Chief Creative Officer, Publisher
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Almost no one sends us letters anymore. I'm putting together this issue's letter column, and the cupboard is bare. Therefore, I'm asking folks to post a letter to the editor or quick question on this thread, and I'll pick some of the best ones and answer them officially in the magazine. Please include your name (screen name is ok) and the city and country from which you're writing.
Thanks!
--Erik Mona
Editor-in-Chief
Dragon & Dungeon
Being drawn once again into the pages of Dungeon with the new Age of Worms campaign has really got me fired up. But what really has gotten me burning to DM this campaign is the messageboards you folks at Paizo have available.
So many gamers from around the globe come together in one place and ask questions, offer suggestions, and relate their game experiences within the campaign.
I find that this deepens my gaming experience because everything is offered freely and with the intent of making things easier and more unique for my players. I have been inspired to offer my own insights and this challenges to be a better player, DM, and ultimately a better player.
My deepest thanks go out to the Dungeon staff as well as my fellow message board posters.
Matthew T. Whelehan
Rochester, NY USA
Dear Dungeon magazine,
I've been very happy with Dungeon magazine overall. While I still wish you would offer PDF's of the stat-blocks for sale to reduce my game prep, the quality and the amount of source material I get for my campaign is awesome. Thank you especially, for keeping Greyhawk alive for those of us who don't participate in Living Greyhawk or RPGA play.
I would like to see more reprints of classic 1st and 2nd edition adventure modules included in future issues. Maure Castle and the Isle of Dread were greatly welcomed. My suggestions would include UK1/UK2 The Sentinel/The Gauntlet (done as a 3 part campaign arc?) and/or a reprint of the Slaver Series (with online adaptation notes for Eberron players--why should Greyhawk lovers have all the fun?)
Keep up the great work!
Stefan Happ
El Paso, TX
Hi there, just a quick query and a comment.
For a period (up untill about issue 111) adventures included information on sound, light and auras in their location descriptions. I find these to be very useful (especially for detect spells) and was wondering if there was any danger of them being included again?
And just to add my name to the list of others who have praised Dungeon, I started gaming back in the early eighties, but ran out of time for it in the mid nineties. Years later I tripped over issue 95 and was impressed by the adult feel of Porphory House Horror. The general quality of the other adventures was also worth the cover price, so I kept an eye on subsequent issues. After reading the first few instalments of Shackled City, I called up a few of my old gaming group and we had a go with the new look D&D, and now have a regular monthly game going again, which is helping to keep us sane.
Thanks for the escape!
Sean Venning
Adelaide, Australia
Dear Dungeon -
I love the adventures in your magazine, but really wish you would consider the return of the Side Trek. I've read on the message boards that Campaign Workbooks fulfil the same purpose, and I have to say I disagree.
I love Campaign Workbooks, and I've been lucky enough to have several published in your pages. On the same token, a Campaign Workbook has an entirely different utility to me as a DM than a Side Trek does. I love the idea of having a short, easy to run adventure that I can finish in a single night of gaming, or expand if I desire. As a working adult, I value that utility. I hope you can find a place in Dungeon for a Side Trek once in a while.
- Ashavan Doyon
Chicopee, Massachusetts
Dear Dungeon,
Last year a friend of mine, who has subscribed to your magazine for years, started running my group through The Shackled City adventure path. We are having a blast. After about the fourth adventure (we started once all of the adventures had been written) I was in a local book store when I saw a copy of Dungeon Magazine on the shelf. On the cover was something about the Age of Worms begins here. I have enjoyed playing the Shackled City very much, so I decided to buy my first issue of Dungeon and a couple of months latter I start running The Age of Worms adventure path. My friend and I take turns DMing. He will run a couple from the Shackled City then I will run a couple from the Age of Worms.
The adventures are well written. I work 40+ hours a week and do not have much prep time before our sessions. With the adventure path I do not need much time. All of the work is done for me. And then you add in the free on-line supplements, how can you go wrong. We like to play in the Forgotten Realms and all of the conversions are in the supplements ready to go. And printable maps are also part of the supplements. Nothing I hate more than flipping pages to find the maps and then flipping them again to find the description of the room.
Thanks again for all of the hard work you and your staff put into Dungeon.
Mark Saul
Winslow, Maine
Dear Dungeon (now there's a letter opener, huh?):
I've been a long-time player of dungeons and dragons, beginning my playing of the game the month that Dragon #37 hit the stands. I have been away from the game for a long time due to some family issues and the loss of my entire collection up to that point in a house fire some years back. All that changed just a few months ago, much to my delight. I found an old copy of Dungeon #116 at a news stand, and i brought it home (why they had a copy of it on their stand almost a year after the appropriate month...that's a statement to how bad a news stand it is...). My budget has only allowed me to do so much, but reading that issue reminded me of all the joy that D and D, and Dungeon Magazine, and Dragon Magazine, have all brought me. I have bought several of the rule books, have many more on my 'to get' list, and picked up every issue of Dungeon subsequent to then, and went to ebay and bought a lot of the preceding issues.
I am delighted at the scope and content of every issue I've read. Even when I find a module that is not appropriate for play in my upcoming campaign, I find material worth review, consideration, and thought. I find myself rethinking how many aspects of my campaign will unfold, and I'm reviewing some of my ideas to submit to Dungeon in the future, if I can bring things to a state I feel warrants submission (rambling, sorry).
Even though the Age of Worms Adventure Path has many aspects that I don't care for, (never cared much for Kyuss' guys before), you are presenting this very well, and I'm loving reading it, and watching it unfold. I can't tell you how much I enjoy the magazine, and hope it continues at this level quality forever.
If I were going to make any suggestions, (besides keeping your eyes open for my submission when I send it *g*) I think I'd say that i would like to see a few more of the high end modules to take the upper edge of the high end, I haven't seen a whole lot for the 18, 19, and 20 level parties.
Michael Conner
Dallas Texas
Dear Erick,
I just wanted to express my gratitude for the Adventure Paths. They are such a boon to those of us who have other responsibilities (family, work, exercise etc...). However, I will have to subscribe now so I dont spend a couple of Franklins a month in a game shop on impulse buys. You know, "Oh yeah. This mini would make a great Filge." and "Do you have four black dragons in different poses?". Thanks for doing such a great job on both magazines. I have been playing since I was eight years old (1980)and I haven't been this pleased with either mag, ever. So keep up the superb work.
Thanks,
Hobert S. Lanham II
Cibolo, Texas
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Dear Dungeon Crew,
I would like to tell you how much I enjoyed issue #131. I love reading and running adventures, but I get extremely bored and impatient with dungeon crawls. This is because room to room descriptions do not advance the plot. In issue #131, the adventure that had the most rooms in it only had 10 (The Rock Tower in "The Hateful Legacy"). I can handle that! Thank you! But dungeon crawls usually have more rooms than that. "Life's Bazaar" has 104 rooms! I've read on the messageboards that some groups have taken three or four sessions to complete it. Entire sessions is a long time to go without any plot development. So, guys, keep it up! Keep giving us adventures that don't over do it on the room count. I thank you, and my group thanks you!
Trent Revis
Kelso, WA
USA
Dear Dungeon,
I’ll be brief... I just want to thank you for returning the Maps of Mystery to Dungeon. They’re really cool! Also, they can be used anywhere and anytime. It’s funny, that a single detailed map of a dungeon or a complex can spark my imagination even better than a complete adventure. Maps of Mystery are a DM’s best friend. Feel free to put more than one per magazine!!
Daniel "Ultradan" Morency
Montreal, Canada
Dear Editor:
Monte Cook's recent series on "Winging It" (Issues 128, 129 and 130) was chock full of good tips and tricks for when PCs go off the page and force DMs to conjure encounters, treasure and plot threads on the fly.
The sidebar "None of Us Are as Creative as We Think" was the true gem of the series, though. It serves as a reminder that no matter how experienced someone is at running rpgs, when forced to improvise, we often retreat to those conventions and situations we are most comfortable presenting. And Monte is right, players do notice.
The suggestion for stretching ourselves by stealing plots from TV shows of other genres was spot on. Who would've thought an episode of "Murder, She Wrote" could hold the key to an Age of Worms sidetrek?
I put the breaks at rolling up NPC stats for Jessica Fletcher, though.
Troy E. Taylor
Granville, IL
Most-sagacious Editor-in-Chief,
I am writng in this in response to the sneaky, underhanded, advertising gimmick Erik Mona used to garner "letters" from myself and several others. It reads like this:
Almost no one sends us letters anymore. I'm putting together this issue's letter column, and the cupboard is bare. Therefore, I'm asking folks to post a letter to the editor or quick question on this thread, and I'll pick some of the best ones and answer them officially in the magazine. Please include your name (screen name is ok) and the city and country from which you're writing.
Thanks!
--Erik Mona
Editor-in-Chief
Dragon & Dungeon
All written under the messageboard thread title (and get this) "GET PUBLISHED IN DUNGEON!"
Have you no shame sir! I would think you would have thousands of letters from people concerned about the well-being of one of the world's two preeminent gaming magazines. Perhaps there is nothing to complain about. I submit to you, that you should give your readership something to complain about, like a dungeon composed of one hundred-twenty-eight 10'x10' rooms, each filled with an orc and a sliver of an artifact custard pie. Then sir you shall see an increase in letters.
By the way if you like that adventure suggestion and are interested in seeing a complete proposal, you can write me at:
B. Matthew Conklin III
Redford, Michigan
Bella Sara Charter Superscriber
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Dear Dungeon,
Why bother with a letters section if you receive so few letters each month that you have to drum up questions from the Paizo message boards? Sections like letters (and the Forum in Dragon) made a lot more sense before the internet enabled real-time complaining and whining. These days, if I have a question for the Dungeon staff, or even the authors, I just go to Paizo.com and post. Someone (usually James Jacobs) invariably responds within a reasonable time frame.
Sebastian
San Diego, California
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My old group finally got together and started the Age of Worms campaign! It was so much fun to roll some dice again and "The Whispering Cairn" is the best starting adventure to bring old groups back together with a bang. It has been almost nine years since we played(we are late 20's to early 30's) and the old feel of this 1st adventure has everyone anxiously awaiting the next session. I was so nervous when I sat down behind the screen and you can bet I didn't drill every mechanic correctly but the game flowed extremely well thanks to the good story of the AP as a whole. We only made it past the wolf den in the 1st session but I think we have worked the rust out of our rolls and it was so great to actually hang out with old friends in person instead of sending tells to each other in the latest MMORPG. Thank you Dungeon for allowing us to do some "real" adventuring again!! The whole group owes you an ale.
Trent Pittard AKA Hojas
Chandler, AZ USA
I posted this on a thanks thread awhile ago and I just can't express how much fun the old group has been having thanks to this AP. We have played two more sessions and everyone is still talking about the skittering sounds that erupted in to a geyser of acid-beetles! Another Ale for the whole staff! *At this rate the keg will be dry before part 2 of the AP begins :)
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To the wonderfull folks at Paizo.
Yesterday I returned to my home from a year long deployment in Iraq. I am sure you have heard and read plenty about the conditions over there so I will refrain from ranting on about all that again. What I would like to say though, is that no matter what was going on over there I was always able to escape the reality and venture into the manyfold worlds of fantasy that I love so much, simply by openning the newest issues of Dragon and Dungeon that my family forwarded to me. They were greaty entertaining for the duration of my stay away from home, and I cannot thank you enough for the effort you put into producing these fine products. The messageboards that I found at Paizo.com were also an incredible boon. I could not play my own games but I could enjoy the stories and adventures of those who posted on your boards. Thank you very much. Your magazines were to me, friends when my need was great. No other magazine produced today could have done that.
Tambryn
Hot Springs, AR
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Dear Dungeon,
Why bother with a letters section if you receive so few letters each month that you have to drum up questions from the Paizo message boards? Sections like letters (and the Forum in Dragon) made a lot more sense before the internet enabled real-time complaining and whining. These days, if I have a question for the Dungeon staff, or even the authors, I just go to Paizo.com and post. Someone (usually James Jacobs) invariably responds within a reasonable time frame.
Sebastian
San Diego, California
And if they eliminated the Forums, we might be able to get a spot in the magazine to host Side Trek's...
I know, I know, not everyone can reach Paizo via this board, but a guy can dream, can't he?
So, Dungeon...
Any plans for a Dungeon Compendium, like the recently published Dragon Compendium? If so, may I suggest: 3 low-level, 3 mid-level, 3 high-level, and one epic level adventure, chosen from the best of the best (except for Adventure Path modules, of course), and of course updated to the 3.5 ruleset. Such a compilation could also include the Dungeoncraft articles written by Ray Winiger - I realize those were published in Dragon at the time, but the current Monte Cooke articles are now in the covers of Dungeon. The back of the book could have the top 20 Maps of Mystery, and then there could also be a section on Critical Threats!
I know this would be an even bigger endeavour than the Dragon Compendium, but you know we're willing to wait for such a thing to happen!
Brian Marsau
Bellingham, WA USA
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A BIG THANK YOU FROM GERMANY!!!
Yes, I mean it! The magazine is on the right way and there is very little to complain about. I can't wait to see the next issue and I am almost always stunned by the art, the layout and the quality of the adventures and the articles.
One question I have, though:
Did you ever thought about a Dungeon-Index which comes together with the last issue in the year (like NG is doing it)? Would be great to have the adventures in a list, together with level, setting and a short summary (like the ones you use in the Dragon advertisements for the back issues...)?!
This would be realy helpful.
Again (I don't know how often I've said this in the last two years) Thank you for your dedication! You probably will never know how deeply it is appreciated!
Tom Ganz (Dryder)
Biblis, Germany
This letter is not intended to assuage your worst fears about Dungeon but will, in most cases, confirm them. The nitty-gritty of what I'm about to write is this: I've heard Dungeon say that its activities are on the up-and-up. Was that just a slip of the lip or is Dungeon secretly trying to force us to bow down low before inane buffoons? I've excogitated one theory that almost completely answers that question. Unfortunately, it fails to take into account that Dungeon will probably throw another hissy fit if we don't let it utilize legal, above-ground organizing in combination with illegal, underground tactics to destroy the values, methods, and goals of traditional humanistic study. At least putting up with another Dungeon hissy fit is easier than convincing Dungeon's adulators that at this point in the letter, I had planned to tell you that the agenda that Dungeon is attempting to advance is one of diabolism, repression, and snobbism. However, one of my colleagues pointed out that appeasement is not the answer. Hence, I discarded the discourse I had previously prepared and substituted the following discussion, in which I argue that Dungeon's lies come in many forms. Some of its lies are in the form of intimations. Others are in the form of ballyhoos. Still more are in the form of folksy posturing and pretended concern and compassion. Just think: Dungeon is out to pass off all sorts of unenlightened and obviously insipid stuff on others as a so-called "inner experience". And when we play its game, we become accomplices. Don't get me wrong; Dungeon has inherited the whole of its little stock of phrases and notions, which it is pleased to call "ideas", from vulgar, cruel cockalorums. But we have been lied to, distracted, misled, and duped by Dungeon, and everyone with half a brain understands that. You know what? To believe that Dungeon is forward-looking, open-minded, and creative is to deceive ourselves.
Dungeon's a psychologically defective organization. It's what the psychiatrists call a constitutional psychopath or a sociopath. Although Dungeon is ever learning, it is never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. The truth, in this context, is that Dungeon's threats promote a redistribution of wealth. This is always an appealing proposition for Dungeon's apostles because much of the redistributed wealth will undoubtedly end up in the hands of the redistributors as a condign reward for their loyalty to Dungeon. In closing, although this letter has been lengthy there are still a large number of comments about Dungeon that I have had to leave aside. I didn't even begin to mention, for instance, that human life is full of artificiality, perversion, and misery, much of which is caused by the worst sorts of uneducated dunces there are. Anyway, the important point is that I oppose, deplore, and disavow discrimination, extremism, and hatred of every kind.
----
Automatic letter generators are the way forward Erik! *grins*
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Dear Dungeon Magazine,
On the site I read about how to get published in either Dragon or Dungeon magazine for adventures and articles. However what I would also be interested in is knowing how one would be able to get published in your magazine as an artist. I myself do some doodling, mostly to illustrate my npc's or events. It's not the greatest pieces of art yet but I'm struggling to improve. What I would love to see would be fan art like for example blizzard has, they have a whole section on their site for fan artwork and that is just amazing. Therefore I hope that one day you might publish some kind of submission guidelines for artwork, I know that this is much harder than a submission guideline for articles or adventures but I'm sure it can be done. I shall however not end this letter without one of myself.
Use the last page of your dungeon magazine for a campaign workbook for an npc, publish a request for people to send in sketches of an unnamed npc. Shouldn't be more than a little sidebar. "We would like for those yet unknown artists to send in sketche(s) of a Weretiger halfling ranger with a bow" or "send in your sketches of a 'typical' tavern brawl".
You could also post the submissions under a section of your website so we could all see the submitted images that did not get published.
I know a lengthy, not easy request but then again, help your budding artist just as you do with the upcoming writers.
Jimmy De Ruysscher
Belgium
Okay, so here goes a nice letter to the editor. This is probably going to sound like a very long brown nosing note but whatever, take it for what you will.
THANK YOU! To everyone out there at Dungeon for existing and giving us such great campaigns to play. To allowing Paizo to have such a great website where people of a like mind can come together and help each other out so much. Without such a community, which has come to life here on Paizo, I don't think that my little D&D after school club would ever have been possible. So, another thanks goes out to all those who helped with their advice and their input into how D&D helped them with their English. Especially to Theacemu who helped in the editing process for my proposal. Just another note to let everyone know that I expect the D&D group to meet for the first time to actually play at the end of February, the students seem very excited. So, thanks again to everyone who helped make this possible. I swear none of the stuff that is happening over here would be possible without all of your help. Keep those ideas and questions flowing.
Thanks a lot.
Michael Kirkpatrick
Beijing, China (Until June!)
Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada (After June!)
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Dear Paizo,
I would like to take this opportunity to say that I was impressed by your company's desire to help out subscribers in the area hit by Hurricane Katrina earlier this year.
I am a former resident of both Mississippi and Louisiana, and I know how hard it is to not only find gaming supplies in portions of those states, but also how badly damaged the region was after the disaster.
In the face of loss of homes, jobs and lives, gaming may seem like a small thing to lose, but anyone with a serious hobby knows how it is the little things that sometimes make all the difference.
I was fortunate; my family and friends were spared the brunt of the hurricane. I just wanted to say 'thank you' to everyone who contributed to the donations and 'thank you' to Paizo for helping out, if only a little bit.
-Alex Rushing
Columbus, OH
(formerly of Lafayette, LA; Houma, LA; Indianola, MS)
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Oh - one more thing here:
While WotC is supplying me with the rules and a great campaign setting (Eberron), Paizo is like my RPG family, especially the Dungeon-Message board. I observed that I almost stopped checking the WotC boards. Not that they're bad but I find myself relying on the guys visiting the Paizo Messageboards more and more often! Believe it or not, but I come to know each from his posts only and not seldom find me wondering:"What would HE/SHE say to this?".
This community is great and PAIZO (with the way they're approaching our beloved hobby) made me feel closer to the game than I've ever felt before (I play for almost 20 years now!). Thanx for that!!!
Tom Ganz (Dryder)
Biblis, Germany
Dear Paizo,
The adventure path is the best thing that happened to roleplaying since polyhedrons (and I don't mean the RPGA magazine). Care to give us a glimpse at what the next one is going to be?
Kind regards,
Chef's Slaad
Utrecht, The Netherlands
Oh - one more thing here:
While WotC is supplying me with the rules and a great campaign setting (Eberron), Paizo is like my RPG family, especially the Dungeon-Message board. I observed that I almost stopped checking the WotC boards. Not that they're bad but I find myself relying on the guys visiting the Paizo Messageboards more and more often! Believe it or not, but I come to know each from his posts only and not seldom find me wondering:"What would HE/SHE say to this?".
This community is great and PAIZO (with the way they're approaching our beloved hobby) made me feel closer to the game than I've ever felt before (I play for almost 20 years now!). Thanx for that!!!Tom Ganz (Dryder)
Biblis, Germany
amen to that!
Dear Dungeon,
I've noticed that the artwork in Dungeon (price $5) is consistently better than the artwork in most D&D sourcebooks (price $25-$40). Pray tell, what is the secret of your parsimonius yet delectable artistry? Do you beat and starve your artists in a real dungeon, or is it simply that the love emanating from the editors' hearts inspires such devotion that the artists gladly work for a pittance?
In confidence,
-Krypter
...help your budding artist just as you do with the upcoming writers.
Jimmy De Ruysscher
Belgium
Seconded.
*ahem*
Most Dread High Masters of the Dungeon,
I am pleased at the consistent quality of Dungeon magazine. I have never felt that my money could have been spent better elsewhere when picking up a Dungeon. Even if you do not run pre-published adventures, there is still a wealth of information (Critical Threats, Campaign Workbooks) that is invaluable for time-strapped DMs like myself and many others.
Most of all, your dedication to bringing both new & old gamers together with your unique blend of Old School elements and settings with new ideas will continue to draw my attention back to the first-class magazine that Dungeon is. You have emphasized the community and fostered a great resource on the Paizo messageboards for players and DMs alike. I find the level of responsiveness from the Dungeon (and Dragon) staff refreshing and exciting.
Though it has been said before but can always be said again, keep up the good work!
Liz Courts
Bend, Oregon
lilith@darkmoongallery.com
Dear Erik,
I am a hit and miss reader of about ten or twelve years, and have played D&D since I first smelled the pasty glue on the inside of that wonderful red box that said "Basic" on it.
And I have loved your magazine. But I have loved it more and I have loved it less. And I loved it the best when there were more than three adventures per issue.
I've heard this issue addressed before through appeals to the quality and length of the new adventures, or to the increased variety in content. And I completely appreciate that some readers enjoy this new balance. But as someone who only plays for a few months every few years, I look to Dungeon for a "good read" as often as for actual gaming ideas.
I still love it when I buy it - don't get me wrong - but I'd buy it more if there were more adventures in it.
Thanks!
Chris Yakimov
Vancouver, Canada
I just finished reading "The Beasts of Aulbesmil" in Dungeon #131. I thought it was a really great non-linear, well conceived adventure with the potential for high role-playing. At this point, after reading only one adventure, I was happy that my money was well spent. Then I turned the page and the artwork for "The Hateul Legacy" done by Cyril Van Der Haegen just blew me away. I would really love to see a full spread of this work or a chance to purchase a print off of the Paizo website.
Thanks for the high quality adventures, amazing artwork, DMing advice, campaign workbook (which is a great tool), and especially the adventure paths. Can't wait to buy the AOW hardcover.
I know this sounds like some major brown nosing, but Dungeon is my favorite read and is truley the best value for the money.
Utak
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Chief Creative Officer, Publisher
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Thanks so much for chiming in, folks! I've collected the letters for this month's issue (you gave me _more_ than enough), but please feel free to continue to use this thread to write letters suitable for print in Prison Mail.
As an aside, it is incredibly touching and fulfilling personally and professionally to read so many thoughtful comments. Hearing about Adventure Paths bringing people's old groups together makes us enormously happy and a little bit proud, and I thank you all for giving us the opportunity to bring these great magazines to you. It is truly an honor.
--Erik Mona
Dear Dungeon,
Why bother with a letters section if you receive so few letters each month that you have to drum up questions from the Paizo message boards? Sections like letters (and the Forum in Dragon) made a lot more sense before the internet enabled real-time complaining and whining. These days, if I have a question for the Dungeon staff, or even the authors, I just go to Paizo.com and post. Someone (usually James Jacobs) invariably responds within a reasonable time frame.
Sebastian
San Diego, California
I completely agree. You can easily cut those letters pages and put in more content. More usable content is good.
(I wouldn't cut the Editorial--not that you would either--because it's a fun and interesting read. The letters aren't.)
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Creative Director
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I completely agree. You can easily cut those letters pages and put in more content. More usable content is good.
(I wouldn't cut the Editorial--not that you would either--because it's a fun and interesting read. The letters aren't.)
The thing about "usable content" is that there'll never be enough of it. If we cut letters and add three more pages of adventure, I guarentee someone will complain we didn't add 4 pages.
Letters are an important part of the magazine; it gives the readers a chance to voice their opinions and be heard, but more importantly, it helps to establish a shared community. It gives us a chance to answer questions and talk about what's coming up for the magazine. Keep in mind that not all of our readers have access to the internet (or want to), and of those that do, not all of them read our messageboards.
Letters also serve as a way to ease the reader into the magazine. Starting the adventure content on page one works fine for a book... it doesn't for a magazine. Magazines are not books.
Also, and perhaps most importantly, letters are a dynamic place for us to place advertisements. I'd rather not interrupt the flow of an adventure with a full-page or two-page advertisement if I can help it, and having a Letters section solves this problem by giving us a section of the magazine we can tailor to fit the ads we have for the particular issue.
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Bella Sara Charter Superscriber
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I completely agree. You can easily cut those letters pages and put in more content. More usable content is good.
(I wouldn't cut the Editorial--not that you would either--because it's a fun and interesting read. The letters aren't.)
The thing about "usable content" is that there'll never be enough of it. If we cut letters and add three more pages of adventure, I guarentee someone will complain we didn't add 4 pages.
Letters are an important part of the magazine; it gives the readers a chance to voice their opinions and be heard, but more importantly, it helps to establish a shared community. It gives us a chance to answer questions and talk about what's coming up for the magazine. Keep in mind that not all of our readers have access to the internet (or want to), and of those that do, not all of them read our messageboards.
Letters also serve as a way to ease the reader into the magazine. Starting the adventure content on page one works fine for a book... it doesn't for a magazine. Magazines are not books.
Also, and perhaps most importantly, letters are a dynamic place for us to place advertisements. I'd rather not interrupt the flow of an adventure with a full-page or two-page advertisement if I can help it, and having a Letters section solves this problem by giving us a section of the magazine we can tailor to fit the ads we have for the particular issue.
It seemed the obvious question, and I expected this sort of answer. But I do think it's worth answering in the magazine itself (which is why I asked).
As for praise - I love what you guys have done with the magazine and am heartened by your outside publications (the Shackled City Hardcover and the Dragon Compendium). I rank you as one of the most innovative d20 companies and one of the few that I would purchase from outside WotC. And you answer the challenging questions on the board without flinching, b+~#~@@!ting, or making excuses.
It's just hard to offer praise w/o sounding like a huge fan-boy.
Sebastian
(erik - i was under the impression that any post on any thread could be used as a letter - are the threads that boring?)
Dear Dungeon/Erik,
First of all, let me add my voice to the chorus of praise for the Age of Worms Adventure Path. Now I have an entreaty for you - PUHLEASE pretty please devote more space to the last few adventures in the series so that the statblocks don't get the lion's share of the page-space. I'm reminiscing on dreadful memories of reading the last three SCAP instalments and how the atmosphere and story (which the Paths tout as their reason for being) seemed to devolve into a linear series of high-power combats with nothing else to fire the imagination. Fine for some - not for me: if I'm not engaged in reading it, I'm not inclined to run it. If you're going to use a truckload of templates, get a bigger truck!
And my vote for AP4 (seeing as AP3 seems to be decided already)
More MORE MAURE! I don't want to be a senior citizen by the time I see the entire dungeon in print...but I would settle for an entire Path written by you heeheehee
Love your work
Darren Tietz
Adelaide
South Australia
I loved Eric Boyd's three-part dungeon series "The Vampires of
Waterdeep" in issues 126-128. The series was well-thought-out, full of interesting challenges, and showcased interesting Realmslore. In particular, the excellent design of the Dungeon of the Crypt adventure in issue 127 stood out: the dungeon map showed how levels can be designed for maximum defense, when created by an intelligent NPC concerned about invasion. The use of secret doors, spy holes, and portcullises help to channel the PCs' activities, and are taken advantage of by the inhabitants of the level. The varied challenges and topography in different sections of the dungeon, and the ability to explore beyond the borders of the map are also hallmarks reminiscent of some of the best dungeon levels like the lower level of G1 Steading of the Hill Giant Chief, for example. Great work, Eric! :D
Thanks very much for the kind words. They are much appreciated.
--Eric
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Chief Creative Officer, Publisher
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(erik - i was under the impression that any post on any thread could be used as a letter - are the threads that boring?)
Absolutely not. The staff reads these boards voraciously, often at the silliest of times. Like, for instance, at 8:52 on a Friday evening.
It _is_ difficult to search through all of them for good letters to the editor, especially when I try to answer as many posts as I can. If you pose a good question on the Paizo boards and I've got the time and an answer, I do everything I can to post it.
This thread is just a way to get my attention for sure, with a question specifically designed for possible inclusion in the magazine.
And, again, the feedback is very much appreciated.
You guys are the best.
--Erik
You guys are the best.
--Erik
on behalf of all posters:
awww shucks *blush*|
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Almost no one sends us letters anymore. I'm putting together this issue's letter column, and the cupboard is bare. Therefore, I'm asking folks to post a letter to the editor or quick question on this thread, and I'll pick some of the best ones and answer them officially in the magazine. Please include your name (screen name is ok) and the city and country from which you're writing.
Thanks!
--Erik Mona
Editor-in-Chief
Dragon & Dungeon
Perhaps one way to look at the lack of letters is that you have a deeply satisfied customer base. No news is good news, eh? I know I'm a happy camper.
....And you can print that! (Aaron C. Frankland, Gallup, NM).
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In November 2004 we began playing the Shackled City Adventure Path.
Through 2005 my players and I (I'm the resident DM, from almost 18 years!) kept on gaming, though real-life work accidents and deadlines, personal success and failures, occasional serious problems.
Last night the party stormed the Brass Trumpet and confronted a (in)famous female assassin at almost 2 AM. The half-elf bard, who's been romantically involved with her "undercover" alter ego, was stunned by the discovery: the player, a tough and serious 30 years old engineer, was almost in tears.
The other players, no less mature and sometimes way more cynical, kept repeating "this has been nasty" for no less than thirty minutes.
Priceless.
You won the Academy Award for the Best Campaign, Paizo. The authors can share the prize for Best Gaming Play Ever, all of them.
I'll keep the one for the directing role, if you don't mind.
Thank you. For the months of high-quality gaming (and more to come). For the laughs, the worries, the overall fun.
Give us more of it. Please.
Luca Lacchini
Forlì, Italy