"Any playtesters for D&D Next?" Topic

Care to share what you thought?

I have to admit I'm looking forward to this. I haven't played in 15 years, but I'd like to get back into it.

I bought a ton of 4th edition stuff at the end(I miss Borders Coupons). I like all tactical feel, but felt they went to far down that road. Hitting someone with my sword should be just that, NOT an "at will power".

So did you play it?

Xin

My son and I played the game at Gen Con last year (we each got a free copy of the first printed scenario/pseudo-rule book for having to wait in line for longer than they anticipated). Honestly, between the demo game and pouring over their initial rule book, I wasn't all that impressed despite being excited initially about the rumored direction they were going (more toward old-school D&D and away from the tactical/combat-centric 4th edition).

I kind of lost interest in it after that and a couple of the play test modules that were produced but I guess we'll see what the final version is going to look like once it comes out. I still have hope.

D&D Next is starting to have the air of desperation about it… so many disparate groups they're trying to please, the Pathfinder fans, the OSR enthusiasts… the guys who actually liked 4E. Which group if any is gonna get something that shifts them to the new game?

Myself, I'm happy playing adaptations of the earlier versions… such as Lamentations of the Flame Princess and Dungeon Crawl Classics.

While I was never a huge D&D fan (usually played RuneQuest or Role Master after 1981 or so) it was what I started out on in RPGs. I bought 3.5 and 4th just because I'm a collector, but never played them. Nothing I've read about "Next" excites me. However, I have found myself drawn back to the simplicity of AD&D 1E and retro-clones like OSRIC.

For me, the earlier games emphasised the "Role Playing" part of RPG, while 3.5 and 4th seem to emphasise the "Game" mechanics part of RPG.

I'm a big OSR fan, and 4e was the first edition I really skipped, although my play of 3e was spotty. Unlike the posters above, I'm excited about 5e, and very optimistic about its design direction. My hope is that it will go back to recognizable D&D roots and streamline play, but still move things forward on the design front a bit – which seems like what its doing. If you want some more info I would recommend the enworld forums.

Cheers,

Christopher

I have not looked at the rules since the start. Apparently they are going for a modular approach. You can play with as many or as few rules as you like. Undoubtedly, there will be many gamers that will play it as a "kitchen sink" set of rules while others will go with the old school/minimalistic approach. Unless things have changed drastically, I suspect that's what the rules still will be.

Me? I'll be sticking with 1e. If I had my way, we'd be playing the LBB and Greyhawk.

I think there are a couple good ideas, but I'm not giving up 4e just because there is a "new" edition. D&D Next feels like I can take my old TSR stuff to run campaign. I might pick up the base rulebook if there are suggestions on how to port previously published materials.

I wish them well, but I'm not holding my breath.

I played 4E for a year, made elaborate 3D sets from Worldworks carsdstock templates,invested heavily in books and miniatures, and… it didn't have the same satisfaction as that ol' 1st edition. I really disliked needing a paid computer service to effectively manage encounters and characters (not to say it can't be done without the website, but is not nearly as accessible without it.)

So, I took a modest $60 USD, searched ebay for a couple of weeks, and now have all the 1st edition books I want, and we have started a new AD&D comapign using old books. And the funny thing is, without fancy layouts and multi-colored character sheets, we are having more role-play and less roll-play. And, of course, game night hasn't been cancelled because I didn't have time to finish the Temple of Isis in full 3D lol!

So, it looks like I will be skipping Next. Sorry, Wizards, "new" hasn't necessarily been "better" for a few editions now.

I still prefer the old basic Red Book / Blue Book (B/X) edition of D&D (not even 1e AD&D).

For me the important thing was/is "role playing", not dice rolling, not chart-looking, not mini-maxing.

For those who like the "old stuff", much of it is available as (paid) downloads from:

dndclassics.com

Or you can download (for free) the "Labyrinth Lord" system (which is just different enough from B/X to keep lawyers happy) here:

link

I say, "go for more imagination and less constricting detail."

-- Jeff

There's always gonna be some who want 'official' D&D stuff and want to keep up with the newest variation… all because of that little logo on front.
For the rest of us there is a HUGE amount of stuff being produced for older versions and not-D&D versions… much of it for free.
I can't really see giving my allegiance to Hasbro/WOTC and having them define the borders… but if they make something cool I'll likely take a look at it, to borrow ideas if nothing else.

I also played in the D&D Next playtest at GenCon 2013 and was not that impressed--the exercise seemed more a placeholder for WOTC and less a real playtest of the rules. The various playtest packets were all over the place, or never even evolved, so it is hard to really know what the final rules will look like, though they will definitely be SOMEWHAT of a return to older editions.

That being said, I also look forward to D&D Next, and hopefully the "modular" aspect will allow me to ignore parts I dislike. I am otherwise a fan of the OSR movement and have dozens of retroclonees, and my hope is that the new edition will incorporate much of their spirit.

My group has had quite a hiatus from the RPG table since running out of steam on 4e (and yes the need to have an online subscription just to make characters got tiresome). I will say that we liked 4e much more than we did 3/3.5e. Got the itch to play again lately – but took a look around. D&D next seems decent enough (got some of the playtest material to review), but 13th age looked better to us.

My suggestion if you are looking to "get back into it" is to not just automatically sign up for D&D next but to take a look at all the various D&D-like games out there. So many different flavors, you'll find one that you like.

I thought all the D&D players are all playing Pathfinder now a days??

Nope . . . a lot of us are playing old editions or retro-clones. I still prefer the old Basic D&D (red book / blue book, called B/X by many).

-- Jeff

I'm with Jeff--I still love the red box edition. That's what I started my son on last year and he loved it too. Simple, fun, not all tactical-combat kind of crap. If I want tactics and complicated model-to-model combat I'd play a real war game, not a fantasy RPG.

I think Wizards needs to get back a bit closer to the D&D roots to make the next great edition.

Have been playing it since the get go and we've been having a blast. Started playing D&D about thirty years ago, took a long break. Skipped 3.5 and 4th. Next brought me back to the good old days. Lots of room for hack and slash as well as role play. The game is clean and leaves the DM a ton of latitude for decision making while still having a clear set of rules for combat (arcane and mundane). It feels like a reboot of AD&D. I will be buying the rules at Gen-Con this year.

Haven't tried it yet but I have been stuck to ad&d 2e since I started my group. We try to strike a balance between role play and roll play because hack and slash doesn't keep the group interested. I usually tailor our fights to be small encounters of elite enemies (or just very smart ones) because the group is very into "cinematic combat"

Have thought about switching to 4e but never got around to it