Has anyone heard anything about this? It seems that Dungeon output has stalled somewhat in the last few weeks. I presume the rest of the Giant series remake is still coming out and hasnt been rescinded?
Has anyone heard anything about this? It seems that Dungeon output has stalled somewhat in the last few weeks. I presume the rest of the Giant series remake is still coming out and hasnt been rescinded?
It's supposed to come out in the next few days, afaik. It's listed in grey on the Dungeon page, and the art they released today features stone giants, so...
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/TOC.aspx?x=dnd/4new/dutoc/198
Cheers. It just seemed odd to me that they were releasing the maps and illustrations without the adventures. That's backwards from how it usually is, isnt it?
Hopefully someone just missed an update over the Christmas break.
I haven't looked at the 4e Giants modules in Dungeon yet - anyone have a view on the adaptations and whether they have been done well (by which I mean (1) they respect the originals while (2) being playable in 4e)?
I have not played them. heck I can't even say I've read them in depth but my preliminary feelings are that there is a lot more being done right here then wrong.
Some of the things that stand out are the death and burial of the Delve format. This thing is written in a more traditional style. Sure the set up is striving to be useful to the DM, but not necessarily the DM that has not actually done any prep.
I also like the obvious modifications I have seen from the original. It honestly reminds me of what happens when I convert something to to 4E from an older edition. You can see the original material in the maps and encounters but you can also see that there have been changes to the encounters, maps etc.
Here one of the first things I noticed was the way the Hill Giant Steading had its layout changed. The main hall has always been the focus of the Steading's upper level. Thing is in the original that meant a big fight in the main hall and then clearing the kitchens and such. In old Gygaxian 1E that could be fine. simulationism tended to trump nerativism - in this case it mean that one could have the big climatic fight and then spend the rest of the session fighting battles in the kitchens and such which you could not possibly loose and would all be one sided slaughters.
In more modern versions of D&D that sort of thing is not to happen if at all possible - the maps and such are designed to encourage the action to follow a more narratively satisfying sequence. So, instead of a historically accurate layout to a Norman style Hilltop Keep - where , of course the Great Hall is the front room and kitchens and storage is hidden in back we get a map that works to make the great hall more of a central hub and once you do deal with it you've granted yourself easy access to the stairs down (since its now really time to move on to the next level).
All in all it looks like the design work here has been done with an eye to making an update of the adventures that would work well within the conceits of 4E.
I think they did a pretty good job with them. I have copies of the original, and they are pretty comparable except done for 4E. IMO they've worked to add a few more rp opportunities and a little more in the way of dungeon politics, which I think is a good thing. They are still very combat heavy, but so are the originals.