Hi all-
A long time ago at the inception of these lists, there
was a debate about labeling d20 products. People were
worried that the d20 logo alone didnt tell what kind
of product was contained within the pages of the
product.
The first request was for WotC to let us modify the
d20 logo--such as putting "fantasy" or "super hero"
across the bottom of the logo. That was quickly shot
down. They didnt want the logo modified.
There were many who argued that there was no need for
such a modification of the logo (I was one initially).
Those people argued that cover art and flipping
through the text of the product should be enough to
clue the purchaser in as to what type of product they
were buying. But there were some who wanted something
more. So we all (what few there were on the list back
then) discussed the idea of what I came to call the
"product stat block," playing on the prevalant stat
block idea in 3E. I had since come over to the way of
thinking that it would be good to have such product
labeling.
At the inception of d20 it was my belief that for a
long time d20 would mean D&D. But that just doesnt
seem to be true today. There already is a super hero
d20 product. Wheel of Time is going to be d20, Star
Wars, Call of Cthulhu, and Elric too.
So that brings me back to the idea of the "product
stat block." You can see a more full example of the
idea on my site at:
http://www.necromancergames.com/ratingsys.html
I am including these on the rear cover of Necromancer
Games products. I was wondering what people thought
about the utility of such a designation and whether
now--after considerable time has passed since this
issue was first considered--whether the product stat
block is a valuable topic for discussion.
Most people back many months ago were worried about a
consistent style of stat block, which led to the
information contained on my site: an attmept to
standardize the stat block information. Which led to
some inside jokes and a little light-hearted ribbing
of me from the list for presuming to organize the
project. In fact, all I did was organize the work of
others.
Here was the final proposal: each d20 product would
have a box on it (normally on the rear cover)
detailing several relevant categories of information,
detailed below:
1. The "Genre" of the product (Fantasy�Swords and
Sorcery, Fantasy�Alternate Earth, Space Opera, Super
Hero, etc.). For example, all Necromancer Games are of
the "Fantasy�Swords and Sorcery" genre.
2. The "Type" of product (Adventure, Supplement, Game
System, etc.). Necromancer Games focuses on
Adventures, both dungeon and wilderness, and
Supplements, such as city or monster supplements.
3. The product�s "compatibility with d20" (indicating
whether or not the core d20 rule systems of 3rd
Edition are supported, limited, modified or extended
in any way.).
4. Details of any rule changes, limitations,
modifications or extensions (if rules are changed in
any way, the areas of change will be listed). For
example, The Wrath of Orcus includes a rules extension
including new rules for resolving a large-scale
military campaign.
Here are a few examples from our products:
The Crucible of Freya
Fantasy�Swords and Sorcery
Adventure (Village/Wilderness/Ruins)
Core d20 Rules Supported
The Wrath of Orcus
Fantasy�Swords and Sorcery
Adventure (Military/Dungeon/Wilderness)
Core d20 Rules Supported
Limited Extensions (adds rules for large-scale
military campaign)
I have been thinking about all this again and figured
with all the new blood on the list it might be a good
topic to bring up again.
Thoughts? I would love to hear what everyone thinks
about this including current d20 producers.
Clark Peterson
Necromancer Games
=====
http://www.necromancergames.com
"3rd Edition Rules, 1st Edition Feel"
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