Paradox Interactive (the Crusader Kings people, not the Conan/Mutant Chronicles ones) buy the White Wolf properties [Merged x10]

[Omegaphallic]

From what I read in that interview, it seems NWOD is still a thing, given that's mentioned that Martin wants to get his hands on Promeathan, which only a NWOD gameline, thier is no OWOD Promeathan.

Also I noticed that Changeling was mentioned along side Vampire, Werewolf, and Mage, as if were one of the mainlines (which I guess it has become).

Interestingly I think Changeling: The Lost is the more popular then Changeling: Changeling the Dreaming.

Most Old World of Darkness game lines are more popular and well known then thier New World of Darkness eqivilants, but Changeling appears to the exception, with Lost being more popular Dreaming.

Lost basically became a main line when it was intended to be a limited game line like Promeathan, Giest, Hunter. I don't think dreaming ever came close to the status of the big 3 of OWOD.

As for one world of darkness I think it sort of is already thanks to the tranlation guides.

I suspect that the World of Darkness won't be merged into a single world so much as a single multiverse the way you have settings within setting, within setting of D&D.

(I'm refering how you have Planescape which is the multiverse as a whole setting, then within the material plane part of Planescape you have the crystal sphere's of spelljammer, and within one crytal sphere you have Toril the Firgotten Realms setting, and within the Forgotten Realms Setting you have the you have the settings like Faerun, Kara Tur, Zakahara, and sort of semi seperate settings like Abier and Maztica, and within Faerun you have regional books that act as setting with in Setting like the Old Empires, Sword Coast, Lands of Intrigue, Heartland,ect...)

[Resplendent Fire]

Metaplot was pretty much entirely a revised edition thing. Prior to that the games presented a setting but didn't advance it. Except for Sam Haight, but those were adventures, not metaplot. Bad adventures but still.

[Michael Kell]

I would very much prefer a more fleshed out sourcebook regarding the Impergium and the time leading up to the Wars of Rage across history than details about how some NPC BSD or another tries to break the space-time continuum; 10 or 20 pages about how campaigns could make use of the information would be great, anything beyond that cuts into the material I want for the sake of stuff I don't. SW Deadlands (and pretty much all of the SW plot point campaign settings) are great example of what I don't want my purchases to be.

The metaplot was a common undercurrent in many books (until revised editions, where it hit hard), that took precious little space, at least as far as I can recall looking back. However, I admit that my hindsight might be more colored by time and nostalgia than facts. This most reminds me Rage across the Heavens; I was totally enamored with the idea and felt the campaign included was a waste of space that would have been better served by more information to make use for homebrew campaigns.

Now, this product critizing aside, I still hope that this change of ownership regarding the IP will be positive in the long run.

[wyrdhamster]

In fact, the "plot point campaign" is the second reason besides the uncertainty caused by Paradox as IP holder that keeps me from investing in the Shattered Dreams kickstarter.

This one I cannot understand - I can see that you can not like particular "plot points" or development of them if added to the normal product. But from what I read about WtA: Shattered Dreams they are explicit about "plot point campaign", in their basic promise. It's like saying "I love my dream pupy - I just hate he has this black and white spots I said it will have".

Also, even "bad" plot points can have good scenes to use - I remember my private axing Deadlands, some years ago, and taking few cool scenes from official campaigning to mine private, even if it was totally different than original.

And last but not least - Does not the whole cWoD Metaplot is even more heavy handed "plot point campaing" in the end? With all the emphasis on common history across gamelines and all.

[Michael Kell]

I would consider not one of the published adventures as playable within the confines of any game I experienced without very heavy editing on the part of the storyteller. In fact, the "plot point campaign" is the second reason besides the uncertainty caused by Paradox as IP holder that keeps me from investing in the Shattered Dreams kickstarter.

Be that as it may, we will see what the future brings and I agree that as of now we know too little to make meaningful assumptions about the future direction of any gameline or World of Darkness and therefore have no reason to forecast certain doom and gloom.

It could still happen, though

[nofather]

It's not as if they don't already exist. There's a Kickstarter for one this very moment, for a long period of time the Storyteller Adventure System whose name I probably misremembered offered smaller adventures for years, several books revolve around the concept across both editions and in between, with Orpheus having a massive campaign complete with 'random encounters.' Mummy the Curse has a long one running in the last chapter of its books, as did Promethean, classic World of Darkness had the Darkening Sky book, the Time of Judgment books, the Ends of the Empire book in Wraith and Demon the Fallen's Fear to Tread. There's dozens of them, entire books.

I see your point and agree that the games I've known tend to be more player driven but they haven't always, sometimes the storyteller has an idea for an event and you put your characters into the thick of it. A book is going to be more static, less malleable, which is a downside for me but perhaps not everyone. If they're anything like the D&D events, you essentially make a character for those events and play them weekly, it's not a character you take from your own games into the event as the events are based on certain rule systems, or out of the event and into your own games, unless you want to.

That said, before your doubts grow too large try and keep in mind this is just a conclusion people have jumped to based on statements made during an interview and no formal announcement has been made either way.

[Michael Kell]

I have great diffculty seeing pre-designed adventures or "events" interacting well with most (c/n)WoD games I have ever known and played given how much of it was purely driven by player designs, actions and enterprises. Event-style sourcebooks and hooks like the old "Year of...", that I can see, but published adventures for any WoD iteration were, as far as I can recall from experience, only usable (or salvagable, as the case may be) with groups build specifically for that purpose. That would not lend itself to regular releases unless people enjoy scrapping their characters every few months in favor of the new flavor event.

My doubts grow.

[Second Chances]

Basically, Wizards is doing one "story" every six months, as a kind of transmedia thing. For example, right now their storyline is Rage of Demons: a drow archmage flubs a major ritual, summoning a bunch of Demon Lords into the Underdark, where they each start creating their own kind of mayhem. As part of that storyline, there's the Out of the Abyss campaign, where PCs travel through the Underdark - first in order to survive, and later to actually deal with the problem some of these demon lords pose. Another part is the CRPG Sword Coast Legends, which deals with some other demon lord. A third part is the new Drizzt novel Archmage which deals with Drizzt's battle with yet another demon lord. A fourth part is the Adventurer's League campaign which is D&D's organized play thing. The PCs are doing one thing in Out of the Abyss, while Drizzt is doing another in Archmage, but they're all dealing with madness-inducing demons in the Underdark.

No thank you. That's exactly why I play Eberron instead of Realms.

[Staffan]

This isn't the first time I'm hearing about D&D Events but I am yet again unable to figure out what they are. I have a vague idea that they might be D&D competitive play of sorts, but clicking that link didn't help at all. Would anyone mind giving me a really, really brief explanation?

Basically, Wizards is doing one "story" every six months, as a kind of transmedia thing. For example, right now their storyline is Rage of Demons: a drow archmage flubs a major ritual, summoning a bunch of Demon Lords into the Underdark, where they each start creating their own kind of mayhem. As part of that storyline, there's the Out of the Abyss campaign, where PCs travel through the Underdark - first in order to survive, and later to actually deal with the problem some of these demon lords pose. Another part is the CRPG Sword Coast Legends, which deals with some other demon lord. A third part is the new Drizzt novel Archmage which deals with Drizzt's battle with yet another demon lord. A fourth part is the Adventurer's League campaign which is D&D's organized play thing. The PCs are doing one thing in Out of the Abyss, while Drizzt is doing another in Archmage, but they're all dealing with madness-inducing demons in the Underdark.

[stylanski]

Optional metaplot and adventures for nWoD wouldn't be a terrible idea. I'm currently playing at a nationwide Requiem LARP game whose STs would love to have something like that at their disposal. If that turns out to be the case, I just hope they are handled like mini-series, in such a way that you can just pick up one and run with it. Sequels to the same series could expand on earlier material, but the corebooks should be kept metaplot-free, just so that it does not encourage the same thinking found in cWoD games, where some people would protest going against the metaplot.

Also, as I'm about to start a chronicle through the ages for VtR, starting in classical Athens and reaching the modern nights, a Year of the XX kind of deal, would perhaps mean that we finally get mechanics for Methuselahs, along the lines of nMage's Archmasters.

So yeah, there's definitely a niche to be filled here.

I've viewed the involvement of Paradox in the WW IP as nothing but a positive development (based on what I know about the company and in comparison to CCP's handling of the IP).
Though I hope they don't use cWoD 4e as an excuse to end nWoD and pretend it never happened. Great things came out of the newer World of Darkness, and it would be a shame for WW to simply take a step backwards.

[wyrdhamster]

This isn't the first time I'm hearing about D&D Events but I am yet again unable to figure out what they are. I have a vague idea that they might be D&D competitive play of sorts, but clicking that link didn't help at all. Would anyone mind giving me a really, really brief explanation?

Have you ever run official campaign from books? I have two campaigns to D&D 3.5 on mine book shalves and they are basically connected stories with small official "metaplot".

The Events, at least how I saw them in 5ED, are those things, only in transmedia. You have bi-monthly D&D adventure to started storyline, there comes books and probably module to play on PC in Legends of the Sword Coast video game. Of course comes new figures from WizKiz under the Event theme.

Last three Events I know about to D&D were Elemental Evil ( based on mine beloved campaign to AD&D in Greyhawk, only cut to Forgotten Realms ), Tyranny of Dragons ( based on Tiamat cult storyline ) and now is Rage of Demons - take a look on that.

With World of Darkness, I could see Events as main Metaplot of cWoD updated in books, as the way was to this day. On the nWoD side - we get closed "modules" or "campaigns" like D&D get - you have story material to use, but it does not destroy base modularity of setting.
The LARP part of fandom get's they own meetings made based on Event storyline. And, of course, Events are backbone to the all video games made by Paradox.

So you have something, let's say, "Blood Moon" werewolf PC game, cWoD metaplot about "Blood Moon" in Werewolf: the Apocalypse, nWoD chronicle of "Blood Moon" for Werewolf: The Forsaken and LARP material for werewolf events based on "Blood Moon" storyline. ( "Blood Moon" is only placeholder here, not that I announce or refer to some older adventures. Or maybe... )

Of they make this way, I would be very glad - I looked for some "official campaigns", without loosing the modularity of nWoD.

[Jacob]

Wasn't "year of the X" that exact model? Looking at things more broadly... isn't, like... every... book... ever... a rules update?

Yes and no. There are updates like "Year of..." and then there are compendiums which both update and compile. I personally prefer the latter.

[nofather]

This isn't the first time I'm hearing about D&D Events but I am yet again unable to figure out what they are. I have a vague idea that they might be D&D competitive play of sorts, but clicking that link didn't help at all. Would anyone mind giving me a really, really brief explanation?

If they mean Encounters or Expeditions, then yes. It was sort of done to introduce people to fourth edition, get people back in the LGS, and get them gaming with a scheduled weekly, I think, adventure that tied into an overarching story arc. The first response to this post explains it pretty well. Expeditions are more like your traditional 'competitive' tournament style game. I believe Pathfinder has the Pathfinder Society to do similar things.

I don't know much about the LARP side of things, but I believe the new boss of White Wolf is a LARPer and that the organized LARP play has worked off of similar concepts, with everyone having the same basic storyline or story arc to work off of. Other posters can probably expand on that, I believe Charlaquin knows much about the LARPing.

[Dawngreeter]

Re: event books. This kind of psuedo-rules updating seems to be taking off (for Games Workshop at least) in the mini gaming world. I wouldn't be too surprised to see something like it emerge for WoD in another year or two.

Wasn't "year of the X" that exact model? Looking at things more broadly... isn't, like... every... book... ever... a rules update?

[Dawngreeter]

With this interview, I think that I'm near confirmed now about the Event Model of D&D that Wizards of the Coast now use.

This isn't the first time I'm hearing about D&D Events but I am yet again unable to figure out what they are. I have a vague idea that they might be D&D competitive play of sorts, but clicking that link didn't help at all. Would anyone mind giving me a really, really brief explanation?

I am probably getting too old, more and more I run into products that are resilient to my comprehension... I try not to default to "younger generations are all stupid" mentality and end up spending my days proverbially shaking my stick in anger at those newfangled trains that pass by, but I'm not sure how well that's been working out for me.