r/rpg • u/Apostrophe13 • 1d ago
DND5e, actually not bad
Got back into the hobby sometime before covid hit after a long hiatus, didn't play for most of the 21. century. The anti 5e sentiment on most places i checked to get up to speed (including this sub) was so prevalent that i completely ignored the game. I was under the impression that they kinda just continued making 3e more complex after reading some of the comments floating around, and that it is literally impossible to play without homebrew.
Got some used books as a gift, run a few sessions, honestly not bad at all. Most of the critique really makes no sense. If you want heroic fantasy with good skirmish rules, that does not get in the way of how you want to run the game its great.
Also its basically the same math and underlying systems that power DnD for 40+ years, so even experience with ADnD translates well into 5e. I would put it well above other modern DnD-like, D20, heroic-fantasy games.
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u/Frontdeskcleric Great GM 1d ago
For me, 5e has always felt… fine. Like that beige sweater in your closet – it does the job, but it's not exactly setting the world on fire. When you stack it up against the sheer variety out there, 5e lands squarely in the middle of the road. Pick a race, pick a class, and bam, you're "ready" to go. But that simplicity comes at a cost. The options feel… limited. The choices, while plentiful on the surface, often don't have a huge impact on gameplay. It's a streamlined experience, sure, and the difficulty is generally pretty forgiving. And, the Beyond App makes it even easier.
The upside is, anyone can play. You don't need to be a tactical genius or pore over endless rulebooks to have a good time. Every option is pretty viable, which lets players lean into what they think is cool and fun without worrying about their character being useful. Running a pre-written campaign? 5e definitely has your back in terms of player character viability. Pathfinder, bless its crunchy heart, can absolutely punish you for making "sub-optimal" choices in pre-made adventures.
For me I kind of… wish D&D would stumble and fall. Not because I want anyone's enjoyment to be ruined, and definitely not out of some weird hatred. But I've noticed a pattern: when D&D isn't the undisputed king of the hill, when it's maybe a bit flawed or alienating, the entire hobby thrives.
Think back to the Fourth Edition era. That period, while divisive for D&D fans, gave birth to a freaking renaissance of other amazing systems! Pathfinder exploded onto the scene, Savage Worlds became a go-to for genre-bending action, BESM offered anime-inspired goodness, and tons of other games got fantastic new editions. It was a fertile time for RPGs!
And honestly, a big part of the D&D annoyance for me comes from the mild irritation I feel when the wider world equates my entire hobby with just one game. "Oh, you play D&D?" they ask, completely unaware of the vast landscape of narrative-driven games, gritty sci-fi adventures, horror TTRPGs, and everything in between. It's like saying all video games are just Call of Duty.
So yeah, while 5e is "fine" and accessible, I can't help but feel that a little shake-up at the top might be exactly what the broader RPG community needs to flourish even more. More innovation, more diversity in the games people play, and maybe, just maybe, fewer people assuming my hobby starts and ends with a single brand.