As someone frow well outside the anglosphere Imperial system is alien to me, but I admit it fits better with a fantasy word. Metric system is based on the size of planet Earth and in the settings set on planets of different sizes and planes that arre not planets at all it makes no sense. The again using "feet" in a setting where goliath, human, dwarf and gnome feet would be very different makes only slightly more sense than meters.
I don't really know if it matters that the size of your world is not a nice multiple of the meter. I think the reason the "feel" of imperial is more fantasy is because metric is designed for precise calculations. It's easier to multiply 4.33kg by 1.72 than it is to multiply 4 lbs. 3 oz. by 1.72. But that's just not a thing people would have done a lot in medieval times. They would have multiplied and divided by small integers. If you need to share 4 lbs. 3 oz. of meat equally, you each get 2 lbs. 1 1/2 oz. It was a system designed for a different purpose.
A nice thing about digital publishing is, it is possible to toggle the measuring system.
Probably the US units should be default, since D&D originates as a US game.
From the point of view of the player, choosing the measurement system can be as easy as clicking a button or selecting from a text box.
There can even be more than two choices.
• Grid-Play US (complex random measurements) • Grid-Play metric (complex random measurements) • Mind-Play US (simplified standardized scales of magnitude: 3 feet, 10 feet, 30 feet, 100 feet, 300 feet, 1000 feet, ...) • Mind-Play metric (simplified standardized scales of magnitude: 1 m, 3 m, 10 m, 30 m, 100 m, 300 m, ...)
Rather than a specific number, the speeds of dwarf and wood elf can be described as traits: "slow", "fast"
So, both the dwarf and the human are roughly "Speed 10 m". However, because the dwarf has the "slow" speed trait, if a human and dwarf race, the human will always out run the dwarf, thus catch or evade the dwarf. If two humans race, it is a skill contest. If a human and a wood elf race, the wood elf with the "fast" trait always outruns.
Heavy armor incurs a "slow" speed.
Thus the concept of speed is there but without the numbers, making it easier for mind-play (theater of the mind), for each player to have compatible visualizations of what is happening.
It would be awesome to have a metric system in dnd. Could be like a slider so anyone can select between feet or meters, pounds or kilos. A simple feature that would be great for helping disseminate this incredible game.
I don't really know if it matters that the size of your world is not a nice multiple of the meter. I think the reason the "feel" of imperial is more fantasy is because metric is designed for precise calculations. It's easier to multiply 4.33kg by 1.72 than it is to multiply 4 lbs. 3 oz. by 1.72. But that's just not a thing people would have done a lot in medieval times. They would have multiplied and divided by small integers. If you need to share 4 lbs. 3 oz. of meat equally, you each get 2 lbs. 1 1/2 oz. It was a system designed for a different purpose.
A nice thing about digital publishing is, it is possible to toggle the measuring system.
Probably the US units should be default, since D&D originates as a US game.
From the point of view of the player, choosing the measurement system can be as easy as clicking a button or selecting from a text box.
There can even be more than two choices.
• Grid-Play US (complex random measurements)
• Grid-Play metric (complex random measurements)
• Mind-Play US (simplified standardized scales of magnitude: 3 feet, 10 feet, 30 feet, 100 feet, 300 feet, 1000 feet, ...)
• Mind-Play metric (simplified standardized scales of magnitude: 1 m, 3 m, 10 m, 30 m, 100 m, 300 m, ...)
he / him
Rather than a specific number, the speeds of dwarf and wood elf can be described as traits: "slow", "fast"
So, both the dwarf and the human are roughly "Speed 10 m". However, because the dwarf has the "slow" speed trait, if a human and dwarf race, the human will always out run the dwarf, thus catch or evade the dwarf. If two humans race, it is a skill contest. If a human and a wood elf race, the wood elf with the "fast" trait always outruns.
Heavy armor incurs a "slow" speed.
Thus the concept of speed is there but without the numbers, making it easier for mind-play (theater of the mind), for each player to have compatible visualizations of what is happening.
he / him
It would be awesome to have a metric system in dnd. Could be like a slider so anyone can select between feet or meters, pounds or kilos. A simple feature that would be great for helping disseminate this incredible game.
A toggle for this would be nice. Not sure how much work/coding would be involved at this stage of development though.