With 3rd edition having rekindled my interest in D&D recently, I was very excited to see the development of a 3.5 revision of DS. Indeed, what I found (the big .pdf) was very promising indeed. My respect to the people responsible!
Still, please don't take this as undue criticism, but I found the work so far in many ways incomplete. As someone here has already mentioned, there is no new monstrous compendium, nor does the .pdf really provide a 'setting', as it's name suggests. Not that I'd expect it to, don't worry, I realize that this is only the beginning. What I'm trying to say is, I find it somewhat hard to follow where exactly you are planning to go with this.
Possibly due to the change to a new board system, there is now FAQ or statement of intent that I could find, neither on athas.org nor on these boards. So I have a few questions:
- What are your plans for the future, once you finish the 'core' DS rules?
- Do Wizards allow you to revise all of the published material and put it online for free?
- Will we see not only a new monstrous compendium, but also a complete atlas of Athas (the world seems to have been expanded a great deal beyond the original setting already, but I find myself unable to find the source material for that, including a elusive 'Chronicles of the Wanderer')?
- Is there any way to contribute, either by creative input through discussion or by more direct work on conversions?
- Any chance to get permission from the original artists and/or from Wizards to include some more of the original DS art in your work (not to be demeaning to the contributing artists - great work, guys - but I feel the original art by Brom and Baxa was very much part of how I perceived Athas, and I really miss to see it next to the new rules).
- And of course, will you have a FAQ to prevent nosy bastards like myself from spamming your board with noob questions henceforth? ;)
Still, please don't take this as undue criticism, but I found the work so far in many ways incomplete. As someone here has already mentioned, there is no new monstrous compendium
If you read up on the other threads from this week (generally advised on all message boards before posting and excusing yourself as a noob ;) ), you'll see that an athasian monster manual is in the works, nearing its completion. It contains conversions of all 2E DS monsters, and even some new ones. That conversion work is not done over night, and done properly it takes time.
nor does the .pdf really provide a 'setting', as it's name suggests.
Nor is it supposed to. The DS3.5 Core Rules is not another DS boxed set, it is a rules compendium. With the pdf versions of both DS campaign setting boxed sets available at 5$ a piece from svgames.com, getting hold of the campaign material is a low-cost and easy transaction.
Epic rules. Secrets of the Deadlands (Campaign Expansion Set). The Emissary (Adventure). Dregoth Ascending (Adventure). Faces of Athas ("Rogue's Gallery"). A prestige class accessory.
- Do Wizards allow you to revise all of the published material and put it online for free?
No. Previously published material is available for sale in pdf format.
- Will we see not only a new monstrous compendium, but also a complete atlas of Athas (the world seems to have been expanded a great deal beyond the original setting already, but I find myself unable to find the source material for that, including a elusive 'Chronicles of the Wanderer')?
Athasian Monster Manual - yes.
Complete Atlas - probably not.
- Is there any way to contribute, either by creative input through discussion or by more direct work on conversions?
Yes. Through these forums.
- Any chance to get permission from the original artists and/or from Wizards to include some more of the original DS art in your work (not to be demeaning to the contributing artists - great work, guys - but I feel the original art by Brom and Baxa was very much part of how I perceived Athas, and I really miss to see it next to the new rules).
We are actually allowed to use art from previous DS sources, but we wanted to get more fans involved and have some new art produced. From a personal point of view, the 2E products re-used the art too many times already.
- And of course, will you have a FAQ to prevent nosy bastards like myself from spamming your board with noob questions henceforth?
There is already a 3.5 FAQ at www.sederqvist.com/ao
As for a more generic FAQ, sometime not too far off into the future.
About said thread - I had actually read that, but I thought to include it here anyway to have it all in one place ;)
As to my question about revising previously published work and Wizards not allowing you to redo it for E3 - I find it somewhat unfortunate to have to switch forth and back between original setting, several expansions and revised rule set all the time when perusing my material. Considering your past experiences with them, any chance of ever seeing Wizards' policies on that change?
Very cool to see you're going to work on prestige classes. I assume you'll do dragons and avaignons through epic prestige classes, then?
This leads me to another questions - I hope you are nor tired of them yet: by your deal with Wizards, how free are you in developing and expanding the setting?
Oh, one more thing - where do I get that sourcebook 'Chronicles of the Wanderer' (or something like that) from? I can't find a reference to it on Athas.org
As to my question about revising previously published work and Wizards not allowing you to redo it for E3 - I find it somewhat unfortunate to have to switch forth and back between original setting, several expansions and revised rule set all the time when perusing my material. Considering your past experiences with them, any chance of ever seeing Wizards' policies on that change?
Yes, it isn't fun sorting through a bunch of books, but it's not much different than any other setting, if you plan on using the older stuff. I don't think Wizards will change their policy regarding this.
Very cool to see you're going to work on prestige classes. I assume you'll do dragons and avaignons through epic prestige classes, then?
Haven't really touched that yet (advanced beings, I mean). You can preview the PrCs on Jon's site.
This leads me to another questions - I hope you are nor tired of them yet: by your deal with Wizards, how free are you in developing and expanding the setting?
Fairly free. We can't kill off major NPCs, nor alter the setting in a dramatic way, and we must keep the timeline going (meaning all our products start off after the events of the Prism Pentad).
Oh, one more thing - where do I get that sourcebook 'Chronicles of the Wanderer' (or something like that) from? I can't find a reference to it on Athas.org
If you're talking of The Wanderer's Chronicle, it's in the 2nd boxed set (Revised DS Setting). You can get that at SVGames.com.
Originally posted by Gab
If you're talking of The Wanderer's Chronicle, it's in the 2nd boxed set (Revised DS Setting). You can get that at SVGames.com.
That must be the one, then - thanks. Looking very much forward to whatever you're coming up with, here, so I'll be hanging around. And if ever you have some tedious conversion work or the like to do, I for one would gladly offer to help out.
This leads me to another questions - I hope you are nor tired of them yet: by your deal with Wizards, how free are you in developing and expanding the setting? Asked previously.
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You answered...
Fairly free. We can't kill off major NPCs, nor alter the setting in a dramatic way, and we must keep the timeline going (meaning all our products start off after the events of the Prism Pentad).
There's a question naging me since then: If WotC abandoned the DS franchise(no future product from their part). Why have they ruled the above paragraph?? Is it simply to respect the old( and new) fans with everything they read(official) which made them DS *worshipers:D * in the first place or do you think somehow from the corner of one eye, WotC is just being plane passif for the time being?? Thus may have future plans for DS3.5?
Personaly I like the setting just the way it is!! All 90% of it
:heeheeOriginally posted by Jihun-Nish
There's a question naging me since then: If WotC abandoned the DS franchise(no future product from their part). Why have they ruled the above paragraph??
Far as I know, every one of the "abandoned world" sites
operates under this restriction. We're not really allowed to effect dramatic changes upon the game world -- at least, not without asking first ... but there are changes we've asked about ...
Now, if only we could get him to do 'em for elementals, as well.
The Aarakocra
Now Behold the beautiful plumage! Behold the capability of flight!
But what is it? Humanoid or Monstrous Humanoid?
The reason I ask is the TK and the HG are given specific types and the Aarakocra is not
Just curious