Which version of D&D is your favorite now?

[Li Shenron]

I have played 5e only a bunch of evenings, not counting PbP games, but it's already my favorite.

My previous favorite was 3.0, and in 5e I can find almost everything I liked about that edition. But it's much simpler and faster to play, and since this was the main drawback of 3e, quite clearly 5e just does what I needed.

I have some minor gripes here and there, particularly about a few ideas that they didn't fully develop after the initial stated purposes, but at the same time it seems 5e naturally lends itself to be house ruled with less worries compared to previous editions, so if I want to fix my gripes by changing something, it won't be much a problem to do so.

 

[Pentegarn]

For the D&D brand? Definitely 1st and 2nd edition AD&D.

 

[Serendipity]

My favorite remains BECMI and OD&D, with 1e AD&D as a runner up....but the new edition is EASILY my favorite post 1980s edition of D&D.

 

[ProphetSword]

Definitely 5th. I was a huge fan of 2nd Edition, but I can't get anyone to play it anymore. Everyone wants to play something new. So, 5th Edition is feels thematically like 2nd, but with a lot of the better mechanical changes that 3rd Edition brought...so it seems like a win-win whenever I run it. Players get a newer system that meets their needs and I get a game that meets my style better.

 

[billd91]

Too soon to place 5e in context yet. But it has, provisionally, surpassed my least favorite edition.

 

[KirayaTiDrekan]

In order of preference...

1. 5th Edition - I like the lower numbers, I like the feel, I like that I already have a dozen ideas on how to tinker with it, I like that I already have a dozen ideas on building worlds around it.

2. BECMI - Nostalgia leads me here, but also for the simplicity factor and ease of tinkering.

3. 3.5 - The ultimate tinkering and world building edition for me.

4. AD&D 2nd Edition - Another nostalgia fueled choice here. If I could find a way to hybrid 2E's range of character choices with BECMI's rules, I'd play that forever.

5. AD&D 1st Edition - I never played this the first time around and have only recently familiarized myself with it, so it doesn't get the nostalgia boost that other older editions get.

6. 4th Edition - Ok to play, not fun to DM for me.

7. OD&D - I just recently read through this and couldn't wrap my head around how to play it.

If I were to count Pathfinder, it would sit between 5E and BECMI as it mostly fills the same niche for me as 3.5 but is currently supported.

 

[Hand of Evil]

Pathfinder -- 5e is the new kid on the block, bright and shiny and I think we need to see how it goes, say three months to a year down the line. So far, I have just seen a good looking book and clean rule system, this is nothing I have not see before but have yet to play more than a couple of hours with. Just want to see how it holds up.

 

[kmdietri]

From what I've seen so far, 3.5/Pathfinder is still my favourite.

I'm holding out hope for the DMG.

 

[Kai Lord]

I don't see how anyone can possibly answer this poll adequately until having at least the first three 5E core books in hand.

 

[SigmaOne]

I don't see how anyone can possibly answer this poll adequately until having at least the first three 5E core books in hand.

I disagree. People paying attention don't even have to own the PHB at this point to be able to get a ton of knowledge of the game, including how the "non-basic" classes are shaping up. We already know what the key new principles are (such as bounded accuracy, concentration, multi-class mechanics, legendary monsters), and many of us have been playing with the "official" rules for over a month now. We have a bunch of monsters out, between the Starter Set, the PHB, and the HotDQ supplement. At this point, I feel confident that I could go on playing 5e without ever reading the DMG if I wanted to. And I don't see how seeing the rest of the monsters in the MM will affect my opinion.

I have no trouble at all saying this is my favorite edition; and given that "picking favorites" is one of the most personal and subjective processes in existence, I don't really see how you could be surprised that people are picking favorites. If you feel that you can't answer this poll adequately until reading the first three books, that's fine. It's your choice of "favorite".