Serious question - are you going to invest in D&DNext?

[Stormonu]

5E is really going to have to hit it out of the park for me to pick it up. I already own four editions plus several spin-offs and unless they blow my socks off, I don't feel it's going to be worth picking up. If it plays like a previous edition, why don't I just play the previous edition? I've already got the books.

Perhaps, if the adventures are usable with 2E or 3E I *might* pick those up, but again I've got tons of those, not sure I'm interested in more these days.

 

[innerdude]

I am slightly surprised at the lack of support it has already garnered as the next new shiny.

I, on the other hand, am supremely unsurprised at the lack of support, or "buzz" as it were. Most of the 4e fans I see here and elsewhere on the 'Net are very satisfied with their current D&D of choice, since it fills a unique niche in their gaming sphere, something that's not "old school" nor a 3e retread.

Hardcore 3e fans are incredibly well served by Paizo, and even those that didn't switch to Pathfinder have the 3.5 premium core books still in print.

People wanting simpler, easier to use, or just more unique versions of 3e have more options than you can shake a goblin holding a toad at---True20, Castles and Crusades, Dungeon Crawl Classics, the true "retroclones," "micro" d20 systems, Basic Fantasy Roleplay . . . .

D&D Next just isn't carving out a real niche within any of these areas. If anything it seems like it would most appeal to the "old school" crowd that never switched to 3e, and is sick of carrying around their hundred pages of house rules in a binder for 1e / 2e. Or it's for those that stuck with 3e, but want some help in streamlining it without having to go to an actual retroclone. Everyone else seems more than well served by their current situation.

Of all the current games in the "D20 Family," there's three entries I really consider "unique" in what they're trying to accomplish.

1) Fantasy Craft is a fantastic rendition of the 3e "core" taken to its most logical conclusion, basically building on everything that works about the core of the system, and then jettisoning everything else around it to create a unique kind of "cinematic" fantasy gameplay.

2) Radiance RPG is a fantastic take on using the D&D "skeleton" to fully realize a new kind of gameworld that also discards whatever "sacred cows" are getting in the way. Radiance is the steampunk version of D&D that Eberron SHOULD have been from Day 1.

3) 13th Age, from what I hear, finds a delicate balance between the 4e "chassis" and narrative-style, "theater of the mind" gaming. Based on this description (I haven't checked it out myself yet), it's no surprise that this game has had a highly positive overall reception in the hobby.

That does not bode well to me and I hope the team pulls off a surprise and blows us all out of the water.

Honestly, I hope they manage it too, because it will mean good things for the hobby overall; I am just highly skeptical that it's going to be anything truly remarkable.

At best it seems to be heading squarely into "A nice rendition of D&D that may or may not be better than what you've already got."

At worst it's "The unwanted, unloved release of D&D that had some nice ideas, but really served no one."

I might also be more tempted if they went the Pathfinder route of combining Player and DM material into a single core rulebook, rather than the traditional three.

If it's a game worth playing, the format is almost an afterthought. My current Savage Worlds group is the first group I've played with EVER where every single player had their own physical hard copy of the core rules. For me personally, I think a truncated PHB/DMG hardcover in a single volume should go in a boxed set, with maybe a small, 15-20 page paperback monster supplement with 15 "iconic" monsters to fight would be an ideal starting point, the assumption being that most DMs will have gobs of old monster manuals to easily convert, and the "newbies" will just pick up one or more separate MMs down the road. Throw in an adventure and a set of dice for the boxed set and price it at $49.99 or $59.99. For players who only want the PHB, do a softcover "perfect" binding version for $24.99. Then you have a separate hardcover monster manual, and the successive PHB2, DMG2, etc. hardcovers that introduce more "modules" to the core.

The bigger issue than the format for D&D 5e? Educating the consumer who's new to the hobby which of all the current "D&D" books on the shelf they're actually supposed to buy. FLGSes aren't simply going to pull down their 4e stuff and sell it a loss, so it's just going to sit there. The 3e reprints aren't going anywhere soon. There's still a ton of Essentials product flying around. Try being a "first time" D&D shopper and try to figure out what it is exactly you're supposed to buy​?

If Wizards marketing team is smart, they should be planning RIGHT NOW how to get Next FRONT AND CENTER into retail displays. Every 5e product should have some prominent visual queue to consumers that "This is the 'real D&D,' ignore those older editions in the corner."

 

[MrHemlocks]

Will I buy it (collector)...yes. Will I play it if a group runs it...yes. Will I run a campaign...no. I will stick with Dungeon Crawl Classics http://www.goodman-games.com/ . It has far more of an old school flavor than D&D Next. To me, D&D Next is made for the newer generation of gamers and politically correct crowd.

 

[Herschel]

If they fulfill some of the potential in the final product I will probably pick it up. If not, then no. I have four other long-running campaigns I'm part of already and the spiffy-looking 13th Age on my shelf waiting to be taken out for a spin.

 

[DMZ2112]

As I said in another thread, I'm encouraged by the current state of the playtest to hope that the final version of the game will be less power-creepy than Pathfinder and less [REDACTED] than D&D4, while retaining some of the value of each. I will, therefore, be buying the core books at release. If my hopes are fulfilled, I expect D&D5 to become my new go-to fantasy RPG.

It is something of a long shot.

 

[Kursk]

"Serious question - are you going to invest in D&DNext?"

Not sight unseen. I got burned doing that with 4.0. IF there is a store that carries it and I can take the time to read in store I'll buy it if the game can do something the other games I play don't.

 

[airwalkrr]

I will likely purchase the core rulebooks and decide from there. I still own every 3.5 book and a few Pathfinder books, from which I run and play most of my games these days. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Pathfinder isn't perfect, but it is an incredibly well-designed game and in some ways better than 3.5 so I can't imagine switching anytime soon. I only recently started playing Pathfinder in the first place. I basically skipped 4e; it wasn't my style. I tried playing it on a few occasions in home games and the RPGA but ultimately decided it just wasn't for me. I am therefore somewhat skeptical of D&D Next. While I do feel nostalgic about D&D enough to purchase the core rulebooks and try it out, my impressions from the playtests (which I haven't played more than a single session of, though I've more of less kept up with the packets) has been that it might offer some good ideas, but ultimately won't end up being my game of choice. That could always change. I fully intend to at least give it a try. At the very least I look forward to participating in some RPGA games, whatever WotC has cooked up for the next incarnation of that. I thought LFR was a great shared campaign system, in many ways the best thing about 4e, with DM's Mark adventures and a wide variety of adventures to play. But it lacked the regional aspect of cohesiveness which made Living Greyhawk such an awesome campaign. If they could find a happy medium between the two I might just get involved with the RPGA again. I have long-term plans for my Pathfinder home campaign though and a solid group that enjoys the system and doesn't plan to convert. So if I do end up playing or running D&D Next, it will most likely be through the RPGA, depending on how well the next campaign is designed and managed.

 

[Kursk]

Unlike with 4.0, I will go to a physical store and thoroughly study the product before I make a purchase decision. Burn me once, shame on you... etc.

 

[Kobold Stew]

To me, D&D Next is made for the ... politically correct crowd.

Can you please explain what you mean by this? I really don't understand.

 

[Salamandyr]

I'm curious too, because I'm about as politically incorrect as it's possible to be and I love D&D Next.