D&D-ism you would sacrifice?

[Crazy Jerome]

Let's say you get a major influence during the design phase of a version of D&D. What D&D-ism would you sacrifice?

For purposes of this answer, it isn't important that everyone agree that the thing you would sacrifice is critical to D&D. It only matters that you think it is, but you'd still be willing to cut it out--maybe even against your better judgment as to what the audience would expect.

Example to follow ...

 

[Pentius]

I would cut the idea of the daily resource, and build a system where a day's adventures ended when it was time for the day's adventures to end, not when the party ran out of spells/surges/whathaveyous.

 

[Crazy Jerome]

I'd be so very tempted to narrow class definitions to core functions based on classes. Thus a "fighter" class would be only about being a good fighter; a "wizard" class would be only about casting arcane spells, etc. Then to get well-rounded results, every character would necessarily be multiclassed. Thus multiclassing isn't an option, it is the default.

The sacrifice is the prototypical single-classed character, built as an archetype.

I'd be willing to do this for the breadth of options that could be covered in relatively little text. If "fighter" is only about "fighting" with weapons, then you don't need a zillion versions of it. If you want to add options that make better archers or paladins or long-sword wielding elf "mages", you merely add there little bits as other classes, and let people pick the mix that fits for them.

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Alignment.

 

[JamesonCourage]

Dungeon delves and color-coded dragons.

 

[Ahnehnois]

Hit Points.

Anything that models real-world health and sickness and injury better would be a huge step forward for the game. The key is to keep it comprehensible for the average gamer, which is why it's been so hard to do.

 

[diaglo]

everything released after 1974

 

[M.L. Martin]

Clerics.

They hardwire too many things into the game's assumptions about the world, magic, and religion.

 

[Jeff Carlsen]

Attacks handled as a separate, if similar, mechanism as skills. Instead, move to a more skill based system with Melee, Ranged, and Spellcasting as skills.

Ultimately, though, I wouldn't change too much, because if I don't want to play D&D, there are hundreds of other games.

 

[pawsplay]

The conceit of ever-increasing PC wealth.