Game Of The Week: Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition
Whether grognards like myself like or hate the new edition (and there seems to be quite the mix), the fact remains that Wizards of the Coast is the big fish in the small pond of the role playing game industry. The flagship rpg product, the one everyone knows and everyone recognizes, is Dungeons & Dragons. As I mentioned in my last entry, I tried the game this past weekend with the introductory adventure and quickstart rules, having only the Players Handbook in hand. I'll discuss that experience later and in some detail because I think there are probably a lot of gaymers who are still in the process of making a decision on 4e.
Today I surrendered and bought the books - cancelling my online order (it was delayed in shipping until at least July 10th) - and buying the books from my friendly local gaming store (which, as I've said before, is not all that friendly, though at least the cashier is a hot little number). They kindly gave me a substantial discount as a longtime customer, for which I'm grateful, since the cost of the books is hurdle to starting in the new system. For what it's worth, while I always support my local gaming stores when I can, you can probably already find cheap copies on Ebay. Why? Because while I rather like a lot of aspects of the new edition... most particularly that I think my players have more fun playing it than 3.5... many others who had high hopes have not.
So if so many people hated it, why am I making it the game of the week? Because there must be some balance. For every person who has told me they hate 4e, I've also had someone tell me why they love it. It's not perfect, and thanks to Paizo, it doesn't need to be. Those who want to continue with the 3.5 system and rules that flow from that system can continue with Paizo's Pathfinder system, or just use 3.5 as is or with Monte Cook's book of his own house rules (which I featured here some time ago). For those who need the official system, who must have only what is endorsed by Wizards of the Coast - congratulations. I pronounce the system somewhat sound, playable, and fun. It may not be perfect, substituting streamlining of effects for flexibility in places, but it has its own qualities to recommend it, which I'll discuss in depth in the coming weeks in a new feature that will replace Scrying the 4e Crystal Ball.
This game will not be D&D for everyone. It slays sacred cows (magic missile can miss, and yes that just feels wrong to me, too), and it changes many aspects of the game. Wizards seem more playable at low levels than they were, fighters seem more playable at high levels than they were. Much of the game is now about the team rather than the character, and you'll have to work at making your character unique, because the rules will not do it for you. But I think, despite great early trepidation, that the game is a good one. Try it out if you can. If 3.5 is definitely your choice... think about trying Pathfinder. I'm still reading the alpha release of their rules, but they look like they're doing something interesting over at Paizo too.
Faerie Dragon
Posted to Game of the Week, Hot Stuff, Industry News, Roleplaying Games on 10 June 2008
· Comments (6)
Other stuff like this: 3.5, 4e, d&d, dungeons and dragons, game of the week, paizo, pathfinder, wizards of the coast
I Personally LOVE 4e, it is a lot more accessable to the new players, of which RPGs in general are in dire need.
At my FLGS I ran our Worldwide D&D Game day event.
We had 10 players attend, and split into two groups. I ran the adventure with the younger, novice players, and one of our regular customers ran with the more "veteran" players.
Both groups had a great time, save for the woman who was playing the Cleric. She complained that due to healing surges and such, she has nothing to do. When she realized that she actually could do DAMAGE and participate in the fight, this turned her off to the 4e system almost completely. She had no interest in fighting, just wants to heal when needed and do (literally) nothing more.
I hope she comes around, but it is great to see two very different sides of the market enjoying the same product!!
sadly 4e didnt slay enough "sacred cows" to lure me back to D&D from the other tabletop systems I have migrated to. The races look to be much better balanced, classes seem to have a more even power curve, and they minimized some of the needless rolling (no more critical confirmation rolls). which are all good things.
Sadly they left in alignment, the game is (still) heavily miniature dependant, and alot of the variety and flavour of the game was lost in the streamline of the system (see warforged in the Monster Manual for just one example).
All in all it looks to be a good change, but not enough for my tastes.
@erik
What system is it that you have migrated to that you prefer? I'm curious.
I personally kind of of like yet kind of do not like the 4th generation of DnD. Sure I absolutely love what they did with the monsters and they took out some of the needless rolling...
But they also took out some races, classes and other little things that made the game just a tad bit more customizable. Like for instance no more druids, bards and sorcerers for one. Instead they made it so that the wizard no longer needs to worry about schools and can (with the right mind set) cast an unlimited amount of spells.
Also it seemed like they turned the elves, who I thought were okay being a magical proficient race with capabilities of being an equally good damage dealer into simple rangers and wood folk. And instead gave the elf knock offs; Eldarin, the more magically astute title.
In the end the only thing I really complain about are it seems they just overly simplified the game for the sake of not scaring the pants off of any new rp'er but in doing so have cut off their ties with the complexity that made the game so very customizable.
And to this I think the new edition may, more or less, be a scam. Another way for wizards to try and get more money. Like the way they reprint college math books with 'slight' changes just so they can charge students more for their buck.
'What's that? You want more races for the fourth edition? Here.. buy this book.. Oh! If you want more classes to go with it.. buy this book too!' does this mean that eventually since the third edition has like what?...six monster manuals out that they are going to reprint those too and charge you thirty four plus bucks to buy them aaaalll over again?
I mean sure I'll give it a try.. but will probably end up keeping the fourth edition monsters but stay with third edition characters/races.
@ Noa
I think some of your complaints are perfectly legitimate, or at least are simply matters of personal taste, but I'm not sure your last argument holds that much water.
There are fewer classes in the PHB for 4th edition but only by 3, and while I'd have preferred to see a few different choices, but I think they got the most important ones in there and the Warlock and Warlord are interesting.
But there is actually one more race in the new PHB than there were in the old one, or if you hate the split of the elves into two races, the same number.
I personally have no problem with the Elf Eladrin split, it just codifies in game mechanics the classic split between "high elves" and "wood elves." but if you don't like that split then... well then you don't like it! Nothing much I can do about that!
Luckily, if you don't like 4th edition, you can keep laying 3/3.5 or 2nd edition or even 1st edition!
My current 3.5 campaign will be continuing for some time and won't be switching over, so once I get a chance to get a few 4th edition games under my belt I can compare the two pretty well, but I have a feeling I'm going to like 4th edition better in general. The simulation-ist tendency in 3/3.5 is neat sometimes but really drives me crazy pretty frequently. I find it grinds the game to a halt far too often while everyone tries to look up the rules for whatever it is we're trying to do.
@ DrOct
I agree with that but I was wondering why you do not agree with my last statement about them trying to resell their 3.5 books as basic remakes for the 4th edition ones because I personally took a look at their website for their 2009 releases and they have on there... Player Handbook 2 AND Monster Manual 2, so you know what that says to me at least?
That my hunch may have more weight to it then I had previously thought. That WoTC might actually be trying to re-release some of these other books like they did for the 3rd editions where you had books up to forty bucks or at the very least thirty, for what? A better explaination of classes/races with psionics? It seems now WoTC is on a new quest. 'D&D: And The Quest for More Money' I love the game personally but I think it sucks that they are going to do this stuff over and over and over again, charging people an absurd amount of money for not even the core books, but for accessory ones, which when I look to the price kind of do not want to get them. I personally would spend the thirty plus bucks most likely getting stephen king books which are around ten bucks and almost always thicker then the D&D books which make up for more pages with pictures.