Re: 3e SJ races...

I strongly disagree. BtM should be dedicated to the Tunnels and Trolls
ruleset and damn the rest.

Just Kidding :)




-----Original Message-----
From: Trampas Whiteman [mailto:kurrelgyrre@???????.com]
Sent: Sunday, December 08, 2002 10:55 PM
To: SPELLJAMMER-L@??????.???????.com
Subject: Re: [SPELLJAMMER] 3e SJ races...


>From Static...

"My main concern stems from the fact some people still think
SotSM is some sort of official 3e conversion of Spelljammer.  (For
those of you who don't know, it's no more official than BtM.)"

Yes, but it all boils down to perceptions.  Andy Collins' material is
published in a WotC product, namely Dungeon/Polyhedron.  He is also a
professional game designer.  Spider Moon is official by association.

The site may have official status, but it does not have the luxury to be in
print in a WotC product, nor do the staff and contributors of Beyond the
Moons have the luxury of being professional game designers.  We're just fans
who love Spelljammer.

To the average person (especially those who are not online), Andy Collins'
materials would be considered canon.

See below...

"I guess it's a moot point, though.  WotC will continue to
ignore the official sites.  Our community will continue to fracture
along edition/setting lines.  The best approach seems to be keeping
BtM internally consistent and not worrying about the outside world."

Therein lies the trap, Static.  By going this route, you're doing nothing
more than supporting the rift.  You're saying that you're not going to
support Andy Collins' materials, which many *perceive* (magic word) to be
official.

When I founded the Whitestone Council (the concept of which was inspired by
the Seeker's Council) and when the Dragonlance Nexus became the official fan
site for Dragonlance, I had a lot of people coming to me, asking the
Whitestone Council to set what is official canon material.

I absolutely refused.  I knew, by doing that, we would have rifts.  Already,
Dragonlance was troubled between 4th age and 5th age fans, Taladas and
Ansalon fans, and we had differences based off of editions.  Dragonlance has
not two, but 4 editions to contend with (AD&D 1e, AD&D 2e, SAGA, and D&D
3e).

"All points of view on the world of Krynn are valid."  This became one of
the tenets of the Dragonlance Nexus.  It is a concept that I feel Beyond the
Moons should adopt as well, so that all points of view on Spelljammer are
valid.

Do not lose sight to the purpose of Beyond the Moons.  BtM, in my opinion,
is not a site that is supposed to set canon, nor is it a site that is set
only to convert materials to 3e.

In my opinion, Beyond the Moons should be about the continued life of
Spelljammer gaming.  It should be about supporting Spelljammer in all its
incarnations.  It doesn't matter if the materials are 2e, 3e, Hackmaster, or
whatever.  The point is to provide new ideas to implement into your
Spelljammer games, and to provide options.

When I first encountered Beyond the Moons, it inspired me.  I saw tons of
new materials, and I was brought back to the days when I first purchased my
original Spelljammer boxed set.  To my amazement and surprise, there were
some non-standard items on there too, such as Spelljammer for use with
various sci-fi shows and with other settings, such as Pern.

This is the magic I would like to see continued in Beyond the Moons.  I'd
like there to be something for fans of 2e Spelljammer, fans of 3e
Spelljammer conversions, fans of Spider Moon, fans of the wacky stuff, etc.
etc.

Trampas Whiteman
Wanderer of Celestian

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