Just discovered Tome of Awesome; why does no one talk about this?!

[SouthpawSoldier]

So, I'm reading the Tome of Awesome, a 437-page PDF of 3.5/D20 fixes. Just getting into it, and I don't have the chops for statistics analysis or really test and review it, but I'm REALLY impressed with what I've read so far.


A Monk that reads like it's from Bo9S
Feats that scale with BAB, Skill Points, or Caster Level
One heck of a fix for bows and ranged weapons
And SO much more

A quick Google search pulls some mentions of the book, but no threads really dedicated to it. Why on earth not?

The latest version (http://code.google.com/p/awesometome/downloads/list) has been around four years (unless the devolopers moved). Reading this thing, it almost seems like it should be a standard source by now.

[Hand_of_Vecna]

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A quick Google search pulls some mentions of the book, but no threads really dedicated to it. Why on earth not?

Because it's just a collection of good, according to you, homebrew.

Many people either enjoy playing within the bounds of the official published sources. If they want homebrew the default option is to either write your own or cherry pick material that perfectly matches your vision of what's realistic/balanced/cinematic.

Very few threads are dedicated to any of the many massive homebrew fixes unless it's a plug by the authors.

[SouthpawSoldier]

Well, as I said, I don't really have enough experience to objectively say it's a good fix for 3.5 issues. In my subjective view, it's pretty awesome. it'd be nice to see the take more experienced players and DM's have. More experienced eyes may be better than mine for spotting flaws.

[Flickerdart]

There have been 1001 "fixes" for 3.5. Many of them are good. Most if not all are shorter than 437 pages.

In the end, part of the appeal of 3.5 is that many people are well-versed in a canon of official books, and don't need to change sources in order to enjoy playing with their friends (who also know the canon). If people are willing to change systems, it's probably a better idea to go for something completely different, such as Fate or Burning Wheel, rather than try to patch up 3.5's bloated husk.

[Seppo87]

The arguments against "adherence to arbitrary self" as a definition for lawful are very weak. Sound like a 14 years old who just realized Free Will does not make any logical sense, so he's now trying to enlighten all the other ignorant folks.
Actually, it's a deeper matter than that.

Basically, a chaotic character is more prone to change when it's convenient. A Lawful character has the specific desire to resist change even when it would be convenient.
This basically supersedes the whole "there are no choices" argument. Even if there are no choices, what your character will do depends on his priorities. So it's prefectly reasonable to have inner coherence as a priority - or not, for chaotic characters.

As simple as that.

[provided you want to use adherence to arbitrary self as a definition for Lawful. I'm not trying to convince anybody, just debunking a weak counter argument]

[Beowulf DW]

The arguments against "adherence to arbitrary self" as a definition for lawful are very weak. Sound like a 14 years old who just realized Free Will does not make any logical sense, so he's now trying to enlighten all the other ignorant folks.
Actually, it's a deeper matter than that.

Basically, a chaotic character is more prone to change when it's convenient. A Lawful character has the specific desire to resist change even when it would be convenient.
This basically supersedes the whole "there are no choices" argument. Even if there are no choices, what your character will do depends on his priorities. So it's prefectly reasonable to have inner coherence as a priority - or not, for chaotic characters.

As simple as that.

[provided you want to use adherence to arbitrary self as a definition for Lawful. I'm not trying to convince anybody, just debunking a weak counter argument]

I think you're in the wrong thread, friend.

[Seppo87]

I think you're in the wrong thread, friend.
No, this is related with the book's content.

[Eldan]

Mostly because the internet has conditioned me to equal "awesome" = "loud, flashy, stupid and without substance". I'll give it a look maybe.

But really, 400+ pages? At that point, that's a new system.

[SouthpawSoldier]

The more I read it, the more I see it as a 3.5 PHB rewrite.

My biggest issue that I've mentioned elswhere is my lack of experience with anything other than 3.PF. Every system I read, or homebrew or fix, is viewed through the lens of how it compares to 3.5. In some cases, like scaling feats as vs feats that provide a flat bonus, it's easy to say "this is a mechanical and thematic improvement". I can't attest towards balance or how it will affect play, because I lack the frame of reference.

I stick with 3.5 because it's familiar, and the difficulty of getting involved in a game using any other system. Tome of Awesome feels like a good compromise/stepping stone between the familiar 3.5/D20, and a system that fits what I think makes sense.