A Bullet is Dodged

Zachary over at RPG Blog II reports live from the convention floor that the gaming setting that will be getting the 4E treatment in 2010 is Dark Sun.

Whew!

I was really fearing that WOTC would turn their maleficient eye once more towards Greyhawk, and screw it up the way they screwed up the Forgotten Realms. Well, there’s always 2011.

In fact, I’m contemplating something, but it’s still only the germ of an idea. Let’s give it a little time to marinate.

Written by 

Wargamer and RPG'er since the 1970's, author of Adventures Dark and Deep, Castle of the Mad Archmage, and other things, and proprietor of the Greyhawk Grognard blog.

14 thoughts on “A Bullet is Dodged

  1. Funny thing is I always thought 3e and 4e could handle settings like Dark Sun better than 2e did. I am relived that Greyhawk did receive a stay of execution.

  2. ""We are going to try very hard not to shoehorn 4e conceits into Dark Sun" -Bill" from here http://twitter.com/criticalhits

    I wonder if they figured out it better to adapt 4e to the setting than the other way around.

    The test is to see if they try put any of the new 4e race into the products. If this promise is delievered then prehaps a 4e Greyhawk won't be an abomination.

  3. Possibly. I still have a bad taste in my mouth over the butchery of the Realms. I still can't pick any of my old FR stuff after that.

  4. My understanding is that nothing was off the table. They're taking it year by year, and just because it doesn't seem "likely" this year doesn't mean it won't happen later on.

    Don't get me wrong– nothing would make me happier than you being right.

  5. I don't get it. Why would you be concerned about something coming out for Greyhawk? If you didn't like it, you wouldn't have to use it. If it was the abomination you fear it would be, you'd still have all your old supplements and fluff intact.

  6. *sigh*

    Of course I would not have to use it in my own game. That is not the point. I don't use most of the published material, especially that published for 3.x.

    I could go on myself, happy as a clam, with the gold boxed set, a handful of the early modules, and my own work. (And, as a matter of fact, for my own personal campaign, that's exactly what I do.)

    However, part of embracing a particular setting (and I use the term "embracing" here deliberately) is to keep up with, and to at least some extent incorporate, new developments. Many if not most True FR Believers, for example, dutifully set their campaigns a century in the future, and changed everything around to accommodate the new rules.

    Moreover, as a fan of the setting, I feel a certain vested interest in having the Greyhawk setting being *good*. And part of that, to my mind, is having it be consistent. Seeing the anal rape of Forgotten Realms to shoe-horn it into the 4E format leads me to the conclusion that a 4E Greyhawk would be similarly completely remade. What, I ask, is the point of doing so, other than just keeping the name for the sake of the brand, in order to entice fans into spending money on what is, essentially, an entirely new product?

    Flipping through your blog, however, Scott, I can see you're a True Believer. One of those EnWorlders who boils over at even perceived criticism of your beloved newest edition. Ye Gods, you can't even let Pathfinder go without cramming it into your 4E Collective.

    Please, in future, let the word "grognard" in the title of the blog serve as your personal "do not enter" sign. This is for folks who appreciate the older forms of the game, and who see that the new is not "better" than the old, just because it has a higher edition number attached.

  7. My dream is for Greyhawk to one day be in the hands of a company that could be reasonably expected not to throw in a new nation of Dragonborn where Tenh used to be, and claim that Warforged always dwelled in Furyondy. I don't see 4e as a good fit for Greyhawk, as much as it might be for other settings. Following what they did to the Realms, I would rather Greyhawk lie dormant in the WotC vault until such time as it licensed out or used in a more fitting fashion.

  8. WOTC decides to turns it's 'maleficient eye' toward Dark Sun in 2010 and all you can say is, "Hoody Hoo it's not Greyhawk, in 2010!" (yeah I know you didn't actually type that you simply said, 'Whew') '

    Greyhawk may have dodged the bullet, but it still impacted squarely on another setting – much to my chagrin.

    I'm not a 4e player and I like the Dark Sun setting as is. I wonder what loving updates that they'll bring to this dying world of no gods, psionics and destructive magic? I wonder if Athlas will continue or WOTC will shut them down?

    The gang over at the Burnt World of Athlas don't seem to concern, here is their quote about the news:

    "Wizards of the Coast has announced that they will publish a 4th edition Dark Sun campaign setting.

    To all athas.org current and former members and fans that have supported Dark Sun over the years – Good work! We did it, we kept Dark Sun alive, we grew its fanbase. Finally Dark Sun is resurrected!" Here is the link if your interested: http://athas.org/

    Who knows though, maybe this will get me to try out 4e. Time will tell.

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