Exactly. First, I may not have to buy all the "re-hashed" books, but new players would. Second, its not uncommon for a new edition to "re-hash" older material. I am less likely to buy a new game where what changed is the rules and not the setting/background. Everyone in my group (in Germany at the time) stopped playing WFRP when 3E came out and when I got to my new group (in Maryland) no one was interested in 3E either. Everyone was comfortable and satisfied with 2E.

It can be profitable to re-launch 4E as a revised 2E instead of 3E revisited. First, as I said earlier, they don't have to worry about GW trying to keep their new nifty dice mechanic system. Second, there is a long history of great games in the Warhammer Universes that use that system of a modified variety of it. Third, they can (as some one else mentioned) focus on areas long left untended, such as The Moot, Elves, a real Border Princes book, Lustria and so forth. The Warhammer world provides a lot of background and possibilities. To think the sales of the game is limited to its "rules" is quite silly. Even when the fantasy battles miniature rules "change" they barely change, just enough to get the people to buy a new book that has pretty much the exact same fluff.

So yeah, you re-use the fluff, revise the stats, upgrade the system and target different sections of the setting and different styles of play in stand alone RPGs (it seems to be working for 40K). Hell I would buy the FFG 3E books if they had 2E stats for them.

Exactly. First, I may not have to buy all the "re-hashed" books, but new players would. Second, its not uncommon for a new edition to "re-hash" older material. I am less likely to buy a new game where what changed is the rules and not the setting/background. Everyone in my group (in Germany at the time) stopped playing WFRP when 3E came out and when I got to my new group (in Maryland) no one was interested in 3E either. Everyone was comfortable and satisfied with 2E.

It can be profitable to re-launch 4E as a revised 2E instead of 3E revisited. First, as I said earlier, they don't have to worry about GW trying to keep their new nifty dice mechanic system. Second, there is a long history of great games in the Warhammer Universes that use that system of a modified variety of it. Third, they can (as some one else mentioned) focus on areas long left untended, such as The Moot, Elves, a real Border Princes book, Lustria and so forth. The Warhammer world provides a lot of background and possibilities. To think the sales of the game is limited to its "rules" is quite silly. Even when the fantasy battles miniature rules "change" they barely change, just enough to get the people to buy a new book that has pretty much the exact same fluff.

So yeah, you re-use the fluff, revise the stats, upgrade the system and target different sections of the setting and different styles of play in stand alone RPGs (it seems to be working for 40K). Hell I would buy the FFG 3E books if they had 2E stats for them.

But, as I detailed in my post before this one -

WFRP4 is probably set to post The End Times -era. How much post, don't know. Also, we don't what kind of world is there after that crash

From WFRP1 --> WFRP2 there was about 10 year change. Some background changes, but basicly everything in the world remained same. From WFRP2 --> WFRP3, nothing changed (actually timeline went backwards few years).

But what will the post The End Times will be? It could be totally new world, even the Empire might have changed. New rulers, new bad guys, new borders, troubles, some familiar places gone, others may have risen... Well, we don't know yet, it just very much seems to go that direction. IF (and this is still very much IF) it goes this way, then for example new Empire-book is needed to clear current situation...

Offcourse even then, everyone can decide which era they want to play and with what rules suits best. I would keep the Zweihänder - a Grim & Perilous RPG on the mind also.

But what will the post The End Times will be? It could be totally new world, even the Empire might have changed. New rulers, new bad guys, new borders, troubles, some familiar places gone, others may have risen... Well, we don't know yet, it just very much seems to go that direction. IF (and this is still very much IF) it goes this way, then for example new Empire-book is needed to clear current situation...

Good point. It's possible that the Colleges of Magic will be so radically different post-End Times that a 4e Realms of Sorcery would barely contain any overlap with previous editions. For example, Amber magic might now involve summoning skeletal animals, while Jade magic might be reduced to Petty magic only. Ditto for Divine magic - it's possible that the post-ET Sigmarite church will venerate skeletons of saints ( http://www.reuschjewelers.com/blog/files/skeleton2.jpg ) and that the order of Morr will be overthrown or change its core doctrine to embrace necromancy.

Ugh, this would be the most depressing out one for me. 2E WFRP had plenty of books. Do you really want to buy them all over again for a slightly updated system?

And it doesn't make sense from a commercial point of view, which is afterall the only reason that GW and FFG are in business.

If they did use an updated 2nd edition they could give careers that were not in the original or focus on a new area in the empire or lustria or tilea or wherever, also the race books that never happened.

There would be smart ways to do it so new players can have a good game and older players want it for the new material

I did some early work on Zweihander, it has many good ideas in it. I could see 4E going in a similar direction.

I like the idea of a core book with only half of the original careers from the 2E book, then fill up the rest with new careers.

Feature different monsters in the main book other than just beastmen, skaven, orcs and such.

Personally I have high hopes that we'll get an announcement as soons as Games Workshop actually manages to announce the upcoming edition of Fantasy Battle. From what I have gathered it will be very different to previous editions (or not, as it is still GW after all) so it makes sense they would announce a new edition of the rpg as well. If they are ever going to do that.

Do we really want an announcement though? The last attempt by FF was a game that required special dice which they never bothered to manufacture more than one batch of! It may be better for WFRP to sleep for another few years until the license moves on again!

Hush now. Only good dreams.

WFRP3 was/is a great game. And we do not want another flamewar about it.

WFRP3 was/is a great game. And we do not want another flamewar about it.

The game was fantastic and only a couple of idiotic production issues stopped me running it!

Its just a pity FF is unable to deliver!

For us WFRP3 is the best game we've played in a long time. Great game indeed!

Same in French... my players and I, GM, still focus on this SO GREAT edition!

We're very old players (means very skilled ) and it's one of our greatest experience... And I'm too editor (RPG, Boardgames, ...)

First was one of my first love (very first was "Black Eye", german one, not sure about this translation... and after Warhammer, Cthulhu, James Bond...)... Second was poor for me, so many "not enough professional things"...

But this one... the ennemy within is amazing for example...

I agree that 3ed is really great. We've played it almost weekly since it was launched, and it's still our main RPG.

Most of the players in my gaming groups consider it one of the best, if not the best, RPG they have played.

I would love that so much !! One set of rules for one game Univers. White Wolf did that with there New World of Darkness : instead of having the Vampires from The Masquerade not being the same thing as the Vampire from Werewolf the Apocalypse nor Hunter the Reckoning, they normalise all of there game lines into one.

The problem I see with there FFG WH40k games is what we could all observes from the Errata : the Errata of one books are not being implemented (corrected ??) in the next product line. So you get similar Errata and some systems seems more or less functional.

Another thing that would be great is if FFG could sent us an updated versions instead of porting it all in an Errata. White Wolf / Onyx Path / CCP do exactly that. I'm talking about pdf, of course. I understand the need for the Errata for a printable version.

Edit : Was trying to reply to post #19 from Peacekeeper_b.