D&D 5E How are you feeling about 5e?

[Stoat]

I feel meh. Meh to pessimistic.

I'm happy with my 4E game, and I know that I can play 4E for several more years without getting tired of it. I haven't felt a need for a new edition.

Nothing I've heard from WotC so far has made me excited about 5e. To the contrary, i don't feel like WotC is talking to me when it talks about 5e. Mearls and Cook (and whoever else) are talking about 5e solving problems that I don't have and having features that I'm not particularly interested in.

Moreover, I'll believe in a modular, balanced 5e when I see it. I don't have much faith that WotC can produce it.

AND. Nobody is talking about how WotC is going to sell the modular game they're making. Will I be able to play the game I want to play at launch, or will I have to wait for whatever module to come out? What are they going to charge for each module? Really, what does "module" mean in this context? I'm an optimistic person by nature, but I can't help be skeptical about 5e.

 

[FreeTheSlaves]

I'm feeling cautiously optimistic, but then again I've always felt this way in the lead up to the new edition. Going by past experience I'm concerned that too many sacred cows will be sacrificed in the name of progress, and that the option of refining mechanics will be jettisoned in preference of introducing new, but unrefined mechanics.

What I'm looking forward to includes:
- WotC bearing in mind the 'world building' as they develop things
- fully supported theater of the mind combat
- a mix and match modularity between class, theme, background & multi-class
- simple to complex character choice
- the latest take on the Paladin class
- the brief, simple yet complex monster design
- inserting all that historical naming lore in a modern game design

I mean seriously, if they can apply modern game design to all the coolness from editions past and then add new stuff to pleasantly surprise, well I'll find the money to burn.

 

[FinalSonicX]

I'm very interested in 5e but I do have to say that it needs to be good to convince me to abandon my current homebrew 3.5 system.

I loved 2e, 3.5, and PF, but haven't played anything before 2nd ed. I still play all of them and enjoy them, but ultimately they serve me in different capacities as a player and as a DM.

first and foremost, I'm a DM. I DM 3.5 with my own homebrew modifications because it gives me the ease of use and ease of modification that I want - and it's easy to look at and understand the math or at least the patterns. It's highly flexible IMO. I like PF because it takes 3.5 and runs with it while cleaning up a few messy parts. That said, it still has flaws.

As a player, I play 3.5/PF but also a ton of 2e. I like 2e for the style it presents - it's a very different experience from 3.5 and it's enjoyable to me while playing but I don't think I would ever DM it because the math looks unwieldy and overall I just dislike large portions of the core system design (particularly the resolution mechanics and inconsistency in various areas).

Beyond all of this there's the issue of "backwards compatibility". For me to convert, the system needs to be flexible enough that I feel like I can add onto it as a player or a DM without a lot of fuss and without having to purchase a ton of books. I want to be able to carry all my stuff I've made for previous editions into the new edition (with some modifications of course) and not have any major problems. 4e I feel was too much like "starting over" in this regard and that was a major limiting factor when I was considering whether or not to convert to it.

what I'm trying to say here is that I'm waiting and seeing. Things sound interesting so far, but there are ultimately 3 outcomes of 5e's release for me: either I love the system and love the style/play experience and it becomes my standard DM and Player system of choice (it would really have to wow me), or I love the experience but dislike the system (in which case I'd play it as a player but not DM probably), or I dislike it as a system and as a game and I discard it entirely and wait for whatever comes next before I take another look. Here's to hoping it's one of the first two outcomes!

 

[Bluenose]

I am currently extremely pessimistic about 5e being a game I will like. Some of the things they've said will be part of it are things that I do not believe should be part of any game that claims to be D&D. Some of the other things they've said make me think that they're going to make a game that I will not enjoy playing. I will wait and see for more information, but I believe this is another edition I will skip.

 

[Iosue]

A BECMI/4E hybrid could suit me right down to the ground. I think I might be able to tweak 5E to get as close to that as heretofore has been possible. I remain cautiously optimistic.

Somebody XP Crazy Jerome for me. He took the words right off my keyboard.

 

[P1NBACK]

Somebody XP Crazy Jerome for me. He took the words right off my keyboard.

Do you guys want Race as Class?

 

[Viking Bastard]

Do you guys want Race as Class?

No.

 

[Shadeydm]

The design mantra of appealing to fans of every edition is seductive, however, I don't think I've seen enough to get excited about. If they can develop a base game from which the DM can essentially cherry pick thier favorite aspects of other editions and easily add them on it will be quite an accomplishment. If too many of the assumptions of 4E are the default of DDN color me disappointed.

The bottom line is if my group switches I'm likely to do as well after all I'm playing 4E and having fun anyway.

 

[P1NBACK]

Somebody XP Crazy Jerome for me. He took the words right off my keyboard.

No.

Maybe this belongs in a new thread, but I'm curious what you want from BECMI and what to keep from 4E.

For BECMI:

Do you want treasure for XP? The phase combat system? Defensive movement system? Bonus XP for Prime Requisite? Hit Dice? Thief Skills? Saving Throw categories? Differing XP tables for each class? What exactly?

For 4E:

Healing surges? Powers? Rituals? Action economy? Static defenses? Armor system? 1/2 level bonuses? Save Ends effects? Conditions? Grid combat?

I'm just really not sure what a BECMI/4E mashup would look like. They are very different engines.

 

[The Red King]

I'm not all that psyched for 5th, anfter how 4th turned out.

I feel like they just want us to buy new books every 3 to 5 years.