[SPOILER]Will OotS upgrade again?

[Altair_the_Vexed]

Back at the start of the comic (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0001.html), Rich made some cool jokes about the change from 3rd Edition to 3.5.

With 4th Ed on its way, do you think we'll get some gags about converting to this (apparently) radical new set of rules?

[Flickerdart]

I can see him making jokes about it, but not actually doing it, which I think is for the best. Honestly, how often are the rules referenced beyond a general character level, anyways?
Also, with the new rules, the party would be nigh-immortal, which means Roy comes back and then we lose a story arc.

[Phase]

I don't think it would make a differance. Like Flickerdart said, he'll probably just make jokes like "You're lucky this isn't first edition or we'd see hoe you'd like to be turned, paladin" but nothing more. The comic has been mainly general jke and plot based for quite some time now.

[T-O-E]

No, because then Elan and Thog would cease to exist.
It's as if Wotc has it out for idiots.

[factotum]

Isn't this question asked practically every week? Anyway, quite apart from the above mentioned impossibility of converting Elan, Thog and Therkla to 4th edition, the Giant said in one of the book intros that making such a big joke about the upgrade was a mistake because it meant the strip dated really badly.

[SteveMB]

Isn't this question asked practically every week? Anyway, quite apart from the above mentioned impossibility of converting Elan, Thog and Therkla to 4th edition, the Giant said in one of the book intros that making such a big joke about the upgrade was a mistake because it meant the strip dated really badly.

I read the comments as more a regret for using such an event-specific joke for the first strip (you only get one chance to make a first impression).

That said, I don't expect an "upgrade to 4e" joke, except maybe as a sort of "bookend" epilogue bit.

[EvilElitest]

It won't update until Rich has enough time to play and understand, and the mock it.
from
EE

[Morty]

Well, 4ed would surely add a whole lot material for PC vs. NPC jokes.
Other than that, I don't think so. 4ed jokes would be complete gibberish to those who don't play D&D or don't convert to 4ed.

[TroyXavier]

It would end up being more trouble than it's worth. I imagine he'll just keep it 3.5 and not worry about it.

[Chronos]

One of the design goals Wizards of the Coast has for fourth edition is to make it impossible to convert characters from 3rd to 4th. And from what we've seen of the new rules so far, they're doing a pretty good job of it. So no, the Giant won't convert them, because he won't be able to, even if he wanted.

[Altair_the_Vexed]

One of the design goals Wizards of the Coast has for fourth edition is to make it impossible to convert characters from 3rd to 4th. ...snip...
Really? I thought that the [proto-]4th Ed Star Wars Saga Edition came with a conversion document from 3.5 SRD rules to SAGA...

As they say on Wikipedia: Citation needed?

[[Insert Neat Username Here]]

Really? I thought that the [proto-]4th Ed Star Wars Saga Edition came with a conversion document from 3.5 SRD rules to SAGA...

As they say on Wikipedia: Citation needed?

It didn't. At least, my copy didn't. And I doubt Wizards has some sort of personal vendetta against me.

[Mando Knight]

Saga Edition doesn't come with the conversion guide from standard d20/ Star Wars Revised, you need to download it (for free) from the WotC website, here (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=starwars/article/sagaconversion).

It requires Adobe Reader to open, which may malfunction on computers running Vista (I haven't run into the problem myself, but whenever I open a PDF, Vista warns me about "known issues").

[Forealms]

Back at the start of the comic (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0001.html), Rich made some cool jokes about the change from 3rd Edition to 3.5.

With 4th Ed on its way, do you think we'll get some gags about converting to this (apparently) radical new set of rules?

In Dungeon Crawlin' Fools, Rich specifically stated that he regretted starting out a comic with jokes about 3.0 to 3.5 conversion. I have a feeling he may update some things, but he won't come out and say, "Here we are, OotS in 4th Ed!"

[Mc. Lovin']

It's not really much of a spoiler is it, anyone who has read the first comic of OOTs wont have any storyline spoiled by your thread topic.

[David Argall]

The wisest position is that it is not going to happen, at least soon enough to worry about.

As noted, there is not going to be a conversion until we have had time to look over the rules of 4.0 and learn enough to understand the jokes. So expect nothing for at least a year.

Thereafter, we can expect some 4.0 jokes in any case. The strip has a number of references to earlier versions, and so we can expect some about 4.0.

Then there is the question of just how popular 4.0 will prove. If we get huge numbers of new players and all the older players convert, there is some chance the comic will change. If the more negative/realistic views prevail, there won't be much incentive to change.

The speed of new strips is important too. We have 3 books done, and by the time we have a chance to convert, the 4th might be on the way to the printer. The closer we are to the end, the less wisdom there is to a conversion.

Now we get a lot of propaganda about campaigns being unconvertable. This is technically nonsense. The rules are not that different. One does have to ignore the silly points of light idea, but the mechanics will not change that much as far as we are concerned. There will still be mages and elves and... So conversion will be possible if it is really a good idea.

[factotum]

There will still be mages and elves and... So conversion will be possible if it is really a good idea.

But there WON'T be Bards or half-orcs, at the very least. You might have noticed that one or two important characters fall into one or the other of those categories.

[Niknokitueu]

But there WON'T be Bards or half-orcs, at the very least. You might have noticed that one or two important characters fall into one or the other of those categories.
So? Existing half-orc characters can fall into a special 'cursed' category, ie they are unique. Make it up on the fly, and if you are not happy with what you get, start a new character.
Existing bards can likewise be placed in a unique class. Beg, borrow and steal ideas from 3.5 to cobble togrether an unique class, available to only that character. If it appears too strong or too weak, either fix it or start a new character.

Have Fun!
Niknokitueu

[Jaffo]

I'd like to see the OOTS guys visit an alternate universe where everybody is built with 4E.

Or maybe am extemded dream sequence.

I've only looked at sample characters from 4E and I'm already horrified.

[David Argall]

But there WON'T be Bards or half-orcs, at the very least. You might have noticed that one or two important characters fall into one or the other of those categories.

There won't be bards or half-orcs in 4e immediately. That does not at all mean there won't be bards or half-orcs a year or two down the road.

3.5 started with 11 classes, and gained about 3 a suppliment. Races have not jumped as fast, but at least in theory you could play any creature in any of the MMs.

[brilliantlight]

That's dumb, why get rid of common classes/races?

[Jayngfet]

converting won't happen unless we kil off Elan, Nale, Thog, Therkla, and Belkar, plus dozens of others

[Laurentio]

Passage from 3.0 to 3.5 was a good fuel for a short joke. Worked, and no complain. But see, it's "threedotzero" to "threedotsomethingmore". An upgrade.
We are speaking a change from 3.X to 4.0... I won't stand for it. And it's not needed, too: the comic is full of chars and object from other versions ("He is using ad old version Fly spell that last more").
Beside (and this is my personal, soggetive, no-pushing humble "just me" opinion), 4.0 sucks.

Laurentio