Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Arcane Guyver 01-24-05, 11:12 PM	Here I thought the first Eberron novel was slated for Feb. 4, but my friendly local bookstore gave me a call & informed me it was in. Obviously I haven't read much of it yet, but a few things I noticed. 1. The cover is nice. Not too flashy or boring. The title is actually bigger than the author's name, which is sort of rare these days. 2. The next book in the set comes out December '05. The final book comes out...December '06!!! Yes, it will be two years before we'll know how this story ends. :weep: 3. This is the first novel I've ever purchased that had a mail-in feedback card. Not only does that feel kind of wierd, it's right in the middle. Sort of a pain in the ass to rip out without damaging the book. Not sure if this was the board to post this or not, but I figured I'd let you guys know you should check your local bookstores.
The White Sorcerer 01-24-05, 11:22 PM	Not only does that feel kind of wierd, it's right in the middle.. Now that's just stupid.
Edymnion 01-24-05, 11:31 PM	Here I thought the first Eberron novel was slated for Feb. 4, but my friendly local bookstore gave me a call & informed me it was in.Chances are your local bookstore is breaking the rules. Places often get things like this in a week or two before the official release date. They are SUPPOSED to keep it in the back and not put it on the shelf, but some put it out right when they get it. Which is actually rather risky on their part, as retailers have been known to be blacklisted by publishers for doing that. The old "If you can't play by our rules, you aren't going to play at all" routine. So I wouldn't go telling the name of the bookstore that did it, if I were you.
Arcane Guyver 01-24-05, 11:37 PM	:eek: Well then. Not sure how I feel about this situation then. Should I scold the guy who sold it to me for not telling me he's breaking the rules selling it, or be grateful he's willing to break the rules for me. Ah, correction on the first post - Viz manga novels, the Shounen Jump variety, always have mail-in cards, and I buy them all the time (at least YYH and RuroKen). Of course, they stick those cards in the back/front, not in the middle.
Brastan 01-24-05, 11:42 PM	Wha!? :uh-huh: It's supposed to be out next month. I don't want to here that book stores are jumping the gun again like they did with the ECS. right in the middle A feedback card? I might have to get two then and stash one in a safe deposit box for later sale to collectors. Those rich crazies on E-bay will buy just about anything won't they. ;) I have class next to a Boards here in AZ so I'll see what they've done, and if they jump the gun again... :ahem: Give Keith a break. Writing a novel is difficult endeavor. I have one that I co-wrote with my father about six years back and were still working on it. (editing, revision, tweaking, submissions, rejections). It just means that we need to do our best to see that the world does not explode or something before then. :D
Edymnion 01-24-05, 11:42 PM	:eek: Well then. Not sure how I feel about this situation then. Should I scold the guy who sold it to me for not telling me he's breaking the rules selling it, or be grateful he's willing to break the rules for me.I'd be grateful and not make a fuss over it. Don't bring any more attention to them than you have to, and enjoy having your own little guy on the inside of the biz ;)
Arcane Guyver 01-24-05, 11:51 PM	Give Keith a break. Writing a novel is difficult endeavor. Oh, I'm not busting his chops or anything here. I understand that it's difficult writing full-fledged novels (why I didn't even bother with the submissions contest), especially when you consider all the game design work he's doing currently, as well as providing astonishing fan support here. Still, it's just one of those things...like watching a movie, loving every second of it up to the cliffhanger ending, and then finding out later that the sequel is due out in two years. I'm used to buying trilogies all at once, I'm just now starting to get them as they come out (started with Margarette Weis' "Mistress of Dragons" last year, now waiting for "Son of the Dragon" to come out in paperback).
BullyBoy 01-25-05, 12:00 AM	Very quick review: It's nicely written. A few spelling mistakes / typos. I love the characters, intrigue, and ideas that it spawned for my campaign.
stone_dog 01-25-05, 12:35 AM	especially when you consider all the game design work he's doing currently Yes. Go buy Gloom. It is a very odd little game that is well worth an evening of masochistic merriment mixed with attacks of altruism. [/tangental plug]
Hellcow 01-25-05, 02:33 AM	Still, it's just one of those things...like watching a movie, loving every second of it up to the cliffhanger ending, and then finding out later that the sequel is due out in two years. For what it's worth, The City of Towers intentionally DOESN'T have a cliffhanger ending. It lays a lot of important groundwork for the following books, and certainly leaves a few very important questions unanswered, but it is a self-contained story in its own right. My goal was to introduce people to the characters and the world and to end with the knowledge that there are dark clouds on the horizon - but not a true cliffhanger that leaves you on pins and needles for a year. Now, between the next two books - well, there, I make no promises. ;)
Tengu1958 01-25-05, 09:31 AM	Still, it's just one of those things...like watching a movie, loving every second of it up to the cliffhanger ending, and then finding out later that the sequel is due out in two years. I'm used to buying trilogies all at once, I'm just now starting to get them as they come out (started with Margarette Weis' "Mistress of Dragons" last year, now waiting for "Son of the Dragon" to come out in paperback). Tell me about it. I'm a long suffering Jordan and Martin fan.
Edymnion 01-25-05, 09:34 AM	Tell me about it. I'm a long suffering Jordan and Martin fan.Ugh, tell me about it. Robert has got the worst case of the slows I've ever seen here lately... Crossroads of Twiligh was a good 800 pages of filler, and that was it. Whole point of the story happened in the last 20 pages.
Gez 01-25-05, 10:02 AM	3. This is the first novel I've ever purchased that had a mail-in feedback card. Not only does that feel kind of wierd, it's right in the middle. Sort of a pain in the ass to rip out without damaging the book. So you hate this, you too? When I received my Eberronish order (ECS+SCT+MM3), I was annoyed (that's an euphemism :censored: used for CoC compliancy) to find these dreadsome horrors disgracing the binding of every WotC books. Please, WotC, stop doing that. Stop entirely. At least, do not bind them in the book. Or at the very end, behind every pages, like you did for the first 3e books. Or something. They make flipping through the book painful.
Takasi 01-25-05, 10:07 AM	Does it include the titles for the next two books?
Golbez57 01-25-05, 01:50 PM	You're on the positive end of things with your bookstore, Arcane Guyver. The one I frequent does, as Edymnion said, get books well before their official release dates, including D & D gaming materials. Sadly, I think that they have one staff member who handles that section of the store, and when he occasionally doesn't work for a handful of consecutive days, I come here to see "wOOt, Sharn is great!"... only to have to wait a good while longer to get my goodies. I'm looking forward to these different perspectives on Eberron than we're able to get through gaming materials.
Sturm Jaeger 01-25-05, 02:31 PM	I'm looking forward to the first Eberron novel, and plan to pick it up as soon as it hits the shelves at my local bookstore. I'm glad to hear it's not a cliffhanger ending. Wizards has a bad habit of spacing novel series out way too far. By the time the last novel in a set comes out, I've usual forgotten what happened in the first. The War of the Spider Queen series, for example. By the time the third book came out, I'd largely lost interest in what was going on. Too much time had passed.
ENHenry 01-25-05, 03:36 PM	The Good News: Thank you for that insightful first look. The Bad News: I think WotC has a general ban on discussion of their novels on these forums. If so, I recommend that either Breland Ledger, Siberys.com, or ENWorld or one of the Eberron fans sites with forums take up the cause, in the same way that Candlekeep.com did with the Realms Novels.
Zalaz Mavi 01-25-05, 03:38 PM	To get out of the office for a while, I decided to check out the major book sellers in my area. Every one of them (six) had the novel on the shelves. And the online outlets all have it available. Kind of weird that it just "appeared" like that without fanfare or warning...
Hellcow 01-25-05, 06:36 PM	The Bad News: I think WotC has a general ban on discussion of their novels on these forums. If so, I recommend that either Breland Ledger, Siberys.com, or ENWorld or one of the Eberron fans sites with forums take up the cause, in the same way that Candlekeep.com did with the Realms Novels. I recommend Worlds of D&D (http://worldsofdnd.com/forum/index.php), as they've ahad a novel discussion forum set up for ages and it's where I'll be checking in!
Arcane Guyver 01-25-05, 11:21 PM	'Hellcow' - Thank you for the headsup on the non-cliffhanger. For what it's worth, the first five chapters have been excellent. I'd go into more detail, but I'll restrain myself for now. Takasi - #2:The Shattered Land (Dec. 05) and #3:The Gates of Night (Dec.06).
LordofIllusions 01-27-05, 03:10 PM	Wha!? :uh-huh: It's supposed to be out next month. I don't want to here that book stores are jumping the gun again like they did with the ECS. Especially with all of the whining WoTC did after it happened. Let's "not" go down "that" road again. ~~~
drss 01-28-05, 02:13 AM	I was just looking around a book store between classes today, and to my surprise, I saw the first Eberron novel on the shelf. It isnt even supposed to be released till Feb 1st, I thought. So I pretty much bought it on the spot. I got a pretty good copy too. I agree about the stupid card in the middle. When I just saw it on the sides, I thought "Whats this?! A bonus post card or something?!", but then it turned out to be a stupid feedback card, making an otherwise pretty product less pretty. Ah well. I'm just glad I found it so early.
Mad M. 01-28-05, 10:34 AM	Ok, I picked up my copy yesterday, and finished it up this morning. (I go through novels like popcorn) Suprise, suprise, but our own multi-talented Hellcow is quite an author, as well. My first impression is that this is one of the best D&D novels that I have read, ever. I picked it up because I'm a fan, and because Keith rules, but I wasn't disappointed. Good characters, good story, and an excellent sense of style. This book strikes me as a great way to get across what Eberron is all about, and that's a very important quality for a novel of this type. Appreciated the extensive glossary, as it covered a lot of details even an Eberron fan like me would have missed. For a newbie to the setting, it's probably a lifesaver. My only real lingering complain is physical description, or rather, the lack of it. No offense, Hellcow, but if you ever did describe Daine and Lei, it didn't leave an impression. When it comes to reinforcing what someone looks like, repetition helps. But aside from that small nit-pick, I don't have any other complaints. At times the fore-shadowing seemed a bit too obvious, but then you'd hit me with a curveball I didn't see coming. Enjoyed the novel a lot, would reccomend it to friends, family, and distant strangers, and am already salivating for the next installment. I give this novel a 5/5 out of 5. :cool: :cool: :cool: :cool: :cool:
proj2501 01-28-05, 05:55 PM	Where is everyone getting their copy at? I've check a few places in Austin, TX and they've said it doesn't come in till next month. If you're finding them at a major chain store let me know and I'll go take another look.
tryst_91 01-28-05, 08:12 PM	yeah i can't find a copy either in Fort Worth/Burleson, TX. I have been told that the borders books near me has 11 copies but they won't sell them until the 1st. yeah i know only a couple more days but i read the sample chapter and am really excited.
Sturm Jaeger 01-28-05, 09:10 PM	Yeah, got my copy tonight. Went into my local store looking for the new Dragon mag and happened upon CoT. Maybe there was some miscommunication with the stores?
Mad M. 01-28-05, 09:20 PM	For what it's worth, I picked up my copy in a Borders yesterday. Might be worth checking if you haven't found it yet.
The Rooster 01-28-05, 09:54 PM	I went to a Barnes & Noble this evening but could not find the book. :weep: Rooster
Draamal 01-29-05, 12:43 AM	I got my special order at B&N a few days ago but we still don't have our normal order in yet. For whatever reason they process special orders before the normal ones for non-bestselling titles.
Sturm Jaeger 01-29-05, 02:18 AM	I've begun reading it. Interesting, the four characters are the same four from "Death in Whitehearth," the insert story included with SotLW. Daine, Lei, Jode and Pierce. I was pleasantly surprised.
Zulithe 01-29-05, 09:17 AM	first of all, this ban on novel discussion here at Wizards of the Coast MUST END! Take a look at the list of products WotC published last year. See how many of those are novels?? A LOT. I think they are only hurting themselves by not promoting the books here at the boards. Yes, I know the reasons behind the removal but it is nonsensical. People should be able to discuss the books and have an opinion, and share their thoughts about the publications with others. If the authors don't like the feedback, perhaps they should take a hint. If a lot of people don't like your book, that usually says something. As for your book, Keith, I await my copy. :) Everything related to Eberron has been beyond all of my expectations so far. I'm not expecting the next Lord of the Rings with this series of novels, but I know it will be entertaining.
Chaotix42 01-30-05, 03:51 AM	I just picked up The City of Towers novel from my local Walden Books. As it stands, I've read up to page 40 and I'm really enjoying it so far. I like how the warforged archer (Ranger? Though I suspect just Fighter...) is named Pierce. :P Also, I must say that my favorite character so far is Jode; he's great! I plan on using this novel as a source of inspiration. When I'm having a mental block, I'll just pick up the book and read a few chapters, and hopefully it'll get my creative wheels turning again. So far it's helped me in envisioning Sharn a little better, and I'm actually sitting with the source book, using it as a reference guide. When I first saw them mention Tavick's Landing, I flipped to Tavick's Landing in the Sharn source book and read up on it again. It's helping me familiarize myself with the entire city. I give The City of Towers two thumbs up! d ^_^ b
Crusader X 01-30-05, 10:41 PM	Who are the main heroes of this novel, as far as race/class combos go?
Arcane Guyver 01-30-05, 11:41 PM	Daine, a Cyrian human fighter Pierce, a warforged ranger (I'm pretty sure...he sticks to shadows too well for a fighter) Lei, a Cannith human artificer and Jode, a halfling rogue with the mark of healing All the characters are cool, IMO. Daine is down-to-earth but intelligent, Pierce is quiet but insightful at times, Lei is knowledgable and well-connected, and Jode is a charismatic but mischevious sneak.
Sturm Jaeger 01-31-05, 02:12 AM	Pierce is definately a ranger. There's a reference to his tracking abilities, too. I just finished the novel tonight. Great job, Keith! I loved every part. Twists and turns in almost every chapter, inventive battles, interesting heroes and villians, and a cool ending that leaves things open for the rest of the trilogy but still finishes things up neatly for this book. Congrats!
The White Sorcerer 01-31-05, 04:48 AM	Jode has max ranks in every social skill ever invented. Except Intimidation, perhaps. At least I haven't seen him use it yet. The book demonstrates how much the public knows about aberrant marks and the Mark of Death. Lei states that powers like fire, darkness, and death are not meant for mortals to channel. Funny how one of the pure marks channeled the power of death and one of the aberrant powers is light. :D
Lujayne34 02-01-05, 03:33 PM	Finally after waiting (very impatiently I might add) so long I have the book. And I will be beginning it as soon as I get off these boards :)
Golbez57 02-01-05, 04:05 PM	I picked up my copy yesterday just before getting some maintenance done on my car, and it proved to be a good way to pass the time. I'm very much enjoying the characters and the way in which The 'Cow paints images through words. Relaxing with The City of Towers even helped me put out of my mind the fact that someone else in the guest waiting area was clipping his fingernails.... I've only read up to about page 30 (fingernail-clipping-man was also conversing loudly with his wife in another language), but took Jode to be a bard. Without dropping any spoilers, are there things that transpire later on that definitely portray him as a rogue instead?
Sturm Jaeger 02-01-05, 04:41 PM	I picked up my copy yesterday just before getting some maintenance done on my car, and it proved to be a good way to pass the time. I'm very much enjoying the characters and the way in which The 'Cow paints images through words. Relaxing with The City of Towers even helped me put out of my mind the fact that someone else in the guest waiting area was clipping his fingernails.... I've only read up to about page 30 (fingernail-clipping-man was also conversing loudly with his wife in another language), but took Jode to be a bard. Without dropping any spoilers, are there things that transpire later on that definitely portray him as a rogue instead? He's Rogue because he doesn't fit any other class. I dunno where you get bard from. He displays no magical or musical abilities besides his dragonmark. What he does display is a wide variety of skills, from stealth to conning/charming people to knowing a pickpocket when he sees one. He has a talent for running his knife through the backs of people's knees during combat. That's a sneak attack/crippling strike if ever there was one.
Golbez57 02-01-05, 05:02 PM	Again, I only read the first portion of the book, and so my impression of him being more bard than rogue came from the fact that he seemed to toss out a lot of random bits of knowledge, such as one might know through bardic knowledge. Thanks, though, for giving a glimpse of some of the actions he takes later on that'd characterize him better as a rogue.
Arcane Guyver 02-01-05, 05:24 PM	I wasn't too sure of Jode at first, either. He spends most of his time coming up with trivial information, healing people, and storytelling. It won't take long for his real talents to emerge :D
Lujayne34 02-01-05, 05:57 PM	Class and character levels for each person might be good questions for the chat with Keith that is coming up on WOTC. Just to get it from the horse's mouth (oops fiendish cow's mouth).
DolArrah 02-01-05, 06:08 PM	I havn't got mine yet :weep: Class and character levels for each person might be good questions for the chat with Keith that is coming up on WOTC. Just to get it from the horse's mouth (oops fiendish cow's mouth). Anyway, I don't think that they will put the stats on the boards, but rather in Dragon. They put the stats of the characters of the Drizzt novels, so they might do the same thing for this one, eventually.
Brastan 02-01-05, 07:02 PM	I hope never to see a stat block for these characters. A single one line containing alignment, race, and class(es) will be sufficient. I stayed up late and read the whole thing. :crazy: I don't expect to use any of the characters or events in any form in my campaign. My players will never bump into Daine or the others on the streets of Sharn. There's no point in doing so. The Players and their characters are the main characters of their/my story, I don't need to be bumping to another persons plot. What I will take away from the book is the feel of Sharn as a living breathing thing. Sometimes source books don't capture the feel of its material. The main thing that slapped me was how Baron d'Cannith is portrayed. I was playing him less evil and more neutral. Now I have a point of reference for how evil he really is. It will help as I rerun the published Eberron adventures. I vote Jode the Rogue (social skill based).
Megatron 02-01-05, 10:00 PM	I'm a happy camper. :D
Sturm Jaeger 02-01-05, 10:39 PM	I hope never to see a stat block for these characters. A single one line containing alignment, race, and class(es) will be sufficient. I stayed up late and read the whole thing. :crazy: I don't expect to use any of the characters or events in any form in my campaign. My players will never bump into Daine or the others on the streets of Sharn. There's no point in doing so. The Players and their characters are the main characters of their/my story, I don't need to be bumping to another persons plot. What I will take away from the book is the feel of Sharn as a living breathing thing. Sometimes source books don't capture the feel of its material. The main thing that slapped me was how Baron d'Cannith is portrayed. I was playing him less evil and more neutral. Now I have a point of reference for how evil he really is. It will help as I rerun the published Eberron adventures. I vote Jode the Rogue (social skill based). Trying to avoid spoilers here, but I dunno if Merrix d'Cannith is evil just based on what he does in the novel. What he does is all we really know. The reasons behind his actions are only garnered second- or third-hand and are a tad vague. I think we won't really get to the truth until later in the trilogy.
Khopesh122 02-02-05, 01:52 AM	I vote Jode the Rogue (social skill based). Just read the novel today, and I would vote for a multiclass bard/rogue. Aside from Jode singing songs of the Talenta plains and being especially glib, the tale he told the gate guard as the party entered Sharn seemed to be a good example of a non-musical bardic fascinate.
Sturm Jaeger 02-02-05, 12:38 PM	Just read the novel today, and I would vote for a multiclass bard/rogue. Aside from Jode singing songs of the Talenta plains and being especially glib, the tale he told the gate guard as the party entered Sharn seemed to be a good example of a non-musical bardic fascinate. All that means is he has a high amount of ranks in Diplomacy and Bluff. Bardic music can't be done non-musically, can it?
ORC_Paradox 02-02-05, 02:15 PM	Pierce is a Scout.
Joni-san 02-02-05, 02:40 PM	I don't have the book (yet) so my opinions might not be worth much: Maybe Jode is a Rogue with a high(-ish) INT and CHA and the Educated feat?
m15a 02-02-05, 02:54 PM	I hope never to see a stat block for these characters. A single one line containing alignment, race, and class(es) will be sufficient. I stayed up late and read the whole thing. :crazy: I don't expect to use any of the characters or events in any form in my campaign. My players will never bump into Daine or the others on the streets of Sharn. There's no point in doing so. The Players and their characters are the main characters of their/my story, I don't need to be bumping to another persons plot . . . at least for me, but probably for other people, too, i wouldn't want stat blocks for use in a game, but rather mostly just for fun. secondarily, it might give one a clearer picture/summary before reading the book, but mostly, i think it'd be just for fun for people that enjoyed the book already. i've read 30 pages or so far and think it's pretty good. too early for a strong opinion. definitely enjoy the description and ifo about sharn. and do like jode, but i'm a halfling fan in general. on the negative side, i did find my first typo already, unless i read the sentence wrong. i think i saw somewhere it said "here" instead of "her". not a big deal, but an issue nonetheless for me, since i'm not very good at reading and read slow enough even without typos. :)
Arcane Guyver 02-02-05, 04:42 PM	Pierce is a Scout. :thinks: He'd have to be a Fighter/Scout. The only weapons I've read him use is a heavy flail & longbow, two martial weapons Scouts don't use.
Khopesh122 02-02-05, 04:57 PM	All that means is he has a high amount of ranks in Diplomacy and Bluff. Bardic music can't be done non-musically, can it? Hmm, yeah, by explicit reading of the rules, the closest things to non-musical performances a bard can use are reciting poetry and a spoken performance (accompanied by an instrument). Personally, if I had a bard that wanted to use his music ability through perform: oratory by telling stories, I would allow that. But yeah, barring the argument that Jode was telling an epic poem in a free verse form, I guess he would be a rogue.
Golbez57 02-02-05, 06:23 PM	Like the sort of thing a DM would contrive, Death at Whitehearth fell out of my PHB when I picked it up off my gaming shelf last night. I finished reading it again today during my lunch break. For those of you who are reading The City of Towers and also own the Shadows of the Last War module, I'd recommend giving Death at Whitehearth another look. That last line is a bit ominous, no?
Sturm Jaeger 02-02-05, 06:26 PM	Like the sort of thing a DM would contrive, Death at Whitehearth fell out of my PHB when I picked it up off my gaming shelf last night. I finished reading it again today during my lunch break. For those of you who are reading The City of Towers and also own the Shadows of the Last War module, I'd recommend giving Death at Whitehearth another look. That last line is a bit ominous, no? Yeah, that's what writers call foreshadowing. :)
Arcane Guyver 02-02-05, 06:36 PM	Same kind of thing happened to me - on a whim, I decided to re-read Death at Whitehearth after my group had just finished playing through it. Not long after I finished (say 30 minutes, tops), I got the call from the bookstore. Kinda creepy, come to think of it...
Kunimatyu 02-02-05, 08:02 PM	Just finished the novel -- great stuff. HOWEVER, that card in the middle of the book seroiusly hampered my enjoyment of the book. It's really annoying to try and read CoT -- the pages split into two distinct parts, which makes you feel like you're either holding a book that's about to fall apart, or that you're holding two paperbacks at the same time. Keith, I know your powers to deal with this sort of thing are limited, but PLEASE make sure Wizards knows that under no circumstances should there be feedback cards messing up a novel's binding. If a feedback card simply must be included, please make sure it's in the back.
ORC_Tuhteth 02-02-05, 11:37 PM	Hey guys, there hasn't been any inappropriate behavior in this thread or anything, but there is unfortunately a ban on discussing WotC's novels on these forums. Sorry. :(