A few months ago I decided to return to DMing and roleplay, after several years of downtime. As such, I still have to make a choice regarding the system I would like to run my game on. Apparently I missed a lot of excitement since 3.0 with two major game releases in a few years - both the 3.5 which I heard good things about, and the recent 4.0 which I am playing with right now.
So when KublaCon, the biggest yearly RPG Con in the Bay Area came by, I decided that it is worth it enough for me to bear the cost (a day off away from the family during the Memorial day weekend is extremely expensive, believe me).
So here are some tales from first day ever in a game con… And some thoughts that it provoked on the state of D&D.
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D&D 4th edition is a big disappointment.
I played and DM-ed 2nd and 3rd edition for many years. For me Dungeons and Dragons is a game of imagination, role-play, innovation, problem solving, teamwork and memorable moments. I don’t care as much about the mechanics - I would like to see less and simpler mechanics (like Burning Wheel, for example, which is in my wish-list). For me 3rd and 3.5 editions are a natural progression of the game, striking a healthy balance between introducing more options and trying to keep it simple.
In the 4th edition WotC invented a refreshingly new, simple and modular system for character advancement: All classes have several “at will”, “encounter” and daily abilities. The difference between all classes (and characters of the same class) is which powers they can choose. On the face of it, its a wonderful system. Its so much simpler then anything that came before it, and makes running the game much simpler for the players (and the DM). Moreover, when you print the character sheet from the official character builder, you get all powers as cards (they fit suspiciously perfectly in “Magic The Gathering” sleeves). The essence of character progression becomes “get more power cards”.
This in itself is not a problem - it could be the best mechanic ever. In a way, the 4th edition is a brand new game that is deeply different from its predecessors. From a heroic fantasy game it became a tactical combat game, centered on the maneuvers and blows during combat. The game seems to have been rebuilt from the ground up to reflect this purpose. As such, it does what it does very well. It might be that WotC wanted to bring the game back to its Chainmail origins, refresh the game, and bring it closer to other tactical miniature games like HeroScape.
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