What is 4E about?

[ProfessorCirno]

1E is about the dungeon. Your classic dungeon crawl.
2E is about the setting and the story. We moved out of the dungeon and started exploring Planescape, Dark Sun, and Forgotten Realms, as a whole.
3E is about the choices. More varied multiclassing. More varied methods of casting. More varied game mechanics.
4E is about the math. Heavy emphasis on balancing things out, keeping everything numerically guided.

 

[weem]

As some others have mentioned, I think it is about balance.

That's what I have told friends who have not tried it yet (but who have played previous editions). I think there are good and bad aspects to that, but balance is the answer imo.

 

[thecasualoblivion]

1st Edition was memorable for the adventures.
2nd Edition was memorable for the settings.
3e was memorable for the rules.
4e is memorable for the electronic support.

IMO, that's the big thing that's noticable about this edition but not the others.

I wouldn't go so far as to say 4e is "about" electronic support, but then I wouldn't say any of the previous editions were "about" those other things either.

You have a bit of a point here. If you are looking for something memorable that 4E has added, its hard to top the Character Builder.

I think this is by far the best answer so far, as it addresses the question from the perspective of the designers as opposed to the perspective of the various players - which will differ from table to table depending on how they played the game.

We can say something about what the designers were trying to achieve. We can't really say anything about how the rules were used by the players except to offer opinions about how we personally perceived or use them.

So any way, my take is probably no more than a restatement of what Dausuul said using different words but:

1) 1E was about exploration
2) 2E was about clarity
3) 3E was about consistancy
4) 4E was about balance

What is more interesting that different versions ranked these four in different order. I would say:

1E--Exploration, Balance, Consistency, Clarity
2E--Clarity, Balance, Exploration, Consistency
3E--Consistency, Exploration, Clarity, Balance
4E--Balance, Clarity, Consistency, Exploration

1E was arbitrarily yet effectively balanced. 2E varied in Balance and Consistency, with the supplement material having a negative impact on both. 3E isn't very clear cut, as it focuses on Consistency to the max, far more than the other three. 3E both possesses and lacks Clarity at the same time, as the rules tend to be clear and specific yet the significance and impact of these rules in play are anything but clear. 4E on the other hand while primarily about Balance is also fairly high on Clarity and Consistency, and doesn't focus much on Exploration at all.

If I would rank the systems on a scale of 1-10 in these areas:

1E--Exploration(10) Balance (8) Consistency(4) Clarity(3)
2E--Clarity(8) Balance(7) Exploration(6) Consistency(3)
3E--Consistency(10) Exploration(5) Clarity(6/3--high and low) Balance(2)
4E--Balance(10) Clarity(9) Consistency(7) Exploration(3)

3E is very inconsistent on Clarity, which is why I put in two numbers. Also note that I rank 4E higher in Clarity than 2E.


The weak point of the previous edition tended to be the focus of the next.

 

[renau1g]

What do you mean exploration?

 

[thecasualoblivion]

What do you mean exploration?

He meant the following:

I should note that I'm here using 'exploration' in a rather special sense, because I suspect that the previous sentence will spark an edition war if I don't clarify. By 'exploration' I don't mean the process of characters moving from a place to some new place ('adventuring'), but rather discovering new rules, new ways to interact with the world, and new elements of the world you didn't previously know existed. Clearly, if the rules are clear, consistant, and comprehensive, then you aren't as a player in the position of discovering those rules or new aspects of the game. In 1st edition, for example, you might learn that you can research spells or create magic items and do so not knowing at first exactly how it is done. By 3rd edition, this is no longer the case. You begin the game with this vista clearly in view. Hense, the experience of 'exploration' is very different between the two editions, and you can see why the 1e idea of exploration might be despised by some people and loved by others (even with both wanted 'adventure').

 

[ExploderWizard]

What do you mean exploration?

In 4E terms, exploration is what is going on when not engaged in either combat or a skill challenge dicefest. In other words about .00012% of a published 4E module.

 

[thecasualoblivion]

For my part, I rank the attributes consistant, exploration, balance, and clarity. With consistant being a short gap ahead of exploration and then a longer gap to the other two. I don't mind my rules being esoteric - indeed to a certain extent prefer it - because I've got a good memory and evocative and enabling is more important to me than simple. I want part of the game to be hidden from view so that you are encouraged to focus on world mastery and not system mastery. Balance is important only when the lack of it threatens to stop play, but consistancy and its partner comprehensiveness is very welcome for me as a DM because it gives me the tools to quickly judge any situation that comes up without stopping play to much.

Missed this part. I'd have to rank mine Clarity, Balance, Exploration and then Consistency. The exact opposite of yours, actually. Ranking them on a 1-10 scale I would say I'm after Clarity(10), Balance(8), Exploration(5), and Consistency(3).

 

[The Little Raven]

4E is about (enabling) the DM.

This is true. I've seen more players make the swap to DM because of 4e than any other edition.

I'd also say that 4e is about the party more than ever, since the roles are balanced for rough parity within their niche, and teamwork is the order of the day while playing.

 

[Dannager]

In 4E terms, exploration is what is going on when not engaged in either combat or a skill challenge dicefest. In other words about .00012% of a published 4E module.

I just grabbed the free Keep on the Shadowfell off WotC's website and flipped through it. By my count, 20 pages (out of 70) were filled with things that were what you would call "exploration".

So, about 30%, actually. Let's leave the hyperbole at the door, shall we?

 

[Mistwell]

So, for the nonce, I'll suggest:

1E was about making the game into a hobby.
2E was about broadening the scope of the game (settings, classes, kits, skills, and so on)
3E was about applying real design principles to a game.
4E.... we shall see.

I think that rings pretty close to my opinion. But, I will change it thusly with my guess:

1E was about making the game into a hobby.
2E was about broadening the scope of the game (settings, classes, kits, skills, and so on)
3E was about broadening the scope of the designers (OGL).
4E is about broadening the scope of the players (DDI - once the digital gametable is up and functioning).