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Message: <blockquote data-quote="AbdulAlhazred" data-source="post: 4953804" data-attributes="member: 82106">Actually 1e/2e were a LOT less complex than 4e. The somewhat fuzzily defined nature of old style spell effects and monster powers actually wasn't that complex to deal with in practice. 90% of the time the result of casting a spell was pretty much clear-cut and in practice most players heavily relied on the most straightforward spells because they had the most direct impact on a given situation and it was a lot easier to guarantee that you got what you expected out of casting it.Effects of various kinds weren't AS standardized as they are in 4e certainly, but very few of them had lingering numerical effects you had to remember or track. Spell durations tended to be long enough that the spell lasted long enough that the situation it was used in was over before the effect ended too. In any case at least they ended at the end of SOME round which you could determine ahead of time. On top of that it was unusual for more than say 2 or MAYBE 3 such effects to be in play at a given time. The mechanics of the effects also tended to be a lot simpler. Spells effects were also much more self-contained within the description of the spell and had a lot less tendency to affect other things.Finally the 1e/2e core mechanics, though inconsistent in the way they were implemented, were very cut and dried. A +3 sword added 3 to your chance to-hit and 3 to your damage, period. Sure maybe thieves used % dice for their thief abilities and you rolled saves for spells vs to-hit for weapons, but really is that even close to as complex as the current situation where you have frequently 10 different conditions in play at once stemming from 4 different effects that have 4 different ending conditions? I don't really think so... The 4e core system SEEMS simpler, but in practice when you start looking at all the things players actually do there is a LOT more stuff to track and a lot more ways different things can interact. Yes, those interactions are much better defined, but they are also a lot more complex and require a lot more tracking.I like 4e for a variety of reasons, but simplicity is absolutely not even on the list, 1e/2e were vastly simpler, hands down.</blockquote>

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