D&D 5E what systems in 5th could be explored more ?

[Edwin Suijkerbuijk]

3 new mecanics we have seen in 5th edition are Atunements,Concentrartion and healing hitdice.
When designing new options form 5th edition would thse mecanics be explored further ?

For example other things then magic items could use up your atunement slots.
You could have a ranger that gets animal companion, depending on the power of the companion it might use a number of atunement slots as a form balancing tool.

Concentraiton is now almost exclusivly used for spells.
But classes like a swordsage and zen archer might be able to use the concentraition mechanic for non spell powers.

And the healing hitdice are also a recource that could be used for other things then just healing.

 

[SteveC]

I'd suggest the other two pillars of the game: exploration and social. Both of these could use sound mechanical treatments, along with something for different classes to do in them.

I'd also add downtime to that: an optional minigame of how to spend your time when you're not adventuring.

 

[Geoarrge]

I like the use of exhaustion as a simplified form of ability damage, although it's too deadly for some purposes. I've been tinkering with the idea of "fatigue" which would stack with exhaustion, but only cause unconsciousness at level 6, and be much easier to recover.

 

[Tony Vargas]

3 new mecanics we have seen in 5th edition are Atunements,Concentrartion and healing hitdice.

Please ignore my being pedantic, here, but I feel compelled:

Attunement - of magic items, with a limit to how many you could attune, very like it is in 5e - was done in RuneQuest back in '78, and though it wasn't called that in AD&D, there were plenty of items that took effect only when claimed or retained for a time (often including curses).

Concentration was a familiar mechanic in 1e, and was significantly more restrictive than in 5e, though arguably less common ('Concentration' was used differently in different.

'Hit Dice' is a term that goes all the way back to the beginning, but their use as a pool of hps for short-rest healing is analogous to 4e Surges and, perhaps more so, to the 'Reserves' mechanics used in some d20 games.

So, none of those things are really new.

Sorry, I know it doesn't matter, I just had to say it... now, onto possibly worthwhile comments...

When designing new options form 5th edition would thse mecanics be explored further ?

Absolutely they could be, yes. 5e has a lot of open design space and underutilized potential, as befits a relatively new editions with few supplements out as yet.

For example other things then magic items could use up your atunement slots. You could have a ranger that gets animal companion, depending on the power of the companion it might use a number of atunement slots as a form balancing tool.

Concentraiton is now almost exclusivly used for spells.
But classes like a swordsage and zen archer might be able to use the concentraition mechanic for non spell powers.

Psionics is apparently going to use the mechanic a lot. Something like a Bo9S/Essentials 'Stance' or Defender Aura could be a candidate for non-magical concentration, too.

And the healing hitdice are also a recource that could be used for other things then just healing.

In 4e, Surges were used to power rituals, re-activate magic items, track long-term out-of-combat damage/exhaustion in skill challenges, and even then, really only scratched the surface of what you might do with something as valuable as a healing resource that arguably represents heroic effort or 'reserves' of vitality/will/determination/etc. All that and more could be done with HD, though their relatively small number at low level (and relatively small individual benefit at high level) and the fact they have the slowest recover rate of any resource in 5e, make it trickier than with surges. AFAIK, though, to date HD can't even be 'triggered' or used in combat the way Surges could be, so even either of those would be an expansion of their usefulness.


I know Downtime isn't exactly new, either, but I do like the way 5e is handling it this time around, and there's certainly some potential there. In one the warlord threads someone suggested a requirement that allies be trained before they could benefit from certain 'commands' - Downtime could be an appropriate form of bookkeeping for that. Some exploration or social scenarios might even be played through at the speed of Downtime...

 

[Barantor]

Backgrounds.

 

[TrippyHippy]

There could be any number of additional backgrounds potentially, however these are easy to create yourself really.

The thing I found a bit lacking in the rules was for mounted combat. There doesn't appear to be much advantage for this at all, nor any major mechanics to suggest that you would have a significant advantage. Moreover, there isn't any Cavalier style or horse mounted options in any Class, despite there being many examples of this type of warrior (Huns, Mongols, etc) in history. The Ranger Beatsmaster, for example precludes the companion animal from being a horse as it's a large creature. This is a shame.

 

[ExploderWizard]

There could be any number of additional backgrounds potentially, however these are easy to create yourself really.

The thing I found a bit lacking in the rules was for mounted combat. There doesn't appear to be much advantage for this at all, nor any major mechanics to suggest that you would have a significant advantage. Moreover, there isn't any Cavalier style or horse mounted options in any Class, despite there being many examples of this type of warrior (Huns, Mongols, etc) in history. The Ranger Beatsmaster, for example precludes the companion animal from being a horse as it's a large creature. This is a shame.

Classes with their abilities largely based on riding a mount present problems unless the entire party and adventure is set up to feature such things. So many adventuring environments aren't friendly to mounts. That has always been the problem with such options.

 

[Uchawi]

Maneuvers and hit dice healing.

 

[Minigiant]

Wilderness survival both natural and supernatural.

Most supernatural. This is D&D. A spontaneous zombie infestation, living thunderstorms, sharknados, fey enchantment on terrain, and magical plant growth fit right at home. These would grant more ways to inflict exhaustion as your party runs away from flying aquatic predators. It's magic, can't say it makes no sense now.

 

[Leatherhead]

And the healing hitdice are also a recource that could be used for other things then just healing.

Using healing surges for something other than healing was one of the things I disliked about the 4e system. Aside from putting an unnecessary expense on Knock (which was like using a jackhammer to fix a wobbly table in the name of unnecessary niche protection), it seemed like the mechanic was only really fleshed out once it became apparent that HD expenditure between party roles was severely out of whack. Making it give the impression of a patch specifically made in order to provide the illusion that everyone was spending their fair share of blood on the battlefield. Rather than providing the "burning a candle at both ends to make it brighter" and "great power at great sacrifice" narratives such a mechanic would imply, instead it came off as "Overclocking your PC": Channeling some extra juice and resources from an unused pool into one that get used all the time at little to no risk if you knew what you were doing.