D&D 5E Considering the D&D Next Playtest in Light of the WotC Seminars

[paladinm]

I would have preferred "Magic Bolt" (or maybe a variant Magic Missle).. kinda like the Warlock's Eldritch Blast.. does force damage so as to be elemental-ly neutral..

 

[The Shadow]

I would have preferred "Magic Bolt" (or maybe a variant Magic Missle).. kinda like the Warlock's Eldritch Blast.. does force damage so as to be elemental-ly neutral..

Javelin of Fire isn't the only wizard at-will, there are others. I would be astonished if Magic Missile isn't one of them - it seems a natural.

 

[paladinm]

Hmm.. make MM a cantrip and all cantrips at-will? Shades of Pathfinder!

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Javelin of Fire isn't the only wizard at-will, there are others. I would be astonished if Magic Missile isn't one of them - it seems a natural.

I am unsure if I want it as a daily or an atwill... But I want it

 

[Alaxk Knight of Galt]

This is a minor complaint, but I'd perfer that the At-Will feats use classic spell names. Switch Javelin of Fire to Scorching Ray and I'd be a happy camper.

Otherwise, that's an extremely interesting read. I look forward to 5th Edition.

Also, I hope that the At-Will feats are not just combat spells, but a mix supporting all three pillars (Combat, Exploration, and Roleplaying)

 

[paladinm]

Like I said, beef up cantrips a little, make them at-wills, and voila!

 

[Tortoise]

I'm not real enthused by the 'mother may I' style of play, it /is/, as you may have experienced, very dependent on the skill/experience, personality/talent, and mood of the DM.

Also the return to relative incompetence at level one isn't inspiring. One of the things I liked about 3e and 4e is that they made the PCs of an Heroic Fantasy RPG more heroic from the start.

Keep in mind that early in the history of the game the PCs weren't necessarily heroes. More often unless the story called for it, they were tomb raiders, explorers of ruins, and treasure seekers who might along the way fall into being heroes.

I've played and DM'd the variant styles and like being able to set that tone with the campaign, not being stuck with it by the rules. It is a personal preference thing and nothing against your preferred play style.

 

[JonWake]

I'm not real enthused by the 'mother may I' style of play, it /is/, as you may have experienced, very dependent on the skill/experience, personality/talent, and mood of the DM.

'Mother May I' is a completely made up thing, and about as insulting as calling 4e a 'Boardgame with Narration'. It's not a thing--it's a thing crappy DMs do. Crappy 4e play is no more a metric of gameplay than crappy not-4e play.

And it sounds like the DM has some information that the players don't have, like say, a list of passive perception scores or climb checks for an area, and the players don't have to roll because their ability scores are above this base level. If these levels are consistent (which is the point of having them written down), the players learn that there are some things they can just do.

 

[SeRiAlExPeRiMeNtS]

I really dislike the fact that the casting mechanics are diferent from attacks, a missed oportunity to make a more unified game. One more cool thing from 4e that is abandoned in 5e.

 

[JonWake]

I really dislike the fact that the casting mechanics are diferent from attacks, a missed oportunity to make a more unified game. One more cool thing from 4e that is abandoned in 5e.

Unified does not mean better. If magic acts differently mechanically, people will use if differently. If it's unreliable, or prone to occasional overwhelming force, it becomes a new tool, different than an arrow or a sword. The mechanics reflect the fiction, change the gameplay style, and force new choices on the players.