Dear Erik, James and other Dragon editors,
First of all let me thank you for all your hard work and your continuous support to the magazine(s) through these Boards. That's really amazing.
I realize that with the end of the year and the 9th of January coming up soon (seems it's a big deadline for you), you are kept quite busy, but I thought I would ask nevertheless.
Would you give us some kind of mysterious sneak preview of some great articles you have brewing for Dragon magazine in 2006?
Let's say by categories:
1) Genuine Greyhawk stuff
2) Forgotten Realms background article
3) Eberron background article
4) Old/abandonned settings
I'd be happy with just one cryptic hint for each or just some of these points. The guessing and pondering of what you might be secretely preparing there can be nearly as much fun as reading the actual articles, sometimes!
Hope you can give us some bits to keep us guessing and discussing.
In advance, thanks a lot!
Bocklin
how about some other, non-setting related stuff as well? ;)
Chief Creative Officer, Publisher
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1) Genuine Greyhawk stuff
2) Forgotten Realms background article
3) Eberron background article
4) Old/abandonned settingsI'd be happy with just one cryptic hint for each or just some of these points.
Ok.
1) This is getting more and more difficult to pull off, but look for a continuation of the "Core Beliefs" series. The next one will appear in the April issue, and we'll probably have another in October, with a couple more scattered in between.
2) We're working on an absolutely giant FR project, but a lot of things still need to happen before it becomes a reality. All I can really say is we're working on Something Cool. Plus lots of little stuff like regional updates and of course new cities from Ed Greenwood. The next draft is already in, and I hope to include it in the oversized 30th Anniversary issue (#344).
3) I'm actually sitting on a handful of really excellent Keith Baker Eberron articles that will be appearing throughout 2006. Expect a meaty article about once every other issue or so starting in a couple of issues.
4) The Campaign Classics theme will return in January '07's issue, but that's so far out we've hardly started planning for it.
There you go. Plenty of hints.
--Erik
Thanks a lot Erik, this is brilliant. Exactly the kind of reply I was hoping for.
The "giant FR project" got my imagination running wild! Can't wait for more hints to transpire in the next months...
Thanks again for this.
Bocklin
A project involving Giants in FR? Frost giants and fire giants and hill giants ...
Errr, wait. That's how rumors get started. :-)
Maybe a Dragon Compendium of the best FR articles?
That would be quite something! (and fitting since I just read from Dargoth that 2006 is the 20th birthday of the Forgotten Realms).
Bocklin
Actually, my vote is that after Age of Worms, you let the Forgotten Realms have a turn at a 12 month Adventure Path, and then give Eberron a turn at a 12 month Adventure path, and then rotate back to Oerth.
I think that's fair. Currently the score is Greyhawk 2, everyone else zero.
The adaptation rules, while cool, really kind of take theme and turn it into chowder.
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Chief Creative Officer, Publisher
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The reason the Adventure Paths are "Greyhawk" is that it's the lingua franca of D&D players, from the novice with only the three core rulebooks to the hard-core multi-decade fan with three editions of material. DMs who really know the Realms can imagine which god to use instead of St. Cuthbert, but someone without the Realms core book wouldn't know what to do with references to gods like Mask, Mystra, or Bane.
Tying the Adventure Paths to the "core" version of the game as outlined by the three core rulebooks allows us to take on more in-depth and interesting Forgotten Realms and Eberron adventures and Campaign Arcs without having them take up a third of the magazine for a whole year.
--Erik Mona
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We're working on an absolutely giant FR project, but a lot of things still need to happen before it becomes a reality. All I can really say is we're working on Something Cool.
Maybe its something to do with the northern lands, or some other cold region? Maybe a place that has never been seen before?
I'm an FR fanatic, but I definately agree with Erik . . . especially if he keeps using Eric Boyd to do the briliant Realms adaptions (I am still really impressed with the tie into Jergal and the species he ties him to in the latest notes, just awesome stuff).
Besides, its fairly easy to add FR and Eberron specific stuff into the path, but as Eric points out, what if the FR AP has references to Chosen of various gods, or specifically uses the new FR cosmology, or if the Eberron AP would use the lightning rail or airships? Its easier to add these things than to try and wrench them back out of an adventure.