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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Li Shenron" data-source="post: 6699537" data-attributes="member: 1465">You gotta pierce the veil of Maya, and see the difference between what it is, and how it is presented...A rules module is a set of rules which can be added to or removed from the game without changing the rest. A game is 'modular' if it has rules modules.The reality is that 5th edition is highly modular, the core PHB/MM/DMG game possibly more modular than all previous editions (we can't compare supplements since we don't have much yet in 5e) because there are a lot of things which can be added/removed without the need for other changes. Even more so, the current edition has stuff that can be add/removed for a single player without the need for the others to be adjusted. And while not perfectly modular, there are even more things that require an adjustment that is very small (like removing a couple of feats, or adjusting one racial feature).The problem eventually is that the rules don't tell you that much stuff is de facto optional and so it's a module. And at the same time, we often call "module" something that actually requires quite a lot of changes in other rules in order to work fine. It's common to say "we're using a vitality/wounds rules module", but typically such a thing cannot be added/removed in a simple way because it has consequences on many other rules: you need to replace HP per level, change resting rules, review death saving throws, you have hundreds of spells related to HP etc...Just on the top of my head...- Races are a group-module. We have played without using races during the playtest. You don't need to change anything else in the game. However if you remove them, the whole group should not pick a race (they are not modular at individual player's level).- Subclasses are a player-module, in fact the Basic rules default everyone to a chosen subclass.- Backgrounds are a player-module (you can pick your skills) but skill proficiencies are not modular because they don't have the same weight on all classes, so if you don't use them some classes need work to compensate them- Magic items are a group-module, the game doesn't assume them, but if you use them you better give each player a fair share- Inspiration is a group-module- Weapons are a player-module, you can default anyone to using a generic "simple weapon" or "martial weapon" (to keep balance between classes with different proficiencies)- Multiclassing is obvioudly a player-module- Feats are obviously a player-module- Passive checks are a player-module- Encumbrance is a group-module, but even the officially non-optional rules for lifting/carrying/pushing are- Resting could be group-modular but I'm not sure if some class has special abilities that work only with the default resting rules (at least resting is regarded a "dialable")- Downtime rules are group-modular- Combat as a whole is obviously not modular, but you can remove/ignore many combat actions from the game without other effects, but it depends if you have PCs with special abilities related to them, such as a Rogue's Cunning Action: it's possible to run combats with only Attack/Spell actions but you need to replace those abilities- Opportunity attacks + Disengage are possibly group-modular (I think some feats are affected, although I don't remember if there are class features and spells related to these... the more there are, the less modular of course)- Massive damage is group-modular- Death saving throws are group-modular...and that's just in Basic!</blockquote>

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