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

[JEB]

But to reverse engineer damage and build new ones from scratch knowing what the "Brute" trait is was never necessary. You just need to know how much damage the monster does, that is it.

Depends on your design philosophy - are you just aiming to have your monster inflict an extra die of damage per round, or are you trying to create something that punches above its weight under certain narrative circumstances? (Same for other now-hidden traits like Keen Senses/Smell/Hearing.)

 

[Remathilis]

I've never read Faction War, but the 5e treatment of Planescape certainly seems to imply that it's after FW to me. The fact that some factions have disappeared or been replaced by others, and some have faded into minor faction status, etc, and that all the old 2e ones are acknowledged as having been major factions in the recent past seems to set the 5e version after the 2e material. But again, having not read FW, I could be missing some crucial bits of information that would make me read it the other way.

It doesn't line up with the finale. The mercykillers split into two factions (it's whole again in 5e), most of the Factols that die or are removed by the Lady are back (including the one who caused the whole thing). The only thing that seems to be similar is the founding of the Minds Eye and the two "non faction" factions getting moved to minor status (Indepts and Anarchists). Some ideas were borrowed, but it's clearly not a continuation.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Some companies create products with different versions for different game systems. It's not uncommon for RPG books to have a "5E" version and an "OSR" version. Free League offers a 5E version of each title in the "One Ring" product line. I've seen "D&D" and "not-D&D" versions of other games in the past also . . .

But yeah, expecting a companies to publish "5E" and a "6E" versions as the norm . . . other than the OSR stuff, that hasn't really happened on any sort of scale ever. Nor would it currently.

My hope would be that they stick with 5e

What would happen is companies would end up in one of two camps.

1. Supporting the most recent version/6e
2. Stay with 5e as it dwindles until another option is picked.

Right now, 2024 is close enough to 2014 that a book made for one can be used in the other, with a little elbow grease. If they were more different or had a sharper dividing line, people who saw 6e would not buy 5e compatible products and vice versa.

Ok, maybe you guys are right. I withdraw my opinion.

 

[Kobold Avenger]

I've never read Faction War, but the 5e treatment of Planescape certainly seems to imply that it's after FW to me. The fact that some factions have disappeared or been replaced by others, and some have faded into minor faction status, etc, and that all the old 2e ones are acknowledged as having been major factions in the recent past seems to set the 5e version after the 2e material. But again, having not read FW, I could be missing some crucial bits of information that would make me read it the other way.

The 5e setting is implied to be before Faction War, though the Mind's Eye which was formed from the merging of the Believers of the Sources and the Sign of One exists in the 5e book. On the other hand there's the fact that all of the Factols of the returning factions are still around, that Gifad (aka Rowan Darkwood sent back into the past) is listed as being in the Prison, and that the gem containing the Ancient Wizard (aka Rowan Darkwood sent back into the past a second time) hasn't been discovered yet is a sign it's before what happened in Faction War.

 

[Micah Sweet]

The important question is, which is more interesting (for people in general) to play in?

Personally, I always feel like a side character when playing in a setting with a rich history. I had the same problem when playing in Star Wars games.

Then homebrew seems like a better fit for you. I always play homebrew. But I still enjoyed the story of D&D as depicted in decades of lore for which any attempt at coherence has officially been abandoned. And that makes me sad. That's literally all this is, so I'm unsure why my feelings about D&D's lore are getting do very much flack.

 

[Micah Sweet]

As a fan of the setting you wanted the setting... destroyed??

Dark Sun was designed to end. You can still play in whatever era you like.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Hmmm...ok



You could do this without its destruction being pre-ordained in s published product.



But do you need an official ending for this? I guess what I'm getting at is what is the benefit to the setting having meta plot for those actually playing in it?

Maybe none, but it can be very satisfying for those enjoying the story they were clearly telling through the products.

 

[Micah Sweet]

How many 3e/3.5/Pathfinder 1e publishers are left these days?

I don't know. Never cared for any version of Pathfinder much.

 

[Kobold Avenger]

I think it's good that they're mostly not trying to do metaplots anymore. We don't want pinkertons coming to people's houses for not implementing metaplots written in established campaign settings.

 

[Micah Sweet]

So you are walking back your previous statement.



See, and things like this just baffle me. The dream origin for Beholders is so utterly fascinating. I never had a single interest in them before that. But here we are with you calling out on of the coolest bits of DnD lore as them tearing everything apart and making a collage (which I assume you mean disparagingly) all because... they didn't just keep the 4e lore (which was really good) and they didn't completely match up their game to your multi-decades old memories of games from before the turn of the century.

You think it's cool. You don't speak for anyone else, and my preference for the Spelljammer version of Beholders, and anything else for that matter, continues to be just as valid as yours.

I'm allowed to like and dislike whatever I want, and to talk about it. And so are you. Not sure why I'm getting pushback on expressing how I feel about lore.