My box came with the pregens already printed out. Why is it a misstep for someone to release something in print, and not have a small portion of that product not available as a pdf? Not getting why that was expected.
It's partly become the norm to have these sorts of things to be available for download. Yes, you can photocopy them, but today most people have supplanted photocopying (even on their own printer) with downloads of PDFs that they can just print out.
From a consumer POV a reason for providing the PDFs to allow printouts is that it does allow you to keep the original versions as artifacts and print out multiple copies as need so you can run the thing multiple times using fresh sheets for the pregens. The PDF also acts as a source if you should happen to lose the original sheets (because that can happen).
I guess printers are ubiquitous but making copies or scans requires sneaking it by the boss. Unless you are the boss, like I am, in which case it's a non issue. Or something....I really don't get how this is a mis-step when personally I'd be happy to just buy a PDF of the whole Starter Set if they stuck it up on dndclassics.com.
It would have been nice to have the pdf available to print out for the players earlier, because when you put the originals into their grubby little hands, they write on them and smear orange dorito dust all over, even when you tell them to be careful and give them extra blank sheets of paper. :)
it's a misstep to forget a PDF copy of pregens for a product like this - not a huge one - a very small one - but folks have been looking for this for 2 weeks
and who actually writes on the originals these days? or makes notes and marks off HP in a actual module (not the PDF printed at home but the actual print adventure)
no one that I know
so, if you hand out the pregen originals from the box, can you ever use the box with another group?
I make all my notations in the actual adventures. Most of them are not collectors items like old, mint TSRs.
Not being able to make a copy of char sheets from printed sheets is a fucking lazy GM, especially since damn near every printer that you can buy today has a copier/scanner built into it. In fact, aside from small travel printers, you would really have to look to buy on without them.
Bull$#!t. Not every printer has a scanner/copier built in. The majority don't. The DM has enough preparation to do without having to get into the car to drive to OfficeMax or Kinko's. I have 3 infant children. It's not too much to ask that I be able to print the character sheet in my home.
The PDFs take 5 seconds to export from InDesign and post on the web by WotC. This is not so much to ask from them.
I also don't see it as a misstep. You have to hand-copy the pre-gen sheets. That's not difficult or expensive. I did it a few days before running Lost Mine of Phandelver.
If you release it as a PDF, then potentially everyone can have it. I paid for the Starter Set. Why should someone who didn't get the box have access to the pre-gens before the Starter Sets shipped from amazon?
+Venger Satanis - They already shared the pre-gens publicly on the internet (as image files, not PDFs) so you don't lose anything by having these provided for free.
A Misstep would have been WotC saying nothing about the pregens. They did in fact say up front they would be available at a later date which it turned out to be just 3 days after the official release.
I guess it's a mis-step because they forgot that the people buying this are not kids anymore (I'd have marked the hell out of the originals between age 10 and 17), and having access to everything as a PDF is the norm now.
There are people who remember what it was like to actually take time to photocopy, transcribe or even just stick them in laminated sheets to mark on with temporary markers, but we are the minority now.
Grudge from the Grave
-
*The Nature of the Beast* is a scenario set in an England rent by division
and strife during the reign of Charles I. This division is between the
Protesta...
More thoughts on Only Heroes Get to Resist
-
I've never implemented this rule, but I keep thinking about running a game
that would use it:
One Heroes Get to Resist
I have a few more thoughts on it, n...
QuarHammer
-
I stumbled, addled, into my local semi-rural game store in search of
off-brand Contrast paint to finish up Ionus Cryptborn, and while wandering
around, I ...
More (Mostly Pointless) Messing About
-
I thought I would try an experiment: I re-scaled one of Bergman's 1:100
Char B-I (bis) models to 1:200 and printed it on my Mars Pro. It's the
yellow ...
#AtoZChallenge2024: V is for Vampire
-
[image: Dracula by Edgar Alfred Holloway]
Dracula by Edgar Alfred HollowayLong before I was ever known as the "witch
guy" I was the "vampire guy." A lot of...
Stonehell: Dipping their toes in the sewer
-
Session 227 was played on 9/24/23
Morgana, Magic User (Rob)
Blotto, Goblin Fighter (Lanse)
Koltic, Cleric 7 (NPC)
Aroon, Fighter 5 (NPC)
Jameth, Fighter 5...
AD&D ability tests, streamlined
-
As I've mentioned in my Hyperborea review (check it pout!), I really liked
how the game tries to streamline AD&D ability checks:
This is a simpler versi...
On preparing adventures for the Ghostbusters RPG
-
With my mind on a lot of things lately related to West End Games' classic
RPG *Ghostbusters*, I was thinking of putting together a blog entry
offering so...
d100 Wasteland Weirdos
-
Possibly some Charginspire leaked onto our new album.
Sampler short
https://youtube.com/shorts/Yj7jn40iomM?si=dflfJ10EdYYJqMYr
My Gunderholfen solo play...
Standoff at Sandfell Sea Fort
-
By MalrexThe Merciless MerchantsOSR/1e/2eLevels 4-7 Eerie lights? Strange
noises? Ships are sailing blind into the rough shores of the Bay of
Saurvorn. Why...
A World in a Magazine
-
Four years ago, I wrote about my history with miniature games and getting
back into them during the lockdown. Summer 1995 saw me seduced by the world
of ...
New Printable Scenery Campaign: Ramshackle & Ruin
-
[image: New Printable Scenery Campaign: Ramshackle & Ruin]
I don't know how many of my peeps here are into 3d printing, but I'm always
collecting the STL ...
Play as Sculpture, Play as Prism
-
Watching my eldest child and friends engaging in imaginative play, I'm
often struck by the fact that what seems to excite them is deciding who
gets to be...
Session #12 & Adventure Sites Compilation
-
Firstly, I wanted to let everybody know that Adventure Sites I by Coldlight
Press is now available as a free download on DriveThruRPG. It includes my
own...
Clerics of the Flanaess, Part 2
-
Sorry it took so long to get to the next article in this series, but here
we are! This continues the details of specialty clerics for the World of
Greyhawk...
On the Sector Turn
-
It's very simple.
There are many important things cybertechtronically enhanced secret agents
need to do: Buy illegal tanks with railguns. "Convince" the...
Arsenic & Old Lace (a Review)...
-
The free-kriegsspiel revolution (or FKR; sometimes free-kriegsspiel
roleplay) has been getting a lot of attention lately, which seems
inevitable given re...
The Light Dawns
-
THIS!!! Yes, a thousand times, this!
Back in the day, I referred to this as “neo-classicalgaming,” which is to
say, the sorts of games that came ou...
Improvised Awful Lights Missions
-
Asking about The Awful Lights, a commenter asks:
*I'd love to hear about how this is run - with the Handler determining
mission location and objectives ...
Jim Ward's Adventure in Gygax's Wonderland
-
Last weekend at GaryCon, many of us raised a glass to the memory of Jim
Ward, who passed away just days before the convention. Ward was very
helpful to m...
It’s Tolkien Reading Day
-
I recently started rereading *The Silmarillion*. I had last read it over
two decades ago. I liked it then but I’m really enjoying it this time!
Despite b...
Osr anchorites?
-
It's been a long time since I listened to any osr podcasts. Anchor was a
lot of fun. I'm not sure if the community is still going? I deleted the
app ...
Chaos War Dogs
-
Welcome back to the Vault! My gaming partner and I had a fun day at the
Meme Team doubles last weekend, placing mid-table results wise. My eye is
now lo...
ShadowDark Magic Items
-
The next campaign I run will use the ShadowDark RPG. I'm not sure when
that'll be (I'm hoping a little later this year), but ShadowDark is my
choice. I'v...
Xandering, Jaquaysing, or Arneson-ing the Dungeon?
-
Yet another gamer firestorm arose shortly after the passing of Janelle
Jaquays when it was noted that Justin Alexander had changed a rather well
known p...
GLOG Class: Bioweapon
-
I got this idea from mad gods on bear blog.
Crab Evo from Kagaku Sentai Dynaman
A thousand soldiers were slain. Too many to be tragic--this is just a fact...
The Economy Engine, v0.2
-
I made a thing. For D&D 3rd edition, so it might not be that interesting to
a lot of people. But I made it and I think it’s cool. The 3rd edition
Dungeon M...
*'s in SpaaaaaAaaaace
-
A lot of SF (including a certain 2D6 RPG grandaddy) deal with ancient
aliens taking humans from Earth and dropping them, fleas and all, on one or
more w...
What Else Have I Got in Me?
-
Brechewold's been done for a little while. Still incredibly pumped to have
this labor of love out in the company of LotFP's marvelously creative body
of ...
Last move - to self-hosting!
-
As my vote regarding Substack in the “marketplace of ideas”, I’m moving to
self-hosting.
I’m now at (and hopefully staying for a long time at)
Blog: ht...
Time Rolls On
-
Today is December 31, 2023, in the mid-afternoon. In less than ten hours it
will be 2024. 2023 2023 was a good year. But all years are good years. Both
goo...
Play Report: Skull Mountain
-
At the end of the last Skull Mountain session the PCs had retreated to
safety at Owen's redoubt, met with visiting elves, and recovered from
injuries ...
-
Heya folks, the 21st Salt Mine book, Import Export, has hit the digital
shelves! In the 21st book we follow Aaron Haddock-codename Stigma-as he
tries to ...
Moving On...
-
So, my D&D 5e experiment has blown up the lab in a puff of green smoke
leaving my face blackened like Wile E. Coyote after a failed roadrunner
Acme trap...
How to Keep Megadungeons Fresh
-
People often consider megadungeons boring. Not because the play style is
boring, but because they are in the same locale for a majority of the
campaign. If...
The Blade Itself
-
I just finished listening to the audiobook of The Blade Itself, volume one
in Joe Abercrombie’s The First Law trilogy. This was my first exposure to
his wo...
Genteel Magistrate at FenCon XVIII
-
Victorious author Mike Stewart will be a guest at FenCon XVIII this weekend
at the Sheraton DFW Airport hotel, 4440 W. John Carpenter Freeway, Irving,
TX, ...
This is an Important Game Mechanic
-
*"That's the GM's Regional Map from my AOWG. And it's a damned good
regional map. It's not a good map for a Simple Homebrew Campaign. It does
some s$&...
Clean Your Room
-
Looking back at my little blog here. That last post… wow, I was having fun
playing WOW Classic! That was August of 1999 and I was having a blast… it
was ...
My RPG Zine Trilogy is on Kickstarter!
-
I can't believe I didn't post about it here!
The Dead are Coming, Screams Amongst the Stars and Running Out of Time are
on *Kickstarter right now!* Thes...
Maximum HP 004, one week to go
-
Just one week to go for Maximum HP issue #004, the undead. We are pushing
through stretch goals and wracking up contributions for the best issue yet.
We...
Steve Jackson Interview
-
James Maliszewski recently did an interview with Steve Jackson over on his
Grognardia blog. Steve chats about the beginnings of The Fantasy Trip and
upcomi...
Undermountain Map Origins
-
As documented on the Ruins of Undermountain sales page, "TSR didn't
actually use Ed Greenwood's original maps," at least not in their entirety.
This post d...
WB:FMAG Total Print Sales
-
Hello Folks,
The last time I did a quick sales report was in September 2018.
I pulled reports from Amazon, Lulu and DrivethruRPG from October to current
fo...
The Minotaur for Old-School Essentials
-
*Minotaur*
*Requirements:* Minimum STR 9, Minimum CON 9
*Prime Requisite:* STR and CON
*Hit Dice:* 1d10
*Maximum Level:* 8
*Armor:* Leather, including shield...
WIZARDS OF POHJOLA
-
Init +0
Melee Atk
• sword or dagger +1 (1d5 or 1d3)
Ranged Atk
• hot iron sparks +3 (1d4+2 to two targets within 20' but not closer than
5')
AC 14
HD 12d...
Dungeons & Dragonmead Fall Schedule
-
*As you know, I run public classic Dungeons & Dragons games at **The Loaded
Die**/Metro Detroit Game Night's Board Game Nigh at **Dragonmead**, in
Warren...
D&D Sling Damage vs. Large Targets
-
In many early editions of D&D, weapons were assigned two damage values: one
for small/medium targets (i.e. man-sized) and one for large targets (giants
and...
James A. Smith, Jr. Memorial Video
-
A beloved father, devoted friend, and D&D Dungeon Master extraordinaire. We
miss you! To view video, click here Memorial Video
Note - The original video...
Let's Talk About Pacing!
-
The idea, I think, is that the RPG is ultimately about the long game. Even
rolling back to the early days of Basic & Expert, the goal of the player
was...
Profane and Profound Prep Part 2
-
This is part 2 of my work to edit my magic items for a DMsGuild release,
along with adding cursed items along the way. Here is part 1. Bone of a
Saint 8000...
SHORT BREAK.
-
I'm going to take a break for a week or so and will start up again in the
New Year. Thanks for reading and we'll start with Level 6 when I get back.
Iain Lovecraft, 3D Sculptor
-
Nope, it's got nothing to do with Cthulhu. I just did a video conversation
with Iain Lovecraft, who designs 3D miniatures and terrain. If you're not
doi...
New website!
-
Slowly but surely, all the content here will make its way — in updated
form! — to my new website: timbannock.com. For fairly obvious reasons, that
site wil...
Please Update Your Link!
-
If you're seeing this, it means your link to the Greyhawk Grognard blog is
out of date.
Please update your link to www.greyhawkgrognard.com (RSS feed is
h...
Mord Mar - Session 6
-
We weren't able to play Mord Mar last week, due to a family funeral. This
week we played on Monday for the first time, due to kids returning to
school and ...
A Small, Quiet Plea
-
There has been a great deal of discussing political agendas, social
grievances, and personal attacks within the little corner of gaming that is
my hobby....
Don’t Sleep It’s Broken
-
Expanding/editing my comments from What Makes Something Broken G+ thread:
“Broken”, for me, is anything that makes normal character choices, tactics,
or ro...
Swords & Wizardry Light-Themed Birthday Party
-
Last month, my wife and I helped our oldest to celebrate his birthday in
style. Ever since 2013, we have hosted a themed birthday party for our
now-15-ye...
Nice. Saves me some scanning!
ReplyDeleteMy box came with the pregens already printed out. Why is it a misstep for someone to release something in print, and not have a small portion of that product not available as a pdf? Not getting why that was expected.
ReplyDeleteIt's partly become the norm to have these sorts of things to be available for download. Yes, you can photocopy them, but today most people have supplanted photocopying (even on their own printer) with downloads of PDFs that they can just print out.
DeleteFrom a consumer POV a reason for providing the PDFs to allow printouts is that it does allow you to keep the original versions as artifacts and print out multiple copies as need so you can run the thing multiple times using fresh sheets for the pregens. The PDF also acts as a source if you should happen to lose the original sheets (because that can happen).
I guess printers are ubiquitous but making copies or scans requires sneaking it by the boss. Unless you are the boss, like I am, in which case it's a non issue. Or something....I really don't get how this is a mis-step when personally I'd be happy to just buy a PDF of the whole Starter Set if they stuck it up on dndclassics.com.
ReplyDeleteIt would have been nice to have the pdf available to print out for the players earlier, because when you put the originals into their grubby little hands, they write on them and smear orange dorito dust all over, even when you tell them to be careful and give them extra blank sheets of paper. :)
ReplyDelete- Ark
Precisely. It's about convenience. Everyone has a printer for PDFs... only a fraction have a scanner/copier.
ReplyDeleteOr... a Staples within 10 minutes to make a copy.
ReplyDeleteSorry, I still don't see it as a "first misstep".
it's a misstep to forget a PDF copy of pregens for a product like this - not a huge one - a very small one - but folks have been looking for this for 2 weeks
DeleteI'm with Joseph.. They were in the box printed out..
Deleteand who actually writes on the originals these days? or makes notes and marks off HP in a actual module (not the PDF printed at home but the actual print adventure)
Deleteno one that I know
so, if you hand out the pregen originals from the box, can you ever use the box with another group?
nope - thus the use and desire of a PDF
I make all my notations in the actual adventures. Most of them are not collectors items like old, mint TSRs.
DeleteNot being able to make a copy of char sheets from printed sheets is a fucking lazy GM, especially since damn near every printer that you can buy today has a copier/scanner built into it. In fact, aside from small travel printers, you would really have to look to buy on without them.
Bull$#!t. Not every printer has a scanner/copier built in. The majority don't. The DM has enough preparation to do without having to get into the car to drive to OfficeMax or Kinko's. I have 3 infant children. It's not too much to ask that I be able to print the character sheet in my home.
DeleteThe PDFs take 5 seconds to export from InDesign and post on the web by WotC. This is not so much to ask from them.
Every printer I have bought in the last decade has had a scanner copier in it.
DeleteI was at Staple today buying grease pencils, which are a bitch to find now, and every single printer but three had scanner copiers.
Maybe its time to upgrade from your dot matrix.
I also don't see it as a misstep. You have to hand-copy the pre-gen sheets. That's not difficult or expensive. I did it a few days before running Lost Mine of Phandelver.
ReplyDeleteIf you release it as a PDF, then potentially everyone can have it. I paid for the Starter Set. Why should someone who didn't get the box have access to the pre-gens before the Starter Sets shipped from amazon?
+Venger Satanis - They already shared the pre-gens publicly on the internet (as image files, not PDFs) so you don't lose anything by having these provided for free.
DeleteIf they were available as image files, then what is everyone complaining about? Print those out.
DeleteA Misstep would have been WotC saying nothing about the pregens. They did in fact say up front they would be available at a later date which it turned out to be just 3 days after the official release.
ReplyDeleteI guess it's a mis-step because they forgot that the people buying this are not kids anymore (I'd have marked the hell out of the originals between age 10 and 17), and having access to everything as a PDF is the norm now.
ReplyDeleteThere are people who remember what it was like to actually take time to photocopy, transcribe or even just stick them in laminated sheets to mark on with temporary markers, but we are the minority now.