Say what you will but gamers are passionate people. We love what we love and we hate what we hate. Very rarely (in my experience) do gamers as a collective not fall into one of the two extremes. Take Essentials for example: A series of supplements touted as the “on-ramp for new D&D players” met with a virtual shit storm from the D&D community. Folks seem to love or hate Essentials and what they stand for. Is it 4.5? Is it good for the game? Is it the beginning of the end? Ask around a convention and you’ll hear all of these theories, rants, complaints, and praises from people who love to roll dice.

Where do I stand? I’ll be honest: I am not a huge fan but don’t let today’s comic fool you. I am giving Essentials a try. I currently have a player running an Essentials Mage in my Underdark campaign and I am reading the material presented to date. I like to make an informed decision.

I hope to meet Mike Mearls one day and shake his hand. From everything I’ve read, he’s a Greyhawk guy like me and I love his design philosophy.

Granted, this comic could deter such a meeting. If you know Mike, pass this along. I’d love to read his comments on the comic.