What rules from previous editions do you wish were in 5e? My candidates:
I liked charge (3e/4e), being only able to move 30' before attacking is painful for melee in 5e.
I liked 3e style negative hit points that only went to -10, it gave you a bit of a buffer for low levels but you could still get oneshotted at high levels.
I never played previous editions, but I sometimes watch Matt Colville vids. He recommended 4e Minions for combat and I have used them with pretty good success. They are not meant to be dangerous and they make the party feel powerful, but they also can be dangerous if the party gets overconfident or ignores them. It also is a great way to have a lot of enemies on the map and make it feel cinematic, but they don't really drag out combat like a lot of normal monsters would.
I miss 4e’ “unaligned” but then I just kind of hate alignment in general. I also miss 4e targeting different defenses to give players a chance to roll. It’s so unsatisfying when you cast something like sacred flame, and the DM makes their save, and it just feels like you didn’t do anything on your turn.
I miss keyword tags from 3.5 like 'Mind-affecting', and really miss the distinction between 'Spell-Like', 'Supernatural' and 'Extraordinary'. Spell-like could tell you 'yes this ability acts like a spell, it can be dispelled, antimatigiced so on', supernatural was 'This is magical, but not a spell, can be suppressed in an anti-magic field', and Extraordinary was 'They can just do this' (like swallow attacks).
I miss the range of templates from 3.5 as well. Just bang on a template to make a creature new an fresh again. Turn it into an undead or so on.
I also really liked the flavour of 'reversible' spells from AD&D even if they were a bit of a pain to track and remember. Later the reversible options became their own spells (Like Heal and Harm), but it was kind of fun to have spells that you could prep that could go either way, if you were willing.
I also miss some of the 'Bring back from death' spells having consequences, although the official ones from older editions (Lowered Con or system shock to the PC, or reduced lifespan to the cleric) felt more punishing and likely to cause death spirals. I ended up houseruling that such spells have far longer cool downs, to avoid relying on them too much.
Touch AC to me was also one that intuitively made a lot of sense. Dodging vs Blocking essentially, and while yes a bit of a pain to calculate, felt more immersive for those times where it felt like an attack still needed to land to make an effect, so needed an attack roll, but shouldn't care about armour- if it touches you in anyway, it takes effect.
While I understand the simplicity of skills being "proficient" "not proficient" "expertise" etc... but honestly: I miss Intelligence being involved in how skillful your character is: now it feels like Intelligence is a dump stat for a lot of characters besides Wizards and other int casters. Which is somewhat ironic for frankly one of the only things humans actually do well from an animal standpoint.
I miss the 1e character stat method of rolling 3d6x6, arranging scores in strict order. It produced some unforgettable characters and encouraged creative role play.
I actually offer this option at my table, as an alternative to standard array, and usually offer a separate reward (magic item or level boost) to any player who chooses to play an "underpowered" and interesting character.
I miss the 1e character stat method of rolling 3d6x6, arranging scores in strict order. It produced some unforgettable characters and encouraged creative role play.
I actually offer this option at my table, as an alternative to standard array, and usually offer a separate reward (magic item or level boost) to any player who chooses to play an "underpowered" and interesting character.
One of my old DMs did this (without the reward lol). I didn't realize that it was a rule from the older editions. I thought it was just common practice. Very interesting. Anyway, it did make for some interesting ability scores and frequent liabilities in combat.
What rules from previous editions do you wish were in 5e? My candidates:
I like 3e's touch attack rules.
I never played previous editions, but I sometimes watch Matt Colville vids. He recommended 4e Minions for combat and I have used them with pretty good success. They are not meant to be dangerous and they make the party feel powerful, but they also can be dangerous if the party gets overconfident or ignores them. It also is a great way to have a lot of enemies on the map and make it feel cinematic, but they don't really drag out combat like a lot of normal monsters would.
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Exploration turns. I implemented them into my 5e games.
Actual dice rolling instead of the standard array or point buy.
You can still roll dice, it’s literally in the PHB as one of the three options
What are those from? AD&D? I vaguely remember something like that but I can't recall what it did.
I miss 4e’ “unaligned” but then I just kind of hate alignment in general.
I also miss 4e targeting different defenses to give players a chance to roll. It’s so unsatisfying when you cast something like sacred flame, and the DM makes their save, and it just feels like you didn’t do anything on your turn.
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ModeratorI miss keyword tags from 3.5 like 'Mind-affecting', and really miss the distinction between 'Spell-Like', 'Supernatural' and 'Extraordinary'. Spell-like could tell you 'yes this ability acts like a spell, it can be dispelled, antimatigiced so on', supernatural was 'This is magical, but not a spell, can be suppressed in an anti-magic field', and Extraordinary was 'They can just do this' (like swallow attacks).
I miss the range of templates from 3.5 as well. Just bang on a template to make a creature new an fresh again. Turn it into an undead or so on.
I also really liked the flavour of 'reversible' spells from AD&D even if they were a bit of a pain to track and remember. Later the reversible options became their own spells (Like Heal and Harm), but it was kind of fun to have spells that you could prep that could go either way, if you were willing.
I also miss some of the 'Bring back from death' spells having consequences, although the official ones from older editions (Lowered Con or system shock to the PC, or reduced lifespan to the cleric) felt more punishing and likely to cause death spirals. I ended up houseruling that such spells have far longer cool downs, to avoid relying on them too much.
Touch AC to me was also one that intuitively made a lot of sense. Dodging vs Blocking essentially, and while yes a bit of a pain to calculate, felt more immersive for those times where it felt like an attack still needed to land to make an effect, so needed an attack roll, but shouldn't care about armour- if it touches you in anyway, it takes effect.
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While I understand the simplicity of skills being "proficient" "not proficient" "expertise" etc... but honestly: I miss Intelligence being involved in how skillful your character is: now it feels like Intelligence is a dump stat for a lot of characters besides Wizards and other int casters. Which is somewhat ironic for frankly one of the only things humans actually do well from an animal standpoint.
I miss the 1e character stat method of rolling 3d6x6, arranging scores in strict order. It produced some unforgettable characters and encouraged creative role play.
I actually offer this option at my table, as an alternative to standard array, and usually offer a separate reward (magic item or level boost) to any player who chooses to play an "underpowered" and interesting character.
One of my old DMs did this (without the reward lol). I didn't realize that it was a rule from the older editions. I thought it was just common practice. Very interesting. Anyway, it did make for some interesting ability scores and frequent liabilities in combat.
DM mostly, Player occasionally | Session 0 form | He/Him/They/Them
EXTENDED SIGNATURE!
Doctor/Published Scholar/Science and Healthcare Advocate/Critter/Trekkie/Gandalf with a Glock
Try DDB free: Free Rules (2024), premade PCs, adventures, one shots, encounters, SC, homebrew, more
Answers: physical books, purchases, and subbing.
Check out my life-changing