D&D (2024) What would you put in 1D&D from 4E?

[Minigiant]

I am torn on monster roles. It made encounter design super easy and varied, but it also was a bit too abstract. It might do well as advice rather than a rule set or stat block label in the game.

Monster Role solves the 5e CR by actually forcing the design team to make monsters be focused around a concept. and put their states in the ranges that match that concept.

5e CR broke because they did it by feel and 5e has too many moving parts to do everything that way. You can't design like AD&D when your mechanics and design philosophy isn't AD&D. Especially with all the "monsters with no armor" given 12-15 AC and "monsters with no weapon" given widely variable attacks.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Short Rest - 1 hour is too long, though in our games we went with 15 minutes (5 minutes also feels too short).

during the D&D next playtest didn't we have 3 rest types at one point... 2 15s and a half hour in each work day?

More 4e monster-like writeups and skill challenges.

I don't see them doing anything this radical in One D&D, but I'd love to see Saving Throws revert back to Fort, Ref, and Will (I guess more 3e than 4e).

yeah both of these... but to make the saves function like 4e def... so fort is the better of str or con, ref is better of dex or int and will is better of wis or cha

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Encounter powers.

Martial powers.

Powers in general.

Also the design philosophy.

some way to make a complex martial class or classes that gets to make choices at level up to gain abilities and choices in the moment on what abilities to use... instead of "I have big hp, I walk forward and hit hard"

 

[Greg K]

1. Deva
2. Avenger
3. Shaman
4. Warlord
5. Bloodied

 

[Bolares]

1. Deva
2. Avenger
3. Shaman
4. Warlord
5. Bloodied

can I ask for the swordmage too?

 

[GMforPowergamers]

1. Deva

I mean if you want a new celestial race I can think of way worse...

angles that long ago became mortal just to find they are now in a reincarnation cycle like a doctor who time lord...

 

[Uni-the-Unicorn!]

I don't mind the Bloodied condition and would have no problem seeing it reincorporated into the game... as it's merely nothing more than one more "timing slot" in which a monster can do a thing. But of course for it to be at all warranted, then it has to go hand-in-hand with more advanced monster action design. Monsters need to have larger blocks with more abilities that function on all the different "timing slots"-- something that @Nixlord is doing with their Monster Manual Expanded series, MCDM is doing with 'Flee Mortals!' and I'm sure others have as well.

Most monsters should have abilities that occur on most of these "timing slots":

Automatic / Always-on
Action
Bonus Action
Reaction
When successfully hitting enemy
When being successfully hit by enemy
When reaching half hit points (Bloodied)
When reaching zero hit points (On Death)
Off-turn (Legendary)

Of course, the biggest problem with a list like this is that the more monsters you have that have all these options available to them... the more difficult it is for a DM to remember they all exist and to use them when appropriate. I mean I've been DMing 5E now since it was released and I STILL forget to use a Legendary Monsters' Legendary Actions between player turns (just because I'm so not used to it and there are so many other monsters and combat-related activity to deal with already.) Heck... I've begun occasionally just inserting the three Legendary actions into my initiative order just so that I have a reminder as they come up to use them (even if they are supposed to happen organically in reaction to what the players are doing.)

That's the biggest thing with re-adding Bloodied into the game-- it's just one more "timing slot" a DM has to remember as it comes up. And to be honest... when I think about it I'm not sure if the WotC Monster Manual is necessarily the book to use all of these in. I honestly think the MM should probably be and remain the base and least complex monster book... and let folks like @Nixlord and MCDM make the more complex monsters using "timing slots" like Bloodied. So they're there for those who want them... but less-inclined folks don't need to pick up them up and they can just use the standard MM.

Actually wouldn’t any action just go under reactions or the traits. The trigger being @whenfirdt bloodied”. However, to be truly integrated you need PC abilities the trigger on the condition too

There could also be a blanket rule like: when bloodied, monsters (or this monster) add their proficiency bonus to their damage on a hit. Or something similar. There are lots of ways you could do it without a lot of changes.

FYI, 4e monster statblocks (from which blooded came) did not have a specific “bloodied” action slot in their stat blocks. It was either in the traits or reactions section .

 

[DEFCON 1]

Actually wouldn’t any action just go under reactions or the traits. The trigger being @whenfirdt bloodied”. However, to be truly integrated you need PC abilities the trigger on the condition too

There could also be a blanket rule like: when bloodied, monsters (or this monster) add their proficiency bonus to their damage on a hit. Or something similar. There are lots of ways you could do it without a lot of changes.

FYI, 4e monster statblocks (from which blooded came) did not have a specific “bloodied” action slot in their stat blocks. It was either in the traits or reactions section .

Oh sure... I dunno how the actual formating could/would/should go... but so long as the timing was evident on when they were used, the more timing windows gives you more variance on how things play out.

 

[Uni-the-Unicorn!]

Monster Encounter Power

Well that wasn’t really a thing in 4e IIRC. There might have been a few that had “encounter” powers, but they were mostly recharge powers, just like in 5e (though perhaps more prevelant)

1. 10 minute Short Rest 8 hour Long Rest

This is already in the 5e DMG.

 

[Minigiant]

Well that wasn’t really a thing in 4e IIRC. There might have been a few that had “encounter” powers, but they were mostly recharge powers, just like in 5e (though perhaps more prevelant)

Actually it was. About half of 4e monsters had encounter powers.

Monsters could have both encounter and recharge powers.

The standard Golbin Hexer from the MM has

• Hexer Rod at-will melee
• Blinding Hex at-will ranged
• Stinging Hex recharge range
• Vexing Cloud encounter area
• Incite Bravery at-will reaction
• Goblin Tactics at-will reaction
• Lead from the Read at-will interrupt

It made tiers of how powerful attacks were

At-Will powers were weakest and spammable.
Recharge powers were moderately strong and okay if done every 3rd turn.
Encounter powers were powerful and/or very annoying. The DM should only do them once a fight per monster of that type.
Daily powers were (supposed to be)* very powerful and only used once. Even if the party escapes and was caught again.


*they didn't get the math right and eventually abandoned using dailies.