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Roleplay Dissapointment
17 years ago
Well.. I have to say it. I went out to buy the 3.5 players handbook for D&D... but was told it is out of print and totally unavailable. So... I shrugged, and bought the 4th ed players handbook.
<rant>
Now... I have actually done very little PnP roleplay... but I LOVE making characters. I ahve played D&D 3 times <as in 3 different campains, not 3 sessions> and have made characters in DOZENS of systems. Character generation is one of my favorite aspects.
For the FIRST TIME EVER.... building a character was grossly unfulfilling and felt increadibly shallow. Unlike most systems I've played, where I get to feel some depth to the character, flesh out aspects that aren't blatently combat only,
All the race choises were all about advantages, without a disadvantage to balance it in sight. I personally built around the wizard class, which now seems to feel strictly about blasting the hell out of the monsters.
Roleplay spells like 'comprehend languages' and 'speak with dead' are now rituals that take 10 or more minutes in game to perform, at which point it is likely the use of the spell is now useless.... Asking the goblins to please stop talking for 10 minutes so you can understand their secret conversation is a little moot. Nooo.. its far easier to bust in, lob a few magic missles, blast them with fire and ask questions after they are dead and likely less inclined to share information. And it only costs about 50 gold to comprehend languages..
Gone are fun spells like 'animate rope' 'unseen servent' and other such non-battle spells. They aren't even utility spells. As far as I can see, anything that isn't 'optimal' is gone, which in my opinion makes 4th edition a powergamers paradise. The edition does come with some improvements and fun options the first lacked, but overall it feels overshadowed.
Alignments are now more limited, meaning you are either 'good' or 'lawful good'. Yes you can argue that chaotic good is just 'good' now, or 'lawful evil' is just evil now... but I see absolutely no point in blurring that.
Anyway... thats my rant, and I'm just a little bitter. Its rare I can't enjoy even making a character... but 4th edition comes through. Now if you'll excuse me.. I have to find someone on e-bay or amazon willing to ship to canada that isn't charging 80+ dollars for the 3.5 rulebook.
</rant>
<rant>
Now... I have actually done very little PnP roleplay... but I LOVE making characters. I ahve played D&D 3 times <as in 3 different campains, not 3 sessions> and have made characters in DOZENS of systems. Character generation is one of my favorite aspects.
For the FIRST TIME EVER.... building a character was grossly unfulfilling and felt increadibly shallow. Unlike most systems I've played, where I get to feel some depth to the character, flesh out aspects that aren't blatently combat only,
All the race choises were all about advantages, without a disadvantage to balance it in sight. I personally built around the wizard class, which now seems to feel strictly about blasting the hell out of the monsters.
Roleplay spells like 'comprehend languages' and 'speak with dead' are now rituals that take 10 or more minutes in game to perform, at which point it is likely the use of the spell is now useless.... Asking the goblins to please stop talking for 10 minutes so you can understand their secret conversation is a little moot. Nooo.. its far easier to bust in, lob a few magic missles, blast them with fire and ask questions after they are dead and likely less inclined to share information. And it only costs about 50 gold to comprehend languages..
Gone are fun spells like 'animate rope' 'unseen servent' and other such non-battle spells. They aren't even utility spells. As far as I can see, anything that isn't 'optimal' is gone, which in my opinion makes 4th edition a powergamers paradise. The edition does come with some improvements and fun options the first lacked, but overall it feels overshadowed.
Alignments are now more limited, meaning you are either 'good' or 'lawful good'. Yes you can argue that chaotic good is just 'good' now, or 'lawful evil' is just evil now... but I see absolutely no point in blurring that.
Anyway... thats my rant, and I'm just a little bitter. Its rare I can't enjoy even making a character... but 4th edition comes through. Now if you'll excuse me.. I have to find someone on e-bay or amazon willing to ship to canada that isn't charging 80+ dollars for the 3.5 rulebook.
</rant>
As for the PDF's... I have 6 dvd's of D&D, d20, gurps and other assorted PnP pdfs.... but I want the physical book because its (1) worth it in my opinion, and (2) easier to reference... but I really do appreciate the help :) I have a friend who thinks they know where I can get a copy...
As for geek baiting, I have a limit on how much I am willing to spend so I'm covered for that ;) .
Oh well... I still have Fable 2 and Fallout 3 to look forward to. And I can still roll with the PDF's if I have to.
I really appreciate the help tho, and thanks for reading my rant ^.^; I should probably put up something more positive once I play Fable 2 hopefully...