4.0 D&D: Not too far away? Thoughts and opinions

[The Cardinal]

4e will be published in 2005 or 2006

it will deliver:

- a modular ranger class (for up to 36 "official" kind of rangers)

- a spellcaster system with shaft-free multiclassing

- a decent half-orc

- the removal of the Paladin core class.

- several different "holy warrior" PrCs (LG, CG, LE, TN, LN), or a universal PrC usable with any deity & alignment

- an upgraded sorcerer

- a new core class

 

[Shadowlord]

There are some, actually many, things that don't work well in d&d now and I hope 4e will fix them. That is, d20 made everything more streamlined but they kept old habits, which results in an odd product.

For ex, classes have become more generic than in ad&d, yet they kept the same 11 classes. Other d20 products show it can be doen a lot better if you only dare it!
For ex, d20 modern has 6 pretty generic classes with a perfect level scaling. The advanced classes (pres classes) are well done too, a lot better than in D&D. And they prove you can put everything in one rulebook (plus one setting book)! That includes player info, the really important bits of GMing, core monsters, and both magic and psionics up to 5th level (really, you don't need 10 level of spells in a CORE book! ).

Most importantly, I hope they'll remember that an RPG is not only about rules (for that's what d20 is; a system). The most breathtaking pieces of info you can find in RPG are setting books and RP-ideas! They should think about that, cos they clearly shoved it to the back.
Rules should make RP easier, not restrict it! I hope they'll develop the skills more and allow for more flexible play instead of "forcing" you to check dozens of books when you wanna do something not covered in the PHB. The irony is that usually these are very basic and logic actions the players want to execute but the core books, how big and many they may be, don't cover them well or at all!

 

[Jeph]

Look at it this way: 3.5:AD&D1e:AD&D2e. So we've got another good decade before a complete system makeover.

 

[Shard O'Glase]

4.0 will probably be out in the same amount of time it took for 3.5 to come out. That lets you fill out the compleate line, sell a few revised books like revised FR, add a new setting or two, etc.

still who gives a crap I've been out of high school a while, I think I can afford 100 bucks or so every 3 years.

 

[BigFreekinGoblinoid]

Nah, for them to go to a new edition would require something like a major overhaul of the rules. So, until we see someone at Wizards posting about how they think something major, like multiclassed spellcasting, was broken and couldn't be fized with what we had, I figure we're safe!

H

This too funny Harry! I got it!

Hong is correct about the "Heroization" of 4th edition, although he is far from the first I heard it from.

Crystal Ball says:

4.0 : late 2007 or early 2008

get ready, cuz It WILL be a CLASS-LESS system