D&D (2024) D&D Monster Manual (2025)

[dave2008]

I have literally run Basic, 1e, 2e, 3e, and 4e adventures in 5e, adapting them by importing 5e stat blocks for monsters and traps, with no other real changes (except for those necessary to make it fit into my campaign setting).

That doesn't mean they were all the same edition- it just means that it's easy to use any edition's material in any edition with a minimal amount of effort.

I too think converting adventures is easy to do, even on the fly. I did that in 4e as well. However, I wouldn't expect 1e fighter to work comfortably in my 5e game (or vice versa). However, that does work in 5e14 - 5e24. We have mixed and matched 14 & 24 classes (even two version of the same class) with nary an issue. I can also use 14 monsters with 24 PCs and vice versa. So if I run PoA I can use 14 PCs & monsters or 24 PCs or monsters or mix and match. You can't do that from 1e - 3e, or 1e - 4e, or 1e - 5e. or any combination other than 5e14-5e24 and 1e-2e (which I have already said I don't think are really different editions).

 

[Micah Sweet]

I would expect them to move to 6e, the incentive to stay compatible is the same, so all you do is cut yourself off from the 3pp market by staying with 5e while WotC moves to 6e

I would expect some to do so, certainly, but a sufficiently different game would likely lead some to stick with 5e.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Just because you do not care for a change, or do not understand the reasoning behind the change, it does not mean there is "no reason" or that is it "change for change's sake". That tired old complaint is one of my pet peeves!

I mean, if you don't like that goblins, hobgoblins, and bugbears are now fey instead of humanoids . . . that's cool. Personally, I love it! Whenever the game changes, there will be changes we like and changes we don't.

We have plenty of evil antagonist humanoids, changing goblins to fey brings them more in line with folklore and fantasy literature, and diversifies the cast of D&D creatures. Goblins work better as mischievous dark fey than just another group of humanoids like orcs . . . in my opinion, of course.

And like elves, there is plenty of reasons for goblins to be living both in the feywild and in the material world. Changing goblins to fey opens them up in lore and storytelling potential!

But what if this change messes with my established setting!! So? Easy fix. Keep goblins as humanoids in your campaign. Or tweak the charm person spell to work against humanoid fey under a certain hit die or CR . . . so many simple, easy fixes. And that's what D&D has been about since the 70s . . . taking the established rules and lore and making it your own!

They don't generally change the established lore to make it incompatible with earlier lore all that often though.

That's a pet peeve of mine!

 

[Micah Sweet]

Or the 3pp can say 2024 compatible and not change a thing!

They could, but I'm already seeing new versions of existing 3pp "updated" to 5.5.

 

[dave2008]

They could, but I'm already seeing new versions of existing 3pp "updated" to 5.5.

And that is fine too. It is not like the "updated" stuff is not compatible with 2014 stuff.

 

[Sulicius]

They don't generally change the established lore to make it incompatible with earlier lore all that often though.

That's a pet peeve of mine!

Lore changes don’t matter to me. I like having more options, so at my table, I can always pick between what I like most.

If the designers aren’t allowed to change the lore, then why bother?

 

[mamba]

I would expect some to do so, certainly, but a sufficiently different game would likely lead some to stick with 5e.

So you’d rather have most 3pp move to an incompatible 6e with a few sticking with / continuing to support 5e?

I am not sure what advantage you think that has. That is basically what you do have now, except that the then incompatible 6e 3pps are still creating something that you can use on top of the ones that still support the 2014 5e.

If anything the compatibility between the two allows the 3pps to release something that is still using the 2014 baseline instead of forcing them to adopt and focus on an incompatible 6e in order to stay with the market

 

[mamba]

They could, but I'm already seeing new versions of existing 3pp "updated" to 5.5.

and you think you would see less upgrades to 6e / more continued support for 5e 2014 if 6e were incompatible? I’d expect the opposite…

 

[QuentinGeorge]

They don't generally change the established lore to make it incompatible with earlier lore all that often though.

That's a pet peeve of mine!

Don't generally? 5E has made a habit of it!

 

[Bae'zel]

1. I like these smaller, more compact stat blocks. They remind me of the simpler more “open-ended” stat blocks from Old School Essentials (BX).
2. I like being able to describe attacks as I see fit, so I prefer “Rend” over “bite, claw, horn, wing, tail”.
3. I love the change of goblins, hobgoblins and bugbears to Fey, instead of them all being generic humanoids in the same lumped group as orcs. I like this categorization. Bonus points to making the Feywild more intriguing to me (Court of the Unseelie Fae?)
4. Lore: I’ve personally never cared a toss about D&D lore until 2023 when I played Baldur’s Gate 3, which I’m guessing messed around with lore enough to annoy some folks. My point is that D&D has always been a toolkit to me, and I change what I dislike. Lore has never been a game changer to me for TTRPGs. Although it can help when I find it compelling enough.
5. Bugbears. I literally never cared about using these creatures ever, in fact this is the very first time I actually want to include them in my game. Silly, yes, but that might mean something regarding how WotC presents their creatures.