D&D (2024) Revised 6E prediction thread

[Argyle King]

Maybe we'll see Magic and D&D combine more.

Creating a character will take a form which is akin to building a deck.

 

[JEB]

I don't think that it's possible to "streamline" 5e much further. What would they do? remove movement weapon ranges & damage dice to just roll a d20 to decide if you kill a creature you see or not based on if the result is 1-4 miss or 5-20 kill?

Funny enough, the core dice mechanic of Quest RPG (which some folks were trying to push last summer as a D&D alternative) is pretty close to this idea.

 

[Aldarc]

Look at those odds. 5 or lower on 2d6 is about 28%, and even then, monsters only attack first on (Charisma-unmodified) snake-eyes. Violence was not originally D&D's default conflict resolution method, and it didn't become so until… well, when did reaction tables go away and XP for killing monsters of a certain Challenge Rating become a thing?

Basically when combat gravitated towards being "sport" rather than "war." Though IME one of the biggest hurdles when it comes to such new paradigms surrounding combat often comes from the designers themselves, who sometimes don't even understand the strengths and weaknesses of their own system, so they design adventures not with the current edition in mind but for the prior one. This was a problem for both early 3e and 4e adventures.

 

[Mind of tempest]

I don't think that it's possible to "streamline" 5e much further. What would they do? remove movement weapon ranges & damage dice to just roll a d20 to decide if you kill a creature you see or not based on if the result is 1-4 miss or 5-20 kill?

I suggested the current direction of 5e will be to build the pillars up and set things up were 6e or 5.5 will be making it run together properly and fixing mistakes like the ranger.

 

[thebakeriscomingforu]

This is coming from someone who is playing a different game(PF2) and just outside observations. I don't see a 6th ed D&D to be announced for several years(maybe 2024) and even then it would come with a playtest period and plenty of announcements. Until then I expect the designers at Wotc to put out more setting books and explore different mechanics within the 5th ed chassis. A 6th ed would likely only be a more polished version of 5th ed updating some nomenclature, some revisions on the classes, and maybe better guidance and inclusion of modular rules.

 

[Stalker0]

Maybe we'll see Magic and D&D combine more.

Creating a character will take a form which is akin to building a deck.

Arkham Horror the Living Card Game (which for those board game/card game officiandos out there, I think is the best version of Arkham, better than both Arkham Horror and Eldritch Horror). In this game, each character is a deck. You draw X cards, and you use those abilities to handle whatever scene your in. And sometimes you draw flaw cards which really shake things up!

I don't think 6e will go that route mainly because of 4e. 4e already went that way a little bit, they even sold "power cards", which were the class powers printed on physical cards people could have. After the backlash and the return to more traditional roots in 5e, I really don't think they are going to tempt that again anytime soon.

 

[Faolyn]

From 5E the layout is bad and index is useless. Bought the PDF and wife was enthusiastic but that died when she has to reference all sorts of things trying to put her bard togather. We both just gave up. The books just to big to much as well.

While I agree that the index is useless, what on earth were you trying to reference to build a bard? The bard and its archetypes are in one section, spells are in another section, equipment in a third, and other archetypes are in other books. You can't expect the class, spells, and equipment to be in a single section, and since the other archetypes came out one or more years afterwards, you can't expect them to also be in the printed PH.

 

[Mercurius]

Really want to focus on your last point here about the emphasis on violence in 5E. I think you're hitting on something that is right on the cusp of a trend evolutionizing and modernizing entertainment in general and that we are seeing in D&D as well. Whether it's Tasha's section regarding parlaying with monsters or recent episodes of Critical Roll that may see 8+ hours of game time go by without combat as conflict resolution it feels like this concept is being explored more and more in response to changing tastes of the younger generations.

Yet 5e is heavily geared towards using violence as resolution to conflict in it's very rule structure. Sure it's possible to use the presented rules to run a combatless game, but at this point, it requires a major investment from the DM to pull off, and will likely leave many classes feeling somewhat useless.

Could an adventure path that focuses almost entirely on the social and exploration pillars work in 5e? Something that evokes a more Star Trek: TNG feel? Imagine Naturalists of Gia, where the premise is a small outpost in a distant magical land whose explorers are dedicated to understanding the world rather than fighting it. Where the use of violence is an absolute last resort and one that carries with it real consequences for the party. If such a book proved successful, could it lead to a 5E CSG companion for players and DMs that expands on that premise and gives rules as clear as the Combat pillar for overcoming Social and Exploration challenges that is just as much fun as the combat mini-game is? That adds sub-classes specifically designed for every Class that lean into this premise.

And if so, would that be the strongest reason yet to launch a '6E'? Will it be required to keep D&D relevant to the next generation of players?

Please note that I'm not saying D&D will tomorrow get rid of combat, or even assume that a game would be played that way. I expect for as long as I am playing (hopefully another 40 years, well into my 80s) that will be an option. What I am suggesting is that combat may become just one of many ways to play the game, rather than the assumed default.

I would imagine that they would never launch 6E as the "less violence" edition, but instead offer products going forward to allow options other than kill the problem to solve it. I think the key, though, is "more options and approaches to customize your game" and not "we're changing how D&D works, and now you have to play it this way."

Let's face it, combat is fun - in RPGs, that is. It is central to D&D and has always been so. Furthermore, fantasy isn't reality. We role-play to experience things that we wouldn't normally experience (hopefully not!). We want to play mighty thewed heroes, powerful wizards, crafty rogues, etc.

On the other hand, we're deluged with stories via Hollywood (see "MCU") in which heroes mostly solve problems through violence. This has a propagandizing effect, I would say. It would be nice to see more depictions of heroes finding other ways to solve problems and defeat enemies, even recognizing that the "enemy" isn't necessary that. But, I think, there will always be a place--probably a central place--for wading into battle, crushing your enemies and seeing them driven before you. But it doesn't have to be the only way.

 

[Zardnaar]

While I agree that the index is useless, what on earth were you trying to reference to build a bard? The bard and its archetypes are in one section, spells are in another section, equipment in a third, and other archetypes are in other books. You can't expect the class, spells, and equipment to be in a single section, and since the other archetypes came out one or more years afterwards, you can't expect them to also be in the printed PH.

From memory she didn't know what the magic type was (ocult iirc) then she had to look up spell effects and every single feat, figure out how the boosts worked etc.
Probably not the best class to use in a new game but she loves skill based type classes and bards in particular.

And she had to figure out the action system either as well. Lists of criss referencing using the pdf or her phone.

It's something I prefer to sit down and digest with a book vs pdf personally. Once you know what you're doing PDFs are fine.

 

[Faolyn]

From memory she didn't know what the magic type was (ocult iirc) then she had to look up spell effects and every single feat, figure out how the boosts worked etc.

Oh, wait, you meant PF, not D&D. D&D has class spell lists, not magic type spell lists.