Level Up (A5E) My first impression

[Gandalf970]

I went into reading the Adventurer's Guide with a little of O5E predisposition! After 75 pages I took a breath and it is out the window! I have made it through Heritage and Culture! It is all different, all of it. Hill Dwarf culture has community magic! Burrowing haflings with claws, Stoic Orc's! You cannot take the name of something and relate it back to O5E. It is going to be so fun as the cultures bring the pillars of play into the game.

So far this is a complete work of art and know I won't be sleeping much for a while.

Thank you Morruss and the team.

 

[Jmarso]

I went a different direction, diving into Trials and Treasures. OMFG, this stuff is AWESOME! What's more, not only is it directly compatible with 5E, you can probably translate a lot of it to any system you like.

Magic items with associated values, and treasure tables, and the exploration challenges, plus reward and boon tables! THANK YOU!!

Can't wait to dig into the rest of it, but I've just been scrolling through T&T and enjoying all the little micro-endorphin spikes...

SIDE NOTE: It kills me that you can find Excalibur on a random treasure table!! (I would have made it +5 instead of +4... It's EXCALIBUR!)

 

[Smackpixi]

Well, for a third direction, been flipping through Monsters only. The art is real hit or miss for me, and not a lot of new in terms of entities, but went in expecting that. Lots of great new aspects, Lizardfolk are motionless if not doing a thing. And tactics, bugbears favorite attack is surprise strangulation. Been looking mostly at common stuff so far. It’s looking great for tactics and habits and love the signs of. Only played 5e so dunno if that’s not new to people familiar with earlier, but really like more space for how to play monsters, and so far that space is full of good.

 

[Smackpixi]

Really feel like making Bugbears stranglers was worth the price. Makes them so much more creepy.

 

[Jmarso]

Really feel like making Bugbears stranglers was worth the price. Makes them so much more creepy.

Makes sense, too, given their size and strength. Grappling attacks would logically be a thing for them.

 

[Timespike]

Well, for a third direction, been flipping through Monsters only. The art is real hit or miss for me, and not a lot of new in terms of entities, but went in expecting that. Lots of great new aspects, Lizardfolk are motionless if not doing a thing. And tactics, bugbears favorite attack is surprise strangulation. Been looking mostly at common stuff so far. It’s looking great for tactics and habits and love the signs of. Only played 5e so dunno if that’s not new to people familiar with earlier, but really like more space for how to play monsters, and so far that space is full of good.

The signs, behaviors, names and tactics are not a WotC thing. You'll see that kind of detail in some of the better 3PP books (2CGames is good about it) but having it be both that useful and that succinct? That's Paul Hughes.

Also: pay attention to how much more of the action economy monsters use. Lots more bonus reactions and reactions than you'll see in almost any O5E product. Should make fights much more interesting.

 

[Jmarso]

The signs, behaviors, names and tactics are not a WotC thing. You'll see that kind of detail in some of the better 3PP books (2CGames is good about it) but having it be both that useful and that succinct? That's Paul Hughes.

Also: pay attention to how much more of the action economy monsters use. Lots more bonus reactions and reactions than you'll see in almost any O5E product. Should make fights much more interesting.

Yep. Make those monsters as smart and buffed as the PC's, and maybe we'll see a little old school (2E, anyone) worry on those faces...

 

[WuM1nG]

For the character generation, isit only the background that gives +1 to two stats? Hence its no longer possible to have +2 to one stat like in O5E?

 

[VanguardHero]

The signs, behaviors, names and tactics are not a WotC thing.

Well, not anymore at least. Tactics at least was a thing in 4e, and Lore covered a bit of the other stuff. LU's is absolutely more thorough and impressive though, it's the best I've seen for sure

 

[UngeheuerLich]

For the character generation, isit only the background that gives +1 to two stats? Hence its no longer possible to have +2 to one stat like in O5E?

I think so. And I don't like it as it more or less locks you into 16, 14, 14, 12, 10, 8 for your starting ability scores. +2, +1 or +1, +1, +1 allows for at least 16, 16, 13, 12, 10, 8 or some variations thereoff. Also makes taking a half feat at level 4 mire attractive.
But it is easy to just add +1 to a stat from race or culture.

Also half of the backgrounds only give one proficiency in a language or tool and none of the other one.

Both minor quibbles.
The rest looks great at first glance. While I don't plan to play levelup instwad of O5E, I do plan to incorporate pieces of it when we get the physical books and hopefully play physically again next year.