I never exactly understood what niche this system is supposed to fill. It seems designed to appeal to folks that really like 5e, but those are the exact folks who are least likely to switch...
I never exactly understood what niche this system is supposed to fill. It seems designed to appeal to folks that really like 5e, but those are the exact folks who are least likely to switch systems.
Any tilderinos have any experience playing this? What do you think?
A few things I can think of. If people loved D&D and only knew or only ever played original Fifth Edition by Wizards of the Coast/Hasbro but were a bit turned off by the OGL thing that happened...
A few things I can think of.
If people loved D&D and only knew or only ever played original Fifth Edition by Wizards of the Coast/Hasbro but were a bit turned off by the OGL thing that happened then they could still stick with a system that plays very similarly to it but isn't officially owned/designed/produced by Wizards of the Coast.
People who like most of what D&D 5e has to to offer but have played or understand it enough to see some of the flaws of original Fifth Edition and want some of the things that A5e does better. Stuff like some balance changes to classes or getting combat maneuvers for martial classes. Or maybe they've just been playing it for so long but want to try branching out a bit and try something slightly new/refreshing.
Here are two articles I've read by PJ Coffey (Homebrew and Hacking) that maybe explains it a bit more:
This isn’t really the case. They build on top of 5e. It’s like if you said you were boycotting Bethesda by playing modded starfield or Skyrim.
If people loved D&D and only knew or only ever played original Fifth Edition by Wizards of the Coast/Hasbro but were a bit turned off by the OGL thing that happened then they could still stick with a system that plays very similarly to it but isn't officially owned/designed/produced by Wizards of the Coast.
This isn’t really the case. They build on top of 5e. It’s like if you said you were boycotting Bethesda by playing modded starfield or Skyrim.
I don't know the exact legal situation or how the licensing, etc. works, but I also did not mean boycotting Wizards. I only mean that there is a layer of separation between playing Level Up A5e by...
I don't know the exact legal situation or how the licensing, etc. works, but I also did not mean boycotting Wizards. I only mean that there is a layer of separation between playing Level Up A5e by EN Publishing and directly playing D&D 5e.
People don't always make sense, so if they don't feel right about the controversy with the OGL, then maybe they feel better about something adjacent. Using a comparison, it might be like switching to a hybrid vehicle instead of a normal gas car. Probably not the greatest example, but hopefully it helps illustrate my point.
I was kind of thinking about the podcast episode, Morrus’ Unofficial Tabletop RPG Talk #259, regarding the Open5e project with Mike Shea. A5e is or may be heading towards Open Gaming/Creative Commons Content, like Open5e, to ensure independence from Wizards of the Coast's control. This would allow Level Up A5e to have freedom even if WotC becomes an objectionable company.
My assumption is that it caters to exactly those folks, since it's described as an upgrade to the same system rather than a different system. My experience with a lot of the D&D community is that...
My assumption is that it caters to exactly those folks, since it's described as an upgrade to the same system rather than a different system. My experience with a lot of the D&D community is that there's a large segment of players who'll complain endlessly about the systems flaws (perceived and/or real) and they often seem to love the idea of "fixing" D&D 5E. It's certainly very common to want more complexity and "options" out of it, which the "Advanced 5th Edition" branding seems to lean into.
Level Up was certainly popular before the OGL mess, so I don't think it's driven by that. I bet it helps a lot though, since this presents an alternative that lets people keep playing 5E without financing WotC.
This Kickstarter is for a boxed starter set which takes your 5E core rulebooks and ‘upgrades’ them by introducing you to some of the new rules in Level Up. Unlike the standalone Level Up hardcover core rules, this starter set assumes you know how to play 5E, or have the 5E rules, and we just show you the new stuff!
What Is Level Up?
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition (A5E) launched in 2021 and is a standalone game which enhances the 5E ruleset which you know and love. If you love 5E but would like a little more depth to the rules, Level Up is the new game for you!
After two years of extensive public playtests and surveys involving thousands of players, and input from our active community, we completely overhauled the 5E game system. From redesigned classes to a full exploration pillar, we revisited every aspect of the game to present this new standalone game, backwards compatible with the 5th Edition core rules.
I never exactly understood what niche this system is supposed to fill. It seems designed to appeal to folks that really like 5e, but those are the exact folks who are least likely to switch systems.
Any tilderinos have any experience playing this? What do you think?
A few things I can think of.
Here are two articles I've read by PJ Coffey (Homebrew and Hacking) that maybe explains it a bit more:
This isn’t really the case. They build on top of 5e. It’s like if you said you were boycotting Bethesda by playing modded starfield or Skyrim.
I don't know the exact legal situation or how the licensing, etc. works, but I also did not mean boycotting Wizards. I only mean that there is a layer of separation between playing Level Up A5e by EN Publishing and directly playing D&D 5e.
People don't always make sense, so if they don't feel right about the controversy with the OGL, then maybe they feel better about something adjacent. Using a comparison, it might be like switching to a hybrid vehicle instead of a normal gas car. Probably not the greatest example, but hopefully it helps illustrate my point.
I was kind of thinking about the podcast episode, Morrus’ Unofficial Tabletop RPG Talk #259, regarding the Open5e project with Mike Shea. A5e is or may be heading towards Open Gaming/Creative Commons Content, like Open5e, to ensure independence from Wizards of the Coast's control. This would allow Level Up A5e to have freedom even if WotC becomes an objectionable company.
My assumption is that it caters to exactly those folks, since it's described as an upgrade to the same system rather than a different system. My experience with a lot of the D&D community is that there's a large segment of players who'll complain endlessly about the systems flaws (perceived and/or real) and they often seem to love the idea of "fixing" D&D 5E. It's certainly very common to want more complexity and "options" out of it, which the "Advanced 5th Edition" branding seems to lean into.
Level Up was certainly popular before the OGL mess, so I don't think it's driven by that. I bet it helps a lot though, since this presents an alternative that lets people keep playing 5E without financing WotC.