D&D 5E Does anyone else feel like the action economy and the way actions work in general in 5e both just suck?

[DND_Reborn]

As a DM, I'd rather have the work done for me when it comes to interesting monster abilities. That's what I am paying someone to do. It doesn't have to be complex. But it does need to be interesting. 13TH Age is a perfect example of interesting and varied monster design without beating a DM over the head with complexity (though certainly other parts of the game are designed with experience in mind, Monster design was specifically built that way).

5E sorely lacks in this and it is one of my biggest hang-ups with the system, Yes, as written the monster's are ieasy. But there are no "advanced" MM's or much (if any) guidance on making unique interesting monsters and adding fun/varied abilities to them in any meaningful way (as another poster alluded to, above) As DMs become better or for those of us who are not beginners it's still Bland monsters or build from scratch on the WOTC menu.

Certainly, in older editions we had much the same. But 5E took a big step backwards from 4E, and I'm sure that is why the Company and Products I linked to above are such massive sellers for 5E fans.

Yeah, I agree for the most part. IMO it isn't even so much about having interesting abilities as it is about simply giving them things by default it makes sense for them to have. Sure, as DM I can "run it" however I want, but having those things baked in would have been nice.

It is one of my biggest hang-ups about 5E: when it gets to the point you have so many house-rules, etc. that people are telling you to just make your own game--I get disappointed. There are so many things that seem out of whack to me I feel like 5E was only half finished before it was released.

And the overwhelming response is: then maybe you shouldn't play 5E... which isn't helpful at all. A lot of people suggest other games and frankly speaking I don't want to invest a lot of money into others games I also won't like. Take 13th Age. A lot of people love it. From what I have seen, I don't think I would. If I found a group that was already playing it and could try it out, look over some books, etc. then maybe that would change my mind. But until then, I am stuck with 5E since that is what our group plays...

 

[the Jester]

The Ogre only wins if they roll higher and loses on a tie.

The ogre does NOT lose on a tie. On a tie, the situation remains unchanged.

 

[DND_Reborn]

The ogre does NOT lose on a tie. On a tie, the situation remains unchanged.

Not quite. If the situation is "we are not grappling, the ogre is initiating the grapple", the ogre loses on the tie. After the grapple is established, the ogre wins on the tie.

 

[the Jester]

Proficiency =/= training. It is additional training. You could have a INT 20 and get +5 to Intelligence (Arcana) checks, because some training is assumed in the ability scores in most cases.

Citation needed.

 

[DND_Reborn]

Citation needed.

I already gave it.

 

[JeffB]

Yeah, I agree for the most part. IMO it isn't even so much about having interesting abilities as it is about simply giving them things by default it makes sense for them to have. Sure, as DM I can "run it" however I want, but having those things baked in would have been nice.

It is one of my biggest hang-ups about 5E: when it gets to the point you have so many house-rules, etc. that people are telling you to just make your own game--I get disappointed. There are so many things that seem out of whack to me I feel like 5E was only half finished before it was released.

And the overwhelming response is: then maybe you shouldn't play 5E... which isn't helpful at all. A lot of people suggest other games and frankly speaking I don't want to invest a lot of money into others games I also won't like. Take 13th Age. A lot of people love it. From what I have seen, I don't think I would. If I found a group that was already playing it and could try it out, look over some books, etc. then maybe that would change my mind. But until then, I am stuck with 5E since that is what our group plays...

13th Age is not for everyone, for sure.

One thing I have just kind of realized, I have almost no houserules for any of the non D&D systems I play. Runequest, T&T, FFG SW, and others. If I do , it's a handful of small things. But for every version of T/OSR and WOTC D&D, PF I feel the need to mod the hell out of it to turn it into something I like.

 

[DND_Reborn]

13th Age is not for everyone, for sure.

One thing I have just kind of realized, I have almost no houserules for any of the non D&D systems I play. Runequest, T&T, FFG SW, and others. If I do , it's a handful of small things. But for every version of T/OSR and WOTC D&D, PF I feel the need to mod the hell out of it to turn it into something I like.

Games I've played the I didn't house-rule a lot (might have added some homebrew, though) were Shadowrun, Star Wars d20, and Vampire. Other than different editions of D&D, that's pretty much all I've played.

 

[the Jester]

I already gave it.

Saw it after I posted.

 

[DND_Reborn]

Saw it after I posted.

Cool, I really didn't want to do it again. I will remove my sarcastic "eye-roll" from the post.

 

[the Jester]

Cool, I really didn't want to do it again. I will remove my sarcastic "eye-roll" from the post.

I'm just happy ol' rolleyes is back!

EDIT: Where's ol' @kreynolds when you need him?