Astarion’s Book of Hungers $14.99 and Netheril’s Fall $14.99. Should have been in the Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm not a separate over prices microtransactions. Is this going to be the new norm.
Yeah, there's a term for these that pre-dates D&D Beyond, and possibly even WotC owning D&D—Splatbook.
A splatbook is a sourcebook for a particular role-playing game (RPG) that is not needed for play, but is devoted to a particular facet, character class, or fictional faction, providing additional background details and rules options. For example, a "swords and sorcery" fantasy game might offer splatbooks for each of the races in the setting: humans, dwarves, elves, and others.
I for one like having granular purchasing options, as it lets people buy the things that they actually want rather than a wide assortment of stuff lumped together. In fact, dndbeyond's decision to stop selling just parts of a book is the reason why I've now switched to buying my books elsewhere.
That being said, it does seem a bit strange that these books are called Heroes of Faerun, but then the content related to a specific hero is sold separately.
Astarion’s Book of Hungers $14.99 and Netheril’s Fall $14.99. Should have been in the Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm not a separate over prices microtransactions. Is this going to be the new norm.
And yet, when they removed 'microtransactions' and made people buy complete books to get even just one rule from any given book, there was a massive protest over how popular that model was.
Plus 'modules' and 'expansion books' have been around since 0e, around 50 years ago.
Whether they should be included in a book or separately depends on the size of the book and how much is in it. No comment on the new books (I haven't read them or seen them), but an example of how bad it can be was EA's Star Wars Battlefront - full price game for basically a couple of levels, everything else was partitioned off and attempted to be monetised.
Piecemeal Purchasing was different. It was good because you could go whole hog and get the bundle discount, or pay less (albeit on a per-content basis, it was more, but that was fair) and get just what you need. I know I've spent less overall because I can't justify paying $30+ for a couple of character options if I'm not interested in the rest.
I do want things to be in the form of expansions etc. Why would I want to buy Eberron when I want to play in Drakkenheim?
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If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
These two "splatbooks" are rather niche and in no way needed to play the realms so I dont feel they should have been inculded in the setting books. If they had been they would have had to cut that content down significantly, and I am glad they did not. They will not appeal to every Forgotten Realms fan, not everyones table is up for time travel or BG3 vibes. Selling them seperately is a good idea.
These two "splatbooks" are rather niche and in no way needed to play the realms so I dont feel they should have been inculded in the setting books. If they had been they would have had to cut that content down significantly, and I am glad they did not. They will not appeal to every Forgotten Realms fan, not everyones table is up for time travel or BG3 vibes. Selling them seperately is a good idea.
And the third one included in the bundle is even more niche being a MTG translation rather than anything to do with the Forgotten Realms
Do you need to have purchased "Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm" to use these "splatbooks"? I don't mean mechanically on the site or anything, I just mean do these "splatbooks" reference things in the "Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm" books that would make them difficult or impossible to use without that book? Basically, could I buy and use easily one of these "splatbooks" without the "Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm" book?
Astarion’s Book of Hungers $14.99 and Netheril’s Fall $14.99. Should have been in the Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm not a separate over prices microtransactions. Is this going to be the new norm.
Well, I disagree with your premis, but there is an issue here, just not what you are saying.
Yeah, there's a term for these that pre-dates D&D Beyond, and possibly even WotC owning D&D—Splatbook.
A splatbook is a sourcebook for a particular role-playing game (RPG) that is not needed for play, but is devoted to a particular facet, character class, or fictional faction, providing additional background details and rules options. For example, a "swords and sorcery" fantasy game might offer splatbooks for each of the races in the setting: humans, dwarves, elves, and others.
So yeah, this is nothing new in the slightest, isn't "DLC D&D" and it's worth getting your dicebag in a knot over.
Usually a Splatbook has a bit more meat in them than Netheril’s Fall, and well Astarion’s Book of Hungers's saving grace is it has actual useful information for the game.
Back to the OP.
So while I would agree with Davyd that technically these are splat books, they are even lighter than some of the worst offenders in years past. Astarion’s Book of Hungers however is worth the price you pay, as it has enough rules in it to make it worthwhile.
The real issue is Netheril’s Fall, it adds two monster types to 5th edition, both of which have been fan recreated better than the offical version. Also the lore is light, and flavorless. Netheril was probably one of the most interesting lore bits in all of D&D, a Space Age Magic Civilization of Humans, run by Ancient Human Wizards. With every evil imaginable practuced by those Netherese Humans. Forgotten Realms history reads a lot like our own but with more Gods, Magic, and Monsters. Also the humans of Netheril walked with the gods, and had their favor. Which is why the war with the Phaerimm was so hard for them as the Phaerimm were a hard counter to Arcane and God magic.
Which is why Karsus did something so stupid.
What I find most annoying is how obiously that the book was written with AI. Also it's not written as an adventure its a badly written lore dump so you can homebrew a game. Don't buy that book, if you want to play a timetravel to Netheril watch the several good youtube videos on them their culture and their history. Also if you want Phaerimm as bad guys watch Dungeon Dad, he did them justice.
Do you need to have purchased "Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm" to use these "splatbooks"? I don't mean mechanically on the site or anything, I just mean do these "splatbooks" reference things in the "Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm" books that would make them difficult or impossible to use without that book? Basically, could I buy and use easily one of these "splatbooks" without the "Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm" book?
Probably not. The astarion book gives some player-facing content that can make vampires be playable, but it could easily be transferred to other settings.
The Netheril one could possibly stand on its own as a small campaign or ideas for a setting.
In both cases, particularly netheril, the FR book would help give some context. But I don’t think they’d be necessary. Of course, it’s tough to make anything beyond the PHB “necessary” in D&D.
Astarion’s Book of Hungers $14.99 and Netheril’s Fall $14.99. Should have been in the Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm not a separate over prices microtransactions. Is this going to be the new norm.
Well, I disagree with your premis, but there is an issue here, just not what you are saying.
Yeah, there's a term for these that pre-dates D&D Beyond, and possibly even WotC owning D&D—Splatbook.
A splatbook is a sourcebook for a particular role-playing game (RPG) that is not needed for play, but is devoted to a particular facet, character class, or fictional faction, providing additional background details and rules options. For example, a "swords and sorcery" fantasy game might offer splatbooks for each of the races in the setting: humans, dwarves, elves, and others.
So yeah, this is nothing new in the slightest, isn't "DLC D&D" and it's worth getting your dicebag in a knot over.
Usually a Splatbook has a bit more meat in them than Netheril’s Fall, and well Astarion’s Book of Hungers's saving grace is it has actual useful information for the game.
Back to the OP.
So while I would agree with Davyd that technically these are splat books, they are even lighter than some of the worst offenders in years past. Astarion’s Book of Hungers however is worth the price you pay, as it has enough rules in it to make it worthwhile.
The real issue is Netheril’s Fall, it adds two monster types to 5th edition, both of which have been fan recreated better than the offical version. Also the lore is light, and flavorless. Netheril was probably one of the most interesting lore bits in all of D&D, a Space Age Magic Civilization of Humans, run by Ancient Human Wizards. With every evil imaginable practuced by those Netherese Humans. Forgotten Realms history reads a lot like our own but with more Gods, Magic, and Monsters. Also the humans of Netheril walked with the gods, and had their favor. Which is why the war with the Phaerimm was so hard for them as the Phaerimm were a hard counter to Arcane and God magic.
Which is why Karsus did something so stupid.
What I find most annoying is how obiously that the book was written with AI. Also it's not written as an adventure its a badly written lore dump so you can homebrew a game. Don't buy that book, if you want to play a timetravel to Netheril watch the several good youtube videos on them their culture and their history. Also if you want Phaerimm as bad guys watch Dungeon Dad, he did them justice.
Can you back that last bit up with an admittance from WotC, or are you mad based on preconceptions based on novels/past editions/MrRhexx & other YouTubers, therefore it's AI?
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DM, player & homebrewer(Current homebrew project is an unofficial conversion of SBURB/SGRUB from Homestuck into DND 5e)
Once made Maxwell's Silver Hammer come down upon Strahd's head to make sure he was dead.
Always study & sharpen philosophical razors. They save a lot of trouble.
What is the opposite of a splatbook? Normally you want the new content because it's strong. These new release, it's like a spongebook.
Really? That's the reason? Not because it adds new options and thus expands creative possibilities? Or expands the lore? Or gives new tools for the DM to craft adventures? Or new material for running one shots? Or...blah blah blah I could go on pointing out how "because it's strong" is the not the only (or even a common) reason for getting a splatbook.
Also the opposite of a "splatbook" would be a general purpose book. Splatbooks are niche releases focused on one facet of the game. Books like Tasha's or Xanathar's are the opposite of splatbooks because they cover a wide selection of game aspects. Books like Fizban's and Bigby's stray closer towards splatbooks given they're focused on one type of creature.
What I find most annoying is how obiously that the book was written with AI....
You say "obviously" (well, "obiously" technically) but I can't see any evidence of it being written with AI? No flowery language out of place in your average D&D text. No egregious or out of place em-dashes. No triple emphasis on key points. No "X then Y" syntaxing. Absolutely none of the common AI indicators or tell-tale phrasings that would "obviously" give it away.
This is the kind of claim that warrants evidence, not a throwaway "it's obvious". So we're all ears...
In prior editions, the lighter-weight version of a splatbook was called a Gazetteer, and those got charged for too. So I'm with Davyd, this is nothing new.
(And I got them for free with the preorder bundle anyway.)
I fully understand publications like splat books and even dungeon magazine and the such. My main issue is that 32 pages for 14.99 for a digital low content count supplement. In comparison to the Faurun book is 0.16 cent per page and Astarion’s Book is 0.47 cents per page. At most this 'book' should be no more that $ 5.12. It is a gross insult to us as consumers and they are doing this to see how much they can fleece us. This is 100% DLC DnD and making micro transactions for content that I for one have already paid for and the new rules are not truly backwards compatible as they specifically altered the subclass structure to make it not compatible.
I fully understand publications like splat books and even dungeon magazine and the such. My main issue is that 32 pages for 14.99 for a digital low content count supplement. In comparison to the Faurun book is 0.16 cent per page and Astarion’s Book is 0.47 cents per page. At most this 'book' should be no more that $ 5.12. It is a gross insult to us as consumers and they are doing this to see how much they can fleece us. This is 100% DLC DnD and making micro transactions for content that I for one have already paid for and the new rules are not truly backwards compatible as they specifically altered the subclass structure to make it not compatible.
Your post history has numerous bombastic claims full of doom & gloom, so pardon me if I doubt your word on this.
If you're counting value by page, you've got bigger problems than DND game pricing.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM, player & homebrewer(Current homebrew project is an unofficial conversion of SBURB/SGRUB from Homestuck into DND 5e)
Once made Maxwell's Silver Hammer come down upon Strahd's head to make sure he was dead.
Always study & sharpen philosophical razors. They save a lot of trouble.
How are you calculating "pages" given it's a digital only product? Are you counting each individual webpage that makes up the product? If you actually try and print just chapter 1 to A4, that comes to 17 pages on its own.
Can you back that last bit up with an admittance from WotC, or are you mad based on preconceptions based on novels/past editions/MrRhexx & other YouTubers, therefore it's AI?
WotC has admitted to nothing, but the Hasbro CEO has.
Since the only thing Hasbro makes money on these days is WotC and because they fire/laidoff the majority or the design team, what do you think is the likelyhood they will use tools that remove the need for employees.
Then when you look at how lackluster the book is, if not AI than the person writing it has almost no creativity and no willingness to put any meat or substance into the book.
As for looking to the past editions, and books invloving Netheril and how interesting and colorful the ancient past was I feel sad that this is what I got as bonus mateiral with the rest of my purchase.
What I find most annoying is how obiously that the book was written with AI....
You say "obviously" (well, "obiously" technically) but I can't see any evidence of it being written with AI? No flowery language out of place in your average D&D text. No egregious or out of place em-dashes. No triple emphasis on key points. No "X then Y" syntaxing. Absolutely none of the common AI indicators or tell-tale phrasings that would "obviously" give it away.
This is the kind of claim that warrants evidence, not a throwaway "it's obvious". So we're all ears...
Exibit A:
“Inside of development, we’ve already been using AI... I play [D&D] with probably 30 or 40 people regularly. There's not a single person who doesn't use AI somehow for either campaign development or character development or story ideas. That's a clear signal that we need to be embracing it." ~Hasbro CEO Chris Cocks
Exibit B
Credits for past Splat Book "Domains of Delight: a Feywild accessory"
Credits
Writer: Adam Lee
Art Director: Kate Irwin
Developers: Jeremy Crawford, Ben Petrisor, Christopher Perkins
Editors: Judy Bauer, Jeremy Crawford, Christopher Perkins
Interior Illustrators: Helder Almeida, Mark Behm, Zoltan Boros, Alayna Danner, Toma Feizo Gas, Lars Grant-West, Sam Keiser, Livia Prima, Ned Rogers, Magali Villeneuve
Concept Art Director: Shawn Wood
Concept Illustrators: Jedd Chevier, Daarken, Toma Feizo Gas, Titus Lunter, April Prime, Ilya Shkipin, Cory Trego-Erdner, Shawn Wood, Kieran Yanner
Imaging Technician: Kevin Yee
D&D Studio
Executive Producer: Ray Winninger
Game Design Architects: Jeremy Crawford, Christopher Perkins
Design Manager: Steve Scott
Design Department: Sydney Adams, Judy Bauer, Makenzie De Armas, Dan Dillon, Amanda Hamon, Ari Levitch, Ben Petrisor, Taymoor Rehman, F. Wesley Schneider, James Wyatt
Art Department Manager: Richard Whitters
Principal Art Director: Kate Irwin
Art Department: Trystan Falcone, Emi Tanji, Shawn Wood, Trish Yochum
Senior Producer: Dan Tovar
Producers: Bill Benham, Robert Hawkey, Lea Heleotis
Director of Product Management: Liz Schuh
Product Managers: Natalie Egan, Chris Lindsay, Hilary Ross, Chris Tulach
Credits "Netheril’s Fall: Tales of Terror, Treasure, and Time Travel"
Credits
Lead Designer: Amanda Hamon
Designers: Ron Lundeen, David Somerville
Rules Developer: Makenzie De Armas
Editors: Adrian Ng Di Spaltro (lead), Ayla Bondora, Amanda Frechin, Sadie Lowry, James Wyatt
Art Director: Josh Herman
Graphic Designers: Trystan Falcone (lead), Matt Cole
Cover Illustrator: Olivier Bernard
Interior Illustrators: Luca Bancone, Adam Cook, Álvaro Calvo Escudero, Julian Kok, Alejandro Pacheco, Samuel Perin, John Tedrick, Zuzanna Wuzyk
Cartographer: Mike Schley
Consultants: Sameer Joseph, Alyssa Visscher
Producers: Rob Hawkey (lead), Dan Tovar (lead), Bill Benham, Siera Bruggeman, Vanessa Hoskins
I'm sure if I tested the whole book using the free AI checker the book would pass as not AI, more than I as no one writes so perfectly that you could clear an AI check 100%. But that's because they are designed to find Free AI, corprate America has the money to pay for AI that does not fall into noticble patterns. ie Guy publishing 50 books a month on Amazon uses cheap or free AI will get detected if you look, corpratations will spend the extra to get AI that is not so easy to discover.
BTW, a book I wrote in 2018 tested at 20% AI. AI wasn't even availble back then.
Astarion’s Book of Hungers $14.99 and Netheril’s Fall $14.99. Should have been in the Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm not a separate over prices microtransactions. Is this going to be the new norm.
New? This has been the business model of TTRPGs for decades.
Yeah, there's a term for these that pre-dates D&D Beyond, and possibly even WotC owning D&D—Splatbook.
So yeah, this is nothing new in the slightest, isn't "DLC D&D" and it's worth getting your dicebag in a knot over.
Find my D&D Beyond articles here
I for one like having granular purchasing options, as it lets people buy the things that they actually want rather than a wide assortment of stuff lumped together. In fact, dndbeyond's decision to stop selling just parts of a book is the reason why I've now switched to buying my books elsewhere.
That being said, it does seem a bit strange that these books are called Heroes of Faerun, but then the content related to a specific hero is sold separately.
And yet, when they removed 'microtransactions' and made people buy complete books to get even just one rule from any given book, there was a massive protest over how popular that model was.
Plus 'modules' and 'expansion books' have been around since 0e, around 50 years ago.
"New form?"
Whether they should be included in a book or separately depends on the size of the book and how much is in it. No comment on the new books (I haven't read them or seen them), but an example of how bad it can be was EA's Star Wars Battlefront - full price game for basically a couple of levels, everything else was partitioned off and attempted to be monetised.
Piecemeal Purchasing was different. It was good because you could go whole hog and get the bundle discount, or pay less (albeit on a per-content basis, it was more, but that was fair) and get just what you need. I know I've spent less overall because I can't justify paying $30+ for a couple of character options if I'm not interested in the rest.
I do want things to be in the form of expansions etc. Why would I want to buy Eberron when I want to play in Drakkenheim?
If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
These two "splatbooks" are rather niche and in no way needed to play the realms so I dont feel they should have been inculded in the setting books. If they had been they would have had to cut that content down significantly, and I am glad they did not. They will not appeal to every Forgotten Realms fan, not everyones table is up for time travel or BG3 vibes. Selling them seperately is a good idea.
And the third one included in the bundle is even more niche being a MTG translation rather than anything to do with the Forgotten Realms
Do you need to have purchased "Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm" to use these "splatbooks"? I don't mean mechanically on the site or anything, I just mean do these "splatbooks" reference things in the "Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm" books that would make them difficult or impossible to use without that book? Basically, could I buy and use easily one of these "splatbooks" without the "Forgotten Realms Hero's of the Realm" book?
Well, I disagree with your premis, but there is an issue here, just not what you are saying.
Usually a Splatbook has a bit more meat in them than Netheril’s Fall, and well Astarion’s Book of Hungers's saving grace is it has actual useful information for the game.
Back to the OP.
So while I would agree with Davyd that technically these are splat books, they are even lighter than some of the worst offenders in years past. Astarion’s Book of Hungers however is worth the price you pay, as it has enough rules in it to make it worthwhile.
The real issue is Netheril’s Fall, it adds two monster types to 5th edition, both of which have been fan recreated better than the offical version. Also the lore is light, and flavorless. Netheril was probably one of the most interesting lore bits in all of D&D, a Space Age Magic Civilization of Humans, run by Ancient Human Wizards. With every evil imaginable practuced by those Netherese Humans. Forgotten Realms history reads a lot like our own but with more Gods, Magic, and Monsters. Also the humans of Netheril walked with the gods, and had their favor. Which is why the war with the Phaerimm was so hard for them as the Phaerimm were a hard counter to Arcane and God magic.
Which is why Karsus did something so stupid.
What I find most annoying is how obiously that the book was written with AI. Also it's not written as an adventure its a badly written lore dump so you can homebrew a game. Don't buy that book, if you want to play a timetravel to Netheril watch the several good youtube videos on them their culture and their history. Also if you want Phaerimm as bad guys watch Dungeon Dad, he did them justice.
Probably not. The astarion book gives some player-facing content that can make vampires be playable, but it could easily be transferred to other settings.
The Netheril one could possibly stand on its own as a small campaign or ideas for a setting.
In both cases, particularly netheril, the FR book would help give some context. But I don’t think they’d be necessary. Of course, it’s tough to make anything beyond the PHB “necessary” in D&D.
What is the opposite of a splatbook? Normally you want the new content because it's strong. These new release, it's like a spongebook.
Can you back that last bit up with an admittance from WotC, or are you mad based on preconceptions based on novels/past editions/MrRhexx & other YouTubers, therefore it's AI?
DM, player & homebrewer(Current homebrew project is an unofficial conversion of SBURB/SGRUB from Homestuck into DND 5e)
Once made Maxwell's Silver Hammer come down upon Strahd's head to make sure he was dead.
Always study & sharpen philosophical razors. They save a lot of trouble.
Really? That's the reason? Not because it adds new options and thus expands creative possibilities? Or expands the lore? Or gives new tools for the DM to craft adventures? Or new material for running one shots? Or...blah blah blah I could go on pointing out how "because it's strong" is the not the only (or even a common) reason for getting a splatbook.
Also the opposite of a "splatbook" would be a general purpose book. Splatbooks are niche releases focused on one facet of the game. Books like Tasha's or Xanathar's are the opposite of splatbooks because they cover a wide selection of game aspects. Books like Fizban's and Bigby's stray closer towards splatbooks given they're focused on one type of creature.
Find my D&D Beyond articles here
You say "obviously" (well, "obiously" technically) but I can't see any evidence of it being written with AI? No flowery language out of place in your average D&D text. No egregious or out of place em-dashes. No triple emphasis on key points. No "X then Y" syntaxing. Absolutely none of the common AI indicators or tell-tale phrasings that would "obviously" give it away.
This is the kind of claim that warrants evidence, not a throwaway "it's obvious". So we're all ears...
Find my D&D Beyond articles here
In prior editions, the lighter-weight version of a splatbook was called a Gazetteer, and those got charged for too. So I'm with Davyd, this is nothing new.
(And I got them for free with the preorder bundle anyway.)
I fully understand publications like splat books and even dungeon magazine and the such. My main issue is that 32 pages for 14.99 for a digital low content count supplement. In comparison to the Faurun book is 0.16 cent per page and Astarion’s Book is 0.47 cents per page. At most this 'book' should be no more that $ 5.12. It is a gross insult to us as consumers and they are doing this to see how much they can fleece us. This is 100% DLC DnD and making micro transactions for content that I for one have already paid for and the new rules are not truly backwards compatible as they specifically altered the subclass structure to make it not compatible.
Your post history has numerous bombastic claims full of doom & gloom, so pardon me if I doubt your word on this.
If you're counting value by page, you've got bigger problems than DND game pricing.
DM, player & homebrewer(Current homebrew project is an unofficial conversion of SBURB/SGRUB from Homestuck into DND 5e)
Once made Maxwell's Silver Hammer come down upon Strahd's head to make sure he was dead.
Always study & sharpen philosophical razors. They save a lot of trouble.
How are you calculating "pages" given it's a digital only product? Are you counting each individual webpage that makes up the product? If you actually try and print just chapter 1 to A4, that comes to 17 pages on its own.
Find my D&D Beyond articles here
WotC has admitted to nothing, but the Hasbro CEO has.
https://gamerant.com/hasbro-ceo-ai-use-confirmation-dungeons-and-dragons-magic-the-gathering/
Since the only thing Hasbro makes money on these days is WotC and because they fire/laidoff the majority or the design team, what do you think is the likelyhood they will use tools that remove the need for employees.
Then when you look at how lackluster the book is, if not AI than the person writing it has almost no creativity and no willingness to put any meat or substance into the book.
As for looking to the past editions, and books invloving Netheril and how interesting and colorful the ancient past was I feel sad that this is what I got as bonus mateiral with the rest of my purchase.
Exibit A:
Exibit B
Credits for past Splat Book "Domains of Delight: a Feywild accessory"
Exibit C
Credits "Netheril’s Fall: Tales of Terror, Treasure, and Time Travel"
I'm sure if I tested the whole book using the free AI checker the book would pass as not AI, more than I as no one writes so perfectly that you could clear an AI check 100%. But that's because they are designed to find Free AI, corprate America has the money to pay for AI that does not fall into noticble patterns. ie Guy publishing 50 books a month on Amazon uses cheap or free AI will get detected if you look, corpratations will spend the extra to get AI that is not so easy to discover.
BTW, a book I wrote in 2018 tested at 20% AI. AI wasn't even availble back then.