Dungeons and Dragons

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.

The main problem for me is that EVERYTHING is ONLY combat-oriented. That means that the main game mechanics for any class defines its range of solutions only in terms of damage/stun/explode/freeze/harm actions. That is of course awesome for the combat-oriented classes like Fighter, Rogue and Ranger – but there is absolutely no innovative solution for a Wizard or a Priest outside of the damage/harm powers (Ah OK, the powers are “spells” for a wizard, and “prayers” for the priest). Indeed, some other spells are available as Rituals, but they look like an afterthought – out of scope of your normal spell-caster progression (and of course all take between 10 minutes to an hour, so again there is no solution for a combat scenario except damage, so back to square one).

For me this is unacceptable – as someone that wants my party to think outside of the box of “kill the monster”.

On top of that, my negative gut-reaction is simply due to the fact Wizards changed the game in a deep way – but instead of respecting the past, they replaced it. The 4th edition by WotC is the only “true” Dungeons and Dragons – they even did not bother to stamp the books with “4th edition”. They decided to reuse the brand and audience for a deeply different game – and one I am not interested in playing.

As a player and DM that has very strong emotional investment in D&D for the past two decades, I find it a bit sad – but thats OK, as long as we all understand its a different game we can continue to play whatever version we like.

I am selling my 4th edition PHB. Anyone interested in near mint copy with the eratta’s written all over?

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