D&D 5E Aversion to Creativity?

[MoonSong]

The underlying issue isn't really laziness or being too busy or any of that. The real reason so much material is in demand is that "the game" isn't primarily about what is going on in the campaign anymore, its about having new rules widgets with which to do cool stuff. The PHB has been out long enough that most of the Lego set parts are very familiar now and there are only so many things you can build with the same bucket of bricks.

This is because gaming culture at large has moved away from what the characters are actually doing as the primary area of interest. The focus has moved largely on what can be accomplished via synergies in the published rules. In order for that game to remain interesting, constant expansion sets are needed to provide different bricks that can assembled in new combinations.

If the game revolves around what is happening in the fictional game space then very little published material is actually required. The B/X boxed sets will keep you going for many years because all the really interesting bits are imagination based.

Once you accept that for many players, the primary area of interest will be getting an AC of X by Y level, or how to legally pump out ZZZ damage per round, then you will see how important regular officially released products are and how new generated home content just won't do the trick. After all, you can't go online and crow about beating the system and how your character is by far the baddest in the land if you have to use home brewed material to get it.

The underlying assumption you make is off, you are assuming that either you are into player skill style or you are a powergamer. You are not leaving room for many other options, and that is dismissive of other playstyles. I don't think you can really understand what the others and me are telling with that attitude. For example I like sorcerers, but I never liked blasters, In 3e I could play a non-blaster sorcerer -sorcerer not wizard I loathe wizards-, in 4e I mostly stayed away from them -but found the storm sorcerer palatable, now in 5e I don't have many options to be a non-blaster with a sorcerer. I need those because I don't like playing blasters, that is why I need those, so I can suck at combat. But again your dichotomy doesn't let room for my playstyle to exist.

 

[Dausuul]

Why are you playing D&D at all? Are you so averse to creativity that you can't bring yourself to write your own RPG from scratch? You'd rather shell out $150 than create and balance an entire game all by yourself? Sheesh, kids these days.

There never was some golden age of creativity. The demand for splatbooks was every bit as great in the AD&D era as it is today. Nor was TSR shy about feeding that demand, though TSR-era splat was mostly tailored to specific settings. When Wizards took over, they studied TSR's sales history and surveyed players to see what the players wanted, and the answer was splatbooks, so splatbooks they made.

 

[Sunseeker]

I like creating, but I also like seeing the game system I love grow and expand. I don't need anything from WOTC to be creative. I can honestly build my own game system. I just don't really have the time and patience to do so. I don't run pre-made adventures, but when they come out with really unique material it gives me inspiration and ideas for my own adventures.

 

[DaveDash]

I am happy to create content (adventure content), but I do not want to create mechanics. I want to consume mechanics. It's less of a game and more story time when you're making things up as you go along, and that kind of D&D doesn't interest me.

I also do lack creativity in that area, can someone care to explain to me why that's a bad thing? If other people lack mechanic nous I hardly look down upon them.

 

[DaveDash]

Why are you playing D&D at all? Are you so averse to creativity that you can't bring yourself to write your own RPG from scratch? You'd rather shell out $150 than create and balance an entire game all by yourself? Sheesh, kids these days.

There never was some golden age of creativity. The demand for splatbooks was every bit as great in the AD&D era as it is today. Nor was TSR shy about feeding that demand, though TSR-era splat was mostly tailored to specific settings. When Wizards took over, they studied TSR's sales history and surveyed players to see what the players wanted, and the answer was splatbooks, so splatbooks they made.

Uh because D&D is fun? Mechanics written for you are fun? Using tons of traps, items, and crunch from the DMG is fun?

There is a reason pathfinder is so popular you know....

I will admit its not everyone's cup of tea, but about half of D&D players right now (online at least) are playing D&D that kind of way.

 

[Sunseeker]

Uh because D&D is fun? Mechanics written for you are fun? Using tons of traps, items, and crunch from the DMG is fun?

There is a reason pathfinder is so popular you know....

I'm pretty sure his post was sarcasm, playing off the idea of "People aren't creative because they want to buy things instead of make them." applying to the rules of the system as well as adventures & campaigns.

 

[DaveDash]

I'm pretty sure his post was sarcasm, playing off the idea of "People aren't creative because they want to buy things instead of make them." applying to the rules of the system as well as adventures & campaigns.

Ah I may have missed the sarcasm, I so [MENTION=58197]Dausuul[/MENTION] I apologize.

 

[Uchawi]

There is a difference between creating something totally new, versus having the tools built into the system to support creativity. For example, spells for casters set a nice tone for expanding those classes. They have plenty of example spells based on each level to help gauge your creativity. Martial classes lack the same type of tool, for example maneuvers. Feats are too haphazard and lack any organization to distinguish class ability and/or restrictions.

The same things applies to magic item creation, monster challenge ratings, etc. Are the tools there and is it discernible on how different choices impact what you create when adding it to the game. Lacking that, the other obvious option is more books to create things for you.

From my perspective, time is limited, so I want the tools in place to make adding options easier, and more supplements so someone is doing the work for me if I get lazy, or I just want more inspiration.

 

[Hussar]

Aversion? no , not really.

Trust that we won't somehow break it by accident? somewhat

Confidence that it will ever see play as a player? This is the point, I've got tons of ideas for extra domains and sorcerer origins that I'm confident won't be too broken or too weak, but convincing a DM -who has tons of applicants and can really pick whoever will give them less troubles- of allowing it is a different story, and that isn't even scratching AL where it is just impossible.

The thing is, if you have a home game with lots of close games, homebrewing is a privilege you don't even realize you have. Once you rely on AL, convention play and the internet with strangers, it starts to become a luxury.

I think there is a good point here. Most of us are DM's, so, we approach things from that perspective. If you are primarily a player, then having additional books means that you have a better chance of getting a new option from your DM than if you pitch the idea yourself. OTOH, you run into the problem of both bloat and power creep and slap into the wall of "Core Only" gaming that comes out pretty darn quickly. I was recently told that getting into Pathfinder is no problem because all you need is the core books and an AP. True enough, but, if I'm sitting down to DM Pathfinder with people who know the system, I'm likely going to get flooded with a lot of splat material. That's a high wall to climb.

I'm not sure what the answer is.

However, back to the OP, the thing that I see that is so discouraging is this fairly pervasive trend that the ONLY solution to anything is if WOTC publishes extensive rules for it. I've seen complaints about the Downtime mechanics because the mechanics are too abstract. They want detailed mechanics down to the single GP. Problem is, they're also completely unwilling to make these rules themselves and insist that the rules that exist are bad because they don't cater to their own tastes. The rather lengthy thread about buying and selling magic items is another perfect example. Any possible solution is shouted down as a complete non-starter unless it has the official WOTC stamp on it.

So, yes, PM Ming, I do see exactly what you are talking about.

 

[Eric V]

Note, for a moment, some of the verbiage you are using. "Aversion to creativity". "Adverse to creating their own stuff". The connotations may be accidental, but they do sort of suggest that you already have an answer in mind.

I don't think it is mostly about having an aversion. It is about *time*. We aren't in high school or college, with loads of free time to do whatever we like. So, we like to pick and choose - do the things that are most fun for us, give us the most bang for the buck, or that are apt to be the most successful.

All true.

Additionally, I don't have the expertise that I assume the creators of this edition have, so I'd like to see that expertise applied to some of the things I feel are missing. I can do it myself (if I can find the time to devote to that), but I'd rather see it done by the minds who came up with the game, at least for reference.