D&D (2024) What do you want to see excised?

[Reynard]

Certain positions of privilege in the core rules.

If the multiverse is the default setting, do a better job of giving non-Realms examples. Especially Realms specific bullsh*t like "The Weave" that new players mistake for rules jargon.

The segregation of races into Tolkein fanservice "common races", and everything else as "uncommon". Stab it repeatedly, burn the body, and piss on its' ashes.

If it were up to me I would want all reference to any world -- and especially the "D&D multiverse" -- excised from the core books. D&D is, to me, a tool kit for creating your own fantasy adventures and does not need setting info or lore baked in. The DMG could certainly include some examples in the world building section, though.

 

[Reynard]

Another thing I would excise if it were possible is the sense of player entitlement to every option presented, regardless of appropriateness to the campaign or setting in particular. No, Bob, you can't play a flying angel cat in our gritty medieval dark fantasy game.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Certain positions of privilege in the core rules.

If the multiverse is the default setting, do a better job of giving non-Realms examples. Especially Realms specific bullsh*t like "The Weave" that new players mistake for rules jargon.

At least give the Serpent (a much cooler take on the idea) equal time.

 

[Amrûnril]

Certain positions of privilege in the core rules.

If the multiverse is the default setting, do a better job of giving non-Realms examples. Especially Realms specific bullsh*t like "The Weave" that new players mistake for rules jargon.

I'd argue the idea of "the multiverse" needs to be excised just as badly as the Forgotten Realms focus. Let individual settings stand on their own rather than treating them as subparts of some larger setting.

 

[Malmuria]

Another thing I would excise if it were possible is the sense of player entitlement to every option presented, regardless of appropriateness to the campaign or setting in particular. No, Bob, you can't play a flying angel cat in our gritty medieval dark fantasy game.

My flying cat (?) angel is also a bard:

 

[Reynard]

My flying cat (?) angel is also a bard:

My theory is that the ink used in illuminating manuscripts was made from hallucinogenic plants.

 

[Willie the Duck]

Okay. Excised is a rough one.

• I can see taking various races I don't like and moving them from the PHB to secondary material
• I actively advocate that the upper tiers should be removed from the main game and possibly split into 2+ versions (one for people that want to play magicless martials all the way through alongside casters with matching power levels; another for people who want wish and simulacrum and shapechange alongside fighters who wrestle death into submission or who lop-off and throw mountaintops at their enemies)
• I think Multiclassing rules (alongside being redesigned) need to get thrown into the DMG, after the other (more important) optional rules like alternate combat actions and gritty rest variants and the like.
• I want XP-for-combat to be included only alongside equally developed rules for xp-for-treasure-found and xp-for-goal-progress and xp-for-character-arcs-fulfilled or the like.
• I would like some of the basic worldbuilding/implied setting of D&D made more optional (not just the FR default they've been doing, I mean things like 'you don't have to have elemental planes or the Astral in your game. The afterlife might be a place you can walk to. Make your world your own' kind of advice).
• I would like any number of trap options (True Strike and Witch Bolt, Berserker Barbarians) and optimal options (simulacrum and force cage, crossbow expert/PAM, multiclassing your way through the charisma classes) rebalanced such that there weren't clear and away winners or losers.

Still, I can't think of many things I want truly excised. Ooh! Studded leather, hide, and ring mail! Maybe 'half-plate' too (although maybe this just gets reframed as one of the many types that came about before full harness. There are lovely armors not included in the game like gambesons, buff coats, linothorax, and all those other lovely intermediate armors with plates like coat of plate, jack of plate, brigandine, and so on.

 

[tetrasodium]

Balance starts to get wonky for everyone past level 10, but yeah. One sixth level spell per day and roughly one 5th level spell per encounter compared to other casters getting 1 6th level spell, 2 5th level spells, 3 each of 4th, 2nd, and 3rd level spells, and 4 1st level spells per day at least. More than that really, thanks to features like Arcane/Natural Recovery, Flexible Casting, etc. Warlocks get such a strong cantrip to compensate for their inability to nova.

That's the theory but it doesn't work that way. It starts breaking down well before tier3. The trouble is that some spells are better than they should be & as a result scale freely for warlock while eldritch blast with invocations has math tuned to the assumption that warlock will never get any short rests except in practice it tends to be much closer to almost every fight. Ironically the very arcane/natural recovery features you note show the thoughtful & reasoned vrs munchkin fulfilment design split in their once per long rest across from every short rest per long rest. Thanks to cumulative slot accumulation rate slowdowns at levels 2->3 /6->7 /7->8/10->11 combined with those "intentionally overtuned" spells you wind up with a situation where having lots of lower level slots is of almost no value & a lack of slot gains in spell levels that might matter a little at levels they should have been gained.

 

[Charlaquin]

That's the theory but it doesn't work that way. It starts breaking down well before tier3. The trouble is that some spells are better than they should be & as a result scale freely for warlock

And some spells remain effective even without upcasting. Ultimately how effective warlocks end up being compared to other casters varies from table to table, but I think the common consensus is they trend a little on the weak side.

while eldritch blast with invocations has math tuned to the assumption that warlock will never get any short rests

That’s just not the case. Eldritch Blast is tuned like a Fighter with a heavy crossbow and no additional resource expenditure (such as action surge or superiority dice). It’s strong for a cantrip, yes, but it is definitely not tuned to be the Warlock’s only source of damage.

except in practice it tends to be much closer to almost every fight.

YMMV. If this is the case at your table, yeah, warlocks are going to be about twice as strong as expected. If you get fewer then one short rest every other encounter, warlocks will be weaker. This is also the case with every other caster with the frequency of long rests. Turns out, resting as a limitation of power can become unbalanced pretty easily if the actual frequency of rests doesn’t end up meeting the expectation.

 

[Reynard]

Also, can we get rid of "spirit" familiars and actually have cats and imps and stuff again. The same for any mount or pet actually: it doesn't need to be a pokemon. it can be an actual creature.