D&D General D&D Editions: Anybody Else Feel Like They Don't Fit In?

[payn]

I prefer PF1 rules, and Paizo adventures, so I kind of had to make my own fit in the last 5 or so years. 5E is fine, I do really like BA, but its skill system is super boring and the adventures so far have been wanting.

 

[lynnfredricks]

There are a whole lot of RPGs out there and now, a whole lot of versions of D&D and variants available.

The only version I didn't jive with as a game was 4E. There are bits of 4E in 5E but the re-framing of the experience to fit the "MMO" generation was mostly polished out.

 

[Stormonu]

@JohnSnow - rereading your initial post, I think Castles & Crusades may be the closest fit to what you are looking for. D20 mechanic, world-grounded classes, and a bit of a skill system. It's a streamlined version of 3E, a sort of "what would 3E have been if it was a direct continuation of 2E". I believe they have free downloadable rules if you want to give them a look over.

 

[CleverNickName]

5E D&D is the biggest game in town, and it's going to stay that way for years--but it's not the only game in town. Folks in this thread have suggested some really good ones.

The best advice I've got: Don't be afraid to go back to whatever edition you enjoyed. If you really liked playing B/X, then go back and play it! The PDFs are very affordable nowadays, and if your players are feeling the same way that you are, they'll probably jump at the chance to revisit those old memories. And if they aren't, you can find hordes of folks online who are looking for groups and would love to play.

You don't have to launch a whole new campaign; you can just run through a favorite module or host a one-shot. Maybe a brief dip into the classic D&D of your childhood is all you need.

 

[DragonLancer]

I grew up on Arthurian legends, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser, Conan, and a bunch of other "Sword & Sorcery" stuff. I didn't want my fantasy game to let me play the medieval equivalent of the X-Men, where every character has magical powers.

I get this. I really do. 1st and 2nd edition felt faux medieval to me. Middle Earth with a little more magic to it. Once 3rd edition/Pathfinder went dungeon punk and whatever it is 5th is now, I felt left behind. Once everyone has magic, NPC and PC alike, that feel has gone. It's Eberron and that was a setting a despised for being magic as technology. Sorry Eberron fans.

Some will say you can't run D&D as Sword & Sorcery, but I disagree. It's how you present the world. PC's can be the magic types. They are the heroes after all. Merchant's shouldn't be magic users and most priests would be the non-spell casting lay priests. Higher level play is a bit different I grant you, but then you are usually looking at outer planes and the weirdness that entails.

 

[Mind of tempest]

5E D&D is the biggest game in town, and it's going to stay that way for years--but it's not the only game in town. Folks in this thread have suggested some really good ones.

The best advice I've got: Don't be afraid to go back to whatever edition you enjoyed. If you really liked playing B/X, then go back and play it! The PDFs are very affordable nowadays, and if your players are feeling the same way that you are, they'll probably jump at the chance to revisit those old memories. And if they aren't, you can find hordes of folks online who are looking for groups and would love to play.

You don't have to launch a whole new campaign; you can just run through a favorite module or host a one-shot. Maybe a brief dip into the classic D&D of your childhood is all you need.

I think the problem is the lack of resources and players mostly

 

[overgeeked]

I get this. I really do. 1st and 2nd edition felt faux medieval to me. Middle Earth with a little more magic to it. Once 3rd edition/Pathfinder went dungeon punk and whatever it is 5th is now, I felt left behind. Once everyone has magic, NPC and PC alike, that feel has gone. It's Eberron and that was a setting a despised for being magic as technology. Sorry Eberron fans.

Some will say you can't run D&D as Sword & Sorcery, but I disagree. It's how you present the world. PC's can be the magic types. They are the heroes after all. Merchant's shouldn't be magic users and most priests would be the non-spell casting lay priests. Higher level play is a bit different I grant you, but then you are usually looking at outer planes and the weirdness that entails.

That generally just leads right back to the PCs as superheroes vibe.

 

[DragonLancer]

That generally just leads right back to the PCs as superheroes vibe.

I know, but it's the closest you can come I guess without turning the whole world into something that doesn't really work except as an odd super hero game. It's just how D&D plays unfortunately.

 

[JohnSnow]

You're not alone. You're not going to get exactly what you want from D&D.
If I hadn't turned DMing into a profession, I'd probably be running more DCC; but 5e is where the players are, and it's very moddable/house-rulable.

DCC is VERY Sword and Sorcery- it's only as whacky as you make it. I was sold on DCC's SYSTEM when it was demoed for me years ago at GAMA, but haven't run much of it despite acquiring a collection . I don't love the "Wizards driving vans wearing ripped denim jeans" flavor that a lot of folks push with it- but I do think the system is great.

I've been trying to decide to run either DCC or Shadowdark, I'm pretty sure my tastes land a little closer to DCC's more heroic but still not-superhero characters.

I like a lot of what I see with DCC (I love roll to cast and "Mighty Deeds of Arms"), but I have three big issues with it:

1) The Zocchi dice: I'm not buying a whole bunch of new dice to play a new game system. Just not happening. I generally think Advantage is more elegant.
2) I can't stand having to constantly reference tables. DCC leans into that a bit too much for my tastes.
3) "Racial Classes" is something I hate with a passion. It was my first houserule in B/X, almost before I played it. Part of that was that the person who first taught us to make characters (using the Moldvay Basic set I got in 1981) had an AD&D PHB at home and didn't fully understand the B/X "Dwarf," "Elf," & "Halfling" Classes. And even before we got our own set, I was a precocious little kid who had made characters and played a couple sessions with an OD&D set (either White Box or Holmes Basic, not sure which) that one of my older sister's friends had. My memory is a little fuzzy on which edition it was.

I convinced my folks to get us the 3 core AD&D books almost immediately and was playing a weird hybrid of the two games from the beginning. What can I say? I was 9.

 

[Tonguez]

Yeah I think my love of DnD ended with 3.5e, didnt like 4e and 5e is tolerable but not really inspiring, the teasers we've been getting for the new 5.5 are leaving a bad taste in my mouth, so I probably wont bite