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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mercurius" data-source="post: 8282964" data-attributes="member: 59082">A few pages into skimming this thread and I was struck by how some folks who think 6E is around the corner seem confused on a basic point: WotC has taken a very different route from previous editions, one in which the "edition treadmill" is not a factor, or at least far less of one than in every past edition, or at least since 1E.To recap, the edition treadmill is: new edition comes out, publisher creates every possible splat as quickly as possible with increasing glut and diminishing returns until the well runneth dry, which eventually leads to a new edition.5E is different for a few reasons. One, it is not based on churning out splats. The vast majority of books are settings and adventures. Or by my count:3 core rulebooks14 adventures6 setting books4 splats2 "luxury" products1 other (Acquisitions)4 starter setsNote also that only two of the splats are player focused - that's two in seven years! We could also count Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide as a "half-splat," but that's still 2.5 in seven years. So of 30 hardcovers, only 2 are focused on player options, and even those have other stuff.The other reason is the minimal publishing schedule, now up to five books per year (compared to a dozen or more during 3E/4E, and as many as 70 individual products during the height of 2E!).A third reason is a different demographic, one mostly comprised of younger generations and more casual players. Meaning, it isn't focused on the "diehard core" that make up forums like this one, and were a larger percentage of the customer base in past editions.So when I see something like this (sorry to pick on you, Minigiant)......I think there is a misunderstanding going on, a confusion of the past with the present and, perhaps to some degree, what one personally wants with what is actually the case.To put it more clearly, there is no limit to D&D stories and worlds. WotC could, in theory at least, just churn them out endlessly. But if they're going with one splat per year, and one player options book every two or three years, then the whole cycle gets stretched out to the point where edition treadmill isn't a factor in whether or not there will be a new edition.This doesn't mean WotC will never publish a 6E (by whatever name). But I think their formula allows for a more evergreen approach, with more gradual change. What I see as more likely is that they publish revised core rulebooks in 2024, which incorporate errata and all the small to moderate changes from 10 years of the edition, and hopefully revamped classes (Ranger and Monk, in particular). Stuff like that.But there is no limit to adventures or settings, to stories and worlds. They aren't limited by classic settings, but have dozens of Magic planes to draw from, plus potentially (hopefully) new settings.None of this precludes expanding the game in different directions. I would guess that after 2024, we might see something different, possibly a science fiction game of some sort.When might we see an actual new edition? Not until well after the current one declines, and to a significant degree. I think WotC realizes that, at some point, the growth will slow and stop, but I think their hope is that it settles on a high plateau. This is more possible than in previous editions, due to the lack of treadmilling.</blockquote>

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