Recent content by Echohawk

Exactly that. My first impression of 5e was that it was a complete reversion from 4e to something based on 2e/3e. Since then, I have regularly been surprised to discover that there is quite a bit of 4e still mixed in.

Ah, but I didn't say "much of it was taken from 4e". I referred instead to the "surprisingly numerous parts of 4e design that 5e kept". Clearly, 5e uses a chassis closer to 2e or 3e as its game engine. In my opinion, it doesn't use anywhere near "much" of 4e. Nonetheless, I have, over time, been...

What makes you think I'm a 4e fan? I am, but only in the sense that I'm a fan of all editions of D&D. I'm no more of a 4e fan than a 5e or 2e fan, and 4e is certainly not my favorite version of D&D. I'm also confused by the implication that I somehow benefit from having any sort of particular...

Which bit? That 5e includes a bunch of 4e design concepts? Or that they are carefully disguised?

I think perhaps this could be more accurately phrased as "the surprisingly numerous parts of 4e design that 5e kept were disguised as carefully as possible so as to create the appearance of an edition that was much closer to earlier editions" :cool:

Yes. (Or at least, I don't think WotC has given us any reason to think otherwise.)

Rokugan and Kara-Tur are completely different settings. Kara-Tur is the setting of the 1st Edition Oriental Adventures hardcover (1985), later expanded into the Kara-Tur: The Eastern Realms boxed set (1988), which was also branded as a Forgotten Realms product. The 3rd Edition Oriental...

That particular product is infuriating. The latter release is a much, much cleaner scan with the booklet and the maps as separate files. But the earlier scrappier, single-file version has the advantage of being OCRed.

I think it is at least possible that WotC's market reach suggests that toolkit books sell better if they are disguised as adventures.

I second that. Also, even when people have views I disagree with* they are generally pretty polite about expressing them here. I sincerely appreciate that, as well as the diligent moderation that makes that possible. * I disagree with Vecna's general approach to life, said while wildly grasping...

Heck that's been true for the adventures of all editions. I've only even run one adventure as published (Red Hand of Doom); the rest of the time it's been ingredients all the way. The adventures for 5e feel more designed that way than before though. Even Eve of Ruin is mostly a selection of item...

I'm mostly a fan of WotC's overall custodianship of D&D, but honest enough to acknowledge that there have been plenty of missteps warranting criticism, so I'm totally okay with criticism of WotC. I prefer honest criticism that doesn't rely on "facts" which are entirely made up or which are from...

Do you have any evidence at all that WotC pays for either reviews or social media bots or are you just making wild accusations for the sake of it?

This exactly. There was a filter in the marketplace that hid things you'd already bought (by default). It was never present in the sourcebooks view, so you were definitely using the marketplace to check. I did the same thing and I'm also irritated that they haven't implemented that filter for...

You aren't imagining that, and I don't recall it being specifically addressed. My assumption has been that the decision to stagger the releases of the core books across five months probably freed up enough printing capacity to be able to do the special covers.