Playing 4th ed.

JJR · Level 1 Joined: 31 Jul 2008 Posts: 3

Having had a bit of a chance to test out the new 4th ed rules as a player and a DM, I can tentatively say that they are not as bad as I had heard they would be prior to the release.

The classes are all very balanced but I fear that this means that all characters will be basically the same, just with a different high stat. The game runs very smoothly, however, and it is very easy to DM. One problem, which might stem from the lack of materials released so far, is that the rules seem a little restrictive. The way characters work means that there are no longer hundreds of different spells, which is a shame. It does seem like the books could have done with a final polish and there are certain aspects of the rules that are not entirely clear (we were level 3 before we realised that 2-handed does not mean Str x 1.5 any more!).

Has anyone else tried out the rules and, if so, what do you think of them?

Kiblams · Level 2 Joined: 23 Jan 2008 Posts: 23

I think that people had issues with version 4 due to the amount of changes that were taking place, some of which are pointless in my opinion. A great example of this is that the gnome is now a monster and teifling a player race, as a Teifling was already playable as a charatcer (along with the majority of monsters with intellegence) anyway.

Anywho, the rules are bound to flow well as they have been painstakingly worked on by the "Wizards" in order to allow the game to progress faster.

I am of the school of thought that dissagrees with the changes as I trust the age old saying "If it ain't broke.." (you know the rest)

For brand new or younger players being introduced to Tabletop RPG this new edition can only be a good thing, though I can't help worrying that the more editions that are released, there is less and less scope for imagination.

At the end of the day i will need to get a few games of D&D 4th ed. under my belt before i can make any viable decisions.