D&D 5E Jeremy Crawford Discusses the Wild Soul Barbarian and Path of the Astral Self Monk

[Parmandur]

Jeremy Crawford sat down with Todd Kendrick to discuss the latest UA. The two ideas were the ideas of Ben Petrisor, and Crawford confirmed the Anime influence. He said they have covered most of the standard D&D tropes at this point in the editions life, and that they felt that it was time to explore some "high magic" concepts that dipped into psychedelia. Frankly, I got the vibe that he may have been coy about what this might be for that they have in the works.

 

[Kobold Avenger]

I really like the crazy ideas too, and I think they should keep them coming.

Wild Soul Barbarian is not quite the Rage Mage prestige class of 3e, but it's one I feel is interesting.

And while many felt the Astral Self Monk was based on something from Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, I definitely felt there was a South or Southeast Asian theme to that subclass.

 

[Yaarel]

And while many felt the Astral Self Monk was based on something from Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, I definitely felt there was a South or Southeast Asian theme to that subclass.

I feel that is ideal. Have mechanics that can accurately represent Asian archetypes, but present them in a way that can feel just as much at home among European archetypes.

 

[Yaarel]

For trippy powers, I recommend watching episodes of Legion.

While the genre is superheroes, this particular hero is a telepath that is ultimately able to alter reality itself. (Compare old school wish-like Alter Reality.)

The result is a series of psychedelic vignettes, that actually make sense in hindsight, because of a tight story.

 

[Charlaquin]

He said they have covered most of the standard D&D tropes at this point in the editions life,

...seriously?

 

[Parmandur]

...seriously?

Yes, he said that regarding the core Classes, and he has a point: they did a big character Archetype survey a few years back, and Xanathar's covered most of the top results. With the Artificer, pretty much all if the standard types and tropes are covered. He wasn't saying that there is no room for growth, but that further Subclasses for the core Classes are going to be increasingly niche.

 

[Leatherhead]

There is still no proper Generalist Wizard.

 

[Parmandur]

There is still no proper Generalist Wizard.

They made several attempts, which have not been well received. The Generalist is an artifact of 3.x mechanics, really, not a story (he emphasizes the importance of a narrative basis for any Subclass being the consistent feedback in playtest surveys).

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Yes, he said that regarding the core Classes, and he has a point: they did a big character Archetype survey a few years back, and Xanathar's covered most of the top results. With the Artificer, pretty much all if the standard types and tropes are covered. He wasn't saying that there is no room for growth, but that further Subclasses for the core Classes are going to be increasingly niche.

That survey was pretty garbage, IIRC, in terms of presenting archetypes to choose from.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I really like the crazy ideas too, and I think they should keep them coming.

Wild Soul Barbarian is not quite the Rage Mage prestige class of 3e, but it's one I feel is interesting.

And while many felt the Astral Self Monk was based on something from Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, I definitely felt there was a South or Southeast Asian theme to that subclass.

I don't think there is anything wrong with that. Some of my players are big fans of JoJo (which is why I even know about it).

I think the Wild Soul's problem is it isn't based on anything. I think when you design a subclass you need to have a clear idea of your prototype.