D&D 4E If you had to choose; end of 4e OR 4.5e?

[Ydars]

I don't want an edition war here; I am NOT anti 4E!

I want to know what ENWorlders feel in the FOLLOWING scenario (note I am NOT suggesting this will happen, I am just curious). This is MAKE-BELIEVE people. Hopefully we all are good at this (what do you mean you are gamist and don't like all this RP nonsense)?

Jan 2010; WoTC announce that D&D 4E is to be discontinued and wound down. They present EN Worlders with the task of deciding what to do next. The Lord High Morrus puts it to the vote.

So if this happened how would YOU vote?

I know; I have gone POLL mad!!

 

[DandD]

5th edition appearing in 2016. 2012 will be the end of the world, but then everybody gets better a year later, and playing D&D Vista edition for a short time, until 5th edition gets announced. Then 4th edition grognards will join the 3rd, 2nd and 1st edition geezers and complain about 5th edition having mind-link devices to create shared stories, instead of rolling dices...

 

[Calico_Jack73]

2012 isn't the end of the world, just a new cycle. Magic is going to return and people are going to spontaneously turn into Elves, Dwarves, Trolls, and Orks. The USA is going to have to give most of the central and western states back to the Native Americans after a war pitting technology vs. magic & spirits. A Dragon is going to be elected president only to be assassinated shortly after he is put in office.

Seriously though, 4E is the end for me. I'm dropping out at the next edition.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Well, I wonder if WotC will be absorbed by Renraku and have offices in the arcology? I suppose D&D 9.5 might be last edition we get then, considering the great shutdown!

 

[Jack7]

2012. (Dah-da-da-da- Dah-da-da-da-dah - duhm-doom!) The Edition Wars finally catch fire. There is widespread Global Gorming. Net viruses run amok. A runaway internet comet streaks halfway between WOTC and ENWorld. All is chaos. From the ashes of the old world a strange new world emerges, one of super-science, and secret, lost sourcebooks of sorcery. It is a red time, it is a fearsome time. It is a time of simulated blood, urine, sweat, tears, and the destructive fire-mouthed Mok Dorito (in the convenient party-sized 12 pack.)

Thousands of hours later one edition bursts the bonds of splatbooks everywhere to throw off the yoke of past games and emerge as a champion of future! Do you know which one?

By the way Ydars, this thread is going to lead to some very bad places.
Just you watch.

 

[Baumi]

Why is there no option for continuing 4E (just releasing supplements)?

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Why is there no option for continuing 4E (just releasing supplements)?

Well, because the core premise here is that 4E would be over. But you could make your 5E look exactly like 4E. (It's basically the only option if you want to avoid 3E-like pretend-simulationist influences on 4E).

Though I think you'd certainly change a few things to round some corners.

 

[Ydars]

This poll is here because I wanted to see what people would do IN THE ABOVE situation. Of course 4E will continue! I am even writing an adventure for 4E that I hope will someday see the light of day, if only on EN World.

I am really interested in this question "Does people's dislike of 4E actually mean that they would now accept a 4.5E in the next year?"

There is no reality in this question at the present time, it is just a foolish game.

I also hope that people will take this thread in the light-hearted spirit in which it is meant.

 

[Silvercat Moonpaw]

I would hope that D&D is allowed to die. There shouldn't be "One Game To Rule Them All". Instead I'd hope that everyone would take it as a sign that they should branch out and try as many different ideas as possible.

 

[delericho]

I am really interested in this question "Does people's dislike of 4E actually mean that they would now accept a 4.5E in the next year?"

Which rather begs the question: why didn't you ask that?

Personally, I think there's some justification in there being a 4.5e at some point (not so soon, though). The game has been through such a massive rewrite that it was inevitable that there would be teething problems, some of them quite bad. And, in a couple of years it is likely WotC will have taken the game in some directions that they didn't foresee before the launch. So, there could be some justification with doing a 4.5e, to clean up the problem areas, to roll concepts that have become important into the core, and perhaps to expand the game (as the 3.5e core expanded on that of 3e).

In answer to your initial question, though, my preference would be for a 3.5e-derived 5e, possibly done by a different company (but certainly done by a different team, at least in part).

I don't think that is likely, though. I think if 4e does get cancelled, it will probably be due to the Digital Initiative finally being written off and taking the game with it, or due to Hasbro having a particularly rough time and deciding to "focus on our core brands". Either way, I think Hasbro would hold the IP for licensing reasons, and would probably not be interested in investing in the development of any new edition of the game. In other words, I think that if 4e dies prematurely, D&D probably dies with it.