Next or BX?

[fjw70]

I am playing BX with my kids and they just hit level 3. I want to try out Next since I haven't playtested it since the early days of the playtest.

So why should I switch or not switch the campaign to Next?

 

[tuxgeo]

Because it is not out yet?

That's the best answer I can come up with: the developers at Wizards are still making substantial changes to the actual game, and it might be a good idea to wait a few months so your children have only one learning curve instead of two of them when getting into the newest version of the game.

 

[fjw70]

That's a good answer. It's the one I have been using and why we haven't switched yet. However, I have been looking at the last packet and I must say I really like what I see. I could wait for the final game but that is probably 4-5 months away and I am inpatient.

So that's my dilemma.

 

[Warunsun]

So that's my dilemma.

tuxgeo hit the nail on the head. I personally would wait as well. There are tons of support for B/X and BECMI on the internet as well including adventures you can use. It is only four months until the 5E Starter Set is released. Your kids might get bored of their current character classes and be ready for a change at that time anyway.

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Just keep driving on with what you've got -- you can start a new campaign by the time 5E rolls out!

BX is a great system to boot.

 

[Mistwell]

That's a good answer. It's the one I have been using and why we haven't switched yet. However, I have been looking at the last packet and I must say I really like what I see. I could wait for the final game but that is probably 4-5 months away and I am inpatient.

So that's my dilemma.

I would check out some of the adventures for Next. Like Scourge of the Sword Coast. If you like that, they yeah I would switch to Next now. Because the adventures are so far excellent, and there is no reason to not enjoy them right now.

 

[GMMichael]

I would check out some of the adventures for Next. Like Scourge of the Sword Coast. If you like that, they yeah I would switch to Next now. Because the adventures are so far excellent, and there is no reason to not enjoy them right now.

"So far excellent?"

There's one really great reason to switch to Next: you want to buy a bunch of new books. Otherwise, buy one of many excellent games that are already on shelves and available as used books, or some even-better games that are actually free.

Next adventure: Reclaiming Blingdenstone
All I remember is orcs that would fight beyond their own hit points, readily destroying any PCs that would reasonably wander through the caves.

Next adventure: the Mines of Madness
[sblock]A magical rune, at the beginning of the adventure, that seeks to collapse the dungeon entrance on the PCs. What a great way to bring the entire remainder of the adventure to a stand-still. And the outhouse - at the beginning of the adventure - threatens to flat-out kill a PC - before anything else has happened.[/sblock]
Just...short of excellent.

Fairness: these are criticisms of the adventure-writers, not the Next system. But it's quite possible that these are part of an omen...

 

[GX.Sigma]

Next adventure: Reclaiming Blingdenstone
All I remember is orcs that would fight beyond their own hit points, readily destroying any PCs that would reasonably wander through the caves.

This was a playtest adventure from very early on before they did much work on the math, so it's not really fair to criticize the math.

Next adventure: the Mines of Madness
[sblock]A magical rune, at the beginning of the adventure, that seeks to collapse the dungeon entrance on the PCs. What a great way to bring the entire remainder of the adventure to a stand-still.[/sblock]

It takes 2 in-game hours to clear the rubble. Hardly a standstill.

[sblock]And the outhouse - at the beginning of the adventure - threatens to flat-out kill a PC - before anything else has happened.[/sblock]

Well, yeah, that's kind of the point.

 

[Jan van Leyden]

So why should I switch or not switch the campaign to Next?

Are you or your kids missing something from the game as it is? Do you (they) want or need additional rules? In this case Next is an option as many other games around.

What kinds of adventures are you playing? The old BX type with lots of locations and monsters but without pre-defined plot or are you more plot-oriented?

What is you DMing style like? Let the players describe their characters' actions and decide all the results? Or do the players know the rules and could handle the more complete procedures of the newer versions?

Regardless of my questions and your answers, if you want to test it, the decision is already made, isn't it?

 

[fjw70]

No, no decisions have been made yet. Well I have decided to switch to Next by the time it is officially released (at least for my kids game, my adult group will take some convincing) the current questions is should I do it now or some other time before release.

i was looking to streamline a couple pieces of BX (E.g.Thief skills and saves) with a target 20 type system. I already convert BX to ascending AC and BAB. So it is not that I am missing anything with BX, it's just that I prefer the more recent d20 type mechanic. Also Next has some pretty good ideas (such as advantage and healing HD) that I could port to BX but before I start porting stuff over I thought I would see if I just do a switch instead.

Adventures aren't an issue. I convert adventures from one edition to another all the time.

i appreciate everyone's input.