Top Ten Reasons I Love 3E

[Rolflyn]

I think the only thing I "hate" about 3.x is that it requires a lot of prep time, and that it demands a lot of attention on the part of the DM to oversee what players want to bring to the table, character options wise. One powergamer with one late 3.5 supplement can ruin an entire campaign.

You had to bring the "H" word into it. I haven't seen that problem so much because we play core books only and probably are lacking the pure powergamer. We had a powergamer once but he wasn't any good at it, so his concoctions were always wacky fun.

When I DM, prepping NPCs can take time, but I rather enjoy making characters, tweaking them to fit exactly the personality and position for the game. And the 3.0 DMG was awesome for prepping NPCs or even winging them on the fly.

 

[Ghostwind]

The book that cut my prep time in half as far as NPCs go, was Mongoose's Ultimate NPCs. I love that book for what it does. Prep time is one of the things I hate most about 3.5 but I've found that I need even more prep time for 4th ed.

 

[Silvercat Moonpaw]

Well, I don't play 3.5 anymore because I don't have the patience for all the stuff you have to deal with, but it's an interesting this:

The thing I enjoy most about 3.5 is that there is all that stuff. Especially if you add splatbooks and 3pp. It's a mess that I don't have the mentally to actually use (core-only too, just in case you were wondering), but it's just really interesting.

 

[Rolflyn]

The book that cut my prep time in half as far as NPCs go, was Mongoose's Ultimate NPCs. I love that book for what it does.

Thanks for the tip. I'll have to check that out. On DTRPG they have a preview but it looks like it is just some new classes. I wish they would show you want is on pages 153+ where the NPC listings are.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

I don´t like mordekainens disjunction because it targets will...

I more or less agree with the rest

 

[Ravellion]

I had 10 years of fun with 3e, it matured me as a DM, and I learned to love Dungeon/Paizo during this time. My best sessions so far have still been 3e sessions (Freeport!).

Your list? It matches my "3e shitlist" exactly, and is the reason I DM other stuff exclusively from now on. I'll gladly play 3e... but you would have to pay me €25 an hour, after taxes, to get me to DM it now that I have tasted other fruits.

 

[Vegepygmy]

Indeed, I can't tell if this is one the most subtle and brilliant trolls of all time or if you are actually serious.

Believe it or not, there are those of us who do indeed like some or all of the things on the OP's list.

That this comes as a surprise to anyone surprises me, given that everyone here knows all about the Edition Wars.

 

[RFisher]

Top Ten Reasons I Love 3E

I’m completely with you except for 2 & 6.

And the thing about 2 is, I can just always spend my points on the same skills to keep it easy for me without taking the fun of spending them to taste each level away from anyone else.

And 3e isn’t even my favorite edition.

 

[Reynard]

I can't figure out if your serious or not; if you were looking for a list of the ten things most DMs around here can't stand, you're list would fit that perfectly too (all you forgot was paladin/monk restrictions and alignment).

If you were being sarcastic, bravo sir. If you're dead serious, enjoy man; you hit almost everything (save the first) that I don't miss.

This is why there are edition wars; not your post specifically (I don't think you were aiming for one, just to be clear) but rather because there is such a significant difference in how the various editions are run[/], which translates into how they are played.

IMO (just in case it had to be said) the game is more fun when it is hard for the players, when uncertainty abounds, when there are lots of options, when system elements produce actual emotional responses in players, when its not just possible but necessary that the DM make changes to make the game work for the group. All these things make D&D what it is -- a tool for making specific games for a specific group of people.

Of course, it can be a pain: producing complex monsters or NPCs is a pain, determining the fallout of houserules can be difficult, ensuring everyone at the table is enjoying themselves. But these are the job of the DM, not the system. The system's job is simple: provide a foundation upon which the DM can create fun, no matter what the definition of un is for that DM and his group.

Where 4E falls for me as a DM (I like it just fine as a player; it's a little over interested in tactical mumbo jumbo, but whatever) is that i don't feel like the system is designed to allow me to define "fun" but instead tries to define "fun" for me.

 

[Ulrick]

I like 3e as a player. Even when playing only core rules I can customize a character as I see fit. After all those years playing 3e, I still feel like I haven't exhausted all its options--like playing a gnome fighter!