Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is coming! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
Tips? Haven't DMed D&D since 2E
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Dausuul" data-source="post: 7575848" data-attributes="member: 58197"><p>Man, I haven't played GURPS in decades. Excuse me while I dust off my copy of GURPS 3E (literally, I had to brush dust off the cover) and refresh my memory. Let's see here...</p><p></p><p>So. If you haven't played any edition of D&D since the '90s, there are several things that you'll want to keep in mind as you transition to D&D in general and 5E in particular:</p><p></p><p><strong>D&D is combat-heavy.</strong> GURPS treats combat as one element of the game among many; it's not unusual that some PCs will be built for combat and others will focus elsewhere. In D&D, combat is the beating heart of the game. All D&D characters are combat-capable unless players go out of their way to cripple themselves, and the rules are built for adventures in hostile territory where enemies are everywhere and frequent battles are inevitable. You don't <em>have</em> to run it that way, but the game strongly encourages it.</p><p></p><p><strong>D&D is cinematic.</strong> GURPS tries for at least a modicum of realism. D&D (especially 4E and 5E) favors streamlined mechanics and cinematic action. This is necessary both for the characters (so they can sustain the damage of so many battles) and players (so battles can be resolved quickly). Trying to make D&D more realistic is a common pastime, but I've never seen it work out very well; again, you are fighting the game. It will go a lot smoother if you embrace the action. And for the love of Gygax, do <em>not</em> inquire into what exactly is represented by "hit points." That way lies madness.</p><p></p><p><strong>The D&D power curve is insane.</strong> GURPS characters gain power fairly slowly, and face diminishing returns that encourage breadth over depth. D&D characters rocket from peasant to demigod at a blistering pace, faster by far than any other RPG I have ever played. You can adjust this a bit by controlling how much XP you award (milestone XP is your friend), but players get unhappy if they never get to play with new toys, and they only get new toys by climbing the power curve. Especially at high levels, those toys will take your carefully planned adventure and knock it into a cocked hat. I <em>strongly</em> recommend starting at a low level so you can at least get your feet under you.</p><p></p><p><strong>D&D provides a built-in framework for the campaign.</strong> All of the above may sound rather limiting compared to the free-form approach of GURPS. And it is. But it also means a lot of the work is done for you. Players are supplied with prefab archetypes in the form of character classes. They can be embellished with background details and customization, but they also work fine as-is. The DM has a standard narrative ready for any adventure: "Go to this place, explore it, kill the monsters there, and take the treasure." You don't have to follow that formula every time, but it's always available when you need it; you have only to deploy it, and the machinery of the game whirs into motion to help entertain you and your players.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Dausuul, post: 7575848, member: 58197"] Man, I haven't played GURPS in decades. Excuse me while I dust off my copy of GURPS 3E (literally, I had to brush dust off the cover) and refresh my memory. Let's see here... So. If you haven't played any edition of D&D since the '90s, there are several things that you'll want to keep in mind as you transition to D&D in general and 5E in particular: [b]D&D is combat-heavy.[/b] GURPS treats combat as one element of the game among many; it's not unusual that some PCs will be built for combat and others will focus elsewhere. In D&D, combat is the beating heart of the game. All D&D characters are combat-capable unless players go out of their way to cripple themselves, and the rules are built for adventures in hostile territory where enemies are everywhere and frequent battles are inevitable. You don't [i]have[/i] to run it that way, but the game strongly encourages it. [b]D&D is cinematic.[/b] GURPS tries for at least a modicum of realism. D&D (especially 4E and 5E) favors streamlined mechanics and cinematic action. This is necessary both for the characters (so they can sustain the damage of so many battles) and players (so battles can be resolved quickly). Trying to make D&D more realistic is a common pastime, but I've never seen it work out very well; again, you are fighting the game. It will go a lot smoother if you embrace the action. And for the love of Gygax, do [i]not[/i] inquire into what exactly is represented by "hit points." That way lies madness. [b]The D&D power curve is insane.[/b] GURPS characters gain power fairly slowly, and face diminishing returns that encourage breadth over depth. D&D characters rocket from peasant to demigod at a blistering pace, faster by far than any other RPG I have ever played. You can adjust this a bit by controlling how much XP you award (milestone XP is your friend), but players get unhappy if they never get to play with new toys, and they only get new toys by climbing the power curve. Especially at high levels, those toys will take your carefully planned adventure and knock it into a cocked hat. I [i]strongly[/i] recommend starting at a low level so you can at least get your feet under you. [b]D&D provides a built-in framework for the campaign.[/b] All of the above may sound rather limiting compared to the free-form approach of GURPS. And it is. But it also means a lot of the work is done for you. Players are supplied with prefab archetypes in the form of character classes. They can be embellished with background details and customization, but they also work fine as-is. The DM has a standard narrative ready for any adventure: "Go to this place, explore it, kill the monsters there, and take the treasure." You don't have to follow that formula every time, but it's always available when you need it; you have only to deploy it, and the machinery of the game whirs into motion to help entertain you and your players. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
Tips? Haven't DMed D&D since 2E
Top