4E Dungeons & Dragons - Verdict?

[Blaidd Drwg]

So a lot of us are rpg-ers, the latest edition of D&D has been out for a while now and everyone (ie. those of us willing to try it) has had time to get to know it from personal experience. I was wondering what you think of it now. Has anyone changed his/her mind about it? And if so, is it better than you expected or is it a (major) disappointment?

I wouldn't be surprised if there's already a thread like this one somewhere in the unfathomable depths of the forum, but I haven't been able to find it. So there

[NeonKnight]

Myself, I love it! I find it WAY more fun than previous editions, and being a DM, find it way easier to tailor encounters based on how much of my party shows up to play, be it only 3 of them or the full group of 7 players!

A previous discussion of the 4e rules can be found here:

http://www.cartographersguild.com/showthread.php?t=2135

[Midgardsormr]

I have also been enjoying it. It's far less Byzantine than older rules, thanks to Wizards' superior templating process. I feel like I can run a D&D game under 4e without having to worry about strange character builds that warp the power level of the game.

D&D isn't my preferred gaming mode, though. I'm much more narrativist than gamist, so I get along better with less crunchy systems.

[loydb]

My group loves it.

[NymTevlyn]

I'd like to play more often, but finding competent DM's that aren't idiots is a little hard.

[deanatglobe]

It is a pretty big shift for my wife and I who have been playing Rolemaster 2nd Ed. for the past 15 years. Some friends from work decided we wanted to try DnD 4e so I am running a campaign. It has been a blast so far, everyone is really having fun with their characters. I'll be posting some maps soon, as now that I am running a campaign for others I actually have to finish my maps .

Dean

[Gamerprinter]

I have no problem with 4e, though I don't play it and don't plan to either.

Truthfully, most of my books are still 2e, though I have PH, DMG, Lords of Madness, and couple other 3e books. Between different players in my gaming group, we have about 30 3e books, so we are very much invested in 3e still.

Because I am actually working on a game setting and adventure arc for publication, and since I am doing a collaborative publication with an existing publishing house that has not signed the GSL, I'll be publishing OGL, with the intent of going Pathfinder RPG when that is official in August 2009.

Since I am designing for 3e, I certainly don't want to accidently mix rules from a different version, so I don't see learning 4e to help my publishing efforts at this time. Besides, I like the OGL concept and GSL is far too restrictive for 3rd party publishers so for that reason most of all, I won't get involved with 4e.

As a game system 4e might be great, but I don't think I will ever find out.

GP

[Sigurd]

Meh! I've played it but I don't really like it.

I am the first to admit that 3.5 has problems (especially for the DM). I find 4e feels more like a game and less like a simulation, if that makes sense. The cards, powers, etc... make the characters feel more two dimensional to me.

I can see its appeal though.

I've come to the opinion that the game system is tertiary to the story line. Really, I like the OGL. I like a framework for collaboration and open(ish) publishing.

If Wizards OGLd 4e (or a subset) I'd probably follow or work in multiple game systems. As it is, I feel like the OGL was a really good moment in game publishing and I want to stay with its rules.

I'm sorting through some free systems. I'd like the game to be more about story than product - more like folksong and less like Barbie.

[NymTevlyn]

Play 4e using maptool with a full set of pre-scripted powers and focus on playing the role of your character (not striker, defender, but their personality etc).

[matholwch]

For me 4E marks the final slippery slope down which the elephant in the room (Wizards) has taken with the D&D licence.

I have been playing D&D since 1976 (yes I am that old) and DM'ing it al that time through its various incarnations. Although I grew tired of the endless drive to improve it through complication, my players did not, so I dutifully shelled out the cash for each new edition.

This latest incarnation though is a step too far. It panders to the online rpg WoW crowd, reduces the whole experience to a colourful skirmish game and leaves little for the avid roleplayer.

This is why I have begun publishing my own (free) rules on my blog and running them for my friends.

I am also aghast at Wizards recent money-grabbing head turns such as making it more difficult for all the independent D20 producers that once again made D&D the market leader to get involved in 4E and the short-sighted withdrawal of online pdf publication out of fear of 'pirates'.

The latter may cost them more than the former. There is piracy online, but nowhere as much as is advertised. Products where the publisher tries to claw back as much cash as for a print edition are the rules those that suffer most. Wizards would be better slashing their prices for pdf editions and getting their profit from the sheer volume of sales they would generate. I rarely see pdf products that sell for under ten bucks on the various scan and publish sites (not that I ever visit them of course...).

On the bright side we have Paizo with Pathfinder. Still free to download in its beta edition, it looks to mend all the absurdties in 3.5. Whether it will succeed is still to be seen, but at leat they are trying.

Craig.