D&D 5E Long time players and 5e’s success

[JEB]

The only people I ever notice saying older players are irrelevant are the older players themselves.

At least here, I expect that's more down to demographics, since ENWorld skews older. Though a few of the younger posters have previously expressed such sentiments, or at least the hope of such happening.

 

[Ogre Mage]

As an older gay gamer I don't think the prejudice against being a D&D player was as major as being LGBTQ during the 1990s. That said, being a gamer wasn't something I was completely open about back then either. The stigma was real. There were venues like my FLGS where it was fine to be open about D&D and others where you would not bring it up. It was harder back then because the internet was too primitive to be used to find like-minded people. You learned when to wear the mask and when you could drop it.

The world has changed which is one reason why I don't view the past through rose-colored glasses. I'm not interested in returning to the "double closet" I was in back then.

 

[Mournblade94]

We? In the 1980s I was part of a large group of friends in high school that were interested in TTRPGs. We had multiple campaigns in multiple systems. Some were highly restrictive to hew to the DMs vision of the world. Other were anything goes, string together a "campaign" from a various modules.

Since I've gotten back into gaming with 5e, I've run campaigns in highly curated homebrew settings with strict race and class limts, published WotC adventures with some limitations but mostly any official published options, and a gonzo campaign in a third-party publisher megadungeon with homebrewed character races (one character was a Worg, who ran into a curse giving her goat feet, and then contracted were-tiger lycanthropy).

Whenever I read these arguments I always find myself wondering incredulously whether such a large percentage of TTRPG gamers, of any generation, really limit themselves to just one style of campaign, year after year.

I still run the same timeline of Forgotten Realms I have since 1987. If I play D&D or its Variants (Castles and Crusades (my main D&D System now), or Pathfinder 1/3.5) I use the same Campaign updated with races covered in 3rd edition Forgotten Realms.

I have just recently finished the entire EMPIRE IN RUINS for WFRP, and now have a begun a Dragon Age Campaign (In anticipation of Dreadwolf) using Green Ronins DAGE (With some Fantasy Age).

If I play D&D It is always the same Campaign, Strong Cosmological Alignment Compulsion, Forgotten Realms with Planescape, Races limited to 3rd edition FRcampaign Guide)

Before 1987 and in Middle School/High SChool, I was all Greyhawk. My D&D Campaigns are always the same. When I want to do something different I use another system.

Same for me with Sci Fi. I won't use any system for Sci Fi other than Traveller. THough If Alternity was fully supported I would have switched to that.

 

[Mournblade94]

Replied Wrong

 

[Mournblade94]

I'm in my early 50s and it is catering to me just fine. I would like to see the DMG offer more tools to run different styles of campaigns. The current DMG is rather light in the regard and fell pretty flat. I'm fine with bog-standard 5e D&D, but like to mike things up from campaign to campaign. There has been nothing WotC has published that has made me feel excluded or unable to run the type of game I want to run.

As an older gay gamer I don't think the prejudice against being a D&D player was as major as being LGBTQ during the 1990s. That said, being a gamer wasn't something I was completely open about back then either. The stigma was real. There were venues like my FLGS where it was fine to be open about D&D and others where you would not bring it up. It was harder back then because the internet was too primitive to be used to find like-minded people. You learned when to wear the mask and when you could drop it.

The world has changed which is one reason why I don't view the past through rose-colored glasses. I'm not interested in returning to the "double closet" I was in back then.

I am not that much of an online person. Almost all my gaming is in person. It wasn't the rules as much as the audience maybe it was just the poison of Twitter, I got tired of the people claiming that liking Game aesthetics like Monster Alignment meant you were some how a a form of colonialist or other unsupported accusation I found grating. All my life there has been margianalized people in my D&D Groups, from school, to the military, to college, and after.

It used to start out as the kids that don't have a lunch table to sit at finding a common ground. Now I wonder if those socially awkward kids like myself will feel comfortable enough in a modern D&D group with the Cool kids doing it. Plus Bullying is WAY WAY Worse than it was when I was a kid. By Far. Unlike me I had a shelter after school where I could ignore it with a supportive family. Kids these days turn on their social apps and it never ceases.

 

[Belen]

Yep. Do it all the time. Never had an issue.

Now that is usually me as a player. Maybe younger players would not to play in my games. But most older players would also not like to play in my games. I find personal play preferences matter more than age. Regardless of age, I'm not sure many players are interested in the hours-long combat and complicated politics that my campaigns typically contain.

I am not sure I could do it on a regular basis. I am happy to teach the game. I often run demo games or introduce new folks to it, but I do not think I could do it long term these days.

It is not just style but life experience.

 

[Mournblade94]

I am not sure I could do it on a regular basis. I am happy to teach the game. I often run demo games or introduce new folks to it, but I do not think I could do it long term these days.

It is not just style but life experience.

I had a relatively younger girl come to my game to play. She only lasted a few sessions, but it is because I don't just let players do whatever they want. It basically boiled down to her character a rogue trying to do to many things. She wasn't stealing the spotlight per se, but she didn't get that the rules state what you can and can't do, Natural 20 only matters in combat, and successes don't defy logic (The Bard seduces dragon trope; she wasn't as bad as that though).

She claimed her last DM let them do whatever they wanted. My response was I had to make sure the scope of what players can do was being maintained.

But I have observed A LOT of the younger groups. Anecdotal observations would tell me they care WAY less about the rules than we did even with AD&D. They seem to want to capture the roleplaying MORE than the game. Im an 'emergent story' DM and this does not work well for many "youts".

Actual Play has changed the expectations of what a game is for better or worse at least among the newer players.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

I had a relatively younger girl come to my game to play. She only lasted a few sessions, but it is because I don't just let players do whatever they want. It basically boiled down to her character a rogue trying to do to many things. She wasn't stealing the spotlight per se, but she didn't get that the rules state what you can and can't do, Natural 20 only matters in combat, and successes don't defy logic (The Bard seduces dragon trope; she wasn't as bad as that though).

She claimed her last DM let them do whatever they wanted. My response was I had to make sure the scope of what players can do was being maintained.

But I have observed A LOT of the younger groups. Anecdotal observations would tell me they care WAY less about the rules than we did even with AD&D. They seem to want to capture the roleplaying MORE than the game. Im an 'emergent story' DM and this does not work well for many "youts".

Actual Play has changed the expectations of what a game is for better or worse at least among the newer players.

I don’t know man.

Immaturity was not invented in 2024

I remember player vs player nonsense here and there power gaming nonsense and pushing the limits in games on up to high school!

We excised those players generally but I don’t think it’s so much a generational thing.

Preferences do shift though…i dunno…

 

[MNblockhead]

I am not that much of an online person. Almost all my gaming is in person. It wasn't the rules as much as the audience maybe it was just the poison of Twitter, I got tired of the people claiming that liking Game aesthetics like Monster Alignment meant you were some how a a form of colonialist or other unsupported accusation I found grating. All my life there has been margianalized people in my D&D Groups, from school, to the military, to college, and after.

It used to start out as the kids that don't have a lunch table to sit at finding a common ground. Now I wonder if those socially awkward kids like myself will feel comfortable enough in a modern D&D group with the Cool kids doing it. Plus Bullying is WAY WAY Worse than it was when I was a kid. By Far. Unlike me I had a shelter after school where I could ignore it with a supportive family. Kids these days turn on their social apps and it never ceases.

Reducing one's exposure to most social media makes for a happier life, I find.

 

[AstroCat]

We? In the 1980s I was part of a large group of friends in high school that were interested in TTRPGs. We had multiple campaigns in multiple systems. Some were highly restrictive to hew to the DMs vision of the world. Other were anything goes, string together a "campaign" from a various modules.

Since I've gotten back into gaming with 5e, I've run campaigns in highly curated homebrew settings with strict race and class limts, published WotC adventures with some limitations but mostly any official published options, and a gonzo campaign in a third-party publisher megadungeon with homebrewed character races (one character was a Worg, who ran into a curse giving her goat feet, and then contracted were-tiger lycanthropy).

Whenever I read these arguments I always find myself wondering incredulously whether such a large percentage of TTRPG gamers, of any generation, really limit themselves to just one style of campaign, year after year.

"we" as in our group of adult gaming friends. Not "we" as in all gen-x people... or whatever.