It is indeed limiting on player options, but not necessarily the player experience. Basically, players experience a game that is significantly more structured than a typical private game. There are rule regulations placed on content options (no homebrew, no UA, PhB+1, etc.) and on ability scores (standard array only). If you want maximum character customization available, then AL isn't a good fit.
So, why the structure? Because AL games are designed to be one-shots that are played with a group of strangers who can have varying levels of D&D experience. If you don't enjoy playing with strangers or newer players, then AL probably won't be fun for you. Also, AL requires no long term commitment; players are allowed to come and go for each session as they please since they are all meant to be one-shot type sessions.
These are only some general things I can say about AL. Individual experiences may vary depending on group dynamics, DM styles, player styles, game location, etc.
tl;dr--Pros: Due to its one-shot style play, AL is good for people who want to play but can't commit to regular play times/schedules. It's accessible to newer players who want to learn the game. It requires no commitment to a specific group; you can choose not to return to the next session if you didn't have a good experience. Cons: AL character options are limited. You might often play with brand new, first time players. There are additional rules you have to learn to play in AL.
Personally, if I'm completely honest I don't think the AL does DnD justice. Though some modules are better than others, I always felt somewhat constricted whenever I played or DM-ed. Though this was worse in Living Forgotten Realms (the 4E version of AL).
First off, the story is (duh, you might say) very linear most of the times, if you're running modules. This makes total sense due to the setup of the AL, it's not something I particularly enjoy out of DnD. I prefer to make (or be part of) a world and find the cool things to do myself. Kind of like a sandbox game (which is ironic since I don't like video-sandbox-games due to lack of structure... but I digress). This does not make adventure league good or bad, it just makes it less enjoyable for me as a person.
Second, I don't think a one-shot anything shows the games best sides. To me, DnD is a social game that I play with people that I enjoy hanging out with. My first party of adventurers were my secondary school friends and later I played with my older brother and his friends until they were also my friends. Later still (god I'm old...) I found a group of players that became friends and now I'm DM-ing a group that has evolved from there by adding other friends to replace those lost due to them moving or finding other interests. While meeting up with new people is always fun, I only played AL/LFR in a games store (which I believe is the target audience). They were always kind of fixed in their available time, so that means that for an adventure night that lasted from 19:00 to 22:00, that was the available time. This is not too bad, but it puts quite some pressure on both DM and players; there's little time for RP banter and we've often had combat encounters basically "cut off" since we clearly had the upper hand (2 or 3 monsters would be left out of 6 while we were with 6 characters). There's often no time to establish somewhat of a clear group dynamic either. This was mostly due to the time constraint.
I would say, like LightSpeed, that anyone who wants to learn to play the game that the AL is a great tool for doing so. However, if you truly want to experience the game, I'd rather find a group of people that I know (perhaps from other hobbies like wargaming or boardgaming groups) that might be interested in Roleplaying games.
AL is one way to play D&D but certainly not the only or best way. It's designed to be consistent which has some advantages but lacks the flexibility of a regular group playing a campaign for example
I personally had difficulty keeping a gaming group together to play due to RL schedule conflict. I prefer to play in person rather than online, so I decided to go to my local gaming store and try AL. I am fortunate that my local store has a ton of talented and enjoyable people to play with. I also know that when I set time out to game, i will actually have a group there to play with.
For me, AL allowed the flexibility from a scheduling standpoint to get to game weekly.
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Today, I examined the comments on the Youtube upload of this article. Most of them were criticizing AL.
I have never played AL. Is it fun, or is it more limiting of the player experience?
Hi. I'm a 14 year old student looking to play D&D. If you don't have a problem with me, I would gladly join your session!
It is indeed limiting on player options, but not necessarily the player experience. Basically, players experience a game that is significantly more structured than a typical private game. There are rule regulations placed on content options (no homebrew, no UA, PhB+1, etc.) and on ability scores (standard array only). If you want maximum character customization available, then AL isn't a good fit.
So, why the structure? Because AL games are designed to be one-shots that are played with a group of strangers who can have varying levels of D&D experience. If you don't enjoy playing with strangers or newer players, then AL probably won't be fun for you. Also, AL requires no long term commitment; players are allowed to come and go for each session as they please since they are all meant to be one-shot type sessions.
These are only some general things I can say about AL. Individual experiences may vary depending on group dynamics, DM styles, player styles, game location, etc.
tl;dr--Pros: Due to its one-shot style play, AL is good for people who want to play but can't commit to regular play times/schedules. It's accessible to newer players who want to learn the game. It requires no commitment to a specific group; you can choose not to return to the next session if you didn't have a good experience.
Cons: AL character options are limited. You might often play with brand new, first time players. There are additional rules you have to learn to play in AL.
Personally, if I'm completely honest I don't think the AL does DnD justice. Though some modules are better than others, I always felt somewhat constricted whenever I played or DM-ed. Though this was worse in Living Forgotten Realms (the 4E version of AL).
First off, the story is (duh, you might say) very linear most of the times, if you're running modules. This makes total sense due to the setup of the AL, it's not something I particularly enjoy out of DnD. I prefer to make (or be part of) a world and find the cool things to do myself. Kind of like a sandbox game (which is ironic since I don't like video-sandbox-games due to lack of structure... but I digress). This does not make adventure league good or bad, it just makes it less enjoyable for me as a person.
Second, I don't think a one-shot anything shows the games best sides. To me, DnD is a social game that I play with people that I enjoy hanging out with. My first party of adventurers were my secondary school friends and later I played with my older brother and his friends until they were also my friends. Later still (god I'm old...) I found a group of players that became friends and now I'm DM-ing a group that has evolved from there by adding other friends to replace those lost due to them moving or finding other interests. While meeting up with new people is always fun, I only played AL/LFR in a games store (which I believe is the target audience). They were always kind of fixed in their available time, so that means that for an adventure night that lasted from 19:00 to 22:00, that was the available time. This is not too bad, but it puts quite some pressure on both DM and players; there's little time for RP banter and we've often had combat encounters basically "cut off" since we clearly had the upper hand (2 or 3 monsters would be left out of 6 while we were with 6 characters). There's often no time to establish somewhat of a clear group dynamic either. This was mostly due to the time constraint.
I would say, like LightSpeed, that anyone who wants to learn to play the game that the AL is a great tool for doing so. However, if you truly want to experience the game, I'd rather find a group of people that I know (perhaps from other hobbies like wargaming or boardgaming groups) that might be interested in Roleplaying games.
Subclass: Dwarven Defender - Dragonborn Paragon
Feats: Artificer Apprentice
Monsters: Sheep - Spellbreaker Warforged Titan
Magic Items: Whipier - Ring of Secret Storage - Collar of the Guardian
Monster template: Skeletal Creature
AL is one way to play D&D but certainly not the only or best way. It's designed to be consistent which has some advantages but lacks the flexibility of a regular group playing a campaign for example
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I personally had difficulty keeping a gaming group together to play due to RL schedule conflict. I prefer to play in person rather than online, so I decided to go to my local gaming store and try AL. I am fortunate that my local store has a ton of talented and enjoyable people to play with. I also know that when I set time out to game, i will actually have a group there to play with.
For me, AL allowed the flexibility from a scheduling standpoint to get to game weekly.