No 5e threads for now, please

[Jack99]

This site doesn't cater only to 4e fans, and I do believe that the mods have stated that they like it that way.

Since some games are better suited to some play styles than others, threads comparing and contrasting the suitability of different versions of D&D for different styles of campaigns can be constructive even if many of the participants don't like every game discussed. Limiting people to only discussing games they like is silly. I don't want somebody to be excluded just because they disagree with you guys. The key here isn't WHO takes part in a discussion, but how somebody behaves in the discussion. If somebody wants to blame everything on Mearl's underwear then ignore it and let the mods deal with it.

Of course ENworld doesn't cater only to 4e fans, that's not what I was implying, nor is it something I would want. Diversity is great. And while you might find it silly, it should be pretty obvious by now that the "HOW" doesn't work well, which is why I suggest the "WHO" approach. If people were just a little more restrained, the "HOW"-approach is definitely better, but a lot aren't, and repeated warning/bannings apparently doesn't change things.

Cheers

 

[I'm A Banana]

mostly speculation when it comes to what direction D&D is taking under WotC and, in my opinion, not particularly useful.

If you removed speculation from the conversations at ENWorld, you would probably halve the number of posts on the site.

Speculation is also useful because it lets people tune into what they might view as "D&D." It helps expand and change your own games, and the core game, since WotC does pay pretty close attention to what the fans say (I'm sure filtered through a lot of layers of knowledge, but still).

It's only harmful to speculate when snark is thrown in. Implying that 5e might have no to-hit mechanic isn't edition wars: there's a lot of discussion about D&D history, the benefits and drawbacks, feel and goals, to be had there. Snarking that 5e will have no to-hit mechanic because players today are coddled and spoiled by constant rewards like in 3e and 4e is getting closer to edition warring, but even then, there's a valid point to be made. Saying just that 5e might come and that you are glad that 4e dies kicking and screaming is pretty blatant edition warring, and the 5e threads do attract that kind of poster, so I think I can see why the mods decided to make this taboo, but rampant speculation threads are part and parcel of talking about the game we all love (perhaps in different versions ) and where it might wind up in the next six or so years.

 

[billd91]

So yeah, I think it would be better if people stuck to talking about the game they actually like. I am pretty sure we would get much farther than we do now.

If we followed this guideline, how would WotC or anybody else potentially involved in the next step in the development of D&D (5e) know what it was that lost us from their market or how they could get us back? Or what supplemental materials might appeal to use from third party publishers?

Besides, we may not like it, but we may actually still be playing it. Why should we be prevented from talking about a game we're playing?

 

[Pseudopsyche]

No, I'm not, and I'm not sure where you're getting that. I'm just saying that it's potentially in a 4E enthusiast's interests to shut down perceived challenges to the 4E way of doing things by censoring discussion in this way.

Conversely, someone could say it's potentially in a 4E hater's interests to encourage discussion of 5E, either to state how D&D is headed in the "wrong direction" (as happened in the recent no-dice thread after many people first stated that they wouldn't play such a game) or to proclaim a need for D&D to "get back on track". Ascribing motivations to other posters just doesn't seem productive, and it tends to make people defensive. As we are already seeing in this thread.

 

[Pseudopsyche]

I think it would be better to be able to discuss both what we like and what we don't like as long as we can do it without being a jackass.

Yeah, in an ideal world we could all compare and contrast 3e and 4e in a completely civil manner. In this ideal world, we could also discuss politics, religion, and race, and how these real-world issues might inform RPGs. In practice, you either have to draw a line somewhere or allow a free-for-all.

 

[Piratecat]

Interestingly, a lot of posts in this thread are making me reconsider my stubborn objections to the topic. Hmm. Stupid people, be less reasonable!

 

[La Bete]

If we followed this guideline, how would WotC or anybody else potentially involved in the next step in the development of D&D (5e) know what it was that lost us from their market or how they could get us back? Or what supplemental materials might appeal to use from third party publishers?

Besides, we may not like it, but we may actually still be playing it. Why should we be prevented from talking about a game we're playing?

Here's the thing - that may be true, but is there anything worng with not having these discussions "for now", and reopening them in a month or two when tempers cool again?

 

[Bumbles]

Interestingly, a lot of posts in this thread are making me reconsider my stubborn objections to the topic. Hmm. Stupid people, be less reasonable!

Open up a few threads and it just might happen. And then where would you be? Damping down the inferno you wanted to prevent? Doesn't seem to be that much of a dilemma to me.

A few weeks, or months without the subject won't cause any real harm as far as I know, and it's not like there's anything pressing to discuss. Is there?

 

[ggroy]

Another option would be open up a separate forum dedicated to 5E types of discussions. Any such 5E threads which are posted in the "General RPG Discussion" can and will be moved to the 5E discussion forum.

 

[MichaelSomething]

To quote a famous pundit, I Called it!

5E threads have become a fad due to things like...
*people realizing that games can change over time
*wishful thinking that 5E will be some perfect RPG
*an excuse to have edition wars
*wondering what the future will hold