by Micah Jackson
This Just In
Milwaukee -- In an announcement which surprised and delighted fans of the Dungeons and Dragons game, Wizards of the Coast CEO Peter Adkison revealed plans to release the long-awaited 3rd Edition of the fantasy RPG. Essentially unchanged in the ten years since the release of the Second Edition, the venerable old game was widely considered to be overdue for an overhaul. 3rd Edition Dungeons & Dragons Coming for Gen Con 2000
Adkison stated that the goal of the design team was to "create the best game possible" and assured fans that the "essential look and feel" of the D&D game would remain unchanged. 3rd Edition design team member Monte Cook built on that theme when he described several "sacred cows" of D&D, including the class/level system, alignments, and the concept of armor classes. Still, several things will be altered in the system to make the game more intuitive. For example, armor classes will now be higher to denote a lesser chance of being hit, while confusing rules such as the few exceptions to the "roll high" mechanic will be reversed to smooth play. Other changes greeted with wild cheers by fans included the introduction of an integrated skill system, abolition of level limits for demi-human characters, and the restoration of half-orcs, assassins, monks, demons, and devils. In addition, Adkison acknowledged the settlement of a long-standing lawsuit with D&D co-creator Dave Arneson, and promised that going forward all . . .
This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.
Article publication date: August 6, 1999
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