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Message: <blockquote data-quote="(Psi)SeveredHead" data-source="post: 4121070" data-attributes="member: 1165">*Complexity: The simple things were complex and the complex things were simple (sometimes too simple). For instance, saving throws were something used all the time but were too complex (backwards kind of like THAC0 and good luck memorizing that table!). Same with not having NWPs (what the heck were the rules for bluffing if you didn't have the Lying/Bluffing/whatchamacallit NWP?) and the spell rules weren't codified, making things harder to remember.IMO, game rules should be simple enough to use that you don't have to look in the rule book to use them. A simple spell like Fireball, for instance, works just like that. It has a standardized range in 3e (easier to remember), standardized damage cap, standardized "spread", etc. Turning Undead was a 3.x failing, IMO, precisely because so many people couldn't memorize the table. (Doubly so, because it was actually worse than the 2e table. Liches should be hard to turn!)Sometimes things were too simple... like monster stats. It really felt to me that every monster was the same, except for the number of hit points and (sometimes) the number of attacks.*Ability scores. Hated them. Quick, what does Constitution 12 give you? I'd rather use lower stats that mean something that inflated stats that mean something random. Also, I like point buy, which wasn't really supported by 2e's unbalanced ability score system.*Random irritating rules. Does anyone remember how long it took a mage to memorize their spellbook? At high levels it was a really long time! In 3.x it's one hour. A higher level mage knows more spells, but also has more experience with "cramming". A higher Int mage knows a few more spells, but their higher intelligence gives them the ability to read each spell slightly faster.*Flexibility of classes. I blame the lack of flexibility for creating kits, which were often broken or goofy. Character flexibility seemed based on random die rolling (how well you rolled at the start, and, if a mage, what spells you rolled for ... or maybe you didn't roll for them.) 3.x wasn't that flexible but was far ahead of 2e in that area.*Magic items: I don't know if magic items were rare, when there were no decent guidelines as to how many you should have. 3.x did me the favor of codifying this. It did me the disfavor of codifying the level so high that even giving PCs mountains of treasure (exaggeration, of course) still gave them less wealth than expected for their level. Some items were broken. I still remember a cleric I played with Charisma 5 (die rolled stats, remember?) who found an item that boost his Charisma to ... 18. What the heck?*Armor: I don't care if AC 0 was some kind of ideal to reach. THAC0 scaled. AC did not. Same with 3.x but at least there was magic item scaling.</blockquote>

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