Not digging the whole buy this set, then this set & then

[rabindranath72]

The OP's comparison of D&D 3.x to 4e is way off base. The 3 books were not $20, and there were actually way more splat books for 3 than there are for 4.

That said I think a lot of people seem to forget that D&D 1e was actually released the same way Dragon Age is being done, in multiple box sets each picking up where the last left off.

I suppose the concern of the OP was that with any version of D&D prior to 4e, you had a well defined set of core books (in fact, I only have the 3.0 core D&D books, and I am quite happy with them). Not so with 4e, with its ever-expanding core.
Hopefully Dragon Age will follow the framework of Classic D&D, with the four boxed sets expanding not only the rules, but also the scope of the game. I am a sucker for kingdom management and abstract mass combat rules, so any expansion in this sense will be very, very welcome

[Congzilla]

The OP's comparison of D&D 3.x to 4e is way off base. The 3 books were not $20, and there were actually way more splat books for 3 than there are for 4.

That said I think a lot of people seem to forget that D&D 1e was actually released the same way Dragon Age is being done, in multiple box sets each picking up where the last left off.

I suppose the concern of the OP was that with any version of D&D prior to 4e, you had a well defined set of core books (in fact, I only have the 3.0 core D&D books, and I am quite happy with them). Not so with 4e, with its ever-expanding core.
Hopefully Dragon Age will follow the framework of Classic D&D, with the four boxed sets expanding not only the rules, but also the scope of the game. I am a sucker for kingdom management and abstract mass combat rules, so any expansion in this sense will be very, very welcome

There are only three core books needed to play 4e as there were with 3.x. The same books with the same names actually. Just because something is considered part of the core line does not mean that it is required to play.

[rabindranath72]

There are only three core books needed to play 4e as there were with 3.x. The same books with the same names actually. Just because something is considered part of the core line does not mean that it is required to play.

Obviously it's not required to play, but it irks me to no end when I buy, say, the Eberron campaign setting and I see references to things I do not have; I have paid for those references. But I cannot complain, since there ARE some books which are marked core.
If you look at the 4e Forgotten Realms setting books, you only see references to the first 3 core books, because these were the only ones in print at the time. If you look at the Eberron books instead, there are also references to PHB2 and MM2. I wonder which references there will be in the Dark Sun books? I bet my hand we will see references to DMG2, MM2 and PHB3 (and something else)
Furthermore, if you look at all the 4e PHB, MM and DMG released now, they are all marked "core"; there is some reason if this denomination is used. The word "supplement" is used for other books, to evidently distinguish them from the "core".
The only books marked "core" in 3e were just PHB, DMG and MM. I bought the FR campaign setting for 3e, and it only required the 3 core books. The same for Dragonlance: only the 3 core books. And Living Greyhawk. All the 3e material I bought which made references to things other than core, reported at least the full stats for the use of those references. Something which did not happen with the Eberron book. And the reason why I sold my 4e stuff.

I hope Green Ronin will not do the same with Dragon Age. If it's 4 core, I expect 4 cores, no more, no less.

Cheers,
Antonio