Tony Vargas
Legend
Something like that has been a talking point at some points, but it's rather dubious, once you consider that D&D has generally been the primary gateway to the hobby. If D&D was too complex for you when you tried it, you most likely concluded that you simply didn't like RPGs, and are not part of the community. If you could stand D&D, chances are you played it a while, gaining familiarity with it, before discovering other TTRPGs.Wasn't the point, some people don't like to play complex systems but still like RPGs?
As you become more familiar with a complex system, it feels more and more intuitive, easier, and thus, less and less complex - that feel becomes your touchstone, and when you try a new system it feels more complex the more it deviates from the one you're familiar with. The main way a new system can feel simpler is if it's effectively a reduced-option sub-set of your touchstone system.
5e is a d20 game. It may be perceived as less complex than other d20 games because there's simply less material out for it, or because its more familiar to fans of pre-d20 D&D, but they're ultimately the same, complex, system.5e is a less complex system them many other major systems,.
Besides, it's hardly fair to speak of 'other major systems,' when 5e is essentially alone in rivaling 80s-fad D&D in popularity.
Last edited: