D&D 5E Origin New Edition Panel

[tuxgeo]

I'm not sure if you're aware, but I'm linking just in case anyway, 5ever is internet slang.

Giv me XP if u crey evrythyme

"Alasses" (that's the plural of "a lass"), I both didn't know the Internet slang and am unable to give you XP at the moment, having given you XP too recently.

Could anybody (more savvy than I am on Internet slang) please give some XP to Talath on my behalf, on account of my failure therein?

 

[Redbadge]

I think what they learned from 3e->4e (and the reason why they are pushing adventures and stories in 5e) is that this doesn't work for D&D. The fans literally won't buy it.

But they will. The 4e core sold well. The ultimate "problem" for its longevity (not for me, I love 4e) was that it was too different, too much of a departure. As long as "6th edition" is still compatible with 5th, they can perpetuate sales and freshen up the brand without alienating fans who feel like they have to keep up without being obsoleted. "6th edition" doesn't have to even sell exceptionally well; just as well as your average splat (enough to make money and increasingly grow the fan base). And it doesn't have to be every one or two years; four or five is probably better for D&D. The problem is that WotC sells 3.5 and 4e Essentials as one time corrections in the middle of an editions life cycle rather than natural evolutions overtime. Going forward, I'd like to see all future "editions" to be fully compatible with prior iterations. An ever growing catalogue of rules modules will supplement the evolving base game. If WotC makes the revised rules available for free as they come out, we should all be able to enjoy the game in harmony, and unlike editions prior to 5th we will all still be playing the same base game.

Arguably, this should have been the model from the very beginning. Instead, WotC introduced (somewhat successfully) Magic 3.0!... Magic 3.5!... (and somewhat less successfully) Magic 4.0!.... Magic 4.5 Essentials!....

Magic: the Gathering would likely not have existed this long if it had been presented to players like this, where each new set was so different from prior ones that even the card backs were different, so they couldn't be played in the same decks.

 

[TarionzCousin]

He later clarified this was a typo, and he meant devils.

I think it's a pretty good lore addition (or is it from an old supplement?). Instead of the Hells just being a place where devils live, it's actually their prison and they want to get out. It actually makes a lot of sense with pre-existing lore, considering they can't leave the Hells without being summoned by a mortal. Maybe play up the idea that the devils are all actually souls of evil mortals, and they really want to go back to the Prime Material Plane (and rule it!).

The outer plane of Carceri was originally a reworking of the classic plane of Tarterus, where the Olympic gods imprisoned their Titan predecessors.

 

[Mistwell]

I am both Paraxi

Yes, I know. Hence my desire for a death match

 

[Plaguescarred]

Starting next spring, surveys will go out to assess how rules elements of the game are faring.

Interesting that they'll continue to gather feedbacks post-production....

 

[thalmin]

Interesting that they'll continue to gather feedbacks post-production....

Of course. There's always PHB2, MM2, adventures, etc.

 

[Sword of Spirit]

The problem about being fiends being trapped on their home planes regards interactions between them. They are highly unlikely to remove the Blood War (just as they are unlikely to force you to use it). Fiends were free to roam the planes in general, it was simply that they couldn't get to the Prime Material Plane without being summoned by its inhabitants. That's the best way of handling it, IMO. Hopefully that's more of what they are actually getting at.

The problem in 3e is that many DMs didn't appear to realize that rule was there. That may be because its buried in a nondescript paragraph in the 3.0e Manual of the Planes, and contained nowhere else that I know of...so that's not exactly the DMs' fault. However, because of ignorance of that rule, I've seen two DMs declare that their material plane is sealed off from the rest of the planes (to prevent fiendish invasions and such), and other DMs apparently just let fiends pop-in whenever they feel like it.

Based on how the team often describes things that were found in specific editions of D&D as if they are something brand new and exciting (I think that must be targeted at players with limited edition experience) they may just be saying "it works like 3e." It's that the justification for Tiamat being "trapped" in the Nine Hells (ie, just following the normal fiend rules for entry to the material plane--rather than saying she can't go to the City of Brass), then it bothers me less than otherwise.

 

[Plaguescarred]

Does ''demons locked in hell'' means they won't be able to use their demon-summoning power outside it, such as when on the prime material plane?

 

[GX.Sigma]

The outer plane of Carceri was originally a reworking of the classic plane of Tarterus, where the Olympic gods imprisoned their Titan predecessors.

Yup. Carceri was described thusly in Planescape: "no one's there who wants to be." So there's already precedent for a plane that isn't simply a manifestation of the alignment it represents. Carceri is a very lawful place, despite being Chaotic Evil aligned. Its alignment is because the inhabitants are chaotic evil, and the structure of the plane is working against them.

Now, if they use similar logic to explain why the Slaadi seem so lawful, I'll be impressed.

 

[Blackbrrd]

But they will. The 4e core sold well. The ultimate "problem" for its longevity (not for me, I love 4e) was that it was too different, too much of a departure. As long as "6th edition" is still compatible with 5th, they can perpetuate sales and freshen up the brand without alienating fans who feel like they have to keep up without being obsoleted. "6th edition" doesn't have to even sell exceptionally well; just as well as your average splat (enough to make money and increasingly grow the fan base). And it doesn't have to be every one or two years; four or five is probably better for D&D. The problem is that WotC sells 3.5 and 4e Essentials as one time corrections in the middle of an editions life cycle rather than natural evolutions overtime. Going forward, I'd like to see all future "editions" to be fully compatible with prior iterations. An ever growing catalogue of rules modules will supplement the evolving base game. If WotC makes the revised rules available for free as they come out, we should all be able to enjoy the game in harmony, and unlike editions prior to 5th we will all still be playing the same base game.

Arguably, this should have been the model from the very beginning. Instead, WotC introduced (somewhat successfully) Magic 3.0!... Magic 3.5!... (and somewhat less successfully) Magic 4.0!.... Magic 4.5 Essentials!....

Magic: the Gathering would likely not have existed this long if it had been presented to players like this, where each new set was so different from prior ones that even the card backs were different, so they couldn't be played in the same decks.

I think your conclusion is right, but looking at 4e essentials as anything but a 4e is probably wrong. You can play a "normal" 4e character and a 4e essentials character in the same game and they are completely compatible. Just like different sets in Magic.

Depending on how good 5e* is, I think WotC might make more money if they run it more like Magic, where everything is more or less compatible. They might not get these huge boosts in sales every new edition, but if they manage to really grow the audience for D&D, enabling them to sell D&D to the same crowd who buys Settlers of Catan, I think they will end up on top.

*I am mostly thinking about the math. They kind of bungled it with 4e, it wasn't until quite late, with the MM3 and onwards that they managed to get the math (balance) right.