D&D 5E Aversion to Creativity?

pming · Mar 16, 2015

Hiya.

Of late, I've been noticing a lot of posts asking about "when will we get Book X?" or "5e is dieing because nothing's being produced" or "what does 5e lack?", etc. So, I've come to ask an honest question: Is it just me, or does there seem to be a distinct aversion to create your own stuff nowadays?

Personally, I love creating stuff for my campaign. That's the biggest draw for me as a DM; creating something and seeing my players 'interact' with it (be it spell, class, monster, or whatever). When I see people complaining about "there aren't enough archtypes for Class A", or "Class B needs more spells" I get perplexed.

Now, I can understand the desire to be able to see what someone else has created (re; a published book), and simply forking over a couple dozen dollars is fine. I have thousands and thousands of dollars sunk into this hobby of mine, now spanning 34+ years. So buying new stuff is fun. No argument there.

However, these threads about some "need for stuff" have what seems to me to be a rather large amount of people who seem to not even consider creating their own additions. It's almost like they feel "wrong" or "dirty" or something if they even think about creating their own archtype, spell, or whatever. Like doing so is somehow going to be "less cool" than if someone else does it for them.

Am I alone in this perception? Are DM's and players nowadays somehow "adverse" to creating their own stuff?

^_^

Paul L. Ming

JWO · Mar 16, 2015

Isn't this pretty much the same question as this one:

http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?424963-Are-DMs-getting-lazy

MoonSong · Mar 16, 2015

pming said:
Hiya.

Of late, I've been noticing a lot of posts asking about "when will we get Book X?" or "5e is dieing because nothing's being produced" or "what does 5e lack?", etc. So, I've come to ask an honest question: Is it just me, or does there seem to be a distinct aversion to create your own stuff nowadays?

Personally, I love creating stuff for my campaign. That's the biggest draw for me as a DM; creating something and seeing my players 'interact' with it (be it spell, class, monster, or whatever). When I see people complaining about "there aren't enough archtypes for Class A", or "Class B needs more spells" I get perplexed.

Now, I can understand the desire to be able to see what someone else has created (re; a published book), and simply forking over a couple dozen dollars is fine. I have thousands and thousands of dollars sunk into this hobby of mine, now spanning 34+ years. So buying new stuff is fun. No argument there.

However, these threads about some "need for stuff" have what seems to me to be a rather large amount of people who seem to not even consider creating their own additions. It's almost like they feel "wrong" or "dirty" or something if they even think about creating their own archtype, spell, or whatever. Like doing so is somehow going to be "less cool" than if someone else does it for them.

Am I alone in this perception? Are DM's and players nowadays somehow "adverse" to creating their own stuff?

^_^

Paul L. Ming

Aversion? no , not really.

Trust that we won't somehow break it by accident? somewhat

Confidence that it will ever see play as a player? This is the point, I've got tons of ideas for extra domains and sorcerer origins that I'm confident won't be too broken or too weak, but convincing a DM -who has tons of applicants and can really pick whoever will give them less troubles- of allowing it is a different story, and that isn't even scratching AL where it is just impossible.

The thing is, if you have a home game with lots of close games, homebrewing is a privilege you don't even realize you have. Once you rely on AL, convention play and the internet with strangers, it starts to become a luxury.

delericho · Mar 16, 2015

I have a limited amount of time available for gaming. And there are some things that I enjoy doing, and some things that I don't enjoy doing.

Creating detailed rules to fill in for things that are 'missing' falls into the latter category. Further, since some of those areas are pretty significant, it's very likely that a professional would do the job rather better than I can - I'm thinking about things like psionics or the magic item economy here (both things that would help with Eberron campaigns).

I would much rather spend my time on creating interesting campaigns made up of exciting adventures for my players to enjoy.

It's not that I can't create my own rules; it's that I'd rather do other things instead.

Umbran · Mar 16, 2015

pming said:
Am I alone in this perception? Are DM's and players nowadays somehow "adverse" to creating their own stuff?

Note, for a moment, some of the verbiage you are using. "Aversion to creativity". "Adverse to creating their own stuff". The connotations may be accidental, but they do sort of suggest that you already have an answer in mind.

I don't think it is mostly about having an aversion. It is about *time*. We aren't in high school or college, with loads of free time to do whatever we like. So, we like to pick and choose - do the things that are most fun for us, give us the most bang for the buck, or that are apt to be the most successful.

fjw70 · Mar 16, 2015

I don't like doing mechanical stuff away from the game table. Thinking up stories and plots I enjoy when I am doing thing like driving to and from work. Creating spells, classes, and such is not very enjoyable for me.

Also as mentioned above if you are a player and not a DM then convincing the DMG to allow it in the game is not always easy. I know the old school crowd (which I am part of) always says just make it up but that is easier said than done, especially if you have to convince someone else to accept it.

pming · Mar 16, 2015

Hiya!

Thanks for the replies guys!

[MENTION=6777577]JWO[/MENTION] : Very similar, yes. I was more interested in if it was an outright aversion vs. just a preference to buy rather than create.

@ everyone else : Yup. Great replies, and all of them fall along what I was expecting (more or less).

^_^

Paul L. Ming

ExploderWizard · Mar 16, 2015

The underlying issue isn't really laziness or being too busy or any of that. The real reason so much material is in demand is that "the game" isn't primarily about what is going on in the campaign anymore, its about having new rules widgets with which to do cool stuff. The PHB has been out long enough that most of the Lego set parts are very familiar now and there are only so many things you can build with the same bucket of bricks.

This is because gaming culture at large has moved away from what the characters are actually doing as the primary area of interest. The focus has moved largely on what can be accomplished via synergies in the published rules. In order for that game to remain interesting, constant expansion sets are needed to provide different bricks that can assembled in new combinations.

If the game revolves around what is happening in the fictional game space then very little published material is actually required. The B/X boxed sets will keep you going for many years because all the really interesting bits are imagination based.

Once you accept that for many players, the primary area of interest will be getting an AC of X by Y level, or how to legally pump out ZZZ damage per round, then you will see how important regular officially released products are and how new generated home content just won't do the trick. After all, you can't go online and crow about beating the system and how your character is by far the baddest in the land if you have to use home brewed material to get it.

GameOgre · Mar 16, 2015

Creativity is something to be encouraged I agree and have no issues with it myself! I can't wait till next game when my players will be at the mercy of my newly created 13 Buttsorcerers villains and their Arsedragon!

Haha! That made me laugh but you get the point. If all DM's were truly imaginative and great game designers what need would we have for official rules?

I myself consider myself really good at adventure creation and role playing but I just Suck Toad at game design. While I have found 5E easy to work with and create new options for.....not all those options have been good ideas(at least I realize my flaws and listen to my players). Several of my great ideas have turned out to be horrid and unbalancing in ways we didn't expect.

It is nice to have actual game designers and play testers put out official options so that we don't have to suddenly backtrack mid game and change how the world works so as not to destroy our fun.

steeldragons · Mar 16, 2015

No, it's not just you. Yes, you are correct. Yes, I've been noticing it too.

This certainly appears to be what's happening...with a healthy smattering of the "I don't have the time anymore. I'm all growed up n' lifes is hard." plus the whiny "They didn't do it for me" and the "I don't know what to do/they'll do it better" bunches.

But there does seem a distinct lowering or lack of personal imagination...and perhaps creative capability, in a broader/more general cultural scheme. Tthat'd be a whoooole larger/different/encompassing can of purple worms.

I would wager it's a result of the "computers are supposed to tell us what to do" of the current age. "If I can't just google it up/find it on a website/my smart phone somewhere, how am I supposed to know/do this"?

There is also, naturally, the variable of what each person enjoys about the hobby.

For people like myself, and if I may so bold as to include you [MENTION=45197]pming[/MENTION] , for whom the imagining stuff up and world-building is the thing.

For others, including [MENTION=22424]delericho[/MENTION] , that effort is preferred to be spent on the adventure/plot side of things.

Others, don't want to "mess up" the mechanical balance of the game [Ancient D&D Secret: if you "mess it up" you can change it again/back/after/for future use. Nobody's gonna come take you away your dice in the middle of the night.

].

I am also given to believe, somehow, somewhere, there may be people that are exclusively players :erm:

who simply don't want to do any of it/anything except come up with the character race/class combo they want [right now!] and play it...with all the bells and whistles they feel they should have (in print, obviously, so there's no questions or interpretations or imagination needed)...They show up to roll the dice, kick some bad guy-ass, and nothing else.

So there's all of that to consider/factor in, as well. A variety of causes and factors, I think. But the result is the same. Namely, a slew of folks that are not [and do not want to] "coming up with it on our own."

I'm right wit'cha. It seems counter to how/what I think of D&D [or any RPG for that matter, but fantasy make-believe, especially]. "Just make it up already!"