Status Update
It's been almost three weeks since my last post, so I figured it was time to give everyone a status update.
If you're not aware, on April 27th my mother passed away. I can't say it was unexpected - she had been dealing with a fair share of health issues and she hadn't been the same in the last few months - but even so it's been somewhat of a shock and a trying time as I deal with her loss. For a while there I lost my creative spark and desire to do anything from a design and development standpoint, but I've been slowly working my way to getting back to "business as usual" in that regard. Even so, we've still been dealing with issues as it relates to her passing, so it's still occupying a large part of my daily life. But I'm OK... pressing on day by day.
I'm now back in the creative swing, if you will. The Heart of Fire is doing as well as can be expected (the 4E market has dwindled, it seems), and I have several other projects currently in the works:
- On May 28th (I think), I will be releasing my contribution to the May of the Dead blog carnival: another level 0 adventure called Death's Edge, which involves the players defending their homes against an invading horde of undead. It's part one of a three part series I am calling The Dark Mistress Saga (I have my doubts of that name, but still), and will be available for free on this site. It's already completed, so I'm struggling with the fact that I want to get it published and am normally too impatient to wait the week and a half before its intended release date.
- I have already started work on part two of the three part series, a level 1 module that doesn't actually have a name yet. The second part is more warfare oriented, where the players are now "heroes" and are now on the front line of a war against a powerful necromancer and her vast undead army. For this second part I'm taking a lot of inspiration from the Heroes of Battle supplement for D&D 3.5E, and am debating to what extent to include some of the mechanics presented there (such as victory points, reputation points, morale, etc...).
- I was working on a Fouthcore adventure, but now I'm not sure if it's worth completing at this point. To be honest, there are many other people out there that can do Fourthcore much better than I can, and with DnD Next looming over the horizon it doesn't quite seem worth the effort at this point. So what I will probably do is release some of the areas of the campaign I've already done on this blog for anyone to use, similar in what I've done so far with the Gamma World Remnants.
- The Coming Dark is still the 700lb gorilla hiding in my closet. Once the DnD Next playtest materials hit (exactly one week from today), I am going to start planning the conversion. Granted, there might not be a whole lot I can do or would even want to do (I don't want to spent too much time creating mechanics that might change), but I can at least make some basic progress. My goal is to have one or more first level adventures available as soon as DnD Next launches (licensing limitations not withstanding), so we'll see how that goes.
- I have one adventure idea I pitched to Wizards of the Coast as part of the DDI submission window, and I have yet to hear a response regarding that. It's a really fun and somewhat wacky idea, and quite honestly I'm not expecting a positive response because of the nature of it, but whether they accept it or not it's going to get written sooner or later. It's actually about half done as it is, so once I hear "yay" or "nay" I'll complete the rest of it and publish through them or on my own.
- I have one DDI article that is slated to be published (in Dungeon, I assume)... eventually. I have no idea when, and for obvious reasons I can't say much more about it until it appears in the calendar. It is my first and, all things considered, it's pretty simple compared to my other stuff, but I'm really excited waiting for the day it's actually in print.
- As I said above, in one week the first wave of the DnD Next playtest will commence. I don't know how much I'll be able to actually play it, but I'll definitely be picking it apart with tweezers to figure out what it's all about.
Finally, there was a time I was considering a Kickstarter to fund the physical printing of The Heart of Fire, but after crunching the numbers it didn't seem all that practical to do. But now I'm seriously considering a Kickstarter to fund the development of parts two and three of The Dark Mistress Saga to help fund the creative needs of the project (cover art, maps, etc.) and to see if there's actually a demand for it. I have to run the numbers and give that some more thought.
Anyway, just wanted to let everyone know what I've been up to.
A Hero’s Journey
A Hero's Journey
So I've sent The Heart of Fire to a few people who volunteered to edit it; I haven't heard from them in a few days, so either I've stupified them with my awesome writing or my writing is soi abysmal that I compelled them to jump off a bridge. You can never tell with these sort of things...
In the meantime, inspired by Thick Skull Adventure's upcoming Dungeon Crawl Classics adventure "Attack of the Frawgs!" (which I help edit), I had an idea for a level 0 mini-adventure. I would have written it for the DCC ruleset, but all I have for now are the "beta" rules. I could have waited, I know... But I'm impatient. Once I get an idea in my head I need to get it done and out there.
So I decided to create the module using the level 0 rules for D&D 4E that were documented by the "A Hero's First Steps: Rules for Level 0 Characters" article by Philippe-Antoine Menard (a.k.a. @ChattyDM) that was published in Dragon magazine #403 (DDI subscription required). Here is the intro, in all its vague glory:
For years you have followed in the footsteps of your master, watching his every move and learning through observation and study. You longed for the day when you might actually be able to follow in his footsteps and become an adventurer yourself, basking in the fame and glory that comes with such an honor.
One day, during what should have been a normal expedition for your master and the other members of his group, everything changes. You suddenly find yourselves alone, the only hope for a city in desperate need of salvation, and you must put what you have observed in to practice. Can you step up and become the hero you were destined to be?
It's very short - less than 20 pages - and really only has a couple of encounters. I designed it with roleplaying in mind, where the players can really get in to character when their simple level 0 characters are thrust in to danger and must deal with forces beyond their understanding.
The hardest part of this module was coming up with names... The city had three different names - an online random name generator seriously suggested the name "Cloverclover" - until I settled on the name Feldspar. It's a strange name I know, but I'm sure someone can come up with a good reason for it to be called that? And I also had to find a name for a pirate ship, and even though the online "pirate ship name generator" are far from appropriate, it did help me come up with the ship name as The Red Barnacle.
Anyway, you can purchase the mini-adventure A Hero's Journey for the low price of $1.99 at Drive Thru RPG!
Map Pack M3: Crypt Entrance
While I was creating the adventure, I ended up creating a tactical map that I really liked: the entrance to an underground crypt. So I decided to make that in to a high resolution image (200 DPI) and release it as a map pack. This new map pack, brilliantly titled M3: Crypt Entrance (I suck at names... sue me) is also available at Drive Thru RPG.
Once I feel comfortable about The Heart of Fire - which will hopefully be soon - that will be released.
Appeasing the Ones Who Matter
If you're like me and not yet part of the "D&D Next" (referred to as "DDN" from here on) playtest, in the past week or two you've probably been curious for some information on it. And when you went looking for it, you hopefully found a source of good information (EN World's "D&D 4E Info" page, Critical Hits, even Sarah Darkmagic's Joining the Party articles on the WotC site, etc.) and did not fall in to the abyss of despair that is the Wizards of the Coast online forums.
As you've come across information regarding DDN, you've probably formulated your opinions on whether you like or dislike what you hear. Most of you may have withheld your opinions, and some of you may have expressed joy or concern through some of the comparatively discrete venues (Twitter, for example). But some of you - especially those that disliked something they heard - took it to the extreme and began writing with an intense, seething hatred of all things DDN.
Wizards of the Coast has a seemingly ambitious goal: create something that appeals to everyone. But if you have ever been on the Internet (if you're reading this, I imagine you have) you know that it's virtually impossible. No matter what the topic is, there will always be someone who hates it and will be very vocal about it. Nowhere is this more apparent than on the Wizards of the Coast forums; there's actually a thread there that lists individual topics in their most generic fashion ("ability scores", for example) followed by a long list of how many forum goers thing it's "good" or "bad" as described in DDN. Everything has multiple people that disagree with it, no matter what the topic may be.
WotC needs to make a choice: for each and every element of DDN they have to decide one way or the other how it's going to be implemented. And no matter what they choose, they're going to upset somebody. So how they decide how to implement things? Majority vote? Board meetings with marketing folk? Dart board? D100? How do they decide who to appease?
The answer is simpler than you think... The group they must appease first and foremost is themselves.
I'm going to sidestep for a second and ask a general question to everyone that is reading this: if you currently have a job, do you enjoy it?
Some of you, like me, might actually enjoy their job. And, as a result, you are constantly doing whatever you can in order to make the job experience better. You show a level of enthusiasm in what you do that is unparalleled, and you love walking in to the office in the morning. Needless to say, you're a rare breed.
Now many of you hate your job, and only work for the sole reason of getting a paycheck on a regular basis. While working you can't think of anything beyond when the next break or the end of the shift is. Some of you have given up to the point that you make no effort to improve the situation, so you slog through one work day after the next without trying to better what you see is a hopeless cause.
Picture yourself as a Wizards of the Coast employee, working on the design and development of DDN. How would you feel if you're forced to create a game you dislike? Wouldn't you prefer a game that you enjoyed enough to want to contribute to its growth?
I myself have been a game developer creating a game I disliked, and it was a miserable depressing experience. As soon as the game was done, I honestly didn't want to have anything to do with it, and moved on to my next project without looking back. This is exactly the sort of the thing we don't want from WotC; we want them to create a product that they themselves are enthusiastic about so that they continue to support it enthusiastically. The more the creators enjoy the project, the more it shows in the end result and in subsequent product releases.
So what am I saying with all this? You all are welcome to voice your opinions on the good and bad parts of DDN, but please do not forcibly insist that they do things a certain way just because you want it that way. If WotC capitulates to every request and ends up creating a product that they are internally not big fans of just to make everyone happy (which, as I said, is impossible), future support for it will suffer. Since the design team at Wizards of the Coast knows more about game design than pretty much any of us, I'm pretty sure they already have the tools needed to finish DDN in its entirety. Let them do what they enjoy, and through that enjoyment let them put every ounce of enthusiasm they can muster in to the final product.
And, when that's done, thank them for it. Only then will you see DDN grow in ways you cannot possibly imagine.
Cartographer’s Guild Mapping Challenge
A few weeks ago I decided "this was the month I was going to do it," and by "it" I meant participate in the monthly Mapping Challenge posted by Cartographer's Guild. Kind of thankful I didn't think that way last month; it involved making an actual, physical diorama.
So today this month's challenge was posted:
This months challenge is to take an existing board game and give it an update and maybe a cool twist as well. Battle Ludo, Orkish Chess, Steam Punk Monopoly, Lizards and Stairs - what ever fun idea you can come up with - just remember to use an existing game as "base".
In the beginning, there was concrete...
I was worried for a bit, but I decided to roll with it... And have decided to use the game "Clue" (or "Cluedo" to you non-Americans) as the basis for my version of "Dungeon Clue". I assumed it existed - actually, while I was writing this very post someone pointed out the existence of Clue: Dungeons and Dragons - but that's not stopping me.
My goal is to try and document the process in some sort of tutorial format as the map progresses. It will not be easy since I do not have any drawing ability, so the map will have to be created entirely through the use of ProFantasy Campaign Cartographer 3 clip art and whatever visual effects I can pull off inside of the Adobe CS5 Master Suite (Fireworks, Photoshop, Illustrator, etc...).
I will of course have to make some adjustments. For example, I don't know of many dungeon lairs that will have a "Billiard Room" (then again, I'm sure one of you out there has had one at least once), so I will be choosing rooms to fit the theme and decorating them accordingly. I don't know what they will be yet.
Whether I go as far as making actual game mechanics I cannot say, but if I do I will try to make said rules game neutral: they won't be D&D, Pathfinder, etc... I don't want to start a whole new wave of Edition Wars for a board game.
Now, in and around all the other crap I have going on these days, let's see if I can pull this one off...
Pleading the Fifth
If you're reading this blog, odds are you're aware of Wizards of the Coast's announcement that the next edition of Dungeons and Dragons is currently in development.
I have refrained from posting about it because I didn't want to take part in all the rampant speculation as to what this version will entail. But one thing does concern me: the above announcement has the subtitle "Your Voice, Your Game" and describes how they will "gather feedback" to create a game "that you want to run and play."
In other words, they're asking the public what they want in D&D. This, quite honestly, could backfire.
Picture this: gather 100 random people. Now ask each of them what kind of toppings they want on their pizza. Many of them will like similar things, and there is the possibility that certain toppings might count for a significant majority... But there are going to be those that want the "weird" stuff - like anchovies or pineapple (yeah, I said it!) - and will insist that their choices are the best and not care what people think. They may even scream it out loud for everyone to hear, try to convince others that their choice of toppings are the best by explicitly describing their reasons, and rail on those that think otherwise and suggest that pepperoni on a pizza is almost as bad as murdering kittens. And there are going to be several that don't care, want a list of options so they can choose, are vegetarian, are lactose intolerant, are allergic to tomatoes, would rather have a sub, want pizza slices cut in to squares, etc... etc...
And then there are those that might want something totally oddball. For example, I know of at least one person that tried to convince me that squid on a pizza was a good idea. Really? Squid?!?
I trust the team that WotC has chosen to develop the next edition, and I know that they will do their best to create a game I and many others will want to play. But I do not envy their job; it's going to be a hard road to travel, filled with landmines and potholes. I trust they will see their way through it.
Now, what do I want out of the next version of D&D... As far as game mechanics, I'm not going to make requests. I liked 3.5 and I liked 4E, so I see no reason to hate the next version regardless of how they decide to structure it. I would much rather leave the discussions of mechanics to people more qualified to do so: designers and players alike that have played the game consistantly since the day it was created.
What I *am* interested in is the licensing aspects of the new version, and what may happen to the extremely restrictive 4E GSL. But there's a problem with that: although Cook and Mearls are in charge of designing the new game mechanic, they are not responsible for the licensing. The licensing is in the hands of lawyers, an anonymous group hiding in the dark corners of WotC (or New York, as the case may be), and they are not the type of folk to ask the masses for suggestions on how they should license their money maker. But there has been hints that the licensing will be different, and I think that many of the non-lawyers at WotC realize the inherent flaws in the GSL, so there's hope still.
So what does this mean for publishing? As a third party publisher, we're now in a difficult situation. We could continue to create content for 4E, but in light of the announcement there mauy be several fans out there that would rather not invest in 4E - or abandon it entirely - in anticipation of the new version. Now I know that 4E isn't "dead" - there are at least three hardcover books on the schedule in 2012, so I don't think WotC is going to go dark with 4E content until the next edition comes out - but you have to wonder what kind of impact the announcement will have on their 4E product line this year.
Currently I have a few products currently in development:
- The Heart of Fire, a 4E adventure for a party of 10th level. This module is 95% done; it only needs a few remaining scenes written up and I need to commission some artwork (including a map of the island on which it takes place). This will continue as scheduled, and if all goes well should be released within the next 2-3 weeks.
- The Coming Dark, was to be a 4E adventure for a party of 1st level. This module was created almost a year ago, and since then I have learned a great deal about campaign design in the D&D world. As a result, I see a lot of flaws in its design (my main issue being that it could be classified as being "on rails")... so I intend to rewrite most of the module from scratch. As a result, I have decided to hold off this campaign until it can be created and released under the next edition of D&D. This of course means that it will not see the light of day for at least another year, but if it means it'll be a better product and fill the need for new content once the new edition of D&D comes out, it'll work out for the best.
- There are at least three different module concepts I have floating around in my head right now. If they end up being small delve-like campaigns, I might release them under the 4E GSL as well. But I might also hold off some of them until I can begin their development under the new edition. We'll see how things go between now and then.
The next couple of months are going to be an interesting time. It'll surely be a fun read on Twitter, at least.
NOTE: As you may have noticed in the above, I try to refrain from calling it the "fifth edition" or "D&D Next" (as it is being called on Twitter). Right now it has no name, so I don't want to start referring to it by something that it's not. Hopefully we'll know what to call it soon.
About the Author
Software developer and game designer in Miami, Florida. Currently working on content for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition, Pathfinder, 13th Age and other systems.
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