Artifacts

[Catullus64]

I don't mean the Orb of Dragonkind or the Hand of Vecna. I'm interested in rules and systems in 5th edition D&D that are mostly artifacts of older editions of the game. Maybe they have a good reason to still be around, maybe they don't, but the most probable reason for their inclusion is a hazy feeling of "that's just something that belongs in D&D."

The thing that immediately jumps out at me as an artifact is having Ability Scores and Ability Modifiers be seperate numbers. Now, in AD&D, when there was a whole table of different modifiers and percentiles derived from your ability scores (Bend Bars and Lift Gates! System Shock! Chance to Learn Spell!) the ability score numbers probably made sense, or at least as much sense as anything in AD&D made. Now, there are maybe three or four rules that rely directly on an ability score (mostly STR), and those could very easily be changed to use modifiers. When I'm introducing a new player to the game system, and he asks why these two numbers are seperate, I really don't have a good answer.

For people more knowledgeable about the older editions than I (I've played maybe 15 sessions of non-5e D&D), what else do you notice that has survived as a vestigial organ from our gaming ancestors?

A polite request: Let's not talk about the alignment system. :biggrin:

[Tanarii]

The answer is that rolling dice is one of the two standard ways to generate ability scores, and it generates values in a curve to keep most ability scores near the center and with a somewhat predictable spread. But the resulting derived bonuses are a linear increase that are balanced on a tighter scale than, for example, instead using a derived modifier of ability score minus 10.

It's an artifact, but there's also still a 5e reason for it. It's not just included because that's the way D&D is. To be clear, rolling ability scores is, but the derived modifier is not.

[Vogie]

There are a bunch of minor artifacts littered throughout the game

the referential puns in spell components (Detect Thoughts using a penny, Message using a copper wire, Darkvision requiring carrot)
little racial-based shenanigans (Ghouls being unable to paralyze elves)
A bunch of the variant rules in the DMG (facing, proficiency dice, marking) harken back to older editions
The scaling of cantrips by level is a nod to the 3.x's "per caster level"
Some of the subclasses are nods back to other classes. Bladesinger wizards referencing Swordmages, the UA Wild Soul Barbarian being similar to a Bloodrager, Commanding Shout & Order Clerics nodding to the Warlord class, College of Satire Bards referencing the AD&D Jester kit, Shepherd Druids harken back to the Spontaneous summoning of 3.x with a splash of the 4e shaman, and so on.

[Christew]

I see the shadows of the Fortitude/Reflex/Will save structure behind the imbalanced ability saves of today.
Fortitude - CON, feats of might split off to STR
Reflex - DEX, no wiggle room.
Will - WIS, psychic/charm effects split off to INT/CHA

STR, CHA, and especially INT saves are few and far between because they were tacked on to the F/R/W system that was baked in to legacy spells.