We had a great game yesterday and I’ll have a lot to say about it soon. However, I’d like to post Yan’s journal entry 1st so I can build on it instead of playing it safe. So you’ll see it all later this week.
Yesterday before the game, I went to my Favorite Local Game Store (FLGS) to buy Franky’s birthday gift (which is going to be great for his new McWod game).
I also bought an ancient copy of the AD&D Dungeoneer’s Survical Guide for 5$. I’ve never owned it but this thing features the 1st and one of the most awesome Underdark primers there is, complete with 3D mapping techniques. Not bad for a 1st Ed product (that being said, I so don’t miss this game’s crunch).
Then I saw a copy of what’s being heralded on the Web as the “Ultimate Book of all that’s Evil and Vile about Wizards of the Coast” AKA the D&D Rules Compendium (I’m paraphrasing here).
I turned it over and looked at the price, 26$ US and 35$ CDN.
Aside: Imagine a 4 page fire and brimstone rant against corporate North America stealing Canadians blind now that the dollar has been around par for quite a few months… I won’t waste energy on that.
I asked the store’s manager if I could have the book at the American price and he agreed. So I bought it without even cracking it open. Why you ask? I don’t quite know and I could spin a long yarn about how I might still play 3.5 after the release of 4e and bla bla bla…
Actually, the low price was a big factor, so was my desire to aid the store who’s not having an easy time with Amazon and the PDF RPG market.
I’m also a bit of a contrarian. If so many bad things are being spewed about a gaming product before anyone actually saw it, I just have to have it. Sure,Wizards is making another bid at my wallet, but so what? I have the money to buy it and I was curious.
I never actually had the time to look at it before my friends started arriving for the game.
As it’s bound to happen in any D&D game, we got to a rules question… something about the Concentration DC when injured during casting. As I was about to pick up the Player’s Handbook, I saw the Rules Compendium lying around, picked it up and finally cracked it open…
It’s organized alphabetically, hmmm useful. I go “C” just for the hell of it and there sits a one page entry on Concentration. Found the ruling is a flash (DC 10+damage dealt).
Then later, Stef asks me how to calculate a Breath Weapon’s DC. Flipped to “B” and found it! It’s DC 10+ 1/2 racial HD (Zero for a 1/2 dragon barbarian) + Con Modifier for those who care.
At a certain point, we needed a refresher on how to determine cover, once again it was found almost instantly.
Finally, when the players were having “fun” with poisonous creatures, there was a question about which ability loss caused death by reaching zero. Flipped to “Ability loss” and found it (Constitution only, the other render you helpless).
So that 26$ book has already been more useful than a lot of my other sourcebooks. It’s well written, concise and includes mini-essays on rules and memorable game situations by the D&D R&D staff.
So I’m damn happy that I bought it and I’m looking forward to actually read it!
Cheers!
Allow me to go off subject a moment and say that there’s an initiative by a handful of fairly large book retailers to sell at the US marked price. Hopefully, it will be a first step towards prices that make sense.
In fact, WalMart is selling a lot of things (specifically video games) at US prices. I just picked up the Half-Life 2 Orange Box for $50, where it would normally cost about $70.
There ya go! Ahh it was a good rant! 🙂
And the book is real good too ya know?
pat yourself on the back for not making the same mistake with the Dungeon Survival Guide. I am thinking this could be the single worst “official” product ever released for DnD. Not to be confused with the fine product you did pick up, the Dungeoneer’s Survival Guide.
You know, I never even looked at that one. The Rules Compendium will be the last rulebook/sourcebook I plan on buying until the release of the 4E PHB.
The sorry thing is, looking at the cover you would think it is a source book. Upon opening the thing though, you find larger than normal print. This large type face gives you two page write ups of old modules. Many of these old modules you can’t even buy in print form anymore. It’s like one of those best of DnD articles from Dungeon or Dragon magazine. I was shocked they killed trees to print it, let alone make it a hard cover.
Wizards seems to have this split personality lately where they produce Excellent Crunchy Sourcebooks on one hand and Horrendous Useless Historical-Fluff…
And the worst is that a good portion of Customers only buy WotC books….
It’s worse than the end of 2nd Edition…!
What’s next, the Naked Dragon Cookbook?
They seem to be sticking to the 2 hardcovers a month model in a rapidly shrinking market…