D&D 3E/3.5 Why do AoO's exist? Would it wreck 3.5 if I removed them from my game?

[Plane Sailing]

You'd be mistaken, because "just get rid of them" is a seemingly common variant on the AoO rules.

: shocked :

Well, in that case it would end up with all kinds of wierdness then!

 

[wildstarsreach]

Does the game Break? not sure but this changes most tactics. It make the huge challanging creatures fodder when they could attack you at rnage coming at them. Your mages are paste as another poster stated. Too many other things are affected. I'd leave them and wiat till 4th ed comes out to see what they do to fix this.

 

[KarinsDad]

A good game of what? I never ran D&D with minis until 3e and my games were just fine. I happily run plenty of RPGs, including 3e D&D, without minis.

In games without minis combat tends to be more narrative than tactical - my players talk a lot more about what their characters are going to do and how they're going to do it. In games with minis, my players tend to just move their minis around and try to maximize their capabilities from the system. Both styles can be fun to play, but neither seems better than the other to me.

To each their own. IMO, the narrative games without minis are a pain. One person goes to the bathroom and either combat stops, or it takes 3 minutes to get him back up to speed as to what just happened. With minis, this is also true, but to a much lesser extent. He can with a glance see exactly where everyone moved while he was gone. He can see at a glance who is prone as opposed to standing, etc.

Ditto for people not paying attention for one reason or another. For example, someone looking up the next spell they want to cast in the PHB and not quite listening to every word coming out of the DM's (or other player's) mouth.

The advantage of minis is the same advantage as other tools. They allow for speed and ease of play.

Using fewer assistant tools in the game is equal to having more opportunities for misunderstandings and mistakes.

For example, we use 3x5 cards for initiatives. It is very difficult to make a mistake with them if you just flip through to the next combatant. It is much easier to make a mistake if one writes initiatves down on a sheet of paper (in fact, that just happened the other week in a Champions game cause the GM had them on paper and didn't bother checking them off as each init was used).

Ditto for other game assisting tools. Good tools help, lack of good tools hinder.

 

[sirwmholder]

Are AoO's really that confusing? I grew up playing Advanced, then 2nd, then Revised, then 3rd now 3.5 and the introduction of AoO's took all of 5 minutes to understand and remember. I have played in both mini games with detailed battlemaps spread across a 6' x 8' gridded table... I've also played as a group huddled around a coffee table holding their character sheets and leaning in to roll dice on the short table. We have used AoO's rather easily in both instances. I find that it's a great mechanic to illustrate why you don't run past the front line defenders... or why it's important to stick together and not let your Mage or Cleric out of sight. AoO's add a great feeling of realism to combat and it's not hard to grasp. Just grab the PHB take a few minutes and reread it. It does not require mini's to use... just pay attention. If it helps... sketch a map while the DM is detailing the room to the group. It will keep you focused and give you a visual if you have problems playing without minis.

Happy gaming,
William Holder