BerzerkerUnit
2020-12-26, 02:35 PM
Note: I've only really read WotC's books, so if any of this looks like PF or 13th Age etc, it's just cognitive parallels. I'm sure anything that looks similar those games have already done better, though I think Wizards with its Hasbro money and crowd sourcing playtesting, might be able to improve further.
1. We're 2-5 years out from an announcement for 6e. I'd expect a DarkSun campaign book, full psionic rules, or definitive Modern book to be the phoenix immolation of 5e preceding a 6e.
2. Races will be almost entirely fluff with standardized modifiers players can assign as desired and racial features like Darkvision and Trance relegated to more generically sourced feat analogs. So an Elven Warrior might take the Trance feature bc he's an elf while a Dwarven one might take it bc they were a soldier in a guerrilla war and slept with one eye open and human might have grown up on a Monastery. Initial Class choice may or may not inform these assignments as defaults. Kits may assign such, like Trance being the default choice for Monks or Rangers, etc.
3. Classes will exist, however they will be more modular in nature. The 4 primary classes: Warrior, Priest, Mage, Rogue will be defaults any goon can play out of the box. Alternate class features and subclass features will be largely interchangeable. Prefab "builds" (called kits to raise the specter of nostalgia) of those 4 will be included in the core to fill out Ranger, Monk, Paladin, etc.
So a paladin might be X Warrior levels, Y Priest levels, and some unique ala carte features. Ranger might be Warrior X, Rogue Y, and yet other ala carte features that have X/Y levels as prereqs.
The key is, they won't be mandatory, so you can be Warrior/Rogue/Mage, call yourself a Ranger and throw fireballs or stick to the Kit and be an iconic out of the box archetype.
4. Spellcasting will get an overhaul with scaling being based on some manner of casting action economy rather than spell slots. So quick cast, standard cast, full cast will all have different effects and determine whether or not the spell costs a slot. Spells may have no slot cost for quick or standard cast making them functionally at will abilities. Possibly you might be able to prepare such spells as Quick/Standard only to create the Cantrip versatility lacking in 5e or Fire/Forget may make a return with Free Cast only available as long as you retain the option of slot casting it as well.
Example: Fireball may normally cost a slot for a Standard cast with 8d6 damage. Full casting may cause creatures and objects to catch fire on a failed save, quick cast may create a smaller 2d6 AoE (ala melfs meteors). Once you cast Fireball or exhaust your slots, you may lose the quick 2d6 AoE option as well and be stuck with weaker no slot cantrips.
5. Overall level of spell casting will come from Total Priest or Mage levels and each priest or mage level will come with a predetermined # of Slots. A generic and optional "spellcasting" trait will be included so your Warrior or Rogue levels can grant additional slots instead of their normal features. Spell damage and effect will be based on Priest or Mage levels and aforementioned casting action economy. Slot level will disappear.
6. Damage will be streamlined with average values as default and rolling normally added to crits. The minion will return as a creature modifier with Criticals auto KOing them and some kind of Minion Mulcher element for spells and class features intended to lay hordes of mooks low.
7. Warrior damage will scale via # of attacks and # of dice allowing for more even damage #s between casters and martials.
8. Rogue will be less sneak attack focused and more stealth, infiltration, debilitation focused. An Assassin Kit of Warrior X, Rogue Y will fill the niche of big single hit killer, but I expect the standard sneak attack feature to focus on some form of Debilitating effect like blood loss, Blinding, partial paralysis, etc from their precision strikes.
9. Advantage/Disadvantage will become a flat +/-5 to reduce rolling.
10. Combat will assume "here and there" or "near and far" as the default play space with attack and Spell ranges being defined as hard numbers with a clear division of anything beyond ~30 feet as "there or far." Move speeds will generally refer to Close and Far, Reactions will be available to creatures "Near or Here." etc. Something Reactive Shooter might allow you to react with an arrow to creatures taking actions from "there" as if you were There as well. Polearm Master might allow you to do the same provided you move "there" as part of the reaction.
11. Action Economy might return to 4E's more straightforward description with the exception of movement staying separate. Your movement may be divided up among your Quick Action and Standard Action. You'll also have your Reaction which may limit the amount you can move to a short distance. Class features/feats may change this to extend the distance you can move when reacting.
Bonus. Players that were introduced to Dnd through 4e will feel nostalgic, players introduced through OG and Redbox types will too. Everyone else will initially hate it out loud, claim the sky is falling, then play it anyway for a few years until the next edition is out. PF will loot 5e via OGL and their 3e will cause a surge in sales of PF.
Thanks for reading!
1. We're 2-5 years out from an announcement for 6e. I'd expect a DarkSun campaign book, full psionic rules, or definitive Modern book to be the phoenix immolation of 5e preceding a 6e.
2. Races will be almost entirely fluff with standardized modifiers players can assign as desired and racial features like Darkvision and Trance relegated to more generically sourced feat analogs. So an Elven Warrior might take the Trance feature bc he's an elf while a Dwarven one might take it bc they were a soldier in a guerrilla war and slept with one eye open and human might have grown up on a Monastery. Initial Class choice may or may not inform these assignments as defaults. Kits may assign such, like Trance being the default choice for Monks or Rangers, etc.
3. Classes will exist, however they will be more modular in nature. The 4 primary classes: Warrior, Priest, Mage, Rogue will be defaults any goon can play out of the box. Alternate class features and subclass features will be largely interchangeable. Prefab "builds" (called kits to raise the specter of nostalgia) of those 4 will be included in the core to fill out Ranger, Monk, Paladin, etc.
So a paladin might be X Warrior levels, Y Priest levels, and some unique ala carte features. Ranger might be Warrior X, Rogue Y, and yet other ala carte features that have X/Y levels as prereqs.
The key is, they won't be mandatory, so you can be Warrior/Rogue/Mage, call yourself a Ranger and throw fireballs or stick to the Kit and be an iconic out of the box archetype.
4. Spellcasting will get an overhaul with scaling being based on some manner of casting action economy rather than spell slots. So quick cast, standard cast, full cast will all have different effects and determine whether or not the spell costs a slot. Spells may have no slot cost for quick or standard cast making them functionally at will abilities. Possibly you might be able to prepare such spells as Quick/Standard only to create the Cantrip versatility lacking in 5e or Fire/Forget may make a return with Free Cast only available as long as you retain the option of slot casting it as well.
Example: Fireball may normally cost a slot for a Standard cast with 8d6 damage. Full casting may cause creatures and objects to catch fire on a failed save, quick cast may create a smaller 2d6 AoE (ala melfs meteors). Once you cast Fireball or exhaust your slots, you may lose the quick 2d6 AoE option as well and be stuck with weaker no slot cantrips.
5. Overall level of spell casting will come from Total Priest or Mage levels and each priest or mage level will come with a predetermined # of Slots. A generic and optional "spellcasting" trait will be included so your Warrior or Rogue levels can grant additional slots instead of their normal features. Spell damage and effect will be based on Priest or Mage levels and aforementioned casting action economy. Slot level will disappear.
6. Damage will be streamlined with average values as default and rolling normally added to crits. The minion will return as a creature modifier with Criticals auto KOing them and some kind of Minion Mulcher element for spells and class features intended to lay hordes of mooks low.
7. Warrior damage will scale via # of attacks and # of dice allowing for more even damage #s between casters and martials.
8. Rogue will be less sneak attack focused and more stealth, infiltration, debilitation focused. An Assassin Kit of Warrior X, Rogue Y will fill the niche of big single hit killer, but I expect the standard sneak attack feature to focus on some form of Debilitating effect like blood loss, Blinding, partial paralysis, etc from their precision strikes.
9. Advantage/Disadvantage will become a flat +/-5 to reduce rolling.
10. Combat will assume "here and there" or "near and far" as the default play space with attack and Spell ranges being defined as hard numbers with a clear division of anything beyond ~30 feet as "there or far." Move speeds will generally refer to Close and Far, Reactions will be available to creatures "Near or Here." etc. Something Reactive Shooter might allow you to react with an arrow to creatures taking actions from "there" as if you were There as well. Polearm Master might allow you to do the same provided you move "there" as part of the reaction.
11. Action Economy might return to 4E's more straightforward description with the exception of movement staying separate. Your movement may be divided up among your Quick Action and Standard Action. You'll also have your Reaction which may limit the amount you can move to a short distance. Class features/feats may change this to extend the distance you can move when reacting.
Bonus. Players that were introduced to Dnd through 4e will feel nostalgic, players introduced through OG and Redbox types will too. Everyone else will initially hate it out loud, claim the sky is falling, then play it anyway for a few years until the next edition is out. PF will loot 5e via OGL and their 3e will cause a surge in sales of PF.
Thanks for reading!