D&D 5E Why do you use Floating ASI's (other than power gaming)? [+]

[Vaalingrade]

It's the lack of other levers in 5e. Unless you get that +1 from ASI, you're just plain not getting it.

Not in terms of squeezing every drop of bonus out of the game, but getting the expected level of competence that the game is balanced around. No amount of flanking, positioning, or other tactics will get you any bonus ever, just a reroll at the same bonus. And while technically rerolling amounts to a +5, sucking at hitting still feels like sucking at hitting.

 

[Crimson Longinus]

Not to speak for them (he said as he does so) they do, I believe, use that rule, or VHuman.

Variant human can't start with a 18 though.

 

[Vaalingrade]

Where there serious problems in that playtest that were corrected?

Fighters were too interesting for the wizard players' taste.

 

[billd91]

Oh for naughty word's sake. Let me guess, they changed this because of 'feedback'.

The more I hear about D&D Next the more it sounds straight up better than the 5e we actually got.

Where there serious problems in that playtest that were corrected?

... if not... maybe they shouldn't have ran a playtest...

It's not necessarily a question of serious problems. The class bonus might have been dropped because playtester feedback didn't like it as much as the racial bonus. Or, the decision was made to make the racial bonus +2 so that it always reflected a net +1 in effect no matter what the input was.
Neither is an unreasonable design decision.

 

[Scribe]

Variant human can't start with a 18 though.

Can't you?

15 + 2 + Feat (+1) ?

 

[Crimson Longinus]

It's the lack of other levers in 5e. Unless you get that +1 from ASI, you're just plain not getting it.

There you go:
Weapon, +1

 

[Crimson Longinus]

Can't you?

15 + 2 + Feat (+1) ?

That's custom lineage. Variant human is two +1s and a feat.

 

[TwoSix]

You miss by one 5% of the time. It is one point of damage. You still kill the monster. No, I really don't get it.

And that's fine. But it still matters.

Also, if you used the custom lineage with a correct feat, you could start with a 18. That's the same difference than 16 has over 14. Why are you not always thinking that you could have done that when you're playing your ability 16 character?

Oh, believe me, I think about it a lot. But +4 feels less essential than +3, I guess. It really depends on the half-feat in question and whether or not I want a second 16, or am satisfied with 14 Con/14 secondary stat.

 

[Scribe]

That's custom lineage. Variant human is two +1s and a feat.

Wha...I don't play Humans my life is turned upside down.

 

[TwoSix]

Oh for naughty word's sake. Let me guess, they changed this because of 'feedback'.

The more I hear about D&D Next the more it sounds straight up better than the 5e we actually got.

Where there serious problems in that playtest that were corrected?

... if not... maybe they shouldn't have ran a playtest...

Some of the playtest was awesome (looking at you, 2012 sorcerers), some of it less so. (I compared one playtest packet to the residue stuck on the plate when you accidently microwave something for 10 minutes too long.)