D&D 5E So, I kind of want to stay with 2014 rules. What are my longterm options?

[SlyFlourish]

I don't think you'd have any trouble running D&D 2014 for the rest of your life. Sure, you have to find players but if you can put together a good group who trusts you, you can talk to them about sticking to 2014 D&D.

As others mention, there are millions of copies of this book out there. We can likely find reasonably priced copies for the rest of our lives.

There are also lots of digital tools that support the 5.1 SRD and will likely continue to do so. So tools are out there too.

Hacking older versions of D&D is also a popular approach for DMs for decades.

If you want to stay playing D&D 2014, I don't think there's any problem doing so.

 

[Belen]

Ok, let me explain myself. I've seen enough of the rule changes, and while I like some of the changes, I don't like the rest of the changes and don't like the changes I don't like more than I like the changes I like. I'm not exactly boycotting the new not-edition, for example I plan on buying the DMG, and I may shift to DM games with the new rules if I find enough demand for them, at which time I will likely buy a Monster Manual. However, personally and as a player, I prefer the original 5e rules, and will only look and will mainly DM with them. (And well, I don't see myself ever buying the new PHB)

Now, I know that my books aren't going anywhere (At least for as long as I lay low enough to dodge wandering Pinkertons n_n), but I worry about the long term. Obviously no new books will be printed which will be a problem when trying to introduce new players in the future. And at some point my books will need replacing due to aging/use (or if I run into the aforementioned wandering Pinkertons) So what are my options longterm?

To clarify, I'm not married to the 2014 rules; I just don't like the 2024 ones. I'm open to experiment with sideclones as long as they preserve what I like or don't follow the changes from the new rules. In short, things I like from OG 5e/don't like in v24:

• Some classes getting their subclass at first level. Character suddenly changing at later levels just don't do it for me. Moving the choice to higher levels ruins the customizability of classes and screws with party formation dynamics. If anything I'd like more classes to choose subclass at first.
• I like feats as optional.
• I don't like the way backgrounds are turned from an almost purely thematic construct to a very mechanical and optimizable element.
• I prefer backgrounds being customizable by default.
• I'm salty at the removal of half-elf and half-orc.
• I prefer attribute bonuses as a free choice. (Tasha's rules)
• I feel as if 2024 rules are more codified and jargonified for the sake of being more jargonified.

So far, I don't think the SRD has enough content, and Levelup is a bit more rules-heavy than I'd like. I've looked at Black Flag, but it makes some of the same changes I don't like in the 2024 rules. So any ideas?

DDB will retain the old content and just list it as legacy so long term should be fine.

 

[Clint_L]

DDB will retain the old content and just list it as legacy so long term should be fine.

But probably only if you buy it before the new versions come out.

For example, I still have my Volo's Guide on DDB because I've had it for years, but it is now listed as legacy content and they don't sell it on their shop anymore. So if you want to make sure you have a 2014 PHB, buy it now. I just checked, and it's on sale for $25 (same price as the 2024 version).

 

[Stormonu]

DDB will retain the old content and just list it as legacy so long term should be fine.

Yeah, they've been doing some work on that on the site already. However, at some point in the future it will be so outdated it will go away (like, with a new version). I hope by then we might be able to get PDFs on DriveThruRPG ...

 

[Weiley31]

Honestly, ToV isn't really that bad as an alt 2024 option.

 

[overgeeked]

So any ideas?

I've been through that a few times. Holding on to an older edition when the new one comes along. Here's a bit of what I've learned.

As the new books start coming out the old books will go on deeper and deeper discounts. Buy at least one copy of every book you want for the line when the discount is close enough for you. Then buy as many of the books you might want when the discount is deep enough. After the new books come out and the old stock dries up, the prices will increase. They will just keep increasing as the years go on. They might stabilize somewhere reasonable considering just how many 5E books were printed, but there's no way to know for sure.

Buy multiple copies of the high use books. PHBs, MMs, DMGs, maybe Xanathar's and Tasha's. The longer you keep using them the more they will wear out. Picking them up on deep discount and storing them until you need them is way better than being forced to pick copies up on the secondary market.

There are so many books from prior editions I didn't pick up and now most of them are ridiculously expensive second hand. Hoping to get a lucky break is not a great plan. Most books from prior editions are available as PDFs on DriveThruRPG, so that's a much cheaper way to go. Here's to hoping WotC will release the 2014 books as PDFs before long.

If you already have a group, maintain it. Reach out and keep in contact with people who feel the same. Especially if you don't like online play. As the years go by, fewer and fewer people will be interested in playing your chosen edition. You're probably fine because 5E was one of two pop-culture fad moments D&D has had, the other being AD&D. It's super easy to find AD&D players even now. That's likely to be true of 5E in future as well.

Don't rely on anyone else's maintenance of servers, websites, storefronts, etc to play the game. Sites close, licenses are lost, files deleted, etc. If you don't have the physical product or the digital files in hand then you can be cut off from the game. You don't want that.

 

[jayoungr]

So, if you primarily plan on GMing, and you plan on using 5E plus some compatible stuff, does it really matter what PHB the players use?

According to WotC, if the DM is using 2014 rules, it's not a good idea to put 2024 characters into that game.

 

[Reynard]

According to WotC, if the DM is using 2014 rules, it's not a good idea to put 2024 characters into that game.

I don't think they have said that. What they have said is that if there is a 2024 option, use that. I do not believe they have made any statements about using 2024 characters under 2014 rules -- Probably because they don't expect anyone to do that. They are more concerned about folks not buying the 2024 DMG and MM than not buying the 2024 PHB.

But I will reiterate: the 2024 PHB is just another 3rd party product for all intents and purposes. It works as well or as poorly with 2014 stuff as A5E or ToV or previous Kobold stuff or that rando class you found on reddit.

The most important aspect of WotC aiming for "backward compatibility" is that now it doesn't matter what you use at the table as long as it fits into the pretty broad 5E definition. I mean, are you going to tell me you can't run Curse of Strahd with A5E or ToV? Same thing.

 

[JEB]

My current stance is to keep to the SRD 5.1 and pilfer the Playtest/UA packets (from 2010, 2014 or eventually 2024) for subclasses and variant rules.

This is very good advice, if you want a legal, offline, digital version of the material that went into the 2014-2024 sourcebooks. (Plus some stuff that didn't.) It's often not exactly the same as what went into print, of course, but it has the advantage of being free.

You probably want to hurry, though - Wizards is now redirecting their old D&D site to D&D Beyond, and the Unearthed Arcana pages are no longer accessible, but you can still reach the PDFs directly. They'll almost certainly remove those files in the near future, however.

 

[Remathilis]

According to WotC, if the DM is using 2014 rules, it's not a good idea to put 2024 characters into that game.

I think it's a little more complicated than that. The two general issues that come up are changes to the core rules (like Heroic Inspiration or the Magic Action) and the balance between 2014 classes and 2024 versions of options. In honesty, it's no more difficult than taking things from One Ring or Tales of the Valiant and making them work. However, that's not something amateur DMs struggle to do and it requires FAR more work than running a 2014 option in 2024. Impossible? No. More complicated? Could be. I don't think running a Dance bard with a 2014 bard would break, but you have to be vigilant for possible conversion headaches.