Adventures will set the tone more than the system

[Crazy Jerome]

I don't think the OP was saying to design the game around the AP. I think he meant that the AP should be designed to show off 5E's strong points.

Right, sorry, that came out stronger than I meant it--or at least misdirected. My point is that there was a single style of adventure pursued at launch, this will inevitably have bad repercussions for the design. Even the decision to limit to such a narrow style would have those repercussions. If nothing else, it will seriously cramp the playtesting.

I'm seldom in favor of putting all the eggs in one basket. I'm really not in favor of it when the basket is front and center as your selling point.

 

[Tymophil]

Right, sorry, that came out stronger than I meant it--or at least misdirected. My point is that there was a single style of adventure pursued at launch, this will inevitably have bad repercussions for the design. Even the decision to limit to such a narrow style would have those repercussions. If nothing else, it will seriously cramp the playtesting.

I'm seldom in favor of putting all the eggs in one basket. I'm really not in favor of it when the basket is front and center as your selling point.

Indeed! I did not mean to imply that the adventure path was to be a series of scenarios with the same style or taste.

I want WotC to explore all the strengths of the fantasy roleplaying game that Dungeon & Dragons should be. If D&D5 is good for only one kind of adventure, then I don't need it.

I want quality handouts, maps (both world, regional and tactical), visuals (NPC portraits, magic items, landscapes, etc.).

I want all kinds of scenes that matter : social interaction (gathering information, negociating, performing, etc.), exploring strange and mysterious places, searching a crime scene for clues, facing dangers (hazards, traps, monsters), facing moral dilemnas, uncovering evil twisted plots, solving puzzles, etc.

I also want WotC to baffle me with scenes I never expected to be fun to play.

If the system doesn't akllow for this kind of wonders, then D&D5 is not worth the legacy of the first roleplaying game.

 

[MichaelSomething]

I would like to note that there should be a simple adventure designed for a complete newbie DM to run.

 

[darkwing]

Adventures set the tone of the game. If KotS had replaced half the combat encounters with real dialogue trees and puzzles and magical items that enabled creativity to get past certain obstacles then many of the complaints about 4e being just a glorified tactical combat game would have been diminished (imo).

 

[Tymophil]

I would like to note that there should be a simple adventure designed for a complete newbie DM to run.

Simple doesn't mean fights only, nor too generic too...

It could be overall rather complex, but DM friendly by introducing, in a simple way, one concept at a time. The first scene introduce the concept of skill test, the next one is based on a dialog between PCs and an important recurrent NPC, with a skill challenge (smartly written), etc. All filled with advices for the newbie DM.

Ideally those adventures would be remembered as the best reference for any beginning DM.

Adventures are also the opportunity for WotC to make great first scene that introduce the PC to the story in an unforgettable way. This is very important for beginning DM. An opening scene that sets the stage is more important in roleplaying games than a simplistic system. The scene must be good enough to induce players into the plot even with a not too confident DM.