D&D 5E I'm feeling really good about 5E, but where to from here?

[Mercurius]

I mean, you could just try playing the game and creating stuff yourself…..who’d have thunk that?!

Uh, that's what I do - but thanks for the...sage advice. I just like buying new stuff, getting inspired by ideas, etc.

 

[Nellisir]

I mean, you could just try playing the game and creating stuff yourself…..who’d have thunk that?!

Not everyone has the time, ability, or what-have-you.

I've run a homebrew campaign world since the late 1980's. I had more pages of house rules for 2e than the Player's Handbook. By the end of 3.5 I'd rewritten all the classes, races, added a slew of feats, prestige classes, monsters, templates, spells, and magic items. I also burned out. I'm getting into 5e, but I'm a father and a husband and an employee and I don't have the time or the energy to create from scratch everything that's in my head - and I've found, through experience, that other people are usually interested in the same kind of thing I am. WotC has provided support in previous editions of D&D; it's not crazy to expect the same here.

 

[Mercurius]

* WotC focuses on the IP. While official release of books (MM2, Planescape, etc) would still happen, albeit at a much slower rate than previous editions, WotC places most of the emphasis on expanding the influence of the IP. This includes things like direct support for things like Roll20, online PC generators (I'd love to see something similar to the 2e CD ROM), video games, cartoon, toys. It's freaking HASBRO for Christ's sake.

My issue with this is that if they focus most of their time on non-RPG stuff, I'm worried we won't see much RPG stuff. I mean I'm glad they want to strengthen the brand, but I just hope that the actual RPG doesn't get lost in the shuffle.

* Adventure modules would mostly be provided by 3rd party publishers. Maybe some sort of quality control in place with licenses, but let the 3rd parties provide the meat of the adventures. IMO, this is how you bridge all editions. For example, Kobold Press puts forth a more modern aesthetic and design, while someone like me puts out something that looks like it would fit right next to the early 80s stuff. You have all previous edition styles available to play with the 5e ruleset

This definitely seems most likely, except for the presumably twice-yearly big story events.

* Continue with AL, but have a bunch of options where adventures can be completed in one long setting that aren't tied to any particular campaign world, and can be drag-and-dropped into home campaigns. Very similar to the AD&D modules in this way. I suspect one-shot adventures are already being done after HotDQ, but I also see them all tied to FR. A pity.

I'm hoping for more 1E-style modules (32-pagers) but don't see WotC focusing on that. We'll probably see something the Dungeon Crawl Classics line that Goodman Games put out for 3E/4E.

We are certainly going to get both supplements and adventures. We are in fact already getting the latter, maybe they are not that many, but we get them.

Only as big stories. I'm hoping to see more one-shots and AD&D-style modules, but as I said above, I don't really expect it from WotC.

To fully honest tho, I am not that interested in "support". Even tho I did buy my share of books in the 3e era, my original attitude towards a new edition of D&D is to grab the core books and then retreat to my cave and play my own creations with my friends, rather than "keep up" with publications. In fact, I detest the whole idea that I have to "keep up" with the community, and if that's required for a certain hobby I am probably just staying away from that hobby as a whole.

OTOH I am clearly not against support... if designers want to publish and gamers want to buy, it's all good for me.

Well I agree, but I do like buying a reading setting material, and splats that are strong in fluff and ideas. But I'm hoping for a quality-over-quantity approach.

Now while I'm glad they're avoiding the splat-a-month approach of the last couple editions, I do like the idea of something coming out every month, that there's something nice about knowing there's some D&D product coming out most months. It makes the edition feel alive. It could be on a rotating basis: splat, short adventure, part of a long adventure, setting book, reference book, etc. Imagine 2-3 splats a year, 4-6 adventures, 1-2 setting books, 1-2 miscellaneous other books - maybe 10 products a year. That would still be a more moderate total output than previous editions, but still give the feeling of the game being supported and developed.

I expect we'll hear something around New Year's after the DMG comes out. Setting books seem the most likely thing to come out next: probably Forgotten Realms but you never know, WotC might surprise us all with a new take on Greyhawk or Planescape to please the old crowd. After that we'll see. A lot's riding obviously on the long-term sales of 5e and they won't really have a handle on that until probably six months or more from now (though the PHB at least has been selling quite well in the short term I hear).

I agree that we'll know more around New Year's - I'm guessing that's when they plan to publish the license, which will then create a cascade of events. Depending upon how that looks, we may either see a massive d20-esque boom, or a maelstrom of nerdrage.

 

[The_Gneech]

Well Goodman Games has already jumped into the fray, and I suspect there'll be a pretty strong PDF adventures market; WotC has an "Elemental Evil" event coming after Tyranny of the Dragons finishes, and will probably keep doing such things for a while.

I suspect that if we buy them, the adventures will come.

-The Gneech

 

[Li Shenron]

Well I agree, but I do like buying a reading setting material, and splats that are strong in fluff and ideas. But I'm hoping for a quality-over-quantity approach.

Now while I'm glad they're avoiding the splat-a-month approach of the last couple editions, I do like the idea of something coming out every month, that there's something nice about knowing there's some D&D product coming out most months. It makes the edition feel alive. It could be on a rotating basis: splat, short adventure, part of a long adventure, setting book, reference book, etc. Imagine 2-3 splats a year, 4-6 adventures, 1-2 setting books, 1-2 miscellaneous other books - maybe 10 products a year. That would still be a more moderate total output than previous editions, but still give the feeling of the game being supported and developed.

I definitely agree on quality over quantity, and I too like strong fluff and ideas.

The problem with a "living" edition, is that I'm not the type that can ever keep up. I simply never played that game that much, even when I was playing it regularly, it was typically maybe maximum once every 2 weeks, and never with more than 2 groups. So the problem for me, is that if I feel I have to keep up, then I rather avoid a game altoghether, or stop at the core and as I said, "retreat to my cave" and ignore the edition evolution.

This is not a fantasy but a real problem for other people as well. Just read the recent interview to Mike Mearls when he explained that main problem of 4e was that the designers assumed everybody had in fact been following the whole evolution of 3e via splatbooks, 3.5 revision, and big modular books such as Bo9S and Complete Arcane/Mage. Mearls explains that 4e wasn't a huge step forward if you take into account all the evolution of 3e through splatbooks, but then WotC discovered that a large number of gamers did not in fact follow (at least not everything), and were not able to recognize 4e as a natural step but rather as an oddball coming out of nowhere.

 

[Mercurius]

I definitely agree on quality over quantity, and I too like strong fluff and ideas.

The problem with a "living" edition, is that I'm not the type that can ever keep up. I simply never played that game that much, even when I was playing it regularly, it was typically maybe maximum once every 2 weeks, and never with more than 2 groups. So the problem for me, is that if I feel I have to keep up, then I rather avoid a game altoghether, or stop at the core and as I said, "retreat to my cave" and ignore the edition evolution.

This is not a fantasy but a real problem for other people as well. Just read the recent interview to Mike Mearls when he explained that main problem of 4e was that the designers assumed everybody had in fact been following the whole evolution of 3e via splatbooks, 3.5 revision, and big modular books such as Bo9S and Complete Arcane/Mage. Mearls explains that 4e wasn't a huge step forward if you take into account all the evolution of 3e through splatbooks, but then WotC discovered that a large number of gamers did not in fact follow (at least not everything), and were not able to recognize 4e as a natural step but rather as an oddball coming out of nowhere.

I hear what you are saying about not being able to keep up with the evolution of the rules, although for me this is a separate thing from my interest in a "living game" and ongoing products. Actually, in a way it is because I don't play enough that I want ongoing products. RPGs is one of those hobbie where, for most--at least serious fans--more time is spent outside of the actual core activity than in it. In other words, most serious RPG fans actually spend more time doing things tangential to playing than actually playing.

My group, currently on hiatus, was scheduled to play every two weeks. But because we're all adults in our late 30s to mid 40s, we have jobs and spouses and children and inevitably that every two weeks isn't met. Buying and enjoying RPG books is one of the ways--in addition to En World, reading blogs, and fiddling with campaign ideas--I enjoy the hobby other than actually playing. In truth, I would say that over the last 30+ years of me playing D&D, I've probably gotten more total enjoyment from those secondary activities than actually playing.

To put all of that another way, the main reason I want product--albeit with the caveat of quality over quantity--is so that I can browse through it, add it to my bookshelf, and pull it down every once in awhile for reference or reading enjoyment. This is one of the reason why I prefer setting books and other fluff-heavy products.

 

[Hand of Evil]

I am hopeful that with 3rd parties producing material we get some support BUT my biggest fear has not changed and that is; all we see is old material re-branded to 5e.

 

[the Jester]

They haven't explained their plans, neither in the short-term nor in the long-term either.

>snip<

Do they plan on doing a starter product for beginners?

Uh... there IS a Starter Set for beginners. It came out before the PH. It was the first official release for 'finished' 5e. And there's the Basic Rules for free online, also aimed somewhat at beginners and referenced in the aforementioned Starter Set.

 

[TerraDave]

We have two things from the Mearls.

1. Story, story, story. He repeated this in the SUVUDU interview on the frontpage, as he has over and over.
2. The "six big announcements", which I think was in the earlier SUVUDU interview.

So, more thematic releases, including some flavoured player stuff. AND?????? OGL? MMO? VTT? DDI? WTF?

Guess we will find out soon.

 

[Mercurius]

I am hopeful that with 3rd parties producing material we get some support BUT my biggest fear has not changed and that is; all we see is old material re-branded to 5e.

I completely agree. While I'm fine with some old material, and realize that it is inevitable, I want to ing see something new - especially in the setting domain. I actually look forward to 5E Forgotten Realms as I'm curious how they're both going to tie it all together and try to out-do the gorgeous 3E book. But I hope after that they focus on something new, even while slowly updating classic settings.

Uh... there IS a Starter Set for beginners. It came out before the PH. It was the first official release for 'finished' 5e. And there's the Basic Rules for free online, also aimed somewhat at beginners and referenced in the aforementioned Starter Set.

Yeah, although I think the starter set was designed more for old players coming back than new players learning the game.

We have two things from the Mearls.

1. Story, story, story. He repeated this in the SUVUDU interview on the frontpage, as he has over and over.
2. The "six big announcements", which I think was in the earlier SUVUDU interview.

So, more thematic releases, including some flavoured player stuff. AND?????? OGL? MMO? VTT? DDI? WTF?

Guess we will find out soon.

The "six big announcements" is new to me. Are those supposed to be six MORE big announcements, or six including something we've already seen? But yeah, the game license will be one. I'm also guessing Dragon/Dungeon. Possibly FR setting book. Etc.