick. Terrain, peoples/races, culture, equipment, crunchy stuff, naming (how do get the guy who always plays a melee character to actually use the proper name of the macahuitl? How do you get the players to use the proper idioms? [Yes, I'm exaggerating a bit]), tone (getting players to be relatively serious a lot of the time can be hard - especially working guys who don't have too much free time and love to joke around) and of course, all the usual DM stuff that all settings share (NPCs, adventures etc). Wow, that's a horrible sentance And still, I've always loved the setting and have very high hopes for the campaign
#11 monastyrski Jan 20, 2006 17:21:53	You can...but I think what Jano was saying is that the setting will seem all the darker if you do. Can't remember seeing any other settings that put weight on themes as equally dark as DS (apart from Ravenloft, which I think is a way worse setting). Let's face it, the main themes in DS are none too cuddly I do not like the word "dark". I can (and do) play Greyhawk games with just the same troubles as typical DS game has. The difference I see is not the "darkness", but the less freedom the characters have. There are few persons whose wishes make sense on Athas, and neither PCs nor SKs are among them.
#12 darksoulman Jan 20, 2006 18:38:28	I do not like the word "dark". I can (and do) play Greyhawk games with just the same troubles as typical DS game has. I think you may be in the minority then Not that there's anything wrong with being the outsider...nooooooo, not at all.... :D :P
#13 ruhl-than_sage Jan 20, 2006 22:52:13	I think I'm the youngest here Just out of curiosity, how old are you? I'm one of the younger regular posters at 24 and problably the youngest to have started playing the game with the original box set.
#14 jon_oracle_of_athas Jan 21, 2006 3:18:59	I'm 24 too, and I started playing with the original boxed set. So, you're not the only one.
#15 Zardnaar Jan 21, 2006 3:38:50	I'm 24 too, and I started playing with the original boxed set. So, you're not the only one. I thought you were older. I'm 27 and got the impression you're older than me.
#16 Kamelion Jan 21, 2006 4:01:56	I thought you were older. I'm 27 and got the impression you're older than me. That's just his aura of cool oracular confidence and nordic savoir-faire :P ...
#17 jano Jan 21, 2006 6:29:46	Just out of curiosity, how old are you? I'm one of the younger regular posters at 24 and problably the youngest to have started playing the game with the original box set. I'm still 23 . 24 in July. I never got occasion to play orginal boxed set.Long story short: I've heard of DS in 95' but I was playng Warhammer then. Finally I've got some of the documents (Athas.org, PDF Boxed set) in 2002. And finally I've got time to play it in 2005. A long journey, huh? . It could be shorter if there was polish edition :P
#18 kalthandrix Jan 21, 2006 6:39:18	One thing that I noticed when checking out a few of the other boards like the DL one, is that the fans there will talk about stuff- endlessly debating some point that is far from the established written material- which then sets off the fans that think that if it was published in the book- any of them- that it is canon and cannot be altered- which sets off all kinds of back-and-forths. Also the fans of some of the other settings do not really go out of their way to make things for their own setting- they are content with just waiting on the next book to get published. On the flip side, you have us here on the DS board- we debate because there is a lot of contradiction in the written material and so we try to find the happy median and/or some kind of plausible explanations. And IMO we have some of the most active creation process of any of the boards- just look at the Archive sticky at the top of the DS threads- all of that material, and most likely more, has been created by those of us here. And aside from the material released from Athas.org, all we have is outdated rule sets that just scream for conversion to the coolness of 3.5- but we got no one else to do the conversion for us, so we end up doing it our selves or with others from this board.
#19 Zardnaar Jan 21, 2006 14:25:49	I'm still 23 . 24 in July. I never got occasion to play orginal boxed set.Long story short: I've heard of DS in 95' but I was playng Warhammer then. Finally I've got some of the documents (Athas.org, PDF Boxed set) in 2002. And finally I've got time to play it in 2005. A long journey, huh? . It could be shorter if there was polish edition :P We might have a volunteer for a polish translation then. Convert all f Athas.org work to polish. Since I'm a nice guy you've got a week to do it :D