It is the job of the DM to make as an enjoyable gaming session as possible for his or her players. This includes, but is not limited to, creating a secondary world, as Tolkien would put it, righting interesting story lines, and creating encounters that are fun and challenging to the PC’s. To do all of these things well the DM must at hand a system that is will constructed with well defined, as well as flexible. 4th ED has a well constructed and defined system, what it lacks in flexibility.
This lack of flexibility is not limited to the creation of combat encounters, it permeates the whole system. Wizards of the Coast has created a system that is so structured and regimented that there is little the DM can do to change anything without running the risk of breaking something. The DM, virtually, has to be a professional game designer to makes sense of the rules to do simple things like making a magic item.
As said the lack of flexibility is not limited to combat, or magic items. It has found its way into one of the most important areas of the game, the Player Characters. The character classes have become a straight line of progression. If you want to make the best fighter that there is there are very few options that one has. There are only a certain number of ability, feats, magic items, armor, or weapons that the fighter can take that will make it the best that it can be. The end result is a character that is, but for a few small details, exactly the same as any over fight that is being played all around the world. This holds true for pretty much true for every other character that is in 4th ED.
Of course this is a problem. Players what to build something different. They want to play the fighter the wields a halberd and moves in and out of combat with ease, all while wearing full plate. They want to play the ranger that is as dangerous in melee as while a distance. The wizard that, when all else fails, can pick of the long sword and help hack a path to safety. But none of these things are possible in 4th ED. One is limited to a narrow band of what a class can do. If you want to play something different you have to wait for Wizards to publish a new class (and good luck and building your own).
These lacks in flexibility were never a problem in 3rd ED. Sure 4th ED has filled in some glaring holes, and has simplified some areas, but in doing so if also made a system that come not be molded by a DM and the players at the table into something that everyone wanted and loved. In 3rd ED the DM could look at the rules with easy and pick out those parts that didn’t work well for the campaign, or and in a house rule that would allow the characters to do something that would and flair to the game.
If a player really wanted to make fighter with a Tumble of 15, it could be done. If the player to play a rogue that sneak attacked with a ballista, it would be highly difficult, and very unlikely, but hey!, if the player could come up with a great reason why it would work, it could be done. The rules in 3rd ED were flexible enough for a DM to find a way. This was true of many other aspects of the game as well.
Magic items were great. Gnome Rogue wants a flying carpet, done. Same Gnome want a monocle of sight, sure why not. Drow Ranger wants to enchant his scabbards so they do more damage against undead, let’s do this. Sometimes things were just silly, or the players can’t come up with a good reason why the great ax should be flaming and grant an attack of opportunity, but hey at least there was room to ask.
I could go on and on about how much more flexible 3rd ED was. But that would no doubt take up more space that anyone what want to read.
So, what do I miss about 3rd ED?: The flexibility to do what I feel is best for my game. The flexibility for the players to make their characters, and thusly the game experience, what they want them to be.
♜
What all that in mind I am very happy to say that after a lot of thought I, and my group, of decided to move back the 3rd ED. This wasn’t an easy choice to make. During the process I asked myself many times if I just wasn’t taking the time to take 4th ED to heart. I thought that if I read more, or wrote more, or played more, that at some point I would come to enjoy it. But that has just not been the case. Rather, the more that I got into it the more I realized that 4th was just dragging me down. I could see it with my players too.
I could see it with every round of combat. The myriad of choice of actions. The complexity of the battle field. In non-combat the lack luster feel of everything that was going on. Something had to change, something was missing.
So after talking with a close gaming friend that missing something was soul. 4th ED has taken away the soul of D&D and replaced it with something else. I’m not sure what that something is, but I’m really glade that, for the time being at least, I don’t have to worry about it.
So till next time, happy gaming. 3rd ED, here we come!!
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