I was hoping for some help. I have an adventure that was written from the 3.0 edition of D&D. I wanted to update it to 5th Edition but am not quite sure how to go about doing so. I don't actually have a physical copy of any 5e material, but I do know the skill list is very different, the system is different, and the spell lists have changed as well. I assume the hp is the same, and I think the AC is a one to one transfer.
Should the skill checks transfer one to one? Do I need to change the DC's?
I can think of 5e skills that should work for the old checks, but I am not sure how the numbers should correlate. One to one doesn't work for all of it. (Especially for the ones that are no longer stand alone skills in 5 e)
How should I treat the Fortitude, Reflex, and Will saving throws? The numbers don't feel like they correspond right just using the proficiency system. I am also not sure on the feats. Or how the monsters have changed, and if some NPC classes like warrior are the same?
Battle phases seem a bit different as well.
Oh and sorry to confuse people, the thread really should have a question mark, not look like a statement. Though I suppose I could list the pointers I later found after posting this thread, if that is okay and people want to know.
Update: I am not looking for advice or assistance anymore on how to update the adventure or how to ask about doing so, for those who do need a some pointers on how to convert an adventure though; check out Gregca's post, it has a link for D&D Conversions. I recommend downloading the file.
Really wouldn't it just be easier to carry over the adventure plot and just drop 5E elements and monsters into that story-line? You have access to the Basic Rules of 5E on this site.
Matt Colville says not to try and convert, as in, find an algorithm to turn each thing from one edition to antother. Rather, do what Wtfdndad said -- just keep the map, plot, and NPC personalities, but put 5E stuff into the adventure.
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WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
Well, that wasn't entirely helpful. Yes it would be much easier to just use 5e material, which I am using what I can access. But by just using the 5e stuff it wouldn't be the same as the adventure, and I wanted to stick to the adventure about as close as possible. There is a website that had a pdf on converting stuff to 5e. Not all of it will convert perfectly or at all, but at least it is something to give a good idea, for anyone crazy like me who insists on occasion to do things the hard way. Do note- you will still be making use of 5e's nearest counterparts regularly.
And to reply to myself. The hp is not the same. 5e creatures have way more hp than their 3e counterparts usually, and often have a lower AC.
Ability scores are not always the same.
DC's will probably require adjustment.
When it asks for Fortitude saves that means a Constitution check, Reflex would use Dexterity, and Will is Wisdom (simple to remember as those were the scores that were used to calculate those saves.)
Basically when it comes to most of the numbers- Ignore them. Especially Fortitude, Constitution, Will and skills. Those will largely require re-rolling or otherwise recreating ability scores and using those for skills as usual, (and for characters applying background and other class features). Plus the proficiency bonus where it applies.
Ignore feats completely.
As far as I can tell old NPC classes like Adept, Warrior, Aristocrat, Expert, and others are not in 5e. The Basic Rules does have some NPCs that more or less emulate those roles, though the effect is not quite the same.
Monsters are also different. The stats have been changed (as stated above, the hp is often higher, AC is often lower, the ability scores may or may not be the same). Feats have been largely removed. Skills are not the same, some of the monsters special features have been removed or changed. Some monsters may have been removed (I can't find anything on the Hellcat) or may have gone through a name change. (I think the Osyluth is now called a Bone Devil, it looks about right, and is mostly identical. Minus some of the spells that it had in 3e, and other special features like calling more Osyluth. And Teleport has been replaced with fly speed.)
I haven't completely looked into how the Combat may have been changed. The phrasing has at the least, I don't see Full Round action bandied about in 5e. Guess that would be you don't get a bonus action, even if your character normally would?
Most of this is stated from 3e to 5e, as the adventure was written for 3e. Other editions have some of their own adjustments as stated in the D&D Conversions (the pdf I mentioned before). For instance 4e level, and other aspects have to be adjusted down by a third when converted to 5e.
I still ended up buying the Dungeon Master's Guide (hardcopy, so it won't be entirely useful on D&D Beyond, but I do really like having a book) in order to get the information on how to set CR's and stuff for homebrewed monsters, and will probably have to buy the Player's Handbook eventually.
Editing after the following post, if you think I am foolish for doing this, do me a favor, roll your eyes, think it and move on. Please do not leave posts nay saying my or anyone else's ability to find and accomplish what they need. And to correct, I said I did not have physical copies. D&D Beyond grants access to many important areas with the Basic Rules. And there are sites that can allow a person to download pdfs of 5e material for free. I had a pdf of the Player's Handbook well before I posted this, and have more pdfs of other 5e material now.
Possible additional vector for the community to assist you: Is this a published adventure or something you wrote for 3E and want to update it so it can run under 5e? If it's the former, maybe someone's already done it and you can compare notes. If the latter, there's sound advice that should be attended to beyond "well that wasn't entirely helpful." There just isn't a mechanism that will perfectly convert 3.0 material to 5e, like running a PS2 game on a PS4. Biowizard's effort to help was sort of along this point. Conversion between systems just isn't a simple number flip. There's more an art for it, what some people call "conversion" between editions is really more akin to translation, or even more accurately adaptation.
Again, maybe if you give a better sense of what you're working with, maybe it's been done.
Greetings.
I was hoping for some help. I have an adventure that was written from the 3.0 edition of D&D. I wanted to update it to 5th Edition but am not quite sure how to go about doing so. I don't actually have a physical copy of any 5e material, but I do know the skill list is very different, the system is different, and the spell lists have changed as well. I assume the hp is the same, and I think the AC is a one to one transfer.
Should the skill checks transfer one to one? Do I need to change the DC's?
I can think of 5e skills that should work for the old checks, but I am not sure how the numbers should correlate. One to one doesn't work for all of it. (Especially for the ones that are no longer stand alone skills in 5 e)
How should I treat the Fortitude, Reflex, and Will saving throws? The numbers don't feel like they correspond right just using the proficiency system. I am also not sure on the feats. Or how the monsters have changed, and if some NPC classes like warrior are the same?
Battle phases seem a bit different as well.
Oh and sorry to confuse people, the thread really should have a question mark, not look like a statement. Though I suppose I could list the pointers I later found after posting this thread, if that is okay and people want to know.
Update: I am not looking for advice or assistance anymore on how to update the adventure or how to ask about doing so, for those who do need a some pointers on how to convert an adventure though; check out Gregca's post, it has a link for D&D Conversions. I recommend downloading the file.
Some homebrew: Curse Eater and more-here other- here
Really wouldn't it just be easier to carry over the adventure plot and just drop 5E elements and monsters into that story-line? You have access to the Basic Rules of 5E on this site.
Matt Colville says not to try and convert, as in, find an algorithm to turn each thing from one edition to antother. Rather, do what Wtfdndad said -- just keep the map, plot, and NPC personalities, but put 5E stuff into the adventure.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
Well, that wasn't entirely helpful. Yes it would be much easier to just use 5e material, which I am using what I can access. But by just using the 5e stuff it wouldn't be the same as the adventure, and I wanted to stick to the adventure about as close as possible. There is a website that had a pdf on converting stuff to 5e. Not all of it will convert perfectly or at all, but at least it is something to give a good idea, for anyone crazy like me who insists on occasion to do things the hard way. Do note- you will still be making use of 5e's nearest counterparts regularly.
And to reply to myself. The hp is not the same. 5e creatures have way more hp than their 3e counterparts usually, and often have a lower AC.
Ability scores are not always the same.
DC's will probably require adjustment.
When it asks for Fortitude saves that means a Constitution check, Reflex would use Dexterity, and Will is Wisdom (simple to remember as those were the scores that were used to calculate those saves.)
Basically when it comes to most of the numbers- Ignore them. Especially Fortitude, Constitution, Will and skills. Those will largely require re-rolling or otherwise recreating ability scores and using those for skills as usual, (and for characters applying background and other class features). Plus the proficiency bonus where it applies.
Ignore feats completely.
As far as I can tell old NPC classes like Adept, Warrior, Aristocrat, Expert, and others are not in 5e. The Basic Rules does have some NPCs that more or less emulate those roles, though the effect is not quite the same.
Monsters are also different. The stats have been changed (as stated above, the hp is often higher, AC is often lower, the ability scores may or may not be the same). Feats have been largely removed. Skills are not the same, some of the monsters special features have been removed or changed. Some monsters may have been removed (I can't find anything on the Hellcat) or may have gone through a name change. (I think the Osyluth is now called a Bone Devil, it looks about right, and is mostly identical. Minus some of the spells that it had in 3e, and other special features like calling more Osyluth. And Teleport has been replaced with fly speed.)
I haven't completely looked into how the Combat may have been changed. The phrasing has at the least, I don't see Full Round action bandied about in 5e. Guess that would be you don't get a bonus action, even if your character normally would?
Most of this is stated from 3e to 5e, as the adventure was written for 3e. Other editions have some of their own adjustments as stated in the D&D Conversions (the pdf I mentioned before). For instance 4e level, and other aspects have to be adjusted down by a third when converted to 5e.
I still ended up buying the Dungeon Master's Guide (hardcopy, so it won't be entirely useful on D&D Beyond, but I do really like having a book) in order to get the information on how to set CR's and stuff for homebrewed monsters, and will probably have to buy the Player's Handbook eventually.
Editing after the following post, if you think I am foolish for doing this, do me a favor, roll your eyes, think it and move on. Please do not leave posts nay saying my or anyone else's ability to find and accomplish what they need. And to correct, I said I did not have physical copies. D&D Beyond grants access to many important areas with the Basic Rules. And there are sites that can allow a person to download pdfs of 5e material for free. I had a pdf of the Player's Handbook well before I posted this, and have more pdfs of other 5e material now.
Some homebrew: Curse Eater and more-here other- here
You don't have any 5e material but you wanted to convert an adventure to 5e.
Makes no sense.
You bought the dmg but thats it.
You aren't going to get far.
The OP said they realize they are doing it the "hard way", I say let them have their fun hobby project. It seems like a labor of love to me.
Good luck kbeyondtraining !
https://media.wizards.com/2016/downloads/DND/DnD_Conversions.pdf
Possible additional vector for the community to assist you: Is this a published adventure or something you wrote for 3E and want to update it so it can run under 5e? If it's the former, maybe someone's already done it and you can compare notes. If the latter, there's sound advice that should be attended to beyond "well that wasn't entirely helpful." There just isn't a mechanism that will perfectly convert 3.0 material to 5e, like running a PS2 game on a PS4. Biowizard's effort to help was sort of along this point. Conversion between systems just isn't a simple number flip. There's more an art for it, what some people call "conversion" between editions is really more akin to translation, or even more accurately adaptation.
Again, maybe if you give a better sense of what you're working with, maybe it's been done.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.