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Message: <blockquote data-quote="enrious" data-source="post: 5775922" data-attributes="member: 2126">Here's the thing, we all know it, we just express it differently.WotC has two challenges facing them with the new version - expectations of past and expectations of future.Expectations of past encompasses not only the mechanical aspects of prior editions, from races as class in OD&D to the way saving throws work in 4e.  They've got to figure out a way to make the majority of players of those prior versions (and of those, the ones willing to go with a new version) want to use the new mechanics of the new game.  That alone is an immense challenge.At the same time, they have to try to discern what that emotive and evocative narrative was from each game, and here they can't simply look at the mechanics because this isn't a simple mathematical formula.  It ranges from all of the emotional baggage (good and bag) that we have when we look back to prior editions and the campaigns in them.  For example and to take a simple example, how should the fighter and paladin be approached?In 1e with UA, A fighter was equal to the Cavalier while the Paladin was a sub-class of the Cavalier.  But the pre-UA model had them as a sub-class of fighter - which was the right answer?Of course, later versions all handled things differently (such as 2e's Warrior umbrella or 3e's class equality), but my point is - no matter how you handle this, a group of people out there will criticize you for not doing it the way that a specific prior version did it.Yes, there is a rich heritage of D&D past, things that we all have have in common, even if the details change (Rust Monster).  However, going forward, we as a group will not look at those areas of commonality - rather we will bitterly complain when someone else's gris-gris is chosen over our own.  And that's simple human nature - not to be happy with what we have, but unhappy with what we don't.And *that* is why the expectation of past is a challenge facing the designers.  It also ties into expectations of the future, because they are both the same thing.   We want tomorrow what we had yesterday - and that's an expectation that can't be met.If this is to succeed, not only must the designers coax out of us those elements from the past that were truly vital to our experiences but we as the players, the consumers, must have realistic expectations of what reality will bring - and both must meet at the present.</blockquote>

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