Dungeons and Dragons is getting a fifth edition, and players will have themselves to blame.
Here's the full story.
The game designers will be taking advice from gamers about what to put in the new edition. This is not a good idea. Not as bad as needing a calculus degree to figure out if you hit a guy, but close to it.
They said, "We want a game that is unmistakably D&D, but one that can easily become your D&D, the game that you want to run and play."
D&D players are the last people to ask! They already are doing what they want with the game. Don't ask what they want. They will tell you.
The advice they get will be a storm of blithering, nerd rage, Monty Python quotes, rules lawyering, and sulking.
In other words, just like every time we've ever played D&D.
Advice will include:
Go back to first edition rules.
Go back to second edition rules.
Go back to third edition rules.
Murder all those responsible for second edition and third edition rules.
Explain lawful neutral one more time.
Add more character classes.
Take away character classes.
Make it like World of Warcraft.
Don't make it anything like World of Warcraft.
More dirty pictures.
Allow takesy-backsies.
Answers in back of the book.
Dragon magazine #172, page 34. That's what I want.
Tell Chad to shut up.