D&D General 6e guesses

[Indagare Nogitsune]

I think 6e will come sooner than you'd expect, will change more than you'd expect (probably leaning hard into AI, either in design or the use of AI players/DMs), and then fall into the "even editions" rule where the game all-but-dies shortly thereafter (though not necessarily because of anything to do with the edition itself).

Then 7e will release a few short years after that and lean hard back into nostalgia in the same way as 3e and 5e.

Leaning hard into AI will likely result in something like Pathfinder being developed or Level Up gaining even more ground.

 

[Stormonu]

I'm crossing my fingers we won't see a 6E and 5E will remain evergreen with minor tweaks along the lines of 2024 for the future.

But, sigh, having seen the burn-out back in 2E with a system that failed to keep up with modern RPG developments it's very likely D&D 5E will become stagnant at some point where it just can't be stretched any further without a top-down redesign.

If we do see a 6E, I hope we'll see it move more towards the likes of "light" systems like Nimble, Shadowdark and Old School Essentials (OSE) - getting away from "a new mechanic every level!" and towards a system that puts less mental load on the DM adjudicating mechanics or super-specific features and allows more focus on story and exploration, with less stress on combat that focuses on the significant turning points instead of nerf-bat blow-by-blow math mechanics.

 

[Tigris]

I'm also curious why anyone would want radical change to the current system. It's obviously working well for a huge number of people, if you want something similar but a bit different there are tons of great options (Pathfinder, Level Up, etc.), and if you want something different at a systemic level but still in the fantasy genre, there are also a ton of great options (Daggerheart, etc.). So what's the upside to breaking 5e?

Innovation.

D&D is the industry standard and pretty much drives innovation. Each edition of D&D inspired many RPGs. Like the "similar games" you mentioned.

Even if 5E would be perfect (which it clearly is not) I would want a new edition to have innovation. The RPG scene is already lacking in innovation and gamedesign compared to other types of games (boardgames, computer games).

If D&D also just stops innovating, the gamedesign of RPGs will fall even farther behind.


Also in top of that, 5E has many fundamental flaws/inellegances, it got better with 5.5, but some things cant be fixed without a start from scratch.

• Having normal starting level be level 3, because the first 2 ones are just tutorial /hemmed because of multiclassing
• Not too elegant monster design and encounter building, again it got better, but still far away from the elegance of 4Es
• Martial caster disparancy. Not only power, but complexity. Martials are simple, casters complex.
• Combat too simplified, since non stacking of combat advantage, leading to many inelegant "add dice to roll" effects instead of a more elegant general system.
• Having unequal power progression (trippling power from 1 to 3, doubling from 3 to 5, doubling from 5 to 11...)

Of course 6e will also has flaws, but it may have different ones, and will again inspire many new games.


For me "oh this is good enough it works" sounds crazy, why would one want to play the same game over and over instead of new ones? I am really glad in computer games, and especially in boardgames, people are not thinking like that.

 

[Plaguescarred]

My wild take on 6E is that it will be highly modular for chargen;

• Choose 2 Ability Score Increase
• Choose 2 Trait
• Choose 2 Feature
• Choose 2 Language
• Choose 2 Skill
• Choose 1 Tool
• Choose Equipment

 

[payn]

Innovation.

D&D is the industry standard and pretty much drives innovation. Each edition of D&D inspired many RPGs. Like the "similar games" you mentioned.

Even if 5E would be perfect (which it clearly is not) I would want a new edition to have innovation. The RPG scene is already lacking in innovation and gamedesign compared to other types of games (boardgames, computer games).

If D&D also just stops innovating, the gamedesign of RPGs will fall even farther behind.


Also in top of that, 5E has many fundamental flaws/inellegances, it got better with 5.5, but some things cant be fixed without a start from scratch.

• Having normal starting level be level 3, because the first 2 ones are just tutorial /hemmed because of multiclassing
• Not too elegant monster design and encounter building, again it got better, but still far away from the elegance of 4Es
• Martial caster disparancy. Not only power, but complexity. Martials are simple, casters complex.
• Combat too simplified, since non stacking of combat advantage, leading to many inelegant "add dice to roll" effects instead of a more elegant general system.
• Having unequal power progression (trippling power from 1 to 3, doubling from 3 to 5, doubling from 5 to 11...)

Of course 6e will also has flaws, but it may have different ones, and will again inspire many new games.

I think this is writing off a whole lot of interesting RPGs simply because they aint D&D. Also, things you like or prefer have nothing to do with elegance. Thats just sparkle talk.

For me "oh this is good enough it works" sounds crazy, why would one want to play the same game over and over instead of new ones? I am really glad in computer games, and especially in boardgames, people are not thinking like that.

I still play cribbage after learning it 40 years ago. I dont think D&D needs radical change to remain an interesting game. Nobody else is waiting for D&D to change to come up with innovative game design in the RPG space. Not that compelling a reason to force change on D&D.

 

[bsss]

Indeed, I think the last thing anyone could say about the TTRPG space is "ah man, I don't like what D&D is doing, but it's the only option out there" --- different ideas flourish now, just not from a product sales or industry size perspective.

 

[Tigris]

I think this is writing off a whole lot of interesting RPGs simply because they aint D&D. Also, things you like or prefer have nothing to do with elegance. Thats just sparkle talk.

Elegance is a known design goal in gamedesign. Having a simple constant formula for monster math is more elegant. Needing 2 XP tables is not. This is literally a design goal in good gamedesign in boardgames and computer games, and also many RPGs can do that. I dont call stuff elegant because I like them, I like them because its elegant.

I still play cribbage after learning it 40 years ago. I dont think D&D needs radical change to remain an interesting game. Nobody else is waiting for D&D to change to come up with innovative game design in the RPG space. Not that compelling a reason to force change on D&D.

Yes some people dont adapt to new things, but they also can keep playing their old games, no reason to make new games for people who want to play old games.


Well people are not waiting for D&D but people are copying D&D
Even games like Dragonbane "which historically is totally not D&D" heavily copied 5th edition D&D.
Pathfinder 2 heavily copied D&D 4E, so even the biggest competitor did not manage to do something on their own.
Shadowdark is a 5E homebrew.


Nothing brings soo much change and innovation into the RPG scene than a new Edition of D&D this is just a fact, because its the industry leader. And D&D has just a bigger budget, which means they can have more designers and can come up with new things (for others then to copy).

Indeed, I think the last thing anyone could say about the TTRPG space is "ah man, I don't like what D&D is doing, but it's the only option out there" --- different ideas flourish now, just not from a product sales or industry size perspective.

Actually many people are saying this, many people are complaining about not being able to find games except for D&D main edition.

 

[payn]

Elegance is a known design goal in gamedesign.

Having a simple constant formula for monster math is more elegant. Needing 2 XP tables is not. This is literally a design goal in good gamedesign in boardgames and computer games, and also many RPGs can do that. I dont call stuff elegant because I like them, I like them because its elegant.

uh huh.

Yes some people dont adapt to new things, but they also can keep playing their old games, no reason to make new games for people who want to play old games.


Well people are not waiting for D&D but people are copying D&D
Even games like Dragonbane "which historically is totally not D&D" heavily copied 5th edition D&D.
Pathfinder 2 heavily copied D&D 4E, so even the biggest competitor did not manage to do something on their own.
Shadowdark is a 5E homebrew.


Nothing brings soo much change and innovation into the RPG scene than a new Edition of D&D this is just a fact, because its the industry leader. And D&D has just a bigger budget, which means they can have more designers and can come up with new things (for others then to copy).

Wait... are folks supposed to innovate or copy? I cant keep up. I think you are still ignoring a plethora of innovative RPGs that have come out in the last 20 years. A new one is dropped almost every day.

 

[Belen]

Whatever is easiest to code into DDB.

They will not build a system that will cause another site redesign.

 

[TwoSix]

Whatever is easiest to code into DDB.

They will not build a system that will cause another site redesign.

My assumption is that if they're already in the process of recoding DDB, they'll do so in a manner that doesn't hardcode any specific design requirements. The "edition" will just be a skin that fits on the core framework. That just seems like basic project management common sense, especially when they already are doing a redesign because the original was a jury-rigged rush job.