Insert Fanboy Whining Here.

[featherynscale]

Soooo.... D&D 4th edition. triadruid asked me this morning, "So they said they'd make it simpler than 3.x. How much simpler could they possibly make it?". I couldn't let it rest, I had to find out.

As it turns out, in the Brave New World, apparently, one's choices of character class will be limited to four, with variants: a tank sort, a healing sort, a ranged weapons sort, and magic-using sort. Apparently, if you would like to know more, you could watch this video. (Disclaimer: I haven't done so yet, but will probably check it out later. I took the above assessment from the general feeling of the D&D board at wizards.com, which one has to subscribe to a service for now... when did that happen?)

Anyway. I don't imagine we'll convert any time soon. Aside from the general ...meh... factor, I own too many 3.x books.

And all of this doesn't answer the most burning D&D question currently on my mind: Why the hell do rangers even get spells? Where does their magic come from? (In most campaign settings, this probably wouldn't make a bit of difference, but in mine it will. Feh. Why can't we just build a medieval-fantasy-britain-world with wizards and dragons and nobody asks why anything exists in the way it does? You know, like everyone else does.)

Comments

[featherynscale.livejournal.com]

In theory, I know all the rules for that. In practice, that sort of thing tends to get resolved with a simple opposed check. :)

I will postpone judgment until I can hold a book in my hands, but damn it, I really *like* 3.x.

[capriciouslass.livejournal.com]

I've had to be dragged kicking and screaming into each new edition. It turns out people have been playing in the new edition's system *at least* a year before I try it. I don't think this time will be any different.

[triadruid.livejournal.com]

I think 3.x took off because
a) TSR was defunct, 2.x was long out of date, and people were hungry..
b) 3.0 really was simpler and more straightforward than 2.x in a lot of ways. I can't fathom how 4.0 will be an "improvement" that justifies buying all the new books, in that regard.
c) If they go to a Blizzard/Warcraft skills-based system like liquidfun mentioned, then they're abandoning one of the most successful things to come out of 3.x: d20 Open Gaming. There's lots of pure-skill systems that already exist, if people want to go that route...

I wonder if they haven't dominated themselves out of a market. But I'm probably wrong...

[auraseer.livejournal.com]

The Open Gaming license will reportedly continue. Other publishers will still be allowed to release sourcebooks and settings that use the 4E rules.

[triadruid.livejournal.com]

Yeah, but I guess what I meant is, with all the books and OGL stuff out there for 3.x/d20, 4.0 is going to have to be REALLY different or REALLY snazzy to catch the attention of the gaming market. I think.