| From: | danturek@*******.com (D. T) |
|---|---|
| Subject: | SR4 and Beyond |
| Date: | Mon, 31 Oct 2005 12:52:27 -0500 |
>Huh? IMHO core mechanics of 2nd edition AD&D are rolling 1D20 over your
>THAC0 to attack, rolling 1D20 below your (characteristic + proficiency
>ratings) to do skill checks, and rolling saving throws vs. a
>class-and-level-derived number on 1D20.
>Whereas core mechanics of 3rd edition D&D are to derive modifiers from your
>class, level, characteristics, skills, and other sources, and add them to
>your 1D20 roll vs. a target number.
>I don't see how the core mechanics have been kept. Problems fixed,
>certainly, but about the only core mechanics that WotC kept, were levels
>and hit points :)
Way back when, Len Lekofka (or whatever his name was) in Leomund's Tiny Hut
showed how all the chart progressions could be made more linear - Fighters
effectively get a +1 to hit per level, Mages every other level, etc. and
this was back in 1st Ed. I really liked 3rd Edition because most of the
house rules were now official rules, multi-classing became balanced, and
nearly everything has been streamlined to a d20 + junk roll. All fluffy
stuff got to remain the same, and for my group converting from 2nd to 3rd
was a breeze - they all got Feats and more skills than they had had under
NWP.
I won't see SR4 until Xmas most likely. I'm sure Kori will switch to SR4 -
maybe when SR5 comes out, maybe not until SR7. Since I prefer SR1 and SR2
over SR3 just lurking I've heard SR4 sound pretty good. Rolls are
streamlined, attributes have changed, but not too massively, and for once SR
will be closer to the edge of the latest technology. The most annoying thing
with the old editions were how the latest tech of 2050 would sometimes lag
behind something made more than 40 years earlier. Cell phones? Who isn't
going to have a holo phone chip by 2050? Credstick PIN? Why can't a
credstick shoot out a beam to verify by retina scan at least? Yeah, a bunch
of stuff happens so tech didn't progress as much for a couple decades here
and there, but overall SR didn't think far ahead enough on the tech side.
While I don't want to change the old history (which is the only reason I
ever bought the game in the first place) many things happened where it might
make more sense - like the fall of the Soviet Union happening much earlier
than SR1 predicted.
While D&D needed an update to the system, SR needed an update to the world.
Steamlining the system is nice too, but while World of Greyhawk/Forgotten
Realms can still be used in 2050, SR1-3 feel out of touch already, and by
2020 more of it may be in place than we want. There should be more
advancements, and such things would necessarily change the way many
countries interact.
But I still don't know why California would fall into the ocean. Maybe
underwater houses become the rage and set the new trend towards aquaculture
gardens? I can see buying bottled air if people are so willing to buy
bottled water.
