Even the cast of Critical Role, who is sponsored by a digital D&D resource, will reach for a physical book first to look up information.
This resource in fact!
I can usually find what I’m looking for on DDB in under a minute, but it would take longer than that for me to look it up in a dead trees version. 🤷♂️ To each their own.
Try searching for "Infernal Legacy"
It is in the PHB's book index so very fast to lookup.
Here on DDB, impossible to search, comes up with nothing, and there are lots of examples of that. You would think they would do well the one thing the site was made for...
I actually have to resort to using the illegal website that pirated all the 5e content. Imagine that, a couple of thieves putting together a better version of 5e content search.... sad times.
Other people, on the other hand, grew up with electronics and use search tools all the dillybar day for their jobs and find electronic search systems vastly easier and more efficient to use than pawing at dead trees.
Dual versions offering a choice of use is the best way to handle this. For folks like me, Dead Tree Editions are basically collectible keepsakes. I like having physical books, but in the sense that "this is a cool little treasure and something I can show my buddies/family", rather than the sense that the book is a useful gaming tool. When it comes time to actually plan, run, or play a game, it's immediately to my digital tools. Not necessarily just the 'Official Whatever-Runners', either - an empty writer document and a lookup service like DDB is a match made in heaven.
I could wish for digital tools to take primacy, for reasons exactly like those mentioned by Comrade Jenkins. Simply patching the game eliminates idiocy like the Undead warlock and would allow Wizards to handle issues like the Ranger and Sorcerer backlash much more effectively, but because everything always has to closely match the Dead Tree Editions, their hands are tied. If the DTE versions were permitted to be out of date because the digital edition was the primary one? Shit like that could get fixed without dumbness.
Even the cast of Critical Role, who is sponsored by a digital D&D resource, will reach for a physical book first to look up information.
This resource in fact!
I can usually find what I’m looking for on DDB in under a minute, but it would take longer than that for me to look it up in a dead trees version. 🤷♂️ To each their own.
Try searching for "Infernal Legacy"
It is in the PHB's book index so very fast to lookup.
Here on DDB, impossible to search, comes up with nothing, and there are lots of examples of that. You would think they would do well the one thing the site was made for...
I actually have to resort to using the illegal website that pirated all the 5e content. Imagine that, a couple of thieves putting together a better version of 5e content search.... sad times.
I don’t have to “search” it, I know where to find it in 3 clicks: Rules->Race->Tiefling.
Even the cast of Critical Role, who is sponsored by a digital D&D resource, will reach for a physical book first to look up information.
This resource in fact!
I can usually find what I’m looking for on DDB in under a minute, but it would take longer than that for me to look it up in a dead trees version. 🤷♂️ To each their own.
Try searching for "Infernal Legacy"
It is in the PHB's book index so very fast to lookup.
Here on DDB, impossible to search, comes up with nothing, and there are lots of examples of that. You would think they would do well the one thing the site was made for...
I actually have to resort to using the illegal website that pirated all the 5e content. Imagine that, a couple of thieves putting together a better version of 5e content search.... sad times.
3 minutes. It spun for 45 seconds and came up with Tiefling. Touch tiefling nothing but white space. Close the search. Try to bring up basic rules. White space. Shut down beyond and brought up PHB. The scrolled to tiefling.
Nope. I have entered search words in D&D beyond on my phone and it just spins. Hello what happens if I can’t connect to the net, do I have access to my stuff. I can WRITE NOTES on my physical copy.
For the printed versions please fix the index. These are game books. If I look a term say "silvering weapons" it should give me the page number. Not "see weapons silvered".
they should definetely keep physical books a thing otherwise how are we to play d&d when the power is out and the batteries in our computing/mobile devices of choice have died?
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
* Need a character idea? Search for "Rob76's Unused" in the Story and Lore section.
Even the cast of Critical Role, who is sponsored by a digital D&D resource, will reach for a physical book first to look up information.
This resource in fact!
I can usually find what I’m looking for on DDB in under a minute, but it would take longer than that for me to look it up in a dead trees version. 🤷♂️ To each their own.
Try searching for "Infernal Legacy"
It is in the PHB's book index so very fast to lookup.
Here on DDB, impossible to search, comes up with nothing, and there are lots of examples of that. You would think they would do well the one thing the site was made for...
I actually have to resort to using the illegal website that pirated all the 5e content. Imagine that, a couple of thieves putting together a better version of 5e content search.... sad times.
I don’t have to “search” it, I know where to find it in 3 clicks: Rules->Race->Tiefling.
For the printed versions please fix the index. These are game books. If I look a term say "silvering weapons" it should give me the page number. Not "see weapons silvered".
That feedback falls on deft ears here since this website is owned and operated by a completely different company (fandom Inc.) than the one who publishes D&D (WotC). The company that runs this website has absolutely 0.00% of anything to do with physical publications.
Even the cast of Critical Role, who is sponsored by a digital D&D resource, will reach for a physical book first to look up information.
This resource in fact!
I can usually find what I’m looking for on DDB in under a minute, but it would take longer than that for me to look it up in a dead trees version. 🤷♂️ To each their own.
Try searching for "Infernal Legacy"
It is in the PHB's book index so very fast to lookup.
Here on DDB, impossible to search, comes up with nothing, and there are lots of examples of that. You would think they would do well the one thing the site was made for...
I actually have to resort to using the illegal website that pirated all the 5e content. Imagine that, a couple of thieves putting together a better version of 5e content search.... sad times.
I don’t have to “search” it, I know where to find it in 3 clicks: Rules->Race->Tiefling.
If only everyone was you
That would be horrible. I would feel so bad for everyone. Luckily, none of you have to be me to learn how to use this website more efficiently!
Some amount of learning where information is stored is important for the game in general. Referencing rules should generally be a case of double-checking what you already know, not digging for information you've never seen before and have no idea where to find. Regardless of which type of media you use.
Some amount of learning where information is stored is important for the game in general. Referencing rules should generally be a case of double-checking what you already know, not digging for information you've never seen before and have no idea where to find. Regardless of which type of media you use.
Ah thats the reason the search doesn't search, gotcha.
The search searches just fine. "Infernal legacy" doesn't produce a result for 'The Tiefling Racial Trait' because that's a keyword search that can mean several things. Most of my results in the search I just ran for it were results from SCAG and MToF that offer options to replace Infernal Legacy.
Some folks, it'd bother them immensely that searching for "Infernal Legacy" does not produce the exact specific little piece of information they're looking for. Especially when they've been thumbing through books for multiple decades and have gotten that skill down. Other folks know exactly where Infernal Legacy is and can find it in less than ten seconds if we need to double-check the specific language for whatever reason. A state which applies to most of the general information in the game. If I don't know the information off the top of my head, I know where in the digital media that information is located and can usually find it in seconds. Only esoteric weird stuff, usually in the extremely poorly designed and laid out Dungeon Master's Guide, takes longer.
People can practice with the digital media and know how to use it just the same way you can practice with the physical media, Greg. Nothing wrong with a physical book, but there are also undeniable advantages to digital media. For those who know how to use it.
EDIT: I'm glad you have that choice, Lizard. it is physically impossible for me to pull together any sort of real-life, face-to-face game no matter the current pandemic level of the world. Online games are the only games I can play. Decrying online games as terrible invasions of the face-to-face game kinda sucks, ne? Some of us make do with what we have.
Not to mention, if using the DDB digital Character Sheet, you can just tap/click the section under “Features & Traits” and it pops right up in the sidebar.
For the printed versions please fix the index. These are game books. If I look a term say "silvering weapons" it should give me the page number. Not "see weapons silvered".
That feedback falls on deft ears here since this website is owned and operated by a completely different company (fandom Inc.) than the one who publishes D&D (WotC). The company that runs this website has absolutely 0.00% of anything to do with physical publications.
But the website people talk to D&Dbeyond people who talk to Wotc. In the military we called this back channeling. In business we call it covering all the bases.
For the printed versions please fix the index. These are game books. If I look a term say "silvering weapons" it should give me the page number. Not "see weapons silvered".
That feedback falls on deft ears here since this website is owned and operated by a completely different company (fandom Inc.) than the one who publishes D&D (WotC). The company that runs this website has absolutely 0.00% of anything to do with physical publications.
But the website people talk to D&Dbeyond people who talk to Wotc. In the military we called this back channeling. In business we call it covering all the bases.
In DDB, they call it OPP. (Other people’s problems.)
Here on DDB, impossible to search, comes up with nothing, and there are lots of examples of that. You would think they would do well the one thing the site was made for...
My main frustration with DDB is that if I do a search in the search box, the darn thing brings up references to every source, including ones I don't own like Acquisitions or Rick and Morty. For basic stuff like Conditions. It often puts those specialized sources at the top of the search list. Then I click on them and get brought to a "buy this book!" ad. Only to click back and then have to hunt through the list to find a link to the identically-worded entry in a resource I do own. By now I could have just looked it up on paper in the book sitting next to my desk.
I think this is a general problem. There is an unfortunate mixture of information from difference sources all on the same page, some of which occur in items I own, and some of which do not, and I am not interested in seeing all the options available in the books I don't own. I wish there was a way to pare it down to "just what I actually own, please." But the site seems utterly incapable of doing this.
The books, at least, only have their own contents. So if I want to look up "human" in the PHB, I *only* get the PHB stuff on humans, and not all the junk from Theros, Ravnica, Wildemount, and whatever the heck other sources I neither own nor want to own.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
As much as I like books I think 6E should be completely digital.
Physical books (sadly) are slowly losing favor to their digital counterparts becuase of space and convience. It is much easier to look up something on a digital pdf then it is to flip through a book. Even though I own all the books I still use google for looking up things.
The second reason why I think it would be better to have a completely digital library is that it is easier to errata and update things. Physical books cannot be updated but a dedicated compendium can be and we can all be notified when things are changed. But best of all I think the best idea would be a link for something like Sage Advice that would help clarify rules.
Given that the medium can lead to more digital convenience, what do you think of my idea and how it could be improved?
How would it harm you to have both physical and digital available? If you only buy the digital, can you not ignore the existence of physical books, which others like?
It doesn't hurt anybody to do both. The argument seems to be more on which version should have primacy - online/digital or Dead Tree. Currently, Dead Tree Editions have primacy, which severely restricts what the online tools can be allowed to do. Errata is super annoying, we get idiotic nonsense like releasing an "Undead Patron" warlock as an unofficial replacement for the Undying warlock, and the ranger can get complained about for over five years without Wizards being able to do a single damn thing to fix it...because nothing can ever "invalidate" the PHB somebody bought five years ago.
If the digital version had primacy and any print versions were considered uncontrolled documents, then none of that would be a problem. You would have the problem of people getting lit over their print books being Not Up To Date, but I feel like that could be controlled if it was made very obvious that "Print editions are made for those who enjoy collecting physical media and those who prefer to avoid using electronic devices at the table, but any given print book is not considered the definitive edition of the game - only the digital ruleset maintained and updated by the game developers is considered definitive."
No, no, no. Digital books are great to have, but they will never replace physical ones for me. I don't like paying for digital things (I never spend money on F2P games, for example), and I love the feel of flipping through a book when I'm planning my next session or character. It's nostalgic and fun. If we don't get books for 6e, I won't be playing it.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Wizard (Gandalf) of the Tolkien Club
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Try searching for "Infernal Legacy"
It is in the PHB's book index so very fast to lookup.
Here on DDB, impossible to search, comes up with nothing, and there are lots of examples of that. You would think they would do well the one thing the site was made for...
I actually have to resort to using the illegal website that pirated all the 5e content. Imagine that, a couple of thieves putting together a better version of 5e content search.... sad times.
Other people, on the other hand, grew up with electronics and use search tools all the dillybar day for their jobs and find electronic search systems vastly easier and more efficient to use than pawing at dead trees.
Dual versions offering a choice of use is the best way to handle this. For folks like me, Dead Tree Editions are basically collectible keepsakes. I like having physical books, but in the sense that "this is a cool little treasure and something I can show my buddies/family", rather than the sense that the book is a useful gaming tool. When it comes time to actually plan, run, or play a game, it's immediately to my digital tools. Not necessarily just the 'Official Whatever-Runners', either - an empty writer document and a lookup service like DDB is a match made in heaven.
I could wish for digital tools to take primacy, for reasons exactly like those mentioned by Comrade Jenkins. Simply patching the game eliminates idiocy like the Undead warlock and would allow Wizards to handle issues like the Ranger and Sorcerer backlash much more effectively, but because everything always has to closely match the Dead Tree Editions, their hands are tied. If the DTE versions were permitted to be out of date because the digital edition was the primary one? Shit like that could get fixed without dumbness.
Alas, likely never the case. C'est la vie.
Please do not contact or message me.
I don’t have to “search” it, I know where to find it in 3 clicks: Rules->Race->Tiefling.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
3 minutes. It spun for 45 seconds and came up with Tiefling. Touch tiefling nothing but white space. Close the search. Try to bring up basic rules. White space. Shut down beyond and brought up PHB. The scrolled to tiefling.
No Gaming is Better than Bad Gaming.
Nope. I have entered search words in D&D beyond on my phone and it just spins. Hello what happens if I can’t connect to the net, do I have access to my stuff. I can WRITE NOTES on my physical copy.
For the printed versions please fix the index. These are game books. If I look a term say "silvering weapons" it should give me the page number. Not "see weapons silvered".
No Gaming is Better than Bad Gaming.
they should definetely keep physical books a thing otherwise how are we to play d&d when the power is out and the batteries in our computing/mobile devices of choice have died?
If only everyone was you
That feedback falls on deft ears here since this website is owned and operated by a completely different company (fandom Inc.) than the one who publishes D&D (WotC). The company that runs this website has absolutely 0.00% of anything to do with physical publications.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
That would be horrible. I would feel so bad for everyone. Luckily, none of you have to be me to learn how to use this website more efficiently!
I hope that helps.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
Some amount of learning where information is stored is important for the game in general. Referencing rules should generally be a case of double-checking what you already know, not digging for information you've never seen before and have no idea where to find. Regardless of which type of media you use.
Please do not contact or message me.
Ah thats the reason the search doesn't search, gotcha.
The search searches just fine. "Infernal legacy" doesn't produce a result for 'The Tiefling Racial Trait' because that's a keyword search that can mean several things. Most of my results in the search I just ran for it were results from SCAG and MToF that offer options to replace Infernal Legacy.
Some folks, it'd bother them immensely that searching for "Infernal Legacy" does not produce the exact specific little piece of information they're looking for. Especially when they've been thumbing through books for multiple decades and have gotten that skill down. Other folks know exactly where Infernal Legacy is and can find it in less than ten seconds if we need to double-check the specific language for whatever reason. A state which applies to most of the general information in the game. If I don't know the information off the top of my head, I know where in the digital media that information is located and can usually find it in seconds. Only esoteric weird stuff, usually in the extremely poorly designed and laid out Dungeon Master's Guide, takes longer.
People can practice with the digital media and know how to use it just the same way you can practice with the physical media, Greg. Nothing wrong with a physical book, but there are also undeniable advantages to digital media. For those who know how to use it.
EDIT: I'm glad you have that choice, Lizard. it is physically impossible for me to pull together any sort of real-life, face-to-face game no matter the current pandemic level of the world. Online games are the only games I can play. Decrying online games as terrible invasions of the face-to-face game kinda sucks, ne? Some of us make do with what we have.
Please do not contact or message me.
Not to mention, if using the DDB digital Character Sheet, you can just tap/click the section under “Features & Traits” and it pops right up in the sidebar.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
But the website people talk to D&Dbeyond people who talk to Wotc. In the military we called this back channeling. In business we call it covering all the bases.
No Gaming is Better than Bad Gaming.
In DDB, they call it OPP. (Other people’s problems.)
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
My main frustration with DDB is that if I do a search in the search box, the darn thing brings up references to every source, including ones I don't own like Acquisitions or Rick and Morty. For basic stuff like Conditions. It often puts those specialized sources at the top of the search list. Then I click on them and get brought to a "buy this book!" ad. Only to click back and then have to hunt through the list to find a link to the identically-worded entry in a resource I do own. By now I could have just looked it up on paper in the book sitting next to my desk.
I think this is a general problem. There is an unfortunate mixture of information from difference sources all on the same page, some of which occur in items I own, and some of which do not, and I am not interested in seeing all the options available in the books I don't own. I wish there was a way to pare it down to "just what I actually own, please." But the site seems utterly incapable of doing this.
The books, at least, only have their own contents. So if I want to look up "human" in the PHB, I *only* get the PHB stuff on humans, and not all the junk from Theros, Ravnica, Wildemount, and whatever the heck other sources I neither own nor want to own.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
How would it harm you to have both physical and digital available? If you only buy the digital, can you not ignore the existence of physical books, which others like?
It doesn't hurt anybody to do both. The argument seems to be more on which version should have primacy - online/digital or Dead Tree. Currently, Dead Tree Editions have primacy, which severely restricts what the online tools can be allowed to do. Errata is super annoying, we get idiotic nonsense like releasing an "Undead Patron" warlock as an unofficial replacement for the Undying warlock, and the ranger can get complained about for over five years without Wizards being able to do a single damn thing to fix it...because nothing can ever "invalidate" the PHB somebody bought five years ago.
If the digital version had primacy and any print versions were considered uncontrolled documents, then none of that would be a problem. You would have the problem of people getting lit over their print books being Not Up To Date, but I feel like that could be controlled if it was made very obvious that "Print editions are made for those who enjoy collecting physical media and those who prefer to avoid using electronic devices at the table, but any given print book is not considered the definitive edition of the game - only the digital ruleset maintained and updated by the game developers is considered definitive."
Please do not contact or message me.
That would suck.
SAUCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No, no, no. Digital books are great to have, but they will never replace physical ones for me. I don't like paying for digital things (I never spend money on F2P games, for example), and I love the feel of flipping through a book when I'm planning my next session or character. It's nostalgic and fun. If we don't get books for 6e, I won't be playing it.
Wizard (Gandalf) of the Tolkien Club