D&D 4E Ben Riggs' "What the Heck Happened with 4th Edition?" seminar at Gen Con 2023

[payn]

There was never any trip arguments in 3E/PF1. Now grappling....

 

[Mannahnin]

There was never any trip arguments in 3E/PF1. Now grappling....

I don't recall arguments about grappling. I DO recall having to bust out the rules for it nearly every time to follow step by step, because they were so involved. They were kind of great, though, despite that.

 

[darjr]

I reiterate that there is something ironic about need a rule to permit houseruling!

If it's good advice for 4e it's also good advice for 3E, and vice versa - it's not as if "shutting things down" is a distinctive concern for one version of the game compared to the other.

I also wonder, for whom is it paralysing? Presumably not the player of the character who is hoping to impose a condition on the cube!

It’s not a rule. It’s an FAQ.

 

[Aldarc]

The DMG should be where the game part is thrown into focus. I need less of that in virtually every other book.

I feel like the game focus should be in the Monster Manual equally so since the MM is for the Game Master's use and not the players' leisurely reading. I need monsters stats and such to be clear and easy to read and use. I can make up my own lore for the monsters.

 

[payn]

I feel like the game focus should be in the Monster Manual equally so since the MM is for the Game Master's use and not the players' leisurely reading. I need monsters stats and such to be clear and easy to read and use. I can make up my own lore for the monsters.

Not me. If I am buying a separate book, I'm going to be annoyed if its just a pile of stat blocks. I usually like the lore entries, and if I dont, I enjoy reskinning it as I see fit.

 

[Aldarc]

Not me. If I am buying a separate book, I'm going to be annoyed if its just a pile of stat blocks. I usually like the lore entries, and if I dont, I enjoy reskinning it as I see fit.

You are excluding a lot more of the middle here than I intended with my statement. I said that I want the monster entries to be clear and easy to read and use.

 

[overgeeked]

I feel like the game focus should be in the Monster Manual equally so since the MM is for the Game Master's use and not the players' leisurely reading. I need monsters stats and such to be clear and easy to read and use. I can make up my own lore for the monsters.

Or the flip side. A book of mostly lore and you can make up the stats.

 

[UngainlyTitan]

Or the flip side. A book of mostly lore and you can make up the stats.

I do not really see the point of such books, I think I would be better off spending my time reading a novel/comic or watching a movie/show and stealing the lore from that.

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

More rules don't, in fact, reduce arguments.

See, they do, if they are consistent and in line with the intended play/narrative experience. Of course, in practise, most RPG rules are utter trash, and the added minutia just detracts from the experience.

 

[Micah Sweet]

How come no one ever complained about tripping oozes in 3rd Edition?? The Ooze type doesn't grant trip immunity...

Types & Subtypes :: d20srd.org

What that addressed in 3.5?

Pathfinder doesn't say Oozes are immune to trips either...

Oozes – d20PFSRD

www.d20pfsrd.com

This issue came up in 4e, and a question was asked about it of the designers. The answer that came back was (paraphrased), "Do what the rules say, and come up with an explanation for it". That's the difference to me. 4e's official stance was that the rules are more important.