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Seems this waqs meant to be for WOTC to reply to us I want to ask WOTC some questions.

First off why is it that you have apparently done a complete BACK FLIP on your own Comments and Advertising?

What do I mean by this? lets see for a start you have stated in the past that the Character Generator would be useable even if you where not Subscribed, just you would not have Access to UPDATED material once your subscription ran out.

Now instead your saying it's basically going to be 'Half working' software (hey this sounding familar to any one? Remember that CD in the back of 3rd Edition?).

Along with this is the Game Table Map Maker, so far you have given zip information on it, yet you have stated in MANY posts and MANY interviews that this would be useable even IF you did NOT have a current Subscription, to make maps for use outside the Game table.

The character Visualiser: Honestly Couldn't give a damned about it.. don't plan on using it.

What I think is upsetting a lot of people including me is the way you Wizards of the Coast are saying one thing and then doing another and making out that is what you said all along. It's Bad Business practice and honestly your starting to come across as a bunch of:

A. Politicians.
B. Liers.
C. People who had no real plan to begin with.


Now I know some people will say that I am being harsh there, given you have had a guy recently suicide and the like, but that's honestly not our (your customers) issue. What we want is firm HONEST answers, that are not suddenly going to change next month. What we want is also some questions that should be easy for you to answer answered clearly.

1. Exactly What/How much function will the Programs retain after your subscription runs out.
2. Exactly what is being offered with EACH program (seems hey not even your own website agree's with itself anymore).
3. IS the Character Builder Aka Character Sheet Generator:
[INDENT]A web based application?[/INDENT]
[INDENT]A Stand alone program that connects to your database?[/INDENT]

If it's the first then what's the point of most people paying for it when you know you kinda don't have your laptop connected to the net at say... the Local Gaming Club?

4. Is the Map Builder/Dungeon designer/ What ever still going to have all the functionality you promised (The ability to make printable maps etc) WITH OUT having to subscribe?


5. Are you going to at least come clean and admit you have dropped the ball and messed up, appologise for it publically and try and rebuild the trust you have lost with if you read the forums here and else where a good size of your Customer base?

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That being said I'd like to add the following.... I'm not bagging out 4th Edition, I honestly like a lot of it.. I don't think people are right in saying that D&D has to contend with a MMOG, honestly it does not.. D&D has it's OWN MMO for crying out loud if you want to play Dungeons and Dragons online in a MMO go and Play D&D Online.

What I do think Wizards has to compete with is the growing demand for game systems that are flexable, easy to learn, while still maintaining depth. 4th edition is close to this.. I won't say it's perfect because it's not, there are a large number of things I don't like about it.. HOWEVER Wizards did all this hype and advertising about their grand (and now 'infamous') Dungeons and Dragons Insider, they talked about how it would 'Revolutionize' the way you played your Table Top RPG's and allow you to connect with friends all over the world to enjoy that good old D&D experiance No matter WHERE you are.

Yet now a good few months after the release of Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition.. and what should have been the Release of Dungeons and Dragons Insider the Tools that Wizards themselves Promised for the new edition.. We have ZIP NADA in the way of Tools.. What is worse is that WOTC has STOPPED any one else from putting out their own Tools.. Do I have a nice Character Generator in .exe form programmed in vb.net 2.0 that is fully extendable, does everything that you need to make a Character Sheet? Yes actually I do.. I programmed the damned thing myself and me and a close group of friends use it.. Can I allow any one else to use it? NO because Wizards have happly changed there licenses to STOP us programmers from being able to do just that.

A lot of us where happy to hold off wait give D&D Insider a chance to get on it's feet but instead we have seen nothing of them.. and you know the sad part.. It took me less then a week in my free time to program that Character Generator, which like Etools exports to fully customisable sheets.. includes all your spells in nice card form on sheets after etc etc etc.. So if I can do it in that time with relatively few bugs and I've not had an inch of Teaching other then self taught programming.. Why is it taking Wizards so long when they supposably are PAYING people to produce these applications.. WORSE if it's a WEB application it should be Even easier because it'd be pulling all the data from their OWN SQL databases rather then say like mine XML files.

Rant over.. take it for what it is a Rant from some one who's getting a bit jacked at Wizards and their constant flipflopping.. which is worse then John Howard durring his Last term or from what I Saw of the last US Election (the one before the one coming up) your Presidental Candidate's.