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View Full Version : Flavour Vs "Oh my god thats broken"


Stormcrow
2007-09-05, 07:09 PM
In recent days I've taken to buying books online in PDF format. Nothing _really_ crucial I still prefer those as hard copies but flavour texts and stuff. I recently picked up Pirates of the Fallen Stars which is a 2nd Ed D&D suppliment because it has unparraleled information about the area of FR my campaign is set in.

But as I've strayed away from WotC or in this case TSR :P I'm finding that companies are printing some really horribly unbalanced stuff. Perhaps we can compile a list of companies that don't tend to play test for people to avoid?
RAGE KING!
2007-09-05, 07:20 PM
well, you start us off.
Anxe
2007-09-05, 07:30 PM
Legends and Lairs? The prices for their magical items are horribly skewed. They cost way too much or way too little. The classes they make up are okay though.
puppyavenger
2007-09-05, 07:54 PM
WOTC
Seriously
ArmorArmadillo
2007-09-05, 08:39 PM
WOTC
Seriously

Oh fooey.
Wizards is a fine company for those who can reasonably handle the rules.
OneWinged4ngel
2007-09-05, 09:31 PM
Oh fooey.
Wizards is a fine company for those who can reasonably handle the rules.

Eh, they really don't do much playtesting.
Neon Knight
2007-09-05, 09:32 PM
Doesn't mean they do much playtesting. They hardly even playtested core :-\

They playtested core. They just assumed that every mage would be a blaster, and every cleric a devoted healer.
OneWinged4ngel
2007-09-05, 09:35 PM
They playtested core. They just assumed that every mage would be a blaster, and every cleric a devoted healer.

Comments from the designers disagree. What's your source for that?
Neon Knight
2007-09-05, 09:36 PM
Comments from the designers disagree. What's your source for that?

I believe the good user Matthew posted an article about it once. In between trying to teach THACO to seals.
Merlin the Tuna
2007-09-05, 09:42 PM
Comments from the designers disagree. What's your source for that?We're getting dangerously close to the realm of "Some guy on a message board told me he once read a post by another guy who said he knew a guy..." here, but there was definitely some communication with a former playtester that roughly amounted to "Yeah, we always just played that the crusher would go after the Fighter instead of walking around to smash the Wizard, and the Wizard would shoot fireballs all day.

I'm not sure what on earth could have convinced them that that was a good way of testing it, but eh.
horseboy
2007-09-05, 09:46 PM
Because Swordguy sent me the link once in PM, and I haven't erased it yet:
http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=49378
but yeah, WotC has no idea what they're doing.
UglyPanda
2007-09-05, 09:54 PM
I don't know about crunch, but Green Ronin appears to have really bad fluff. One of their books features terrible races, such as natural half-mindflayers (Mindflayers don't have genitals) and half-blinkdogs (Which is bestiality).
TSGames
2007-09-05, 09:54 PM
But as I've strayed away from WotC or in this case TSR :P I'm finding that companies are printing some really horribly unbalanced stuff. Perhaps we can compile a list of companies that don't tend to play test for people to avoid?

I can tell you, in regards to this, only that Bastion Press has put out several books, all of which have amazing flavor, and most of which have equally amazing content. The downside, is that all the material I have/have seen by Bastion are either balanced or underpowered. Then again, maybe that's not such a bad thing.

If you couldn't tell I prefer very high powered campaigns.
Anxe
2007-09-05, 10:08 PM
I don't know about crunch, but Green Ronin appears to have really bad fluff. One of their books features terrible races, such as natural half-mindflayers (Mindflayers don't have genitals) and half-blinkdogs (Which is bestiality).

Green Ronin does have some good fluff books and some awful ones. Those ones do sound pretty horrible to read.
Kurald Galain
2007-09-06, 02:10 AM
Frankly I don't know any company that hasn't put out a couple of books that are total crap (either in fluff, in crunch, or both), TSR, WOTC and Whitewolf included.
Swordguy
2007-09-06, 02:55 AM
Comments from the designers disagree. What's your source for that?

I am. Or more specifically, my uncle, Jon Pickens. He worked for TSR as an editor and playtest coordinator for two decades and then for WOTC for a little while (till just after the release of 3.0).

The longer version is from this thread here. (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=49378)

EDIT: And now that I've read the remainder of the thread, I see Horseboy beat me to it - and hasn't cleaned out his PM box in a while.
Neon Knight
2007-09-06, 06:27 AM
I am. Or more specifically, my uncle, Jon Pickens. He worked for TSR as an editor and playtest coordinator for two decades and then for WOTC for a little while (till just after the release of 3.0).

The longer version is from this thread here. (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=49378)

EDIT: And now that I've read the remainder of the thread, I see Horseboy beat me to it - and hasn't cleaned out his PM box in a while.

Whoops, yeah. I somehow confused you and Matthew.

Swordguy is the guy.