There is a very active D&D Meetup group in Calgary that meets a couple of saturdays each month. I have been working the crowd there for quite some time to see if there is enough interest to set aside an Old School table - so far to no avail.
I was talking to one of the organizers the other day and they mentioned that a couple of their DMs were going to be out of town for the next meetup and they asked if I could run a 4E one shot to cover. I decided that I would give it a go. Time to put my preconceived notions aside and actually get my hands dirty. I have been a player in five sessions of 4E over the last year. None of those games have been to my taste. But then again I always prefer to DM than play. I am actually looking forward to it even if I am somewhat apprehensive. I am interested to see how my old school sensibilities mesh with a 4E game - what will the game be like if I try to run it like one of my B/X games but with different rules? Not withstanding the mechanical and power level differences, I don't think I run a C&C game that different than a B/X game. We will see...
Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI've still got my 4E books in a box by my feet, awaiting my laziness to subside so I can eBay 'em. The length of time most encounters required directly conflicted with my own style; we just didn't mesh well and in the end I gave up.
4E is an excellent game, much more enjoyable than 3.5, just not the game for me.
Have fun and enjoy yourself.
ReplyDeleteI've had a lot of fun playing every edition of the game, "even" 4e.
Good luck. Looking forward to hearing any comparisons between 4E and B/X (including what you like about EITHER as opposed to the other).
ReplyDeleteWow... I'm REALLY interested in hearing about your experience as well. I'm going through a "conflicted" period in my gaming life currently and your thoughts might lend clarity.
ReplyDeleteI've been diligent in trying 4E for the last year, besides the first game or two though, I've not been impressed. It's the group that I'm having a tough time leaving, I really like the guys.
So, if you, an obviously "old school" fan, can make a 4E game play the way you want to play, then I'm going to collect all the information that I can from you and see if I can't get our DM to take a look.
Yeah, give it a go. It will be interesting to see if you can make a 4e game a little B/X-ish. I think Greywulf has posted some on that, IIRC. Yep, here's his posts:
ReplyDeletePersonally, I have been playing 4e since January. I played my first session back in December 2008, but then didn't play again until a month or so later. I like 4e. There, I said it...ha! No seriously, I do like it, but then again it is pretty much the only thing going locally, besides a bunch of 3.5/Pathfinder groups too.
My first love of the game is B/X, but as many other folks did we merged/mixed/muddied it all up with B/X/AD&D/house-rules and made whatever game we made out of it. Still it was fun.
So, I still love B/X and always will, but it's tough to play around these parts. I've done a little online (PbP/Skype/chatroom) and that has been very fun to get back in it to some degree.
However, 4e is played weekly in my area (several times a week actually, but I limit myself to once a week), and to me it's still D&D in some way or another, and I do like it so I do play it. Other most certainly disagree with that view.
I say if you like it, play it. Obviously if you don't have fun though, then don't waste your time. Put that time to good use with the Skype B/X games...yay!
Best of luck. If you toss something at that them that requires non-rule-specific lateral thinking, have a plan B handy. Combat takes long enough, and you don't want play getting too bogged down as the players struggle with using their feats when what you really want is for them to pull levers or something.
ReplyDeleteI just read those posts by Greywulf. I would play in that game in a heartbeat!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite editions of D&D happen to be B/X and 4e, so I can't wait to read your comparison.
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