D&D 5E Best D&D 5e alternate ruleset?

daddystabz

Explorer
After the WotC fiascos, many companies decided to develop their own in-house alternative D&D 5e rulesets that are based on the skeleton of D&D 5e. I recently picked up Tales of the Valiant by Kobold Press, formerly known as Project Black Flag, but haven't gotten to read it yet.

I am curious what alternative 5e rulesets have my fellow gamers looked at out there and/or ran or played and what ones you think are best. I am also going to include a few OSR adjacent rulesets that interest me as viable alternatives to D&D 5e to get your thoughts as well.

Tales of the Valiant
Level Up: Advanced 5th. Edition
Nimble
13th. Age 2e
Cubicle 7 D20 (C7D20)
Pathfinder 2e

Dragonbane

Castles & Crusades
Dungeon Crawl Classics
Hyperborea 3e
Worlds Without Number
Old School Essentials
 

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You forgot Shadowdark, which probably should replace Dragonbane on your list if you are interested in games that look more like D&D. (Note: I like Dragonbane better, even though I love Shadowdark, but it isn't a D&D descendent.)
 

You forgot Shadowdark, which probably should replace Dragonbane on your list if you are interested in games that look more like D&D. (Note: I like Dragonbane better, even though I love Shadowdark, but it isn't a D&D descendent.)
Is Shadowdark completely built for dungeon crawls, or can you do outdoor adventuring all types of fantasy with it?
 

DC20 (Dungeon Coach)

Just watched a few videos and looked at the free stuff released. Some stuff is worth investigating if you're a tinkerer. I have not played it.
 


I've been involved in the playtest (and kickstarter) of the 13th Age 2nd edition and I've been impressed. I quite liked the 1st edition, and this reworks any problem points like the natural die results or icon relationship dice, as well as brings in the maturity and it's own voice that later products like 13th Age Glorantha and the two Bestiaries demonstrated.

It's also math-neutral allowing all of the 1st edition products like Eyes of the Stone Thief or those Bestiaries I mentioned to be used without changes, so it's coming out with a lot of support already existing.

It also since 1st edition directly addresses some of the issues I have with 5e, such as balance between classes affected by the length of the adventuring day, and definitely high level adventuring.

The next campaign I run will be in 13th Age 2nd edition.
 



I was involved with the Kickstarter for Level Up back in 2021. There is a lot to like about Level Up. It adds a level of complexity and customization to the 5e chassis it was built upon with regards to both character origin and character class.
 

I've been having a blast running Fantasy Age / Dragon Age, which use the same concepts as D&D (e.g. skills, proficiency bonus, ability score modifiers, hit points) but replaces the d20 with a 3d6 roll. It's been a good chance of pace until I see what happens in 2024.

Also thumbs up to Level Up. Used it for a year-long Dragonlance campaign.
 

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