Quote from: Will;777107I'm conflicted. I think this will be my favorite D&D (so far), but I don't have a group to play it with and -really- don't want a physical copy.

I'm also fairly committed to not pirating except under rare circumstances.

sigh

Have you tried joining in or starting a VTT group like with Roll20 or Fantasy Grounds?

My Monday night group was down too many players and I put a call out that day before the game on Google Plus. Found a player within hours and now it looks like he will stick around as a regular.

Roll20 right now is probably the best to start with at the moment.

I'm on a PF MUSH right now which scratches my online RP needs.

I miss TT play.

Quote from: Will;777107I'm conflicted. I think this will be my favorite D&D (so far), but I don't have a group to play it with and -really- don't want a physical copy.

I'm also fairly committed to not pirating except under rare circumstances.

sigh

I don't know if this will be my favorite edition (1e with 2e elements is right now) because it's too early.  But it's up there, that's for sure.  And if I'm gonna play a game, I'm gonna buy it, not pirate it.  As a designer myself, I know what it's like to be supported

I'm not sure I like how Dex and Str can both be used to up to-hit and damage in combat but, well, I've always liked swashbuckler types so at least it doesn't look like there'll be much keeping them from being viable.

So, is there anything standing in the way of a paladin being high dex/low strength? I don't care about optimal just not something like the 3.5ed swashbuckler class *shudders*

Quote from: Daztur;777139I'm not sure I like how Dex and Str can both be used to up to-hit and damage in combat but, well, I've always liked swashbuckler types so at least it doesn't look like there'll be much keeping them from being viable.

So, is there anything standing in the way of a paladin being high dex/low strength? I don't care about optimal just not something like the 3.5ed swashbuckler class *shudders*

It can be done. Elves make great Oath of the Ancients Paladins. Even Drow in the right conditions. Half Elves would be great at any version of them also.

Quote from: Will;777110I've been asking, but there seems to be absolutely 0 word that WotC will do a PDF _ever_, let alone a schedule for it.

I mean, if I were to lay a bet, I'd say in a year or two.

Which, of course, will just fuel piracy out the wazoo.

  I'd wait until after GenCon before making a judgment on the matter; there will probably be news there. WotC is bound and determined to support their Wizards Play Network, after all, with the early release and everything, so maybe they're holding back the announcement in the belief that it'll drive a few more sales that way. They almost certainly wouldn't be putting a PDF up until the general release on the 19th at the earliest, after all.

  I don't think it's piracy that's the main concern anymore, even if it was back in 2009. But now, I think the primary concern is not cannibalizing print sales, especially not the game store sales.

So far looking through a copy, I am pretty happy with it overall. I am a great believer in the right group can have fun with most systems. Having said that system does have some influence and I think 5th fits the bill in allowing me to Play D&D style games. I don't expect it to be something it isn't.

Like the changes I have noticed so far from play test. Like cutting back on the Bards combat buffing, but keeping it useful and cool still. They simplified it a good deal as well.

Still working my way through classes though, so much more to see!

Quote from: Daztur;777139I'm not sure I like how Dex and Str can both be used to up to-hit and damage in combat but, well, I've always liked swashbuckler types so at least it doesn't look like there'll be much keeping them from being viable.

So, is there anything standing in the way of a paladin being high dex/low strength? I don't care about optimal just not something like the 3.5ed swashbuckler class *shudders*

The only nitpick I have about 'dex for damage' is that some types of enemies, like Iron Golems, green slime, etc...would not be easy to hurt with finesse.

Of course, you can also argue strength would not really help you hit an agile target in most situations.

But from a game mechanics point of view, I like being able to have a finesse fighter without feeling I must boost strength and be all muscly.

You could do that more easily if Str adds to damage and Dex to attack bonus, then some enemies have DR and some have AC.

M&M does a good job doing this.

So what's all this fuss about a 5th edition of AD&D? I never saw 3rd or 4th, last version I had was 2nd. What glaring flaws are being fixed with the latest version?

(I didn't even know TSR went out of business until last year: I don't follow industry news, I just play some games I enjoy.)

Quote from: Matt;777192So what's all this fuss about a 5th edition of AD&D? I never saw 3rd or 4th, last version I had was 2nd. What glaring flaws are being fixed with the latest version?

(I didn't even know TSR went out of business until last year: I don't follow industry news, I just play some games I enjoy.)

   Oh, dear.

  Please, don't mention "glaring flaws"; the mere idea that something can be considered flawed is a hot button in this field. It's better to ask how things are different. (You missed out on several years of rather nasty flamewars between partisans of "Old School" D&D, 3rd Edition, 4th Edition, and various spinoffs and subsets of those. They're still lingering in spots, but just ignore anyone who tells you you're playing D&D wrong and you should be fine.)

  From 2E:

  --Mechanics have been unified and standardized. Nearly everything is now based on rolling 1d20 and adding one or two modifiers based on ability score and, if it's a field you're trained in, a 'proficiency bonus' based on your level. One of the new twists unique to 5E is 'advantage/disadvantage'--if you've got a beneficial set of circumstances, roll 2 dice and pick the better one; if you're at a disadvantage, roll 2, but you have to take the worse.
  --Similar to that, ability scores have been unified so that they all grant you the same modifier, based on a formula of (Score-10)/2. The modifier usually applies to d20 rolls, but also figures into Armor Class, hit point rolls, and damage.
  --A few new races have shown up in the PHB. Drow are now standard (although they've been toned down a lot from the 2E version; no more magic resistance, for example), tieflings (descendants of demonically or devillishly influenced humans) and dragonborn (yes, dragon-people).
  --There are a couple of new classes, too: Sorcerers (those born with magic, who know fewer spells than wizards but can pull off neat tricks with them) and warlocks, who make bargains for magic with eldritch powers and get a mix of several types of tricks.
  --All the classes have a bunch of new options to pick and choose from.
  --Alignment and racial restrictions on classes have gone out the window.
  --Characters are a bit less fragile than they used to be; hp are generally a little higher, and they can recover hit points faster.

   Really, for a general overview of how the game looks, you're best off heading over to //www.dungeonsanddragons.com and downloading the Basic Rules. It'll give you everything you need to know about creating and playing a basic human/elf/dwarf/halfing fighter/thief/wizard/cleric from levels 1-20. Monsters and DM stuff will be coming for free later this year--indeed, the first set of such material should be out sometime this month. The published books will contain a lot more details, optional rules for customizing the game, and nice art and that wonderful 'new book' smell and heft, but you should be able to use any adventure or supplement that will be published for 5th Edition with just Basic.

  And if you're in a nostalgia mood, a whole bunch of older products are available in electronic form at //www.dndclassics.com . It's not a full collection, but you may find something you've been hunting for or lost long ago.

Just play with Basic already, Will.

It's not that much of a problem. New doodads and whistles are nice, but you already have more than enough to run for newbies. And running just anything for newbies is more important than offering them a full spread.



For myself, it is too early to tell. I love my 2e, consistently the best campaigns I've ever ran or played in, for any system, by far. However, my first impression of 5e was "Wow, a WotC version that's not shit!" Trite comment, but this is an improvement.

And in play so far it is keeping that promise. (Which 3e crashed and burned on the word 'GO!'. Never played a fun campaign of that system to date. Not. A. One. And I loved it as I read it, too.) If things keep up it might be the first WotC D&D I'll ever buy (Lost Mines of Phandelver looks solid). It might be my "compromise edition."

EDIT: And that's what you call timing. I just tainted the returning player. Sorry!

Quote from: Daztur;777139I'm not sure I like how Dex and Str can both be used to up to-hit and damage in combat but, well, I've always liked swashbuckler types so at least it doesn't look like there'll be much keeping them from being viable.

I suggested that as a house rule for a 3.X game I played in a few years back. It makes perfect sense to me, in a Rob Roy sort of way. If someone is slow but strong, their one hit can be quite accurate and very powerful. If someone is dextrous but not very strong, their "multiple" glancing hits can be the rough equivalent in accuracy and perfectly equivalent in total damage.

I used to argue that DEX bonus should be applied to firearms damage in D20 Call of Cthulhu too.

Quote from: Sacrosanct;776954The first thing I noticed?  How solid it's built.  It looks like it will hold up for quite a while.  Which is an awesome thing for someone who still has scars from AD&D UA and OA

I just my copy in the mail, and it is a strong book and the pages are think and bright without being shiny/glossy. Just going to dig into it now...

Quote from: Armchair Gamer;777196Oh, dear.

  Please, don't mention "glaring flaws"; the mere idea that something can be considered flawed is a hot button in this field. It's better to ask how things are different. (You missed out on several years of rather nasty flamewars between partisans of "Old School" D&D, 3rd Edition, 4th Edition, and various spinoffs and subsets of those. They're still lingering in spots, but just ignore anyone who tells you you're playing D&D wrong and you should be fine.)

  From 2E:

  --Mechanics have been unified and standardized. Nearly everything is now based on rolling 1d20 and adding one or two modifiers based on ability score and, if it's a field you're trained in, a 'proficiency bonus' based on your level. One of the new twists unique to 5E is 'advantage/disadvantage'--if you've got a beneficial set of circumstances, roll 2 dice and pick the better one; if you're at a disadvantage, roll 2, but you have to take the worse.
  --Similar to that, ability scores have been unified so that they all grant you the same modifier, based on a formula of (Score-10)/2. The modifier usually applies to d20 rolls, but also figures into Armor Class, hit point rolls, and damage.
  --A few new races have shown up in the PHB. Drow are now standard (although they've been toned down a lot from the 2E version; no more magic resistance, for example), tieflings (descendants of demonically or devillishly influenced humans) and dragonborn (yes, dragon-people).
  --There are a couple of new classes, too: Sorcerers (those born with magic, who know fewer spells than wizards but can pull off neat tricks with them) and warlocks, who make bargains for magic with eldritch powers and get a mix of several types of tricks.
  --All the classes have a bunch of new options to pick and choose from.
  --Alignment and racial restrictions on classes have gone out the window.
  --Characters are a bit less fragile than they used to be; hp are generally a little higher, and they can recover hit points faster.

   Really, for a general overview of how the game looks, you're best off heading over to //www.dungeonsanddragons.com and downloading the Basic Rules. It'll give you everything you need to know about creating and playing a basic human/elf/dwarf/halfing fighter/thief/wizard/cleric from levels 1-20. Monsters and DM stuff will be coming for free later this year--indeed, the first set of such material should be out sometime this month. The published books will contain a lot more details, optional rules for customizing the game, and nice art and that wonderful 'new book' smell and heft, but you should be able to use any adventure or supplement that will be published for 5th Edition with just Basic.

  And if you're in a nostalgia mood, a whole bunch of older products are available in electronic form at //www.dndclassics.com . It's not a full collection, but you may find something you've been hunting for or lost long ago.

I guess a lot has changed. I might look at whatever's free. Never been much into D&D anyway. Just keep seeing posts about 5th edition coming out or being out and how it sucks or rules and how fill-in-the-blank edition sucked or ruled in comparison.