Ben80
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That's exactly it – words are just words. In reality, an "improved SOD" has already been "created" multiple times, but for various reasons, not everyone is satisfied with the created versions. Some simply don't like certain individual aspects, while others may not like the inability to influence the process of creating fixes/innovations. As far as I understand, both WT and HotA were created by small teams, with the assistance of tournament players. But – no matter how you look at it, these are just separate groups of people (and it can't be any other way). Therefore, neither a truly improved SOD nor a truly proper expansion can be created. The only thing that is "real" is what NWC did, and this is the main reason for the "mysterious" conservatism of many players. Personally, although I enjoy tinkering with my own software additions to Heroes 3, I still get a special kind of pleasure when I launch the original Heroes, installed from the disc. I suspect that I am not the only one. Although, of course, there are fewer of us.
By the way, teams working on an impressive list of changes to Heroes 3 may even find it easier to reach an agreement ("once the head is off, there's no need to worry about the hair"), while those who want only a few small changes find it more difficult, as everyone has different tastes, and each considers themselves to be more "orthodox," better understanding what a true SOD is and what changes will not "destroy" it.
An approach based on options (or a collection of disableable plugins) also does not solve the problem – because you still have to agree on which options to play with, and in the end, the options "settle" into a predetermined set – reflecting the opinion of, again, only some specific group of people.
By the way, teams working on an impressive list of changes to Heroes 3 may even find it easier to reach an agreement ("once the head is off, there's no need to worry about the hair"), while those who want only a few small changes find it more difficult, as everyone has different tastes, and each considers themselves to be more "orthodox," better understanding what a true SOD is and what changes will not "destroy" it.
An approach based on options (or a collection of disableable plugins) also does not solve the problem – because you still have to agree on which options to play with, and in the end, the options "settle" into a predetermined set – reflecting the opinion of, again, only some specific group of people.