D&D 5E What are the "True Issues" with 5e?

[James Gasik]

I mean, there are still a few proud nails thst should be hammered down probably, because in general asv/dis replacing dmsll modifiers is the best thing to happen D&D since ascending AC...better than ascending AC, actually.

In my opinion, it was never the value of the modifiers that was the problem, but the number of them. All a system needs is a limit on how many modifiers you can have, something like Earthdawn's "Rule of Three" and it becomes a lot easier to track.

 

[overgeeked]

Re: bonuses. One thing I'm seeing more of is smaller dice as bonuses or penalties. Instead of hunting for infinite +1s or using dis/advantage for everything, use 1d6 per bonus or penalty. They cancel each other out so you're not rolling both. That way it's not a fixed number you have to try to remember and stop the game to look up but it's also a small variable instead of a massive swing that is the d20. Rolling 1d20+1d6 is a lot easier to handle at the table than scouring the book for the exact bonus something gives.

 

[James Gasik]

It is strange that 5e uses dice on occasion for non-advantage bonuses or penalties, like d4's for things like Bless, Guidance, and Enlarge/Reduce, but it's not more prevalent in the system. It seems like a better dial for this sort of thing than just "you have the high ground, you've switched to fighting with your right hand, you opponent is on uneven ground and just stepped on a caltrop....oh but the sun is in your eyes. No advantage."

 

[Micah Sweet]

That's just it: I'm not trying to "tell" a story, not in the sense of a movie director or novel writer. Instead I'm trying to lay down a setting and backdrop for the PCs to work with, along with some potential plot elements which may or may not be completely ignored, and from there the story - whatever it may end up being - takes care of itself.

If something's going to happen in Praetos just after noon on midsummer day then that's when it's gonna happen, regardless of where any PCs are or what they might be doing at the time.

The only time I'll let contrivance take over is when a player is trying to get a new or returning character into a party, and even then there's limits.

People who see D&D as storytelling and people who don't will forever be at odds.

 

[Red Castle]

People who see D&D as storytelling and people who don't will forever be at odds.

I can’t speak for Lanefan, but I don’t feel at odds with people that play the game for a different reason. As I said earlier, there is no right or wrong way of playing.

I will be at odds with people who try to force their way of playing to others though… or people who think their way of playing is better or purer than the others…

 

[Gammadoodler]

I think this is a matter of setting. In a setting with magic items, it is too granular with non-magical equipment of different quality. Just too much to keep track of. In a setting without magic items, diverse types of masterwork items are a good fit. These masterwork items could be the same as magic items but without all the fancy FX, +1 swords of sharpness, not fire blades.

I'm not really sure what kind of "keeping track" we're doing here?

 

[Neonchameleon]

People who see D&D as storytelling and people who don't will forever be at odds.

And the people who see D&D as either realistic or some sort of physics engine will forever be at odds with the intent of Gygax, the intent of the 5e designers, the way the game is played, and the way the rules are written.

There are games out there that try for realism. D&D is not one of them. It is first and foremost a game. And stories are an intended feature.

 

[Micah Sweet]

And the people who see D&D as either realistic or some sort of physics engine will forever be at odds with the intent of Gygax, the intent of the 5e designers, the way the game is played, and the way the rules are written.

There are games out there that try for realism. D&D is not one of them. It is first and foremost a game. And stories are an intended feature.

Not in OD&D or 1e they weren't. Not the kind of story you mean.

 

[Maxperson]

I guarantee you that, if a DM declared that the closing doors would crush the stein, even if there's every reason in the narrative to believe that's true based on how strong the doors are vs. the stein, without hard rules, many players would pitch a fit.

It doesn't matter, though. Even a flat stein is going to be thick enough to keep a door from closing. It really doesn't take much of an obstruction.

 

[pemerton]

There are games out there that try for realism. D&D is not one of them. It is first and foremost a game. And stories are an intended feature.

Not in OD&D or 1e they weren't. Not the kind of story you mean.

The DL modules were written for AD&D (1st ed).