I, for one, am quite pissed off to come home with a new expensive 5e book and see that it is soon going to be obsolete. I want to hear other peoples’ opinions and thoughts about this new concept as it develops.
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“Magic is distilled laziness. Put that on my gravestone.”
It won't be obsolete, per se. The upcoming content is designed to be backwards compatible, and isn't likely to be released officially for quite a while. People will continue to play 5th edition, and many people still play 3.5e and older editions as well.
It won't be obsolete, per se. The upcoming content is designed to be backwards compatible, and isn't likely to be released officially for quite a while. People will continue to play 5th edition, and many people still play 3.5e and older editions as well.
I read the backwards compatible rules, but it doesn’t seem like it will actually be useful anymore. It just means you can use 5e books, not that they’ll be any good.
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“Magic is distilled laziness. Put that on my gravestone.”
It won't be obsolete, per se. The upcoming content is designed to be backwards compatible, and isn't likely to be released officially for quite a while. People will continue to play 5th edition, and many people still play 3.5e and older editions as well.
And we don’t talk about 3.5e.
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“Magic is distilled laziness. Put that on my gravestone.”
I, for one, am quite pissed off to come home with a new expensive 5e book and see that it is soon going to be obsolete. I want to hear other peoples’ opinions and thoughts about this new concept as it develops.
It's not soon going to be obsolete. WotC can't force you to switch over to the new edition if you don't want to (and personally I have yet to see anything from One D&D that makes me feel like it would be worth my money to do so).
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Find your own truth, choose your enemies carefully, and never deal with a dragon.
"Canon" is what's factual to D&D lore. "Cannon" is what you're going to be shot with if you keep getting the word wrong.
It won't be obsolete, per se. The upcoming content is designed to be backwards compatible, and isn't likely to be released officially for quite a while. People will continue to play 5th edition, and many people still play 3.5e and older editions as well.
And we don’t talk about 3.5e.
Who's "We"? You?
DNDBeyond was built around 5th edition, so obviously there is a bias here, but there are many other forums and in-person groups who still play, and prefer, 3.5e and Pathfinder.
5th edition was designed for accessibility, and as such, resulted in a boom of new players who have never played anything else. It has a robust and enduring fan base that previous editions didn't benefit from. It's sticking around.
I mean, do you want to hear other opinions? It sounds to me like you've made up your mind to hate 1D&D already =P
I'm greatly looking forward to it, the first-level feats are great, I love the new core races and the new Bard/Ranger look amazing. (Rogue could use a little bit more work though.)
I mean, the fact that this change was coming was announced almost a year ago ... so if you're just finding this out, I think you'll be just fine holding what you got. Whenever a new set of core rules come out, it's not like there's some special WotC operative team going house to house rendering all your 5e possessions illegible, so 5e will not cease to be playable. And as said, the intent claims to be going for backward compatibility. There's some balking at this, but the UA does seem to be playing pretty close to 5e. They don't want to stray too far from that player base.
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Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
I, for one, am quite pissed off to come home with a new expensive 5e book and see that it is soon going to be obsolete. I want to hear other peoples’ opinions and thoughts about this new concept as it develops.
It's not soon going to be obsolete. WotC can't force you to switch over to the new edition if you don't want to (and personally I have yet to see anything from One D&D that makes me feel like it would be worth my money to do so).
How is your book obsolete? It's 100% on you to use the book. If you use it in a game, it's not obsolete. If you don't use it - ever, it becomes obsolete. I can't understand how WotC makes that choice for you?
I get the frustration, but they have given plenty of notice this is coming. And if you don’t like it, don’t switch. Every edition change, some people stick with the older one.
I get the frustration, but they have given plenty of notice this is coming. And if you don’t like it, don’t switch. Every edition change, some people stick with the older one.
It will be fine. There are always going to be people who complain and do not like change. I personally love it when Wizards introduce new mechanics and options. Compatability really is not an issue, since you can always force it to work (whether it works on Beyond is another story, but there is always lápiz y papel, it is a huge hassle but will always work). It does not matter what method or how a person builds their character, they are all still going to be making the same type of rolls at the end of the day.
If a person who does not like change cannot handle others being okay with mixing and matching old and new character creation rules, that is the person's own issue, not anyone else's. People who do not like change can stick with their own way of playing, but they should not expect others who want more to cater to and play with them. Variety is the spice of life, and I like my variety extra spicy, so I am not going to waste my time, limiting my own options and enjoyment, playing with someone who only wants to play with the PHB and nothing else. I bought the darn Legendary Bundle and will most likely buy 1D&D too, so I want my money's worth when I am running my table; I really do not mind if half the table uses the old character creation rules and the other half uses the new rules.
I mostly like it. Streamlining is inevitable and Wizards of the Coast are at least doing it in the right areas, backgrounds being one. The streamlining I don't like is things like how uncomfortable WotC are with set-in-stone content, especially when One D&D appears to be more generic a system than 5E, which already requires a lot of legwork from DMs especially. Hopefully OneD&D does a better job with its sourcebooks and adventure modules, because I'm only really buying books now for the mechanical stuff on D&D Beyond, not for what little flavour and inspiration can be found within.
Unless my group converts fully to Rogue Trader, Dark Heresy or, I dunno, Quest (which isn't so far-fetched now I think about it) I reckon I'll be playing One D&D and enjoying it just as much as 5E, simply because it's there and we're familiar with it. And that's just it: any complaints I may have are essentially moot because at the end of the day I'm back to square one, playing the game I know with the people I know.
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Zero is the most important number in D&D: Session Zero sets the boundaries and the tone; Rule Zero dictates the Dungeon Master (DM) is the final arbiter; and Zero D&D is better than Bad D&D.
"Let us speak plainly now, and in earnest, for words mean little without the weight of conviction."
What you are saying about nothing forcing you to change the edition, well, it's true. But it is also true that most players are going to change the edition. So factually the old manuals are going to be obsolete (as is logical).
Regarding compatibility, the truth is that it sounds very good. But I'm pretty skeptical about that. Weird things are really going to happen if you mix stuff from D&D one with stuff from 5e. That could have been verified by anyone with the playtest. Some things are compatible, of course. But others get out of hand. And it is normal for it to be so. So, unfortunately, that backwards compatibility is not going to work well.
The main thing is the adventures, and they'll be fine at the moment.
You can have a mixture of edition classes in the party.
You can't really pick 'n' mix your class and subclass...but that's not really a biggie, is it?
The main thing that will be obsolete will be the PHB, possibly some of the DMG and maybe the MM? If you're worried about that, the free stuff will see you through.
The big concern I have is if I don't like the final product. My local group will likely switch regardless of my feeling, so I'll be forced to play those rules. If I don't like them, that will suck. However, no one can reasonably expect 5e to be eternal and unchanging, I knew 5e was getting long in the tooth when I bought it last year, it was a risk I took. Luckily, unlike say a certain war game, the vast majority of my investments will still be viable regardless of edition.
I'm not sure there's a lot to get angry about here. If they release another version in 2026, then I'll get my pitchforks out.
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If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
The main think is adventures? Well, I was thinking more about the rulebooks. Those are the ones that are going to be obsolete. As has already happened with Volo's and Mordenkainen.
You will be able to continue playing the adventures, although you may have to touch the CR a bit.
PHB is obsolete, if you want to play 1D&D and not 5e (which I agree is a bigger deal than some posters are trying to intimate). Beyond that... there's not a lot that can go obsolete really. They rereleased XGtE and TCoE with MotM, which was explicitly tied to 1D&D as well as 5e, so they have to stay usable or it'll go down like a lead balloon. DMG could be problematic. MM should be fine.
I don't think they're messing with CR much. I mean they could, but the idea is that PCs are roughly as powerful (in a general sense) in either...so I doubt they'd mess with CRs. It would be detracting from their backwards compatibility claim while not really gaining much in return. A Goblin is likely to be roughly the same power in either version. That'd mean that the MM will be usable. Different, but you could probably use either MM with adventures.
The various setting books? Well, the mechanical stuff there are mainly subclasses...that still work. The lore may not be kept, depends on how they're viewing this change. I'd like them to come out and confirm that they're keeping the lore or if they're resetting it. I imagine they're keeping it though.
The only books I'm thinking will be obsolete will be the PHB and DMG, with maybe parts of the settings books.
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If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
What you are saying about nothing forcing you to change the edition, well, it's true. But it is also true that most players are going to change the edition. So factually the old manuals are going to be obsolete (as is logical).
Regarding compatibility, the truth is that it sounds very good. But I'm pretty skeptical about that. Weird things are really going to happen if you mix stuff from D&D one with stuff from 5e. That could have been verified by anyone with the playtest. Some things are compatible, of course. But others get out of hand. And it is normal for it to be so. So, unfortunately, that backwards compatibility is not going to work well.
But, what most people do doesn’t really matter. What matters is if your table stays with the old or the new. Put together 5 people who don’t want to switch, and it doesn’t matter if everyone else does or not.
As for backwards compatible, I read that as the adventures will be viable with characters from either rule set. You want to use Rime of the Frostmaiden, it works just as well with either version. I could be reading too much into it, but my thinking is that they balance the new monsters against the new characters, so if the module says, fight 4 goblins, that fight will work as long as you use the same rule set for the players as for the monsters.
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I, for one, am quite pissed off to come home with a new expensive 5e book and see that it is soon going to be obsolete. I want to hear other peoples’ opinions and thoughts about this new concept as it develops.
“Magic is distilled laziness. Put that on my gravestone.”
It won't be obsolete, per se. The upcoming content is designed to be backwards compatible, and isn't likely to be released officially for quite a while. People will continue to play 5th edition, and many people still play 3.5e and older editions as well.
I read the backwards compatible rules, but it doesn’t seem like it will actually be useful anymore. It just means you can use 5e books, not that they’ll be any good.
“Magic is distilled laziness. Put that on my gravestone.”
And we don’t talk about 3.5e.
“Magic is distilled laziness. Put that on my gravestone.”
It's not soon going to be obsolete. WotC can't force you to switch over to the new edition if you don't want to (and personally I have yet to see anything from One D&D that makes me feel like it would be worth my money to do so).
Find your own truth, choose your enemies carefully, and never deal with a dragon.
"Canon" is what's factual to D&D lore. "Cannon" is what you're going to be shot with if you keep getting the word wrong.
Who's "We"? You?
DNDBeyond was built around 5th edition, so obviously there is a bias here, but there are many other forums and in-person groups who still play, and prefer, 3.5e and Pathfinder.
5th edition was designed for accessibility, and as such, resulted in a boom of new players who have never played anything else. It has a robust and enduring fan base that previous editions didn't benefit from. It's sticking around.
I mean, do you want to hear other opinions? It sounds to me like you've made up your mind to hate 1D&D already =P
I'm greatly looking forward to it, the first-level feats are great, I love the new core races and the new Bard/Ranger look amazing. (Rogue could use a little bit more work though.)
I mean, the fact that this change was coming was announced almost a year ago ... so if you're just finding this out, I think you'll be just fine holding what you got. Whenever a new set of core rules come out, it's not like there's some special WotC operative team going house to house rendering all your 5e possessions illegible, so 5e will not cease to be playable. And as said, the intent claims to be going for backward compatibility. There's some balking at this, but the UA does seem to be playing pretty close to 5e. They don't want to stray too far from that player base.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
I don’t plan on switching either.
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How is your book obsolete? It's 100% on you to use the book. If you use it in a game, it's not obsolete. If you don't use it - ever, it becomes obsolete. I can't understand how WotC makes that choice for you?
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I think think that One D&D is pretty cool. I mean, anything new to dnd is pretty cool.
I get the frustration, but they have given plenty of notice this is coming.
And if you don’t like it, don’t switch. Every edition change, some people stick with the older one.
Heck, there’re still people playing OD&D.
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It will be fine. There are always going to be people who complain and do not like change. I personally love it when Wizards introduce new mechanics and options. Compatability really is not an issue, since you can always force it to work (whether it works on Beyond is another story, but there is always lápiz y papel, it is a huge hassle but will always work). It does not matter what method or how a person builds their character, they are all still going to be making the same type of rolls at the end of the day.
If a person who does not like change cannot handle others being okay with mixing and matching old and new character creation rules, that is the person's own issue, not anyone else's. People who do not like change can stick with their own way of playing, but they should not expect others who want more to cater to and play with them. Variety is the spice of life, and I like my variety extra spicy, so I am not going to waste my time, limiting my own options and enjoyment, playing with someone who only wants to play with the PHB and nothing else. I bought the darn Legendary Bundle and will most likely buy 1D&D too, so I want my money's worth when I am running my table; I really do not mind if half the table uses the old character creation rules and the other half uses the new rules.
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I mostly like it. Streamlining is inevitable and Wizards of the Coast are at least doing it in the right areas, backgrounds being one. The streamlining I don't like is things like how uncomfortable WotC are with set-in-stone content, especially when One D&D appears to be more generic a system than 5E, which already requires a lot of legwork from DMs especially. Hopefully OneD&D does a better job with its sourcebooks and adventure modules, because I'm only really buying books now for the mechanical stuff on D&D Beyond, not for what little flavour and inspiration can be found within.
Unless my group converts fully to Rogue Trader, Dark Heresy or, I dunno, Quest (which isn't so far-fetched now I think about it) I reckon I'll be playing One D&D and enjoying it just as much as 5E, simply because it's there and we're familiar with it. And that's just it: any complaints I may have are essentially moot because at the end of the day I'm back to square one, playing the game I know with the people I know.
Zero is the most important number in D&D: Session Zero sets the boundaries and the tone; Rule Zero dictates the Dungeon Master (DM) is the final arbiter; and Zero D&D is better than Bad D&D.
"Let us speak plainly now, and in earnest, for words mean little without the weight of conviction."
- The Assemblage of Houses, World of Warcraft
What you are saying about nothing forcing you to change the edition, well, it's true. But it is also true that most players are going to change the edition. So factually the old manuals are going to be obsolete (as is logical).
Regarding compatibility, the truth is that it sounds very good. But I'm pretty skeptical about that. Weird things are really going to happen if you mix stuff from D&D one with stuff from 5e. That could have been verified by anyone with the playtest. Some things are compatible, of course. But others get out of hand. And it is normal for it to be so. So, unfortunately, that backwards compatibility is not going to work well.
...what exactly is going to be incompatible?
The main thing is the adventures, and they'll be fine at the moment.
You can have a mixture of edition classes in the party.
You can't really pick 'n' mix your class and subclass...but that's not really a biggie, is it?
The main thing that will be obsolete will be the PHB, possibly some of the DMG and maybe the MM? If you're worried about that, the free stuff will see you through.
The big concern I have is if I don't like the final product. My local group will likely switch regardless of my feeling, so I'll be forced to play those rules. If I don't like them, that will suck. However, no one can reasonably expect 5e to be eternal and unchanging, I knew 5e was getting long in the tooth when I bought it last year, it was a risk I took. Luckily, unlike say a certain war game, the vast majority of my investments will still be viable regardless of edition.
I'm not sure there's a lot to get angry about here. If they release another version in 2026, then I'll get my pitchforks out.
If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
The main think is adventures? Well, I was thinking more about the rulebooks. Those are the ones that are going to be obsolete. As has already happened with Volo's and Mordenkainen.
You will be able to continue playing the adventures, although you may have to touch the CR a bit.
PHB is obsolete, if you want to play 1D&D and not 5e (which I agree is a bigger deal than some posters are trying to intimate). Beyond that... there's not a lot that can go obsolete really. They rereleased XGtE and TCoE with MotM, which was explicitly tied to 1D&D as well as 5e, so they have to stay usable or it'll go down like a lead balloon. DMG could be problematic. MM should be fine.
I don't think they're messing with CR much. I mean they could, but the idea is that PCs are roughly as powerful (in a general sense) in either...so I doubt they'd mess with CRs. It would be detracting from their backwards compatibility claim while not really gaining much in return. A Goblin is likely to be roughly the same power in either version. That'd mean that the MM will be usable. Different, but you could probably use either MM with adventures.
The various setting books? Well, the mechanical stuff there are mainly subclasses...that still work. The lore may not be kept, depends on how they're viewing this change. I'd like them to come out and confirm that they're keeping the lore or if they're resetting it. I imagine they're keeping it though.
The only books I'm thinking will be obsolete will be the PHB and DMG, with maybe parts of the settings books.
If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
But, what most people do doesn’t really matter. What matters is if your table stays with the old or the new. Put together 5 people who don’t want to switch, and it doesn’t matter if everyone else does or not.
As for backwards compatible, I read that as the adventures will be viable with characters from either rule set. You want to use Rime of the Frostmaiden, it works just as well with either version. I could be reading too much into it, but my thinking is that they balance the new monsters against the new characters, so if the module says, fight 4 goblins, that fight will work as long as you use the same rule set for the players as for the monsters.