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There are also those who are put off by anything that looks "old". There are plenty of people out there that won't watch a black & white movie, even classics like "Citizen Kane" or "Gone with the Wind", because they are not in color. They let their preference of color film stand in the way of a...

I'd be really interested to see what Mearls would come up with if he was given free reign to design his ideal version of D&D - without having to take into account the market, WotC, other designers, etc. Just starting with a blank sheet of paper and creating the game that he'd want to play. I'd...

It's amazing how many times "nostalgia" is the motivation automatically assumed when discussing classic editions. Consider this - The movie "Psycho" is an old movie filmed in black and white. A color remake was created a few years back. Why do many people prefer the black-and-white original? Is...

I think that it's wrong to assume that only player demand is what's driving the "evolution" of editions. Companies have a vested interest in providing and restricting supply in order to encourage the "evolution" of the hobby in a way that is in their best business interest. One needs to...

I'm not sure what the standard should be, nor would I dictate one... nor am I even sure that there actually needs to be an "OSR standard". However, I think that the OSR would benefit greatly from having an in-print game with a large enough following to act as a "standard bearer" for the OSR -...

Actually, I'd argue that in the case of D&D, the company has lots of direct control. 4e and PFRPG didn't out-compete other versions of D&D for resources, the other versions (3e and earlier) were starved of resources by WotC. Since WotC holds the rights, they can simply prevent older editions...

I think I should clarify what I mean by "extinct". I mean that those editions are "extinct" in the marketplace - you can't buy them anymore except for second-hand copies. That's where the metaphor stumbles. In nature, a new species takes over when it's better adapted than the old species -...

I agree with you that variation and house rules among groups is a core goal of the OSR. I think, though, that the OSR would greatly benefit from having a core ruleset serve as a touchstone. The core ruleset would really be more like a framework, describing the central concepts of the game --...

I think your biological analogy describes things well. The only small nuance is that 3e didn't "go extinct" because 4e and Pathfinder evolved from it and took its resources, it went extinct because WotC decided it should be extinct. Same with the older editions. The classic editions aren't...

I don't know the exact numbers, but judging by the number of OSR websites and the number of retro-clones, there's certainly a sizable market for older material. Considering that PDFs and print-on-demand have negligible overhead, I don't see why this market can't be supported. WotC doesn't have...

Interesting article by Mearls. I disagree with his basic premise, though, that the "D&D experience" is the same regardless of edition. It boils down to a Ship of Theseus paradox: how much of something can you replace before it loses its original identity? It's something that's been debated...

I'm not sure about the percentages... and I hate to say it... but I think profit motive has been the key factor in the edition treadmill since the beginning. Improving the quality of the game (evolution) has always been a distant second. Let's not forget that there were lawsuits and ownership...

I also started with the "box set with the red cover". It's a little funny to be called "old", though. Most of us who started with that set are only in our 30s or 40s. We're not kids anymore, but we're not quite ready for over-sized dice or large-print character sheets yet. ;)

My opinion on balance is this: Characters do not need to be equal. Each character does, however, need to be able to play a meaningful and productive role in the party.

Taking ideas from classic editions and recreating classic editions are two different things. Very few people, if any, are advocating an exact recreation of the classic editions. By the way, my local used bookstore can't keep the Basic and 1e stuff in stock. It's mostly 3e and some 2e & 4e...

I would try either A) d20 under ability score B) d20 + ability score vs. a DC (default 21) C) d20 + 1/2 character level + ability score mod vs. a DC (15 is about medium difficulty) In any case, if the skill was trained, I'd roll 2 dice and take the better result. If the skill is untrained...

They're adamant today, but who know's what tomorrow's management might think? It's very likely that at some point one or more of the classic editions will be available for purchase in PDF form; given the low cost and high profit margin of digital distribution. I think it's even possible that...

Wow... not sure where all the hatred of Classic D&D is coming from. This thread is about 5e, not 4e. 5e (or whatever it ends up being called) is currently a blank slate. There are a lot of great ideas in the classic editions. Not every change that came along with 4e has been a good change...

If I was designing 5e, it would be a return to the classic roots of D&D. Essentially it would be pretty close to B/X with a few of the mechanics updated like ascending armor class and Fort/Ref/Will saving throws. It would most likely end up looking a lot like Basic Fantasy RPG.

I think a starter set only needs three things: 1. a short rulebook, preferably around 50 pages long 2. an adventure module 3. dice The one thing I'd definitely leave out is any sort of minis or tokens. This is something the '83 red box got 100% right. It even made it a selling point on the...