I spent some of Sunday trying out D&D 5.0 for the first time, which probably makes me the last gamer on Earth to do so.
It is too early to tell how it will all end, but it is a simpler system to use than the 3.5/Pathfinder one (not that I personally find the Pathfinder load too onerous as a player).
I like the way everything now keys more directly off the characteristics. No more spending points on skill points. Saves work that way too, which was a bit odd at first.
And that really sums up D&D 5.0. it is odd but not hard to work.
I do have to say that I despair when I contemplate a generation that cannot remember the way the grid works when you go diagonally or why it works the way it does in Pathfinder (which is all about Pythagorean geometry dumbed down to 2/2/3 triangles). Given that the most movement one can do on the grid is about 12 squares it is not exactly a feat of stage magic to remember the count.
Forget the howls of anguish over what did and did not trigger attacks of opportunity.
But despite the feeling that the system is catering to the Marching Morons it is easier to run from what I saw.
The system does pile on the awesome, to the extent that low level characters are now much better at everything they do. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand it lets players access the bits of the game they like best as soon as possible, on the other there's a distinct smell of munchkin in the air.
But for all they've done to it the game retains the core things that make a game D&D. You still have to beat Armor Class to score a hit. You still do that by rolling a D20. Feats are now a very minor part of the game, whereas in Pathfinder they are a core complexity. I rather like them but I can see the logic in getting rid of them. Losing the skill spends was a good idea too. It means that all tasks should now be scaled so everyone at least has a chance of carrying them out. No more "you need to roll a 22 or ask your rogue to do it" skill checks.
Sunday's game was fun, mostly because my die rolls brought equal amounts of awesome success and miserable failure (there was a distinct lack of "meh" die results that day).
I was underwhelmed by the attempt to work in a background with a character flaw. D&D has never been strong on this and the latest version's take seems arbitrary and not terribly good. GURPS and Savage Worlds incentivize their disadvantage/hindrance systems so one gets interesting character flaws that work with everything else. The D&D version does not compare well.
And the others all made elves so I was forced to do the same to keep the party looking feasible. I prefer making human or dwarf characters. In fact, I believe this is the first elf character I've ever played.
And yes, I went "Legolas" on the build. If I have to play an elf I want to surf down stairs on a shield killing wantonly as I do so. Acrobatics 7. Longbow proficiency. Job done.
The one thing about it all that drives me nuts is that Wizards of the Coast cannot get a flippin' clue when it comes to PDF versions of their rulebooks. D&D is still a paper-only game in a world where even Chaosium is putting out (badly done, minimal effort) PDFs. Paizo (the Pathfinder guys) and PEG (the Savage Worlds chaps) have really integrated the PDF into their sales model and it is a Godlikebeingsend to people with large collections (although Adobe recently made their reader so unpleasant to use I downloaded a free alternative that lacks the hotkey plethora of the original, so all is not wine and roses in the e-book world either).
I'll keep you posted as to my evolving view as I play.
