D&D 5E Player's Handbook Alpha *Spoilers*

[Jester David]

Again, no! It is build like a player's handbook. It refers chapters that are missing (like the entire section about Backgrounds and thus it is not complete to actually build characters with it). And it is clear that it was written after the latest public playtests (and normally alpha tests happen before open testings). So, stop being a smartass, I know what I am talking about!

There's no need to be rude.

You are correct on the naming of "alpha" in video game being pre-beta, but that's what they called the friends and family testers, even during and after the public test. That's how several private playtesters have referred to themselves.
WotC continued private playtesting for many months after the public tests ended. In fact, it's likely still ongoing, testing monsters and the DMG rules including some rules modules.


I've seen screenshots of the document. No art. It looks just like the playtest, only the rules are *closer* to finished.
I imagine near the end of the private playtest they stopped making separate playtest documents and just started cut-and-pasting text from the PHB document. Hence the references to chapters and the like.

 

[GX.Sigma]

That's the February alpha draft, right?

Remember how Greg Bilsland said they'd made over 800 changes to the PHB since February?

 

[Snapdragyn]

I've been perusing it, & there are definitely some things I hope they've changed (all IMO, duh):

Bardic Inspiration. Inspire 1 ally per round as a bonus action? ONE? And you can only do this <Cha mod> times before a LONG rest? (Oh, wait - you can get ONE of those back in a short rest after 5th level - oooooh! ).

I realize the +die to damage was way overpowered (I did 16d6 before I even hit anything in combat once - & that was one round!), but this is nerfage so hard it's a wonder they didn't break the nerf bat beating on the poor, bloodied, bardic corpse.

Also would like to see the Beastmaster subclass of Ranger boosted a bit for the final version (it just looks SO weak), & same for the Circle of the Moon druid (max wildshape level is CR of 1/3 of your character level, & you can't cast spells? Why exactly would you do this rather than Circle of the Land again? Clearly you'll only be using Wildshape to scout anyway, & you can still do that with the basic ones). Also the Divination specialist Wizard - it starts off nice, then ends on such a whimper.

 

[Evenglare]

I'm enjoying my read through, i'm glad some of my hopes and dreams have come to fruition (Green Knight Paladin THANK YOU!). I'm not scrutinizing the bonuses etc, our group doesn't harp on the mechanics so much as the roleplaying aspect. I love what I've seen. No backgrounds, but thats okay. It's only a couple weeks until full release, if we start something either this week or next I doubt we'd even get to any so called broken parts of this booklet. Fun stuff!

 

[Shiroiken]

I've been aware of the Alpha PHB for a while now (although I don't have it). I wondered why they called it Alpha, as the Public Playtest was really the Alpha and this should have been considered Beta, but whatever.

 

[SeRiAlExPeRiMeNtS]

I got it as apreview and I really like the eldritch knight.

 

[SeRiAlExPeRiMeNtS]

I got it as a preview and I really like the eldritch knight.

 

[doctorhook]

It's not difficult to find, but it's really only a curiosity - and something to whet the appetite, because there are some lovely bits in it. As has been said, it's not something anyone should be using to run a game. It's fascinating to see the progression from the final public playtest to the alpha leak to the Basic rules, though!

You've hit the nail on the head for me: it's a curiosity, and not the grand spoiler some people seem to think it is. Seriously, I'm already annoyed with how many times in the past day I've seen someone talk about what's in the alpha package, as if it really means anything this close to release.

 

[mach1.9pants]

But release seems soooooooooooooo far away

Especially to those of us that have to wait for it to be shipped to our corner of the world that isn't USAville; especially especially because there is no PDF of the book likely to be released at the same time.

 

[AverageCitizen]

I've been aware of the Alpha PHB for a while now (although I don't have it). I wondered why they called it Alpha, as the Public Playtest was really the Alpha and this should have been considered Beta, but whatever.

I'm pretty sure it is because by then they were referring to the book release and not the design of the game. I know the document doesn't have art, but it probably served as both a closed playtest document and a preliminary source doc for publication mockups.