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I think you're completely misunderstanding the meanings of the words "assumed" and "abstract".

Oh, then I've been misunderstanding you. You don't want less rules, you just want them crammed into less pages. I'm still not sure I understand why it's such a big deal. Are the books too heavy? Is it too hard to find what you are looking for? If it's the latter, I found that bookmarking the PHB...

I'm not ignoring anything. The D&D of 2010 is not the D&D of 1974. The past is irrelevant to my point (see below). Not impossible, unnecessary. There is no reason D&D needs to be a rules-lite RPG when 1) There are plenty of people who like the more complex versions; and 2) There are plenty of...

This, like, 10,000%

But why should it? D&D simply isn't that game. It's like bemoaning the fact that McDonald's doesn't have Bananas Foster and Champagne on their menu. Why should they when there are completely legitimate, alternate choices that provide the exact same thing. If you really want Bananas Foster and...

I think you're really misreading the GNS model if you think that NWPs and character backgrounds are clear indicators of a Narrativist agenda. Those things are, I believe, agenda-neutral and fall under the heading of exploration of system and character respectively (aspects which can be part and...

My suggestion? Get Chris Perkins and Willie Walsh writing adventures for D&D again. Those guys were the shining stars of TSR-era Dungeon and (while I'm sure Chris is doing great things as D&D creative manager and Willie is a superstar at local government administration) it's an absolute travesty...

Out of curiosity, what about the 2e rules makes you think it deserves such a high ranking in the Narrativist category? I will agree that Narrativist play certainly had an upsurge during the 2e era and many people used the 2e rules in games that were heavily Narrative focused, but is there really...

There are plenty of tiny RPGs around, you just need to look past the D&D label.

There are a few nods to cinematic style in the 4e combat system (minions), but most of the design choices are clearly gamist; e.g. - giving all characters something useful to do every round, eliminating "instant win buttons" that circumvent the standard HP-depletion mode of overcoming combat...

May I ask in what possible way could a transdimensional flying city ever be considered a "mundane item"?

I bought the Stronghold Builder's guide and the WFRP Companion, both of which sort of fit in with this concept. I found both books to be a complete waste of money, not because the concept isn't sound but because the content wasn't up to par. Because of that, I think I'm done relying on...

This is exactly why pg. 42 is very nice, even for experienced DMs. If "improvised" actions are too good it can lead to exploitation that changes the dynamic of the game (like PCs carrying bags of sand on their belts so that they can blind all their opponents), whereas if non-standard actions are...

The role designations aren't about power levels, they are there to let you know how the monster is designed to work in combat. The roles DO make a big difference in how the monsters perform. In earlier editions, if you wanted a Gnoll fight, you were likely looking for a fight vs. humanoid...

Even with the CB, statting up NPCs using the PC rules is a lot more work than you need to be doing. I would suggest grabbing a level appropriate humanoid from the MM and reskinning it (perhaps with some of the NPC templates from the DMG). And you only need to do that for NPCs that are likely to...

I highly recommend taking a look at Stalker0's two threads... The guide to anti-grind http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/254630-stalker0s-guide-anti-grind.html and the Obsidian skill challenge system (now with .pdf)...

I imagine that failure to address the issue will result in slow erosion of the portion of the player base that can barely get through 1 combat encounter in a 5 hour session. I'm not sure that portion of the player base would be served very well by an "official" addressing of the issue, since an...

The main reason this particular combat felt grindy was (IMO), that the fight started out with 11 combatants (5 PCs, 6 monsters) taking turns in round 1 and there were still 11 combatants taking turns in round 8. Not only did this mean that the fight was very much the same from round to round (it...

I think there are so many causes (many of which are non-mechanical) that any mechanical fix that addresses them all is likely to cause as many problems as it solves. If a group experiences grind because the players choose to design a party that is Defender and Leader heavy, any fix that helps...

I have not seen a huge effect of build. My players aren't particularly powergamers. Most of the characters they generate would be considered sub-optimal on the CharOp boards, but the characters aren't worthless in combat either. I think as long as some minimum level of effectiveness is achieved...