Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition

That is some really cool information. Thanks for posting. I’m especially looking forward to the character builder and D&D University.

I just hope that this has a reasonable cost.

Why could this not have been locally hosted instead of central server hosted? All I need is another leech on my wallet. They could simply make this locally hosted then charge for upgrades, like the pdf books etc.

Regarding the various proposed features of the D&D Insider, after the ill-fated fiasco that was the Master Tools program (later scaled down to a buggy character creator called E-Tools), I’ll believe it when I see it. And with all the currently available free softwares out there that already (collectively) most of these things, I think $10/month will be a hard sell for many - it better be REALLY good and really easy to use.

Depending on how it is designed, D&D Insider may make things easier for me and other blind D&D players like me. If I can enter a code or something to have access to the full contents of a book I have purchased, including core rule books, then it will be worth it to me, as long as the fee is not excessively high. All I ask is that if any antipiracy measure is used, that it not prevent the effectiveness of using screen reading technology to access the service.

I was excited, but all of these facts are alarming. 10 Characters? A fee for accessing books I own online? total bullshit. So so so disappointing. D&Ms and Players everywhere are weeping.

so dnd insider in replacing the dungeon magize which kinda scuks becuase i enjoyed haveing it to read away from the office. So now i’ll be on the internet all day.

Not worth it. I will still get the books, but the fun of DnD is interacting with other people. I am not paying 10 bucks a month for limited options. Ugh I understand they are in this for money but this is ridiculous. I will wait for Players Handbook2 to get the stats for the rest of the classes and races. Save me some ink, paper and money.

If one changes the point of view, it is so for both, Players and DM to keep hanging arround instead of playing from their computers.
However, 3rd Ed. and previous didn’t have Online support, players survived without it, so I don’t think it’s nessesary to suscribe to DNDInsider… Although, it might have come in handy

What I’d really like to know is the proposed system requirements - will you need to be running windows to use these tools?

The 10 charactor limit is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard of, we should be able to have as many as we want, 10 barely covers one of each core classes, less once they release more with the books. $10/month is a bit steep, especially considering all of the freeware dungeon tools out there.

They are obviously going for the market of people who try and RP on MMOs like World of Warcraft. MMO players are used to monthly subscriptions, and this still looks better for trying to play telecommute D&D than gathering on a game like WoW.

Wow, money money money

The Subscription Prices seem somewhat high to me.
The idea of paying for digital Minis is laughable and seems like a cynical attempt to squeeze even more cash out of people.

On the whole though it looks like good stuff - if they can actually consistantly deliver content to a high standard.

I was hoping they would start slow, say 5.95 monthly with an annual subscription. But limitations on player characters seems to be combining Guild Wars Characte Limit with the World of Warcraft expense.

I have been playing since AD&D and I was looking forward to finding online campaigns and online information - does everyone realize how difficult it is to sort through 3.5 to find all the spells/feats/races/classes/PrC that a dm may allow. I look forward to this making character research go much quicker. At my age, I don’t have the free time anymore.

Bring it on WOTC - I wonder how many things will change when it is released?

Another thing that is bugging me. As a DM since Basic and AD&D 1st edition I have learned not to allow characters from previous DM’s campaigns. Am I going to be able to at least review the characters coming in or require they roll up one specifically for my campaign that can ONLY be used for my campaign? I am big on continuity, characters are people, for lack of a better term, and unlike a MMO or other video game I don’t allow characters to leave the campaign as well as join from a different one. But of course I am a role-player, not a Hack/Slash Dungeon Crawler so maybe this is no longer the game for me.

I have been playing This game since Summer 1979. The money that I have spent (willingly) on any Product of the previous Editions was hard earned, and well spent. All material is stored on a shelf and I will be able to pick any book on the shelf and read it as long as my house does not burn down or something similar bad. The chance for that….1:10000000 or more.
I also had the chance of viewing the book/material before buying it. (Especially the Dragon and Dungeon Magazine, since not all printed articles have been of use to me and my group).

This new system does not offer any of the above mentioned options. Storing the Dragon Magazine and other E-Books on my computer does not enable me to pack them along on a trip, reading during a train or plane ride. (or at lunchbreak at work, on the beach or any other place away from home 8and I dont care to carry an expensive lap top along). Also, who out there in the community has never experienced any Computer problems like bugs anf viruses that destroyed or damaged the hard drive and its contents. Printing out a 60 page Dragon Magazine will cost a lot in paper and ink (in addition to the Online fee).
Fine, I am offered additional material. Does this mean that NON-ONLINE-Subscribers will not be able to buy the same material in form of a soft or hard cover book. Do we thus have a “two-class-gaming-community”. Those with all the good stuff (ONLINE SUBSCRIBERS) and those with out it (Old fashioned people like me who prefer a perfectly bound book or magazine printed on durable paper with ink that does not blur or wash of when it gets hit with a bit of water).

For me this whole thing stinks. Milk my wallet further, not being contend with all the hundreds of books (through all editions for more than 30 Years). I was perfectly willing to go along with the 4th Ed. and buy all, or most of the future products. But now I am beginning to have doubts. maybe I just keep playing 3.5 or even switch to one of my older systems and Editions.

Thanks for the great past 30 years. But I guess the line will stop here. to bad.

George

Hey I am out in regina, my good buddy is out in Victoria and my best friend is in northern Alberta (St. Paul) and my other friends are in Calgary… thats 760 km for me, 1200 km for my other friend, and 640 km for my best friend to get together in one location to have one session. the gas alone makes this worth the purchase. i agree that teh monthly thing is actually a bit steep. I think that initial purchase of their product is more than enough to pay for the central operation of teh site and it then gives them a forum for sale, presentation and advertising of all their future products.
If they should just provide free access to the D&DI site, tack like 50 cents onto the price of their products and make this a FEATURE that everyone can or can not use. Really they would be selling more people on the new product, creating a greater following for D&D, no one would say a thing about it sicne it is free and they get a platform for free advertising and direct sales to their clients.
IE: they make MORE MONEY off each sale, we don’t really pay any extra (cut the middleman so to speak) and there is now a new dynamic feature to gaming. i agree nothing replaces the home table… but when you can’t get teh group together at all… its just the only way this is gonig to work.

“D&D Insider assumes that a subscriber owns every product that WotC has published. As long as you subscribe, you’ll have complete access to everything in the rules database.”

^Sounds good to me. The rest is crap.
Then again, I don’t usually pay even $10 a month on D&D Books…but still it’d be nice.
I just don’t like the whole digital thing. All the big places now want you to buy digital content for real money, when the digital content can suddenly vanish. Thanks, but I’d rather buy a bit more than 0’s and 1’s.

This is a no brainer for me. I just drop my LoTR Online subscription and replace it with DDI. Then I’ll have something that I’ll actually play more than once every 2 months.

My friends and I were totally bumped out, when we heard that it would be a monthly payment, because we live miles from each other now, and maybe only would be able to play once a month, because of our jobs and all the studying…! Why not only pay fees for upgrades, and a onetime fee for the program itself? And why a limit on characters? As WotC says: “it’s not about limits, but opportunities!” It would also be great, if the program didn’t rely on the DDI server, but could be used through a switch, so players didn’t have to be online, if they just wanted to bring that extra touch in to their gaming nights.

As one of my friends said when he heard it: “The character program could just be on a disk that came with the PH and the dungeon program with the DMG. Surely WotC have to charge more for the books, but then again, lot lees then 9.95$/mo…” We know that WotC is a company that feeds on money like any other, but we also think that the company needs to be loyal to its players, and not ride the MMO wave of greediness…

To sum up:
-We hope for an offline able program, that’s affordable for everyone, to give the maximum gaming experience.-

PS: We are not angry, just disappointed…!!

A Danish gaming group

I’m quite disappointed that this isn’t a stand alone program. I was really looking forward to plugging in my lap top and projector and running my dungeons/encounters on that. This allows all my players to see whats going on a lot easier. I’ve found it really hard to simulate AOE and light sources and flying creatures.
WotC - You’ve got it wrong, you’ve made the game a lot quicker and simpler (FANTASTIC), but an online only subscription based program is horrific. Yes some will pay & play, but you’ve got tonnes of loyal fans that will be very disappointed. All they get is a change of rules and a lighter wallet. Please reconsider this direction and make the dungeon/character program just that, a program. I’d buy it, without even thinking about it.
Hopefully,
Adam
DM for over 15 years.