Rob Kuntz
Hero
The medium defines the message. 1E was more constrictive than 0E. If I write Fantasy, i.e., express the fantastic possibilities in an imaginative world, and the system declines translation/transliteration of it, then am I in fact engaging in a "Fantasy" Role Playing Game, still?? The system should be neutral regarding the inputs of fantastic expression; let us not conflate mechanical systems with imaginative play that is exercised and promoted through these. James Jacobs, who I also interfaced with in the huge Maure Castle project, at times was confounded about how to take my expressions and reduce them in 3E system terms, but he managed. This, of course speaks to a less receptive system for expressing imaginative possibilities than what had previously existed. But even though more wrenches were needed, in parts, it was in the end properly fitted.I get your point, but I was more generally curious whether you had actual experience running Greyhawk with 5e D&D. I think that reading "Rob Kuntz's campaign adventures in Greyhawk using 5E" would be interesting and insightful, particularly for purposes of this thread.
That said, 5e is a game with its own "specific qualities of expression" and idiomatic features, and the edition can have an impact on how those settings translate. @Bedrockgames, for example, has talked before about his own issues regarding the difference in feel between running Ravenloft in 2E and running it in 3E. Eberron feels different to me when I run it using 3.5E or 4E or 5E D&D as a result of these "specific qualities of expression" found as part of each edition, which can enhance or detract, from that setting's experience in different ways.
Again, this is not me being skeptical about translating your vision of Greyhawk from 1E to 5E. It was more about whether you have tried playing Greyhawk using 5E and insights you gleaned from the process.
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