D&D (2024) 4e (DnD: Tactics) remake wish list.

[MwaO]

4e math was roughly +1 per level. With combination of proficiency bonus, equipment bonus, and stat boosts.

5e math is roughly +1/2 per level. i.e. 4e/2.

That means any creature a few levels below/above you can't hit/miss you.

If the scaling is reduced to say... +1 every 3 levels. Then a 7th level monster can still hit a level 19 PC, just not as often.

And the 19th level caster nearly auto-hits the 7th level monster and takes it out with any control effect. And then you end up with things that are more easily handled than 4e minions by casters. Which is boring.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

IMo this should be a characteristic of all martials, and of sorcerers.

As a way to differentiate them? I could see that.

Perhaps wizards could have known and prepared powers, like every other edition?

I think the essentials mage did that, didn’t it?

 

[MoonSong]

As a way to differentiate them? I could see that.

Perhaps wizards could have known and prepared powers, like every other edition?

I think the essentials mage did that, didn’t it?

The core wizard had a choice of dailies. The essentials mage could also prepare encounter powers.

 

[Haplo781]

The core wizard had a choice of dailies. The essentials mage could also prepare encounter powers.

And it mostly didn't matter because there's generally no way of knowing when it's worth swapping out your best general-purpose power for a niche thing.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

The core wizard had a choice of dailies. The essentials mage could also prepare encounter powers.

Ah okay, yeah, and then when they brought in time implements some of them game extra power swapping, right?

Tbh I hope the 1DD wizzerd does more with the spellbook.

 

[Konrad13]

I think the only major fix needed would be, like, just do what modern 4e players do - give a free expertise feat at level 1 (or adjust the math for monster defenses down by one on average, keeping their best defense as is maybe?) and make sure every race has the standard +2 to one set ability score, +2 to one of two other ability scores (such as Elves getting +2 to Dex, but then their choice of +2 to Int or Wisdom). In the modern era, though, I guess maybe just everyone should get a static +2 to one of the physical attributes (Str, Dex or Con) and then they get a free +2 to assign to any other ability score?

As for additions, I would say we need a right proper Martial Controller, more Shadow power-sourced classes (with more variety to them), and just, like, MORE. That was one of my favorite things about 4e was just the amount of options that made the game fun.

 

[Horwath]

Remove +1/2 bonus per level from everything.

reduce +6 bonus to +3, then change weapons +X attack and damage to +Xd6 damage.
change armors +X to ac to X damage reduction from all sources.

Halve ALL HPs in the game.

make all powers available to all characters. Some prerequirements may apply.

have more at-will "slots".

 

[Aldarc]

Bonded accuracy, fewer feats with tiny fiddly little bonuses.

I would probably go something closer to PF2 when it comes to "bounded accuracy." I think that 4e's power fantasy is different than 5e's. IMHO, 4e aims for something a bit more mythic, where high level characters don't have much to fear from lower level threats. Bounded accuracy means that a swarm of bandits remain a threat, especially with 5e's action economy, but 4e D&D wants the characters to become mythic heroes who mop the floor with a swarm of bandits. I'm not sure if "bounded accuracy" really jives with 4e's paragon and epic destinies. I do agree, however, that I would remove a lot of the anything that provides "tiny fiddly little bonuses," whether they are feats or otherwise.

Clean up all the feat taxes remaining after the above.

Change MC to allow power swapping if you have any MC feat, and introduce follow up MC feats that give you more of the second classes shtick.

I would probably reduce the reliance on feats, maybe even experiment with removing them entirely. That would remove some of the bloat and fiddly bits. If feats do anything, I would like to see them expand character options horizontally rather than vertically.

You can use a given power more than once.

This also seems doable, possibly if a character uses "healing surges" (see below). But maybe there are other ways for characters to "recharge" their abilities: e.g., critical hits.

Each class has options built in to forgo encounter or daily powers in exchange for something simple and “always on”, or a simplistic power they can just use over and over.

I would probably create a compatible "basic" version of the game and put that in a separate supplement or even starter set. A lot of classes technically do have simplistic powers that they can use over and over: i.e., at wills.

Reduce monster HP and general HP and damage bloat.

This seems like a no-brainer. There is a lot of math that could be adjusted, but it took 4e awhile to find the right math.

Make implements more like weapons, with each having damage dice and other properties, so that using a wand is different from using a tome. Also put tome as an implement from the start.

Yes. Agreed.

Allow power scaling in place of higher level power swapping.

This would potentially work as well in reducing some of the redundancy of higher level powers doing the same thing but a bit better.

Other Potential Changes

• Rename "Healing Surges" to "Vitality" or something a little more accurate to their function in the game
• Change the Sorcerer from using the Arcane power source to Elemental power. The goal here is to have the Sorcerer being a little more closely aligned in the flavor of the World Axis mythos to the Elemental Chaos and potentially even Demons. A Sorcerer thereby becomes not just more of an elementalist but also a caster of chaos magic.

 

[GreyLord]

IF I could change it...I'd simplify it a little.

You can choose one or two Daily's total..BUT you can use a daily as many times as you can use daily powers (so if in 4e you'd have 4 daily powers, in a revised version you'd only have one, but you could use it up to 4 times a day) for Warrior Types and Rogues. (or we could say Strikers and Defenders).

Any Healing Power of a Cleric type class (or leader) could be exchanged for any other power they choose to use, works both ways.

Controllers still work the way they did in 4e, but more like the Wizard's way of controlling (2 choices of a power per usage type idea).

More the monster math of Essentials than the original.

5 Alignments? Let's make it 3??? Good, Neutral, and Evil...OR...Lawful, Neutral, and Chaotic.

 

[Olrox17]

Toning down the number inflation would be great. The Inherent Bonus table that was included in Dark Sun 4e was already an extremely good way to reduce the magic item treadmill effect, but some kind of bounded accuracy would be even better, and simpler.

Single classed characters should probably get a few extra features at higher levels, so that hybrids aren't always a more powerful option.