Why do people still play older editions of D&D? Are they superior to the current one?

The Crimson Binome · Mar 6, 2019

(Psi)SeveredHead said:
I saw this all the time, and if I was in a group that didn't do this, I told them to do it. (Buy wands, craft wands... if I were the cleric I would be crafting wands.) Sorry, but starting combat, half-dead, is just not sensible for a mortal PC.

It's not sensible for a mortal PC if there's an easy alternative, which is why the burden is on the DM to not provide an easy alternative unless the PCs are meant to take it.

(Psi)SeveredHead said:
If D&D wants to "fix" this, they needed to fix the high attack bonus vs relatively low AC and low starting hit points issue. (4e pretty much solved all of those issues.)

The math wasn't too terrible in 3.x, because you actually could get a decent AC if you tried. It is the primary issue preventing trivial fixes to the healing rules in 5E, though. Low AC makes damage unavoidable.

dave2008 · Mar 8, 2019

Kidbooo said:
Hello everyone,,
This is kind of a general question, and I know that, but I see lots of people playing 3rd edition and even more 3.5, but why do they play those instead (Mod Edit: spam link removed ~Umbran) of 5e? I'm fairly new to 5e as a whole, and I'm just wondering, in what ways are 3.5 and 3rd better than 5th? Is it simply for the feeling of playing something original? Or does 5e do something terrible that can only be done correctly in past editions? Just genuinely curious, and would it be worth it for me to learn the older versions?

There are still a significant amount of people who play OD&D, or 1e, or 2e, or 4e as well. Every edition has is proponents.

pogre · Mar 9, 2019

Kidbooo said:
Hello everyone,,
This is kind of a general question, and I know that, but I see lots of people playing 3rd edition and even more 3.5, but why do they play those instead (Mod Edit: spam link removed ~Umbran) of 5e? I'm fairly new to 5e as a whole, and I'm just wondering, in what ways are 3.5 and 3rd better than 5th? Is it simply for the feeling of playing something original? Or does 5e do something terrible that can only be done correctly in past editions? Just genuinely curious, and would it be worth it for me to learn the older versions?

Do you enjoy 5e? If the answer is yes, then there really is no reason to learn an older edition.

I always try to run the new edition. The excitement and player base around a newer edition are going to mean it is much easier to find a game and players. 5e is booming right now - if you like it - play/run it and do not waste time that could be spent playing learning an older edition.

Now, if someone offers to run a game with a different rules set, by all means give it a shot. However, I would say this for almost any rules set, not just old D&D editions. If someone wants to run Blades in the Dark, Dungeon World, Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, GURPS Fantasy, Ars Magica, Savage Worlds, etc. - jump in - you may find your favorite new game.

Flexor the Mighty! · Mar 11, 2019

dave2008 said:
There are still a significant amount of people who play OD&D, or 1e, or 2e, or 4e as well. Every edition has is proponents.

I think the only edition of D&D I didn't see at GaryCon was 4e. But I was neck deep in OD&D, B/X and AD&D.

Salamandyr · Mar 11, 2019

Speaking for myself, every edition of D&D has its strong points, and depending on what I'm interested in, every one has its charms. But the ones that get my motor running are 1st edition AD&D and B/X. While I'm sure my love for them is based, at least in part, on a fair bit of nostalgia involved, they also have a vitality to them that no later edition possesses.

Zardnaar · Mar 14, 2019

Salamandyr said:
Speaking for myself, every edition of D&D has its strong points, and depending on what I'm interested in, every one has its charms. But the ones that get my motor running are 1st edition AD&D and B/X. While I'm sure my love for them is based, at least in part, on a fair bit of nostalgia involved, they also have a vitality to them that no later edition possesses.

I like B/X, 2E and 5E although mixing 1E and 2E might be the way to go.

Mepher · Mar 21, 2019

I spent 30 years running a 1E/2E hybrid. A couple years ago I decided to make the switch to 5E. In hindsight I cannot tell you why we switched other than it was current and people were raving about it. I spend a LOT of money on all the books, spell cards, monster cards, DMsguild stuff and in the end, it NEVER felt right to me. There is a lot to be said about the "feel" of a game. Maybe want to pretend that you can make any game feel a certain way but that just isn't true. Each game has its own mechanics that give it it's own feel. Last Sunday, after 2 years of two different 5E campaigns, we finally decided to make the switch back to AD&D 2E. We spent a session making characters and I prepped T1 Village of Hommlet mixed with B2 Keep on the Borderlands which the players will begin this week. I am overjoyed. Just sitting around the table for 4 hours last week helping a couple new guys make characters as well as explaining the differences and reacquainting other players brought that feeling back. It already felt like home.

5E is a good system....for other people. For me I grew up quickly learning on BX and 1E. 2E came along early in my game career and we gravitated to the 1E/2E mix. It feels right so that's where I am back to. I have already decided that I wont chase 5E anymore and definitely won't chase a 6E when it comes along. I had it right back when 3E came out, I have the system that works for me and that's where i'll stay.

pming · Mar 21, 2019

Hiya!
[MENTION=61277]Mepher[/MENTION] pretty much nails it for me.

Different game systems (and even editions) have their own "feeling". Me? I'm a BECMI or 1e/HM4 guy. We played (still play often enough) 5e since the Starter Box. It's definitely got a better feeling than 2.x through Pathfinder, but it just has too many...hmm... "expectations of heroically epic PC's"? In that I mean with 1e/HM4 or BECMI, you make a PC. Everyone forms a party. Everyone decides, usually by vote, on what to do, where to go, etc. The PC's are just barely above commoners, overall, in survivability. What PC's have is the ability to actually gain levels (and in some cases, even have a Class to begin with). How "heroic" and what "heroics" to undertake is up to them. There is no expectation in 1e or Hackmaster that a PC will 'eventually get to 10th, 20th or 36th level'. In fact, quite the opposite; expectation of death is the norm.

With 5e, that's not the case. With 5e it is expected that a PC will gain levels and eventually get to 20th level...simply in the way that character class special abilities are spaced out for 20 levels. As others have said, Basic, 1e, 2e are all "Front Loaded" for Classes; you get most of your stuff in the first three levels, maybe one or two more by the time you hit 7th or so, and perhaps one more ability with 'oomph' at 9th or thereabouts. Some classes, the more "unusual" ones, had more spread out abilities (at least in 1e/HM), like Monk or Assassin...but those were pretty rare classes for a PC (remember, in 1e/HM you had class Prerequisites for your stats...and some of the rare classes needed really high numbers...even hard to get when you use the default 3d6 in order!).

As for "if you like 5e, no point in learning another", I find this perplexing. It's like saying "if you like vanilla ice cream, no point in trying any other flavour". Variety is the spice of life...and this goes for RPG systems and editions too.

^_^

Paul L. Ming

Imaculata · Mar 21, 2019

I still play 3rd edition (specifically 3.5), because a wealth of books exist for it (more than for 5th edition) and I have quite a lot of them. It is also compatible with pathfinder, so there's an infinite amount of resources to harvest from. The quality of the books is also really good.

Secondly, because I really like the system. It is easy to understand and pickup, and offers just the right amount of number tweaking and character progression that I look for in a roleplaying game. 5th edition does an adequate job at this too in my opinion, but it is a lot more simple than 3rd edition.

Malrex · Mar 21, 2019

"Why do people still play older editions of D&D? Are they superior to the current one?"

YES---but that is strictly my opinion. I bought the three core books of 5e...mainly because people said it was like 2e. I started reading 5e..it felt good, brought some nostalgia...then it veered off quickly and I completely lost interest. Mainly because it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks I suppose. A half hour of reading is not a fair assumption for 5e--clearly people dig it, and heck, I might even dig it if I found a group or had the patience to re-learn rules....

Pming above gives an ice cream comparison. I think those are wise words. However, I am either stubborn or just impatient learning new things, I'd rather just stick to my 1e/2e. You throw a great DM of 3e or 5e, or some random other game--then I could probably have a fun night regardless, but 1e/2e will always be my favorite...I mean...it's been over 30 years with the same game...