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Same here. I like the concept of feats, but in-game... they started to grate. I'm fond of the 13th Age feats - instead of a big list (though there is one), they're attached to class features (talents) and spells and manoeuvres and improve them. So, having some decision points where you can...

It vaguely works if you don't adhere (literally) to it "radiating", just assume the magic drains the heat away rapidly and dumps it somewhere in another dimension (probably the same place where all the fire spells are coming from). A cone of cold rapidly sucks heat from the entire cone in front...

...or alternatively, revert it. The lower the hp left, the more adrenaline/willpower/determination and the saves improve. Has the interesting effect of making status effect spells favourable during the early combat and reliable sheer damage spells more desirable later.

One that embraces the fact that it's fantasy. No weird real culture analogues, no planets whatsoever, one with mythic world building elements - where the sun and the moon aren't just celestial bodies, but in fact mythical things. Something that makes you go "I never thought of that in that way"...

Article sounds good - how it will look in the end is another thing, of course, but I like that they're a) recognising that there's still a bit of work to be done, b) that they realise that they have the luxury of experimenting right now and c) that they're listening to feedback regarding...

Yeah, I'd really like that, too - better weapon training = more damage. Of course, differentiating weapons is neat, too - but it doesn't have to be damage. 4E did a nice job with introducing mundane weapons with interesting mechanics - Brutal, High Crit etc. I could really see a system where the...

A game with the varied world lore like 2E and its various campaign worlds. A game with classes that are a bit more than just their combat abilities (in the vein of 3E). A game with the focus on balance of fun and participation of 4E (no players hogging the spotlight). A game with the ease of...

Yeah, same impression here - I really like the high-level design decisions behind D&D Next (flat math, expertise dice, advantage/disadvantage, focussing on fast gameplay, the occasional nod to "simulationism", mechanically distinct class stuctures)... but it still feels to much like a re-hash of...

Of course, thinking about this too much can be problematic, since AC is not ablative, so to-hit bonuses (better at bypassing thin armour) already mean doing more damage, allowing you to get through thick armour/skin etc.

Alternatively, since it's a spell that every wizard who has it at-will will take, why not just make it into a class feature? It's clearly there to compensate for the fact that the wizard has very low AC due to the non-proficiency with armour. Make it something like "Your AC is 12 + Dex as long...

Not sure, whether I'd like it - but it's at least an interesting idea. Especially neat would be the interaction with things like racial weapons - instead of blowing up the damage dice for a race (which pretty much makes every other weapon completely suboptimal), races could relax the Str/Dex...

Fixed amount. For three reasons: a) Damage is random already - but averages out, hit points don't, rolling low hit points is equivalent to giving all enemies loaded damage dice against you. b) Hit point rolling is always done with a single dice, meaning the probability is flat... if it was a...

Hmm, I agree that the 4E names were a bit corny and odd. On the other hand, I don't think the scientific names are the way to go, unless you start to name the wolf "canis lupus", bears "ursidae" and so on. Dinosaurs are known by their scientific names nowadays, because we didn't have any...

I like the Planescape vibe, it always felt like "the" D&D mythology for me. Furthermore, yay for Blood War! I always found (as big Moorcock fan) the Law-Chaos axis a lot more interesting and inspiring than the Good-Evil axis, so everything playing up these elements and the weird fantasy vibe of...

I like expertise dice for different classes, in fact I'd be okay with using them for all martial classes, i.e. those who use physical attacks (whether fists, kicks or weapons), as long as it focusses on representing the non-magical part of their abilities. I also think every class needs a...

As long as that's not plain damage/attack bonus stuff, but something more flavourful that grows over levels, it'd be a fairly good shtick - a mace fighter knocks people around, a sword fighter hampers enemy mobility, a staff fighter attacks multiple opponents, a shield fighter protects allies...

Two things: First, what does your group think about that? Especially during the first couple of sessions, people need to learn the ropes - so give them some time to get the hang of it. Secondly, do you do the same with spells? They tend to be equally big time sinks.

Of course, that's not how D&D is presented these days. 3E (which is now almost 12 years old!) and 4E have a strong emphasis of having one character at a time. Of course, my problem is with the potential of side-lining players at plot-inconvenient points. Usually, there's trek back to town after...

Hmm... while I find it sad that the fighter now longer has a good unique ability as it is, I think expertise dice *are* a good way to replace the traditional attack bonuses. Due to the way they scale (in number as in size), they naturally provide a way to scale maneuvers in breadth as in...

The real problem with character death is: It sidelines the player until either a) the character is resurrected or b) has rolled up a replacement character. So, in order to keep that from happening, you have to get the character back into the game *quickly* - without penalties that make the...