D&D 5E Grumbling about New (and Announced) Releases

[Charlaquin]

I have mixed feelings. I really like the direction 5e has been moving in mechanically with these recent releases. The changes to races and monsters that we’re starting to see are very much what I’ve wanted from D&D, pretty much since 5e’s release - they’re revisiting ideas that I think worked very well from a design perspective, but were just too polarizing at the time of the 5e playtest to make it. It looks like a sign that the general audience’s taste is beginning to shift in a direction that is better aligned with my own.

On the other hand, the subject matter doesn’t interest me as much. While a magic school campaign could be interesting, Strixhaven is very much not what I would want a D&D magic school to look like. It works great for an M:tG take on a magic school, but… I don’t know, D&D’s brand of magic and M:tG’s brand of magic are both very distinctive, and I don’t think they really mesh well. None of the M:tG settings have really appealed to me for this reason. I love both games, and I love their respective lore, but for me they aren’t a good match for each other.

Similarly, I love the idea of a faewild campaign, but Witchlight does not look at all like what I would want out of such a thing. It’s not that it’s too whimsical exactly, more that its brand of whimsy just doesn’t quite resonate right with me. I don’t know, it’s hard to describe but it’s just not the vibes I’m looking for.

The Critical Role campaign just isn’t for me. I like Critical Role as a passive form of entertainment, but I have no desire to play in that world myself. I imagine my feelings towards Critical Role is similar to how some folks feel about published settings in general - that feeling of “why would I want to run a game in Matt Mercer’s setting? Sure, it’s got some cool ideas, but it isn’t mine.”

Fizban’s I am actually pretty stoked for though. I wasn’t at first because I don’t really care that much about gem dragons, and I figured they were going to be its main selling point. But the more we’ve learned about the book, the more it seems like it’s going to be much broader than that, with stats for lots of other types of dragons, along with dragon-themed magic items, spells, races, subclasses, gifts, etc. So, I’m definitely into it.

We’re also getting strong signals that one of the two upcoming setting books will be Spelljammer, or at least something incorporating elements of Spelljammer and Planescape. And I have no interest in that. But, I’m holding out hope that the other will be Dark Sun, which I would be thrilled for.

 

[darjr]

I'm OK with the newer releases. Though I do see the tad bit of fatigue setting in, maybe? But then exciting things get announced and wheeeee there I go.

I do wish Goodman Games would do more in the 5e space in more of the "reincarnated" style. They do seem bent on doing 5e versions of other stuff besides TSR/WotC. If you wan't more of that definitely pick up their FreeRPG day offerings and encourage more.

Free RPG Day is One Week Away|Goodman Games

goodman-games.com

 

[niklinna]

I can't say recent stuff has grabbed my attention either, but then I've been out of the loop. My social circles have changed a lot in the last couple years and I'm pretty out of touch with most of my old gamer friends. I'm currently just alternating two games (Torg & Blades in the Dark) each week with one group. A5E has got me interested in D&D again but it's gonna take a bit for me to find a group to play with. So far Gears of Revolution and Raiders of the Serpent Sea both look very interesting, but I'm sure there are other things out there I would enjoy (possibly even a homebrew). I joined a Pathfinder 2 group partway into Age of Ashes and really didn't enjoy either the system or the adventure.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

I didn't want to rain on the parade in the thread about the newly announced Critical Role adventure, but I'm just not excited at all about it - or for that matter the Dragon book, the Feywild adventure, or the upcoming magic college setting.

Some could perhaps attribute this to burn-out - after all, I've purchased (and used) many of the official 5e books over the years. However, I think there's something more to it. I still look at third party stuff for my once-in-a-blue-moon 5e game. I get excited about releases for other systems. I eagerly backed Level Up.

I think it's the high magic feel.

Anyone else feel similarly?

Yes.

I would buy a new yawning portal however in a heartbeat.

 

[jgsugden]

If I made a list of my top 9 most desired books/products, they'd include:

1.) Manual of the Planes - Spelljammer, Planescape, and deep discussion of the elemental planes, hells, transitive planes, etc...
2.) Dark Sun Sourcebook - With a new Adventure Path Beginning that starts where Freedom began and sets up an adventure path.
3.) Psionics Handbook
4.) Forgottn Realms - Circa 1357 DR (Time of the Grey Box as a new updated boxed set)
5.) Modern Magic (A D&D setting where magic went away, the world developed to current technology, and then magic returned and we see magic and science together)
6.) Gamma World (Seriously approached, notsilly like in 4E)
7.)War of the Lance - an updated revision of the War of the Lance adventures with Krynn Setting Rules
8.) Terrain Handbook - Rules for different situations, such as underwater, in the Astral Plane, Ships, etc...
9.) Far Realm Rulebook - Not for adventures in the Far Realm, but for handling the influence of the Far Realm on the main universe - aberrations, weirdspace, etc...

However, I liked getting something on the Feywild, although my version would be a bit less 'Alice in Wonderland' and a bit more Grimm's Fairytales. I also am looking forward to the Exandria adventure path.

 

[ECMO3]

I didn't want to rain on the parade in the thread about the newly announced Critical Role adventure, but I'm just not excited at all about it - or for that matter the Dragon book, the Feywild adventure, or the upcoming magic college setting.

Some could perhaps attribute this to burn-out - after all, I've purchased (and used) many of the official 5e books over the years. However, I think there's something more to it. I still look at third party stuff for my once-in-a-blue-moon 5e game. I get excited about releases for other systems. I eagerly backed Level Up.

I think it's the high magic feel.

Anyone else feel similarly?

I am not overly excited about any of them either.

What I would be excited about is another 5E adventure centered around a different location in Ferun - Calimsham, Shadowdale, Halruaa, Samarach or Rasheman.

 

[Umbran]

I didn't want to rain on the parade...

I want to take a moment to laud your choice - it is okay to not like a thing, and talk about it, but taking it to a thread was a thoughtful move.

in the thread about the newly announced Critical Role adventure, but I'm just not excited at all about it - or for that matter the Dragon book, the Feywild adventure, or the upcoming magic college setting.

I don't care about the magic-college setting, or the Critical Role adventure. I don't currently have a strong use for the dragon book, but it find it good that it has been made. And I decided I wanted to invest in the Feywild adventure - because I have a specific plan for it.

I think it's the high magic feel.

Anyone else feel similarly?

About the high-magic feel being an issue? Not in the least. But then, my D&D play is generally mixed in with playing vastly different games, so I don't get a constant diet of the same thing all the time.

Has my desire for continuing releases for a system waned before? Certainly. If I'm not going to be running a system, I generally lose interest in products for that system.

 

[Retreater]

Wasn't there something about Dark Tower and Goodman Games?

I have a few of their OAR line. It seems a nit picky thing, but it will depend on if it's available in PDF format. All my gaming is online now, and without access to things like scanned maps, text I can copy and put in a chat box, it just wouldn't see use at my "table."
Which is why I haven't picked up Elemental Evil.

I mean...a book, all about Dragons. Just Dragons. Awesome.

Just not for me. I rarely use dragons. They're not especially interesting, nor is there a good variety. Give me undead that can be vanquished by all levels of characters, with a great necromancer subclass and magic items, and maybe a few sample lairs. Or lower planes creatures, aberrations.
Dragons don't excite me. Dragons are the "Big Bang Theory" of D&D monsters.

They also just released Ravenloft and Rime of the Frost Maiden, two very bleak and dark books. I don't think the tone is lightening as much as you think it is.

Wasn't the new Ravenloft kinda "toned down" and made more friendly? That was my impression from what I read about it.

 

[humble minion]

I'm a bit lukewarm on the upcoming releases too, to be honest.

Witchlight - I'm a player rather than a GM at this point, and we'll be starting a new campaign soon. Not going to buy this cos i might end up playing it!

Strixhaven I was very keen on, but it appears a lot of pagecount will be eaten up by adventures, which is something i really hate in my setting books. Will probably buy it anyway.

Fizban's, well, I like a good monster book, but ALL dragons is a bit same-y. Undecided.

Mordenkainen's ... there's probably going to be an awful lot of reprints here, but hopefully we'll have some new stuff (and preferably some new racial feats, monsters etc) here too. I'll wait a bit on this one..

The new CR adventure, well, I'm disappointed to be honest cos as i said, we're going to need a new adventure to start in a few months and i was really hoping the new release was going to be the anticipated/legendary/apocryphal Lantan/Spelljammer one. But again, I won't buy it cos I might end up playing it.

Still, while WotCs recent and planned output has been pretty hit or miss for me, there's loads of third-party stuff filling in the gaps. My Southlands, Sina Una, and Iron Kingdoms kickstarter reward hardcopies should be arriving in the next few weeks, then by April or so next year there'll also be Boricubos, Tanares, and Beast World. The great thing about modern D&D is that if WotC isn't releasing stuff that grabs you, there's always someone else...

And we do KNOW that there's two classic settings being released this year. Sheer law of averages says there'll be one of thos that I'm very keen on. And while i'm a bit each-way on how Witchlight and Strixhaven will work as D&D settings/campaigns, I'm glad they were made because they represent WotC pushing the envelope of what D&D can be, which indicates a willingness to take risks that augurs well for the settings like Dark Sun that I DO want to see down the line.

 

[el-remmen]

I feel similarly (though the Fizban ToC made me at least curious to peek a copy in the store some - I have it in the back of my mind to run a homebrew Dragonlance game some day and dragon stuff is helpful). But I am glad there is stuff for other people to get excited about. At least half the fun of D&D, for me, is converting/adapting/creating stuff, so I feel like I have no end of stuff that is either new to me or can be made to feel new to my players without having to be excited about the new stuff coming out.