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That is certainly one opinion. Another might be, 5e allows for versatility in play styles, levels of optimization and lethality. The ability of any given DM will have a direct impact on how combats play out, as will the abilities of the other players. Other games with similar issues are poker...

I'm no historian, but I believe several tribes in Germany, France, Spain, and the UK fought the Romans in exactly this way... or tried to. It is noteworthy that they generally did not fare well. The hyper organized and disciplined warfare that we associate with the Greeks and Romans seems to be...

Oh hell yeah, tactics, terrain, spells prepared, and a hundred other variables could turn any of the suggested encounters either direction. I just took exception to a couple posts that said getting more than 8 attacks on a PC were silly (to paraphrase.) We've all seen those period pieces where...

Adjusting the guards weaponry Try this. "The horde of guards charges at your group of PCs. The wizard's lightning bolt kills a dozen or more, but there are just so many. As they reach you (the fighter and cleric front line,) each man jabs with his spear as he rushes past you to threaten your...

Since the thread is already back up and running... 8 medium creatures can surround each player at any one time, but since movement can happen at any time in your turn, dozens of creatures could have the opportunity to attack each PC each round. Adding a missle weapon to the NPCs would make this...

3/4 of my encounters are "deadly," and I usually get 3 or 4 encounters in between long rests. The biggest issue I've seen so far, is that lots of 4e style minions make encounters really swingy. My only character death so far was the half-giant barbarian strolling into the middle of a (known)...

The humanoids of your choice with crossbows. 1d10 from range is nuts at low levels.

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Are we talking about using vikings whole cloth, or for inspiration? If the former, then I agree. If the latter, I could easily see a fantasy culture of several races that are typically raiders, in exactly the same way that vikings are typically portrayed, erecting (or conquering) a city to...

Scandinavians certainly weren't nomadic. The subculture that we call Vikings, eh maybe. It's a stretch, but I see where he was going with that statement.

That's certainly an option. If you want magic to be that integral to your world then you can really do anything you want without much pushback. 😱 The number of Ice age megafauna that are no longer around is astonishing, but I was suggesting that our farmers could intentionally hunt them to...

Sure. 100% agree, but the knowledge of how to do something is very different from having the means to do so. Mining ore, refining that ore, and turning it into finished products are all steps that require not just knowing how to do so, but a significant investment in time and rather specialized...

Food production and storage could be concerns as well. Not a given, depending on the resources available naturally, but a concern.

Didn't Forgotten Realms do something in 3.5 with regional feats? Pathfinder had some distinct cultural groups of humans as well. Its not exactly what you are talking about, but it might be a good place to look for ideas that have already been printed.

That really depends on how nomadic a culture is. Do they move every week, month, century? My dwarf example wouldn't have any issues with technology. You could also have magic take the place of some tech. Bonus points if the spells exist for players to use. There is also the opportunity to have...

Can it be done? Sure. Can it be done with reasonable page count, balance, cultural sensitivity and interesting options for players? I'm less sure, but I'd love to see some attempts. Fluff Example: traditional representations of D&D dwarves are the sedentary culture. Nomadic dwarves are more...

I totally understand your reasoning, and concede that it is 100% logical, but I disagree for one major reason. D&D isn't a simulation of the real world. If I can wrap my head around giant flying reptiles that breathe pure cold, giants so large their legs should shatter, hippies turning into dire...

Is it really that hard for folks to imagine a halfling ducking behind a human and the enemy losing track of them for a moment? That's all it takes. Just momentarily losing awareness of where they are attacking from. That's enough for advantage no matter how many times I read the rules. It's...

I'm assuming here, but they are probably ruling that melee combatants may/might/always grant some degree of cover. It's technically RAW (at least from some angles,) but not a connection any DM I've ever played with has made. Still, calling it a house rule seems a little dismissive.

Been there. Done that. It wasn't my favorite experience. Usually this was an issue with people not being invested in the game.