D&D 5E How Many 5Es Can There Be?

[Fifth Element]

Oh, 5e can definitely be improved upon, and has, by other companies. I don't see the 2024 books as an improvement, certainly not worth buying my books again for.

If you're done with the time machine, can I use it next? I bet I can find something more worthwhile to use it for than looking at RPG books that haven't been published yet.

 

[Zardnaar]

My bad for the classes but yeah the point remains. 5e has seen remarkably little power creep.

I mean sure Curse of Strahd does get a bit easier when you have two clerics. Gee that’s a shock. That’s not Tasha’s that’s just players making specific characters for the campaign.

Its a splash dip only. 1 cleric/Sorcerer2. Peace Cleric is plenty powerful by itself.

On an old tier list the light cleric is S tier but it's now bumped down to A, Peacecand Order probably in the S position and Twilight cleric is above them all by itself.

We has fighters rolling a 2 thinking they missed but add it up and sure enough they hit.

I'm the one playing the order cleric been wanting to see one in action since Theros landed it was that or Eloquence bard.

Wife's addicted to sorcerers and she loves the cleric dip. This is her 3rd or 4th one.

 

[Micah Sweet]

If you're done with the time machine, can I use it next? I bet I can find something more worthwhile to use it for than looking at RPG books that haven't been published yet.

I can always count on you.

 

[Hussar]

Its a splash dip only. 1 cleric/Sorcerer2. Peace Cleric is plenty powerful by itself.

On an old tier list the light cleric is S tier but it's now bumped down to A, Peacecand Order probably in the S position and Twilight cleric is above them all by itself.

We has fighters rolling a 2 thinking they missed but add it up and sure enough they hit.

I'm the one playing the order cleric been wanting to see one in action since Theros landed it was that or Eloquence bard.

Wife's addicted to sorcerers and she loves the cleric dip. This is her 3rd or 4th one.

But, that's the point. The difference between S and A is so little that it's much more about the player than the actual mechanics. Unless people are incredibly laser beam focused, 5e does not particularly care what your group is - it will be effective. I mean, I've just run Rats of Waterdeep for three different groups, three completely different line ups and heck, one group had 5 characters and one only had 3. It didn't make an enormous difference. 5e's pretty forgiving about balance issues.

 

[Zardnaar]

But, that's the point. The difference between S and A is so little that it's much more about the player than the actual mechanics. Unless people are incredibly laser beam focused, 5e does not particularly care what your group is - it will be effective. I mean, I've just run Rats of Waterdeep for three different groups, three completely different line ups and heck, one group had 5 characters and one only had 3. It didn't make an enormous difference. 5e's pretty forgiving about balance issues.

I woukd disagree. I think I was one of the first to identify some of the S tier subclasses at the time (2014/15).

We were dropping CR 20 critters level 8 or taking on encounters 5 times over a deadly encounter RAW. Think a lich lasted a round or two.

Our early partied included things like lire bards, light clerics, sharpshooter hunter ranger, moon Druid, battlemaster fighter, vengeance paladin, diviners, totem barbarians

Essentially we accidently picked the S and A tier stuff (at the time) and noticed that 5E monsters were very easy RAW. Tgatcwasvour 1st and 2 campaigns of 5E.

 

[nerowow]

As someone who only got into D&D in the 5e era, I am excited to see if any of these games will have staying power (like Pathfinder).

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

As someone who only got into D&D in the 5e era, I am excited to see if any of these games will have staying power (like Pathfinder).

The good news is they don't really have to have staying power, beyond having PDFs and an SRD available. The main goal is just for Kobold and Cubicle 7 and everyone else to continue selling their 5E-compatible material, now and in the future.

That said, I've really come around to a lot of the changes Kobold Press is making and what we've seen so far of Cubicle 7's stuff is of very high quality, so I could see both of them surviving as ongoing hard copy products.

 

[Doctor Futurity]

Probably to get grognards to explode

T&T in the 80s is to AD&D what Dragonbane is to 5E today. That is to say: a counter product that does a different fantasy delving experience on purpose, and only shares ideology and genre but not rules.

Now that said, I would lump Pathfinder and Shadowdark in the camp if “D&D likes” myself. Ymmv!

 

[Doctor Futurity]

I think the market will essentially split three ways: the vast majority will shift to 2024 5e (either whole-cloth or with some sort of hybrid with 2014); there will be a significant minority of 2014-only holdouts; and there will be "the rest". And while within that grouping there will be a few relative successes, in the grand scheme they will essentially be a rounding error.

(For myself, I backed both "Level Up" and "Tales of the Valiant", but I'm extremely unlikely ever to play either. Instead, both will most likely serve as a toolbox of bits to be incorporated into D&D. Published house rules, if you will. Whether that's 2014 5e, 2024 5e, or indeed if my current campaign turns out to be the end of the road, remains to be seen.)

I would love to play Level Up! And TotV when it arrives but if they dont offer good Roll20 support I’m outta luck. I do think Shard Tabletop will handle TotV though, so I can use that platform.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I would lump Pathfinder and Shadowdark in the camp if “D&D likes” myself. Ymmv!

Yeah, there are people who don't like describing D&D-style play as "D&D" when talking about other games, but I'm not sure what a good alternative would be.

Anyone watching a game of Pathfinder or Shadowdark would immediately recognize them as being incredibly close relatives of D&D.