Most frustrating quirk of 5E?


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jgsugden

Legend
I understand it is just quirky pet peeve of yours (i.e i tis not about the mechanics, but the name), but I just wanted to make sure that you realized the term "bastard sword" is a modern term used to describe swords, not a historical one. Obviously the longsword as written is a "bastard" sword.
Nope. 100% wrong.

The name bastard sword, TO ME, originated in a players handbook. From there it moved to several character sheets. It lived there, part of several campaigns and hundreds, per haps thousands, of hours of role playing, playing a noticable part in iconic adventures. Everything else is irrelevant - THAT is the reason why it pains me to not have it in the PHB.
 


Mepher

Adventurer
I don't know where to start! I have a love/hate relationship with 5E. I have run 1E/2E for the last 30 years so running 5E just feels off to me. I like low-magic D&D but I am not referring to the setting or the items but the character classes.

1.) I hate that every character FEELS like a magic class to me. Early edition Rangers/Paladins gained minor spell levels at later character levels which is what set them apart from the Specialized Fighters. Now everyone can hit as well as the fighter, they are casting spells at 1st level, and everyone can heal. Just doesn't feel right to me. It's obviously my own preference and opinion but it's the biggest quirk for me.

2.) Magic Items. I understand bounded accuracy and it's intent but I hate that character progression is fully tied to the character skills now and magic items play a minor role. Bonuses are smaller because they make a larger impact. The problem for me is that there is no way to limit power creep in 5E since the skills are built into the character. In older editions you could manage the power creep by limiting or increasing items given in a campaign, now the only way you are limiting their skills is with DM house ruling it. On top of it most magic now is pretty boring. Sure there are lots of common non-bonus giving items but who didn't like their fighter getting the +1 longsword at 2nd level, maybe the +1/+2 vs Lycanthropes at 4th level, the +3 Frostbrand at 8th level, etc. The point is that there were many ways to increase their power through adventuring rather than giving them a checklist of skills that they will get as they level. Just seems to have taken the wonder out of the game.

3.) Along the same lines with my first two quirks, the biggest problem I have with the character classes is that everyone is a superhero. That Fighter that went out on his first adventure in 1E was the farmer's kid that was striking out to make a name for himself. He started out weak and through levels and magic items he gained that power. Through adventuring he grew and made a name for himself. He came back to town as the victorious adventurer. In 5E the level 1 character might be a little weak but the super fast progressions ensures that he is a level 3 superhero in no time.

Again, these 3 examples are purely my feeling of the game. People love to compare it to Advanced D&D but the only thing that feels in common to me is the name. The roleplaying portion of the game lies on the DMs shoulders, not the edition. The mechanical portion is what I have trouble with. Maybe 5E isn't right for me. Right now I am finishing the last session of Dragon Heist this week and the party has loved it. I expanded it a lot with tons of homebrew city adventures as well as a couple DMSGuild additions. It's been fun for all of us but every week in the off time I keep thinking about my old 2E games. We will see. Maybe I will post some more of the quirks that frustrate me after someone bashes me for these ;)
 

Azzy

ᚳᚣᚾᛖᚹᚢᛚᚠ
why should a fantasy game care about historical accuracy?

Who said it had to be historically accurate (didn't see me clamoring for the riddance of ring mail, did you)? I just find it dumb that if they were going to be shave off an existing armor type from the game that they went with one that actually existed instead of the one that didn't (and that is also kinda dippy). But keep on truckin', buckaroo.
 
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Azzy

ᚳᚣᚾᛖᚹᚢᛚᚠ
Definitely, the half-baked Tool proficiencies are just inelegant along every possible metric. Why can't Thief Tools just be folded back into a Thievery skill?

Yeah, the whole Tool proficiency thing was unnecessary and kludgey. Just let everything go back to being skills.
 


77IM

Explorer!!!
Supporter
1. Bonus Actions. This was meant to constrain the action economy at higher levels; but at my table it's had the opposite effect, as everyone tries to make sure their PC can take advantage of a bonus action every round. It's slow, confusing, and min/maxy.

2. Inspiration. Having played other games with "meta-points," the 5E Inspiration mechanic seems to capture the worst of all possible worlds. A much simpler system would be so much more fun.
 

Raith5

Adventurer
My overall minor gripe is not really having much to spend gold on. I would like to see more consumable magic items, masterwork items, more detailed weapons with strengths and weaknesses etc.

This links to my broader feeling that I would like to see further options to customize my character. A wider number of feats and a feat at first level to more quickly getting into making the character more distinct.
 

Blue

Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal
Yeah, but that's like using a chainsaw to perform surgery. :D

That just adds 10 to the DC. With expertise and someone granting advantage you can use the Medicine skill ...

Oh, that's right. My annoying quirk is how useless the Medicine skill is.
 

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