D&D 5E New D&D Player Survey!

[Ixal]

Lots of questions about ones first time playing, creating characters, etc. and not about the way you currently play except for some covid related questions.

So looks like WoTC wants to hook more players...
I see another round of streamlining incoming.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I've never really loved Forgettable Realms.

It's a convenient tool. But there is nothing much to really like.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

What settings did people pick for their favorites?

I did Dark Sun, Planescape, and Greyhawk, hoping that would push their eventual release. Picked Dark Sun as my favorite.

Eberron, Exandria, and Spelljammer. I left out Homebrew (even though that would probably take the Exandria spot) because I wanted to make it clear that I would like more content for all of those settings. I don't really see the point in answering "homebrew" in a survey like this.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

And please, realize that every vote that doesn't include FR is likely a vote against FR with how ubiquitous they have made it.

I've never really loved Forgettable Realms.

It's a convenient tool. But there is nothing much to really like.

I think I've only ever met 1 person that feels as passionately about the Forgotten Realms as most fans of other settings are about their favorite settings (whether that be Eberron, Spelljammer, Dark Sun, Planescape, or Ravenloft). I've never felt passionately about the setting in one way or the other. It's probably because of how oversaturated D&D is with FR content (especially in 5e) combined with the fact that there's a world-changing event in the setting at least once every edition and that there's not much about the setting that's unique when compared to other popular settings (there are some fairly unique parts, and I think most of its unique concepts are quite good, but a lot of it is stolen from Greyhawk or standard Tolkein-esque fantasy).

I'm kind of convinced that the only reason that it's the most popular setting is that it's the base setting in the most popular edition of the game. Not the other way around. It's the biggest, blandest kitchen sink that you can do anything with if you really want to, but isn't inherently any better of a setting than Eberron, Ravenloft, Dark Sun, Spelljammer, Exandria, or Ravenloft.

The only strong feeling I have about the setting is that there's too much of it in D&D 5e (even though it has the weakest D&D 5e setting book), and I like the recent push to publish more adventures not connected to it (Netherdeep, Witchlight, Strixhaven, and Dragonance).

 

[delericho]

Done.

I was frustrated with a few questions: I don't know off-hand how much I've spent in the last six months (not much), and couldn't be bothered checking. Also, it didn't seem to include "older edition materials" as an option there. (I also found it odd them listing "Pathfinder, etc" as a third-party option, since it's its own game. But never mind...)

But I would have liked to have given some more detail on the Covid questions - both how it changed gaming (specifically, I found that remote gaming worked much better than I'd expected, and thus inspired me to start a second campaign), but also how I expect it to change in the days ahead (that second campaign is ending, for unrelated issues, while the first is going back to face-to-face).

The problem there being that if you base decisions on what I've done in the past six months, you'd be making the wrong decisions because it's all about to change. (Of course, they won't base those decisions on me, but who knows how many others are in the same boat?)

Edit to add: I would really have liked the chance to let them know that I would happily buy PDF versions of their new core rulebooks if those were made available, but I won't buy other electronic versions. (As I've mentioned before, I can't use other electronic versions in the games I run, so they're useless to me, even if the formats are considered "better"... indeed, even if they were objectively and measurably better in every way!)

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I think I've only ever met 1 person that feels as passionately about the Forgotten Realms as most fans of other settings are about their favorite settings (whether that be Eberron, Spelljammer, Dark Sun, Planescape, or Ravenloft). I've never felt passionately about the setting in one way or the other. It's probably because of how oversaturated D&D is with FR content (especially in 5e) combined with the fact that there's a world-changing event in the setting at least once every edition and that there's not much about the setting that's unique when compared to other popular settings (there are some fairly unique parts, and I think most of its unique concepts are quite good, but a lot of it is stolen from Greyhawk or standard Tolkein-esque fantasy).

I'm kind of convinced that the only reason that it's the most popular setting is that it's the base setting in the most popular edition of the game. Not the other way around. It's the biggest, blandest kitchen sink that you can do anything with if you really want to, but isn't inherently any better of a setting than Eberron, Ravenloft, Dark Sun, Spelljammer, Exandria, or Ravenloft.

The only strong feeling I have about the setting is that there's too much of it in D&D 5e (even though it has the weakest D&D 5e setting book), and I like the recent push to publish more adventures not connected to it (Netherdeep, Witchlight, Strixhaven, and Dragonance).

I don't really get why any setting gets a huge fandom. I'm a fan of the game, not the fluff. Any setting that gives me the tools I want for an interesting game is good.

I would rather see fewer new settings and more development of existing settings.

I do fancy Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty though.

And the one with the Kaiju. Kaiju are always welcome at my table.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

I don't really get why any setting gets a huge fandom. I'm a fan of the game, not the fluff. Any setting that gives me the tools I want for an interesting game is good.

People like different subgenres of the game, and most popular settings are the ones that approach those subgenres in interesting ways (Eberron for magitek, Ravenloft for horror, Spelljammer for space fantasy, etc).

 

[Paul Farquhar]

People like different subgenres of the game, and most popular settings are the ones that approach those subgenres in interesting ways (Eberron for magitek, Ravenloft for horror, Spelljammer for space fantasy, etc).

Fails to explain fans of Greyhawk, Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance etc. Who needs different flavours of vanilla?

 

[Cruentus]

Fails to explain fans of Greyhawk, Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance etc. Who needs different flavours of vanilla?

Medieval Geopolitics v Renaissance v Dragons? I like Vanilla Bean (Haagen Diaz), Vanilla (Breyer’s), and soft serve vanilla. They all taste different to me…

 

[delericho]

Fails to explain fans of Greyhawk, Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance etc. Who needs different flavours of vanilla?

Dragonlance will always have a special place in my heart as the first D&D world I encountered (via the novels). In another reality, it might have been FR. They might be different flavours of vanilla, but that's enough for me to have a preference for one over the other.