Tales and Chronicles
Jewel of the North, formerly know as vincegetorix
I played a few games of 4e using only either PHB 1-2-3 or Essentials classes.Very unpopular opinion. If you could streamline D&D 4E combat to be as quick as 5E's combat, or quicker, and revise the skill challenge system to be looser and more manageable, it would be just about my ideal expression of D&D as a game system. Just pile on optional rules to mod it so you could also get gritty OSR-style play and port in all the fantastic lore and settings from over the years and it would be perfect.
- I removed feats, they are too fiddly.
- Used the Proficiency Bonus of 5e instead of the 1/2 level of 4e.
- I used MM3 monsters but I think I'd go with 5e monsters instead for a future game.
I guess you could even go with Essentials Fighter-Cleric-Thief-Mage if you wanted to, removing skills in favor of roll-under.