D&D 5E Do You Allow/Use Third Party Material?

[ccs]

As the DM I'll use any adventures, settings, ideas, & maps I find interesting - regardless of edition/publisher.
On the players end I almost never allow 3pp stuff. (Especially in PF.) I haven't allowed any 3pp player stuff yet in my 5e game - and probably won't as the groups barely scratching the surface of what they can do with just the WotC material.

 

[Zardnaar]

5E Foes any good for those who are using it? I have been using Quests of Doom from Frog God games and see that on their website.

 

[AaronOfBarbaria]

I give all content for a game, third party or otherwise, the same chance of being used at my table: If I can read it and I find it to not be disruptive to the play experience it can be used. If I find it disruptive to the play experience, the question then becomes if I can easily fix it - if yes, it gets fixed and can be used; if no, it's not for use at my table.

Thus far, I've found a few race options that I don't find disruptive, but I've been having trouble with monsters and spells because the ones I've seen so far seem stuck in a prior edition mindset where certain things are concerned even though they are things which have been deliberately changed so as not to be a common part of 5th edition (to be more specific; I've approved most of the races from Southlands Heroes and Midgard Heroes, and haven't finished reading through all of Fifth Edition Foes or Book of Lost Spells but haven't found what parts I have read to be useful to me).

 

[Ristamar]

In terms of crunch, I usually only turn to 3rd party material for fringe mechanics like expanded carousing tables or additional rules for running a business. When it comes to fluff, though, I'll happily borrow from nearly any source.

 

[FormerlyHemlock]

As the title says. I used to have a dim view of 3pp material back in the 3E days but since the rise of Paizo and the OSR movement I have changed my mind. Most of the crap seems to have died off and I have been using and allowing stuff from Troll Lord Games, Kobold Publishing, Frog God Games, and the EN5ider material.

My DM is somewhat lenient as well with "no furries" allowed and things like Drow, Tieflings and Dragonborn being discouraged but not out right banned. He drew the line at Dragonkin from a Kobold Publishing book though. So no Aaracokra, Gnolls, Catfolk, Werelions etc allowed, Minotaurs are ok due to the classical world tie in. We have seen the Elemental Druids and Tempest Ranger in action from EN5ider. Half human stuff (Genasi) and Aasimar are also ok he doesn't like fiendish blood stuff to much.

From the DM PoV I have used way more 3pp stuff than the WoTC stuff as I have barely used an AP (HotDQ tanked, have not tried Oota or PotA yet).

I've used stuff from Frog God: Fifth Edition Foes, and I gave copies of the Book of Lost Spells to my players and told them to use it as inspiration for spell research. I even handed out a couple of spells from that book directly, in treasure. They're well-done, about on par with PHB spells in terms of power (i.e. some are awesome, some are just okay, a couple are so broken that I would ban them/modify them), but with some really interesting themes. I loved the Warlock's Spirit Doll-themed spells.

 

[fixitgeek]

5E Foes any good for those who are using it? I have been using Quests of Doom from Frog God games and see that on their website.

Yeah the book is very good. It adds a good range of creatures into the mix especially in mid-levels, I found that a few of the challenges in there taxed my players and less of them even in groups are being considered trivial.

 

[mach1.9pants]

Third party DM side? Yes. Player side, nope.

5e foes is great, not perfect mechanically due to being out so early, but gives old school craziness type monster to throw at the players every so often. Keeps them on their toes.

 

[Tallifer]

Yes, I use it and allow it (with discretion).

Using 3rd party stuff means never complaining about the lack of X or Y in the WotC stuff. Pixies, warlords, genasi, various monsters: all readily available.

As a dungeon master, I do not readily accept stuff just for the sake of powergaming however: such as some overpowered feats from 3E or 4E.

 

[pkt77242]

My group uses third party DM products (adventures and monsters) frequently, but for player options it has to be approved by the DM and all players before it is allowed.

 

[Ath'kethin]

Yeah the book is very good. It adds a good range of creatures into the mix especially in mid-levels, I found that a few of the challenges in there taxed my players and less of them even in groups are being considered trivial.

I'll second the "it's very good" vote, but be aware that some of the monsters have been changed a bit from their classic selves; how much of an issue that is depends on you.