D&D 5E Sell me on 5th…

[Tonguez]

yeah in 3.5 I was able to play a Ghoul Psychic Warrior weilding a polearm and a Willowisp psion, it was that huge flexibility to play anything that I really liked about 3e - the sheer variety of feat and prc and racial class and template options was delightful. (Which is really ironic since these days I really like FATE which is narrative focussed and thus has less mechanics though still nigh infinite options).
5e is okay, it is DnD and is easy to do, backgrounds are a nice addition and the advantage mechanic is the best innovation DnD has ever had. But it does seem a bit more vanilla and I do feel a bit more confined than in earlier editions

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

if you like the heavier mechanics of 3E, I think WotC default 5E might be too light for you.

To clarify: even though some of my favorite games are very crunchy & rules heavy, I still love me some rules light RPGs.

But D&D is a bit different because so much of my history in the hobby has been spent playing it. I’d consider saying 75% of my hours gaming would be in some version of D&D.

So there’s an element of “sameness” fatigue operating right now.

That fatigue is why, for instance, my first 4Ed PC was a Dwarven Starlock/Psion.

 

[cbwjm]

I'm kinda bored as well. In 5Es defense it's been 9 years.

Looking at 2E again.

I've also been looking at 2e though since my friends wanted to try OSE I've been playing that (which is fine, based on B/X which I also like), so far I've lost 2 PCs over 5 sessions. Missed Sunday's game due to illness, I was really looking forward to the adventure as well. It's a west marches style game and the Laird's Barrow was an area I suggested and wanted to explore.

I think I'm enjoying going back to simpler versions of DnD.

 

[Zardnaar]

I've also been looking at 2e though since my friends wanted to try OSE I've been playing that (which is fine, based on B/X which I also like), so far I've lost 2 PCs over 5 sessions. Missed Sunday's game due to illness, I was really looking forward to the adventure as well. It's a west marches style game and the Laird's Barrow was an area I suggested and wanted to explore.

I think I'm enjoying going back to simpler versions of DnD.

Yeah almost played B/X or looking at OSE.
. The class design at low levels in B/X is rough eg clerics, rogues.

 

[Parmandur]

@Dannyalcatraz I was thinking about this more, and remembered my ah-ha moment was when my brother-in-law was setting up his character using the Starter Set back in '14. It came with pregens, but yoy could mix and match Class with the Spwcies and Background options, amd he chose to make his PC a High Elf Acolyte Fighter. This meant his character actually is a priest in the narrative, with a book for daily prayer rituals and the right to expect support from local temples and to function as a religious figure...but without any magic powers. He was juat a Champion Fighter who happened to be a priest, and had that role backed up in the game socially, even if he didnhave charismatic powers from the deity.

This for me is a rela game changed compared to the 3E I grew upmwith: yoy cna be a Decotion Paladin who I'd a Charletan, grifting for justice. You can be a Cleric who is an Entertainer, bringing some light and joy into people's lives as a divine mission. You dan be a Wizard who is a soldier I
With combat experience and contacts in the military world. You can be a streetwise Barvarian criminal with underworld friends. You can be a Sage Rogue with academic credentials. Opens up a lot of space.

 

[Sorcerers Apprentice]

The main appeal of 5th ed right now is that you'll get a brand new edition in 6 months! How's that for rapid improvement?!

 

[billd91]

This for me is a rela game changed compared to the 3E I grew upmwith: yoy cna be a Decotion Paladin who I'd a Charletan, grifting for justice. You can be a Cleric who is an Entertainer, bringing some light and joy into people's lives as a divine mission. You dan be a Wizard who is a soldier I
With combat experience and contacts in the military world. You can be a streetwise Barvarian criminal with underworld friends. You can be a Sage Rogue with academic credentials. Opens up a lot of space.

Yeah, to emphasize this, most classes give you 2-3 skills to be proficient in. Your background gives you two more based what makes sense for your background and maybe some tool/vehicle proficiencies like thieves tools. So barbarian who is also a criminal who picks locks? You bet!

 

[FrogReaver]

The main appeal of 5th ed right now is that you'll get a brand new edition in 6 months! How's that for rapid improvement?!

Yea. Honestly I think if I’d made it this long I’d probably wait for 2024 edition.

 

[Clint_L]

I think (for me obviously) 5e is the middle ground between B/X’s simplicity and 3.5’s crunch that I’ve wanted for ages. I think it takes some of the best ideas in D&D’s history and tried to make a ”greatest hits” version.

I especially appreciate its modular nature - for example, feats and multiclassing are in there but they’re easy to leave out. It’s probably the least reliant on magic items than any version I’ve played (thank you bounded accuracy) I know a lot of people disparage 5e in favor of OSR but I think 5e is closer to OSR principles than any version since 2e, maybe 1e. For me, 2e was the beginning of “we need a rule for everything, just in case” and 5e is a step back from that.

Yeah, in reading your post I was thinking that this is probably why it is my favourite version of the game to DM. It gets away from micro-managing through rules and is kind of built on the the principle that there will be a significant degree of trust and cooperation at the table, so that it is okay for the DM and players to just kind of wing it as the story unfolds. So we will often run into a story situation where we just sort of agree on what a reasonable skill or ability check would be, and keep on going.

As someone who enjoys a good debate online but hates arguing during games, I find that 5e really works for the more free-flowing role-playing that I prefer. I know this completely does not work for some folks, so I'm not saying it's better or worse in general. But my subjective experience is that it gels well with how I like to play.

 

[Uni-the-Unicorn!]

Play it. It will either sell itself or it will not. No amount of reading about it or even watching people play it can accurately gauge how it will play for you.