D&D (2024) What do you expect/hope to see in future playtest packets? (+)

[Grantypants]

What do you expect/hope to see in future playtest packets? Assuming that all the changes made in the first packet stick around and keeping in mind the design goals that have been discussed publicly, how do you build off those changes to make an interesting and fun 5.5e?

I want to see more monsters redesigned around having recharge abilities. The abilities may or may not begin an encounter charged.
I also expect to see more spells redesigned to require saving throws rather than targeting AC. That would help ease the blow of losing critical hits on spells. I also expect to see feats, class features, and maybe new spells or magic items that improve martial characters' crits. More damage on crit, wider crit range, crit effects that apply to class features like sneak attack, etc.

 

[delericho]

Some sort of limit to cantrips, so they can't just be spammed endlessly.

But the big changes that I'm hoping to see are mostly in the DMG, and I don't expect them to feature in the playtest much, if at all.

 

[TwoSix]

I expect to see minimal changes. I hope to see a lot of changes.

 

[GMMichael]

A few slip-ups mentioning the "new edition."

Removal of 4e vestiges. Come to think of it, revival of 3e's "vestiges" from Tome of Magic.

 

[tetrasodium]

We don't know much just yet so it's hard to guess what areas might be needed or obviously incomplete

• A new vision/darkness/darkvision module that stops pretending that it's ok to eliminate darkness as a tool because the gm could totally make use of toxic GM'ing practices. Preferably one that includes shorter ranges & possibly old vision types in addition to a party vision range so I stop hearing how bob has 120' superior darkvision & should use bob for all descriptions of what the party sees while running about with effectively perfect vision with no light sources.
• Rework of cantrips. I don't care if cantrips still exist, but I want to see them tied to specific wands & no longer scaling by character level so casters are placed back into the treasure tables.
• reworked ability score generation. keep the current 4d6keep3 & even a 27point pointbuy but make those the variant options with 3d6 don't reroll 1s or 2s & an equivalently reduced pointbuy the default
• change stat=19 items to old style stat +2/+4/etc items
• the return of body slots & slot affinities to the character sheet & magic items.

 

[TheSword]

I would love to see:

1: A better way of handling magic item distribution and treasure.

2: Hit Dice as a spendable resource to do more heroic things.

3: More combat maneuveres (3e style not Battlemaster) handled the way grapple has been. Do X at Y cost

4: Better monk

5: Make Metamagic a caster thing through feats like Metamagic adept and make the sorcerer cool in a different way.

6. Make lots more feats

7. Add damage beyond hp loss. For instance ability point damage, longer term conditions, negative levels etc.

Other than that, I like the system and think it is very robust.

 

[Parmandur]

What do you expect/hope to see in future playtest packets? Assuming that all the changes made in the first packet stick around and keeping in mind the design goals that have been discussed publicly, how do you build off those changes to make an interesting and fun 5.5e?

I want to see more monsters redesigned around having recharge abilities. The abilities may or may not begin an encounter charged.
I also expect to see more spells redesigned to require saving throws rather than targeting AC. That would help ease the blow of losing critical hits on spells. I also expect to see feats, class features, and maybe new spells or magic items that improve martial characters' crits. More damage on crit, wider crit range, crit effects that apply to class features like sneak attack, etc.

Historically, they have never tested Mosnters in UA, and I doubt that will change here. Monsters of the Multiverse is the preview if how they will change the MM material.

In terms of what I expect from future packets: per Crawford in the UA video, this packet was the big one, with future packets over the next year being more tightly focused. I expect it to kostly be just the Classes, one packet per Class. So I expect the next packet to be Artificer or Barbarian, if they are going alphabetically (depends on if Artificer is being considered for the PHB, or if the Barbarian is getting a name change), or Ranger if they going in order of magnitude of change.

 

[UngainlyTitan]

We don't know much just yet so it's hard to guess what areas might be needed or obviously incomplete

• A new vision/darkness/darkvision module that stops pretending that it's ok to eliminate darkness as a tool because the gm could totally make use of toxic GM'ing practices. Preferably one that includes shorter ranges & possibly old vision types in addition to a party vision range so I stop hearing how bob has 120' superior darkvision & should use bob for all descriptions of what the party sees while running about with effectively perfect vision with no light sources.

I do not have a problem with this.

• Rework of cantrips. I don't care if cantrips still exist, but I want to see them tied to specific wands & no longer scaling by character level so casters are placed back into the treasure tables.

No way do not want that.

• reworked ability score generation. keep the current 4d6keep3 & even a 27point pointbuy but make those the variant options with 3d6 don't reroll 1s or 2s & an equivalently reduced pointbuy the default

Not to bothered though I prefer 4D6 drop one.

• change stat=19 items to old style stat +2/+4/etc items

Don't follow

• the return of body slots & slot affinities to the character sheet & magic items.

Nope, I like atunement and concentration not a fan of body slots.

I also think that these change are too much had would make all existing books obsolete which is not part of the stated intension of the changes.

 

[Grantypants]

Historically, they have never tested Mosnters in UA, and I doubt that will change here. Monsters of the Multiverse is the preview if how they will change the MM material.

Historically, that is correct. However, I think rebalancing monster crits with recharge abilities will require rewriting a lot of monster stat blocks to include more recharge abilities. If they want useful feedback on their proposed changes, they should release some monsters written with those changes in mind.

Less than half of the Monsters of the Multiverse monsters have recharge abilities. I don't think that using those as written is enough to adequately test this design change.

 

[TheSword]

I love that magic initiate now means I can make an actual staff mage. That makes me happy.