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Planewalker General FAQ

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Submitted by Clueless on Tue, 2008-01-01 02:00

Planescape

 

 

 

Planewalker

Q: What is Planewalker.com?

 

A: Planewalker.com is the Sigil of Planescape material on the Internet. It is the hub from which resources for the Planescape Campaign setting can be found.

Q: Is Planewalker.com the "Official" fan site of Planescape? And if yes, what exactly does that mean?

A: We're all volunteer work here, and while WotC isn't working with the setting we have the nod to go ahead in development. We don't own the toys - we just play with them because no one else wants them. If someone buys the rights - that may change, and we can only hope that whoever that is a) Loves the setting as much as we do, and b) Would be kind and gracious enough to allow us to work with them on new products. (Especially in light of some story developments we have in the works.) I know what I'll be doing if I ever win the lottery - let me put it that way.

Q: When did Planewalker.com emerge?

A: Planewalker.com was set up in 1999 by Brannon Hollingsworth.

Q: Where's this Brannon guy, anyway? And Ken? Are they still around?

A: Kidnapped and held for ransom on the 628254th layer of the Abyss, that layer which is known as 'Real Life'. In other words: Both Brannon and Ken are busy with life, freelance writing and other personal projects. They still lurk around however, and may appear again. For now though, Clueless is the one in charge - so ask her if you have any questions.

Q: How can I join in?

A: We have forums, play-by-post games, projects and all sorts of good stuff going on on the site. Ask Clueless, or hop into the Forums and take a look around. Or if you have your own idea - post a thread and get it started!

Q: Who's doing what? Who's in charge of what? How can I get involved? What can I get involved with?

A: Head over to to the forums and poke around. Most of our 'work' occurs there now-a-days. We have ongoing projects on the Hordlings/Night Hags of the Waste, a couple of Modules in the course of writing, Ortho Setting Development, an Urban Planescape project and of course the PSCS itself. Lots to do and lots of help needed - so jump in!

Q: Is Planewalker.com 3.0, 3.5e or 4e?

A: 3.5-ish. With some 2e and 4e and even some non-DnD bits... so the answer is 'all of the above'. We've been around since before 3.0 in one form or another, as have many of our projects. So you may find multiple editions supported here, and most of the content on the site is version or even game system nuetral. We're more focused on the setting than the numbers.

Q: Are you gonna sell t-shirts with that cool Dolores Chibi on it? Once upon a time you could buy t-shirts, mugs and mousepads with the PW.com logo on them.

A: We are looking into those again. I'd love to see some Planewalker dice bags! So we're looking into it, and if there is enough interest, I'm sure we can make it happen somehow.

Q: Your site sucks! I can't find the walkthrough for Torment anywhere!

A: [thwack!] Sorry, but it was for your own good. Torment is a *great* introduction to the setting and tone of Planescape, but it is *not* canon for the Planescape setting. You can find plenty of walkthroughs elsewhere, but if you like the setting - you might want to check around and get a tabletop RPG going with our material. It is a wonderful game and an excellent introduction to the setting, but some of it's introduced plotlines just don't quite mesh with standard Planescape.

Q: Do we really have the rights to work with the material produces by TSR, WotC or Dragon?

 

A: Yes in a limited fashion. We are after all walking advertisement for the setting, and as an official fanpage we get a nod to develop the setting futher, so long as we don't try to profit. Referring to events details in other materials is perfectly fine. As long as we are just making references to it and/or not doing anything more elaborate than a 1-2 page summary, then it's ok. As long as we are not reprinting the adventure or any of the game material of the mini-game or Dragon article, it's ok.

Planescape

Q: What's PS3E / PSCS and is it related in some way to the DL3E or SJ3E or DS3E?

A: Currently, that's the shorthand to refer to our effort to update the campaign setting to the latest edition of the rules. As for the rest, back when Jim Butler was still working at WotC (and 3e was just about to be released), he set up a program to have an official web site for each of the discontinued settings.

Things have changed quite a bit since then. Dragonlance is officially being published by Sovereign Stone, and Spelljammer and Dark Sun have both been updated in the pages of Dragon and Dungeon magazines. However, I do know that the athas.org gang are still hard at work getting their setting updated as well, as are the folks at spelljammer.com. There have been occassional talk amongst the various webmasters about greater cooperation and cohesion between our sites, but it there hasn't been a great enough value in it to the site staff or fans to take on that massive task. Yet, that is.

All of us come out of the same sort of mindset. We're all fans of systems that have, for whatever reason, been abandoned by WotC for development. We all, out of a desperate need not to see it die, have made some effort to come together and update material to the new edition, produce new material, and keep it alive.

Q: Does WotC collaborate with you on new planes-related material?

A: With their current number of staff and level of product releases, it's just not feasible. However, a couple of our members have been published in Dragon magazine, and we encourage any others to submit to that magazine as well (or Dungeon for that matter). It's a great way for us, the fans, to contribute to and expand planes-related material.

Q: Why aren't the chapters of the PSCS in html? Why do I have to download the chapters to read them? Are they just drafts? Will the final version get printed?

A: Because we're lazy gits who don't give the webmonkey enough bananas. Because they're big chapters and you don't want to try to open that sucker in your browser window. Yes. No - see the part about owning rights to the setting.

Also - They will probably wind up in a PDF form for final release. This is because they are designed to be a fixed set of rules to reference and most likely print out. HTML is nicely suited for smaller pieces of information that are dynamic and less commonly used as a reference. We will not be releasing printed books. That would require a very large licensing fee, actual experience at publishing and running a business, and many other factors that aren't possible at this time. We're a community of fans and thrive best as that.

Q: I want to DM a Planescape campaign. Do I have to get the old books, or is everything I need available from WotC and Planewalker.com?

A: You can probably get by with just Planewalker.com and the PHB / DMG. Those will cover the basics. However, if you wish to delve deeper into the setting, there really are few, if any, "bad" books in the Planescape line. So go pick them up!

Q: Where can I get the old Planescape core materials? And which ones are the best?

A: The vast majority of the Planescape core materials are available for download for a very reasonable price (about $5 each) from www.svgames.com. If you look in Chapter 9 of the PSCS you'll find we've given a short overview of each module in the line to give you a bit of an idea of what they're like.

Q: The planes are supposed to have infinite variety. Where can I get more details on: Planar Monsters, Planar NPCs, Planar Locations. I've read bits and pieces about Sigil in 3e and 3.5e products from WotC. Where can I find more details about this fantastic city?

A: For Planar Monsters - Creatures Codex, for Planar NPCs - Cutters, for Planar Locations - Portals, and for Sigil - PSCS Chapter 7 under Released Products.

Q: I remember there was this novel about Planescape called "Fire and Dust". Where can I find it?

A: We have it archived here. Planewalker.com is looking to re-release it with a new foreward by James Gardner. We're looking for someone to do an editing job on it (it never got past initial draft stage and there are a couple typos and transcription errors), as well as any chapter artwork for it.

Q: I remember there used to be a Planescape comic book online. Do you know where I can get it?

A: Find it at: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/DnD_PS.asp

Q: Is it "Sigil" with a soft 'g' or a hard 'g'?

A: Ha! Hey, why don'cha ask dat tiefling over there? Bet he'd be tickled to tell ye! [snicker] No, wait, we're just messin' wit' ya. It's a hard 'g'. Listen, if'n ya goes 'round sayin' it wrong, yer gonna git yerself bled. (Hard g: Se-Gil NOT Se-Jill)

Q: What's the population of Sigil? What's the diameter? What's the width?

A: See the chapter in our PS3E releases. (Chapter 7). The short answer is - it changes. The slightly longer answer is - it's whatever size you need it to be for your game.

Q: Are the modrons really... you know... dead? (sniffle)

A: Pure screed. The modrons were left out of 3.0 - we're not sure why, and no one at WotC is exactly sayign why. They were supposedly replaced by formians. But! There was an outcry amongst the wilderness of the fanbase - and they were returned to us as an online supplement. this can be found here: Modron Web Enhancement - a direct link to the zip file is here: Modrons.zip

Q: I want to play a Githzerai. Which version should I use? Why?

A: Whichever one you want. And whichever one your GM approves of! Our default version will be the Expanded Psionics Handbook version. If you want a non-psionic version, it's in the Monster Manual v3.5 (and included in a sidebar in our product). But the older 3.0 versions (Psionics Handbook and Manual of the Planes) are just fine as well. So don't sweat it, and use whichever best fits your interests. There's even a racial class sort of one in a recent issue of Dragon if you want to spread out the benefits of the race somewhat.

Q: What's the Lady of Pain's stats? What happens if my 362nd level Deva Blackguard /Fist of Hextor/ VoP Monk kills her? Do I win?

A: [sigh] Planescape is probably not for you, friend. Please tell the nice lady at the bookstore that you want to return your copy of the Manual of the Planes and get the Epic Level Handbook instead. It's for the best, really. (For those who ask this in true innocence: Her Serenity is a mystery of the planes, a part of the setting and not an entity to fight. You would be as well to ask what the stats are for 'the sky'.)

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