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<blockquote data-quote="Dausuul" data-source="post: 3998404" data-attributes="member: 58197">Hmm... 4E is definitely built with a more coherent cosmology and &quot;ecosystem&quot; in mind, and the fluff and crunch appear to be tied together much more tightly than in 3E.Previous editions were a hodgepodge of elements from classical myth, sword-and-sorcery fantasy, Tolkien, and H.P. Lovecraft, all kludged together.&nbsp; 3E tried to impose a little sanity on the whole thing, but it was mostly cosmetic.4E is redoing everything, adopting elements from previous editions but jettisoning stuff that doesn't fit the overall design.&nbsp; Looking at the cosmology, for instance, every plane in 4E has a well-defined place and reason for existing.&nbsp; The Feywild, the Shadowfell, the Elemental Chaos, the Astral Sea, the Abyss... they all fit neatly together.&nbsp; (The Far Realm still looks bolted-on to me, but that's okay, I never liked it anyhow.)Likewise, the creatures of 4E are built to fit in this new world.&nbsp; Demons, for example, are no longer just generic outsiders with chaotic-evil fluff; their mechanics are built to reflect their status as incarnations of chaos and destruction (get stronger when injured, lots of hit points but poor defenses, et cetera).It does mean some sacrifices in terms of DM flexibility.&nbsp; If you want to build a world that goes against the core assumptions of 4E, the system will fight you harder than it did in 3E.&nbsp; On the other hand, when you go with the core assumptions, the game will be much enhanced.I think the real trick that 4E homebrewers will need to learn is how to re-purpose stuff.&nbsp; Say you feel that the Abyss ought to be a place of intrigue, illusion, and subtle plots rather than rampaging destruction, while the Nine Hells ought to be a warlike realm of marching legions and constant battle on the open field.&nbsp; In 3E, you'd just declare it so.&nbsp; In 4E, you might find it necessary to switch demons with devils; use the &quot;engine of destruction&quot; stats for the warrior devils, and the &quot;subtle manipulator&quot; stats for the treacherous, scheming demons.&nbsp; More work for the DM, but the end result is demons that feel like manipulators and devils that feel like warlords, instead of both being just names slapped on a collection of random special abilities.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Dausuul, post: 3998404, member: 58197"] Hmm... 4E is definitely built with a more coherent cosmology and "ecosystem" in mind, and the fluff and crunch appear to be tied together much more tightly than in 3E. Previous editions were a hodgepodge of elements from classical myth, sword-and-sorcery fantasy, Tolkien, and H.P. Lovecraft, all kludged together. 3E tried to impose a little sanity on the whole thing, but it was mostly cosmetic. 4E is redoing everything, adopting elements from previous editions but jettisoning stuff that doesn't fit the overall design. Looking at the cosmology, for instance, every plane in 4E has a well-defined place and reason for existing. The Feywild, the Shadowfell, the Elemental Chaos, the Astral Sea, the Abyss... they all fit neatly together. (The Far Realm still looks bolted-on to me, but that's okay, I never liked it anyhow.) Likewise, the creatures of 4E are built to fit in this new world. Demons, for example, are no longer just generic outsiders with chaotic-evil fluff; their mechanics are built to reflect their status as incarnations of chaos and destruction (get stronger when injured, lots of hit points but poor defenses, et cetera). It does mean some sacrifices in terms of DM flexibility. If you want to build a world that goes against the core assumptions of 4E, the system will fight you harder than it did in 3E. On the other hand, when you go [i]with[/i] the core assumptions, the game will be much enhanced. I think the real trick that 4E homebrewers will need to learn is how to re-purpose stuff. Say you feel that the Abyss ought to be a place of intrigue, illusion, and subtle plots rather than rampaging destruction, while the Nine Hells ought to be a warlike realm of marching legions and constant battle on the open field. In 3E, you'd just declare it so. In 4E, you might find it necessary to switch demons with devils; use the "engine of destruction" stats for the warrior devils, and the "subtle manipulator" stats for the treacherous, scheming demons. More work for the DM, but the end result is demons that feel like manipulators and devils that feel like warlords, instead of both being just names slapped on a collection of random special abilities. [/QUOTE]

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