Converting a small party from 3.5 to 5

[Felvion]

I'm in the process of reviving an old 3.5 campaign. It's up to me as a DM to convert the characters into 5th and i have to be successful because half of this party needs to be convinced they "keep the old feeling" or we stick to 3.5.
So, here is the group: (all lvl 6, stats were either25-27 point buy or rolled, can't recall and no sheets on me atm)
-Whirling frenzy barbarian (human).
My first thought was creating a new subclass but it got too complicated and i decided he would fit better in berseker path. Apart from this, he was a very cautious type of guy and i'm trying to swap reckless attack with a defensive feature. It should be something dodgy adding ac when raging, still fighting with some numbers there. Overall, this s mostly covered.
-The ranger.
He was the most elf-iconic ranger a 3.5 designer could imagine. Dedicated archer that relied on stealth and perception to set some deadly volleys. He also had 1 lvl of rogue which was mostly done for the 1d6 sneak attack. With better spells now available in the phb (the old one was core-only) i don't think any multiclassing would be needed. He is definately a wood-elf hunter and i'll let him decide the subclass options. The only problem with this one is he was really tied to his wolf companion although he never made it have much of an impact in combat. My intention is to let him have a wolf-pet with no special ability other than staying deadly loyal to its master.
-The bard.
That is the tricky one. Annoying as hell when interacting with people (even his own friends), this brave halfling was a true knight when fighting. His mithral fullplate allowed him to still be able to sneak when needed but never feared to charge the frontline and (try to) tank. He also cast some nasty silences and whiped people mercilessly. I know he's gonna be a valor bard and i'll let him pick spells freely. Apart from these i don't know weather he'd be better based on strength or dexterity. In 3.5 he needed both, now he can chose one and add some constitution to tank better.

There were some other members too but they won't join us anymore. I believe that, contrary to 3.5, in 5th such a small party is viable.

As for their stats i'll give them the exact same they had in their previous characters as they are pretty close to what they'd have with 27 point buy in 5th (racial bonuses added). I'd give them all 1 feat from lvl 4 and one more to the human as he has the lowest stats (which fits the human variant).

Speaking of feats, this has been my biggest problem as they added lot's of utility to the old characters. Considering that this campaign was designed to be epic (they'll end up lengedary heroes) i think i'll grant them one extra feat of my choice that better fits their rp. Since the party is small and their attributes won't increase from "half-feats" i think this won't break the game. The barbarian will get taver brawler, the bard heavily armored (if str-based, eitherwise warcaster) and the ranger sharpshooter or skulker.

Any advice on how i'd better sell them some things to convince the most harcore 3.5ers?
I've coloured the things that trouble me more so, since you reached that far feel free to express any ideas on these parts or anything you'd like!

[Jlooney]

Honestly, it seems that you either need to play 3.5 or tell them that it's a new system, time for new characters. Another route that I've used is keep the same basic class and let them remake them with the same name and player knowledge but everything else is new. There really isn't a way to be nice about it without a bigger headache for you. You have enough on your plate being the dm. IF they really want to keep their characters that bad have them remake them with what is available and come to you with ideas.

[Slipperychicken]

I think they'll need to be made aware that 5e has a lower, grittier power level. Goblins and other mooks, who would be effortlessly slaughtered by the dozens in 3.5, can pose a real challenge now. Also, most of the numbers (aside from hp) are a lot lower, so they'll need to change their expectations. Also, AC actually matters in 5e, which comes as a surprise to 3.X players. Also, when arbitrating DCs, you'll need to keep 5e's bounded accuracy mechanic in mind. DC 10 isn't quite the 100% scrub-tier check it was in 3.5, and DC 15 is actually pretty hard in 5e.

I think that involving your players in the updating process will help them feel more satisfied with it. Like at the very least, I'd show them one interpretation, explain the choices I made (including homebrew, as well as where you think there's wiggle-room), get feedback (comments, questions, concerns), and let the players change stuff if they want. That way, they can feel a little more invested, have some idea how their characters work within the system, and feel a bit more certain you didn't intentionally nerf them.



-Whirling frenzy barbarian (human).
My first thought was creating a new subclass but it got too complicated and i decided he would fit better in berseker path. Apart from this, he was a very cautious type of guy and i'm trying to swap reckless attack with a defensive feature. It should be something dodgy adding ac when raging, still fighting with some numbers there. Overall, this s mostly covered.

You could just say his Unarmed Defense feature represents his superior dodging ability.

Maybe you could replace Reckless Attack, instead giving enemies disadvantage to hit him, but also giving him disadvantage to hit enemies?


My intention is to let him have a wolf-pet with no special ability other than staying deadly loyal to its master.

Beast-master ranger? Or give him a different archetype, with a wolf statblock which he can give orders to for free.


contrary to 3.5, in 5th such a small party is viable.

They seem to have the important combat roles covered (i.e. damage, tank, heals), but you'll have to go easy on them in 5th. Packs of mooks are a lot harder in this edition. Also, you'll probably want to start the difficulty lower until you have a better feel for what their new characters can handle.


grant them one extra feat of my choice that better fits their rp.

I'd put in a suggested feat, then allow them to change it if they think something else would suit their characters better. The DMG has rules for giving extra feats. It's not game-breaking to have a few more than normal.

[Felvion]

Thank you both for the replies. TBH i didn't expect much feedback cause of the long post. Any advice is taken into consideration as i have 24 hours till i meet the players and haven't set my mind on anything yet.

[Fra Antonio]

Depending on the players and the style of the campaign, it may be better to just give the characters whatever the players need to retain the feel of the 3.5 ones. It's a 3 character party, so you probably won't overpower them too much. I converted a party for my own game, and did just that.
I gave the Fatespinner Sorcerer the Diviner's Portent, the Wild Mage's Bend Luck instead of normal subclass features and let her use the Heightened Spell metamagic for 2 spell points instead of 2. Also, some custom spells.
To the variant illusion-themed Unseen Seer I gave Paladin's spell progressions and some spells from normally unavailable schools (he had them in 3.5).
When a new amnesiac ranger character joined them, I gave him a free feat, two fighting styles instead of one and some really good gear (including a concealed artifact he doesn't know about; also, he's a fragment of an almost dead god, but he doesn't know about this yet).

They haven't broken anything so far, though I knew they wouldn't. They feel powerful, but that was also intended.