D&D 5E Dias Ex Machina's Open Call For Playtesters for Amethyst/Ultramodern5 (5th Edition D&D)

[Dias Ex Machina]

The gears are officially moving for the ultimate edition of the Amethyst Core rules. That’s right, 5th Edition D&D, probably our most controversial announcement related to our 2013 kickstarter. But this is not a playtest just for Amethyst, but for Ultramodern5 as well—the successor of our wildly popular modern update of 4th Edition fantasy rules. We will be posting open playtest rules on our Google+ DEM playtest page and on our Facebook Page.

Who's interested?

https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/114761090886398981707/communities/114077365073812711269

https://www.facebook.com/groups/934062666604855/

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

Here are some ideas to expect with the upcoming 5th Edition D&D adaptation of Amethyst:

Although we’re going to maintain the 5th Edition philosophy the best we can, we won’t shy away from new mechanics if it will help explore our setting better or increase player enjoyment. Per the basic tenets of Amethyst, there will be a downplay of deity intervention and alignments. Increased customization (an essential aspect of Ultramodern4) will always be running goal. 5E Backgrounds and our staple Lifepaths will be amalgamating, and we’ll probably fold in UM4 ladders into it for good measure (still not sure how that will play out). There will still be six tech levels even though bonuses only go up to +3 (it worked for 13th Age).
I really love paragon paths/prestige classes, so much so that I inserted them into our 13th Age edition. It may be something as simple as a 11th level “advanced background”—One additional bonus, some fluff, and a proficiency or two. The alternate is to have them be a trio of “feats” to replace the ability score improvements.
Currently the playtest release schedule will start with the races, and then dive into backgrounds, with classes following shortly behind. In addition, although billed as optional, we will be offering feats. And yes, we’re putting in minions. We may even play with the mook ability brought over from 13th Age.

 

[Nergal Pendragon]

Well, I'm interested, just for trying it out.

 

[Inchoroi]

I'm in!

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

Here is the first file.

Races.
And yes, we are trying some things out...which we often do.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B62eCCVnMxF1VDR6dlQ3ZWJheGM/view?usp=sharing

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

We originally were going to avoid all those tables in the Backgrounds section. Many of them felt generic, and I never required random rolling to define my character. Plus the PHB offered up 11 backgrounds, and Amethyst 5E will have more than 40 (meaning 40+ pages of backgrounds). However, under reflection, I couldn’t leave our backgrounds at such a disadvantage. However, instead of three generic tables, I went for one detailed “background” table, offering very specific options for a character’s backstory. Oddly enough, this single table ended up being almost as large as 5E’s 3 tables. It’s a quality over quantity thing. Because of these additions, Backgrounds are going to take a few more days to upload.

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

Backgrounds are finally done. The reason for the delay can be seen in the playtest file. At 16,000 words and 28 pages long, it’s twice as long as the PHB’s offering, and we have 34 backgrounds to their 13. Expect the file uploaded this weekend. We couldn’t leave mechanics alone, inserting actual advantages to certain paths as well as unique feats. These backgrounds are not all equal, and we are okay with that.

 

[PnPgamer]

I guess i could join... So this is to playtest somw of your custom content?

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

Yes.

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

Like most Amethyst products, we are not introducing all new fantasy classes. Here are the new rules regarding them. Most of the additions involve new archetypes.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B62eCCVnMxF1QmgtSHBtR0IyMmM/view?usp=sharing