D&D General 6E But A + Thread

[dave2008]

this thread has exploded so I haven’t kept up but my wishes:

- No proficiency system. In 3.5, I liked that fighters were better at melee than rogues. Proficiency just made every class exactly the same. Everyone is equally good at everything as long as you max your stat.

I agree with your goal, but I think you can achieve and still have proficiency. You probably need tiers of proficiency, but it would be easy to do IMO.

 

[dave2008]

Look, I am just trying to keep the thread in the 6E+ zone. I don't mind if people want their 6E to be 5.21, but it does baffle me.

I was just poking-some-fun, thus the winking emoji.

 

[Scribe]

Oh, another thought I had, looking at my SD book.

If I were to do this, I would put it all (PHB/DMG/MM) in a single A5 book. The Daggerheart book is nice and all, but I find those full size books unwieldly now.

 

[dave2008]

WotC knew what people expected. They should have explained their new design when it changed, not pretended what we got is what was always intended.

I think that would be dishonest because they did not ever intend for it to be a modular design. It was a discussion and a hope at one point, but that is it. It never got to be an intention when they did the serious work of design IMO. It was never a part of any of the playtest packets. That is where the intent of the game was displayed.

 

[Reynard]

Oh, another thought I had, looking at my SD book.

If I were to do this, I would put it all (PHB/DMG/MM) in a single A5 book. The Daggerheart book is nice and all, but I find those full size books unwieldly now.

I still love my 8.5 x 11. The digest size is probably the only thing I dislike about SD.

 

[dave2008]

Maybe, but I'm over it. What I want now is for people not Hasbro to be able to make material for stuff Hasbro owns. Hence the Guild.

You could also have Hasbro sell the game to someone else.

 

[AnotherGuy]

It does have options that are modular (right there in the 2014 DMG). However, the modularity people are talking about as never actually "advertised." It was discussed fairly early on in the design process, but that line of thought didn't even make it into the playtest material. Something being discussed and being advertised are not the same thing.

And did they inform us that this modularity discussed early was NOT gonna happen? George Carlin would include this in his Advertising set.

That being said, i would love for them to lean into real modularity in the next iteration of D&D

Yes.

I cannot speak for Micah, but I believe that when Wizards does things in a 'modular' manner, they are not fully integrated into a cohesive system.

True. That is a separate conversation though. We are asked what we would like in 6e not what WotC are good or terrible at - because if that were the case then they should just stop as I have no confidence in them.

 

[kermit4karate]

I don't like Hasbro, or any publically-traded company. I believe they work against consumer interest, and the interests of those designing and producing product.

Even where I agree that that's true (and it absolutely is a lot of the time), sometimes it's a necessary evil, or at least an unavoidable consequence.

Person_A comes up with a brilliant idea for a new lightbulb that produces 1,000 lumens of light while using less than 1 watt of electricity! (It's revolutionary.)

Sadly, Person_A doesn't know jack sh*t about business and has reeeeeeeally bad credit. No good friends either.

One day he sends an email to customerrelations@giantelectriccompany.com describing his idea. They set up a meeting at their HQ in Chicago and fly Person_A out to meet them. All expenses paid, 5-star hotel, a driver who picks him up from the airport. Sweet!

That day, Executive_A slides a check across the glass table to Person_A for $2 million! It's the most money Person_A has ever seen before! He takes the check, signs the 200-page contract, and the rest is lightbulb history.

The awesome new lightbulb may/may not ever see the light of day, but it ain't Person_A's problem. He's on a beach in Cancun. Now the lightbulb is the property of a publicly traded company.

 

[Reynard]

I bet @dave2008 and @Micah Sweet could move that Hasbro discussion someplace else with the mere click of a few buttons.

 

[Lanefan]

Dungeon Masters Guide and Monsters Manual

DIALS for
(i) Gritty (Lower Starting Stats, Hit Point modification*, Slower Rests, HD usage, H-Kit Dependency, Touch Attacks*** etc)
(ii) High Level (Encounter Design, Monster Modification, Higher Skill use, Setting Challenges, Terrain/Environmental Damage with engaging with creatures of sizes 2 or more than larger than you etc)
(iii) Low Magic (Spellcasting Interruption, Cantrip Limitation, Ability tied to Spellcasting Level, Magic Overexposure, Attunement modification, No Spell Focus etc)
(iv) Narrative Play (Plot Point, TBIF use/leverage, XP system modification etc)
(v) Supernatural

* Hit Point based on Size, Hit Point Cap or Health Levels
** Class Features tied to the Exhaustion Track
*** Refer Monster Design

TOOLS
Degrees of Failure/Success in Combat and Skills
Faster Combat
Gamist (Inspiration/Desperation points, Plot Points etc)
Skill Challenges
Fail Forward
Damage Severity linked to Level
Sanity (Madness, Conditions Emotional etc)
Advantage/Disadvantage (Lesser +2, Multiple)

MONSTER DESIGN
Minions and Mooks
Oozes, Mobs and Swarms
Hardness, Damage Threshold, Damage Reduction and Resistance
Regeneration
Materials Matter (Adamantine, Blessed, Silver etc)
Touch attacks for Incorporeal Creatures

OTHER
Disease Track
Magic Overexposure (Tracking, Side Effects)

Player's Handbook

ABILITIES
Class minimums
Odd numbers count

SKILLS
Subskill system
Expertise (1d6) as opposed to doubling proficiency

MODULAR
TBIF (Traits, Bonds Ideals, Flaws) system fleshed out
Languages (Expansion on Social and Exploration Pillar)

MULTI CLASS
Limitations (eliminate the 1st/2nd level dip)

I can very much live without skill challenges and baked-in fail forward (which can be covered under "degrees of success-failure..." anyway) but the rest of this is pretty solid. Oh, and no metacurrency of any kind, please.

Nailed it on multiclass. The other thing I'd like to see with multi is that it be sidealong a la 2e rather than additive a la the WotC editions.

Something - perhaps another dial - could be added to acknowledge the wide spectrum of humour and whimsy ranging from deadly serious to pure slapstick; games can and do include elements of both at different times but some tips as to how would be handy for some.