Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="whearp" data-source="post: 5929121" data-attributes="member: 67648"><p>I really need some help here. Can someone give me insight into the reasoning for playing without a map and minis? I ask because I ran a playtest over the weekend and found that I absolutely hated the combat. I've been playing D&amp;D for just about fifteen years now, and used visualizations for combat for all but maybe my first year. Aside from a couple hitches here and there, I found that 4e's tactical combat was extremely enjoyable and exciting on both sides of the table. Running playtest combat was hell, though. I don't see the appeal of keeping track of sometimes dozens of creatures in my head... especially when the monsters are so terribly bland to begin with. It took all my attention and faculties to just keep track of the basics of what was going on, let alone breathe any kind of flavor or life into the encounters. The end result felt like an old Final Fantasy game instead of anything dynamic and fun. What's so bad about the grid? Why not use the tools we have to allow freedom to focus on other aspects of play? Am I a poor DM for preferring clear rules and aids for running a game? I really am just confused and concerned here... I want to be excited about the new version, but so far the playtest has me feeling more dread than excitement.</p></blockquote><p></p>

[QUOTE="whearp, post: 5929121, member: 67648"] I really need some help here. Can someone give me insight into the reasoning for playing without a map and minis? I ask because I ran a playtest over the weekend and found that I absolutely hated the combat. I've been playing D&D for just about fifteen years now, and used visualizations for combat for all but maybe my first year. Aside from a couple hitches here and there, I found that 4e's tactical combat was extremely enjoyable and exciting on both sides of the table. Running playtest combat was hell, though. I don't see the appeal of keeping track of sometimes dozens of creatures in my head... especially when the monsters are so terribly bland to begin with. It took all my attention and faculties to just keep track of the basics of what was going on, let alone breathe any kind of flavor or life into the encounters. The end result felt like an old Final Fantasy game instead of anything dynamic and fun. What's so bad about the grid? Why not use the tools we have to allow freedom to focus on other aspects of play? Am I a poor DM for preferring clear rules and aids for running a game? I really am just confused and concerned here... I want to be excited about the new version, but so far the playtest has me feeling more dread than excitement. [/QUOTE]

Verification