D&D 5th Edition: Modern Manual Progress Review
Hey lads just a quick progress review post here. There's not really any homebrew content this time so if you want to skip over feel free. I just wanted to make a post reviewing the progress that has been made towards the modern conversion, which I'm now going to start calling the 5E "Modern Manual" for the foreseeable future. It's not exactly the most interesting name but it gets the job done. As well as going through the content so far I also wanted to outline what else I have planned for the Modern Manual, stuff I that will be done before the Modern Manual is a "finished product".
First of all, the content that I think is pretty much finished:
Next are things that I've created, but I think need some significant revisions or additions before they can be included:
First of all, the content that I think is pretty much finished:
- Base Classes
- Equipment
- Wealth and Reputation
- Races - Alternate Human, Mutant and Robot
- Backgrounds
- Radiation Rules
Next are things that I've created, but I think need some significant revisions or additions before they can be included:
- Vehicles - The first run I did at vehicles was pretty poor in my opinion. It was based on the boats rules from Ghosts of Saltmarsh. At the time they were the closest thing we had to vehicles in D&D 5e, but since then Descen into Avernus introduced "Infernal War Machines" that seem like a much better fit for translating into modern vehicles.
- Advanced Classes - I want to go through and review all of the advanced classes I've created so far before confidently stating any of them are finished. Some of them are certainly in good shape, but I want to make sure they all work as a fairly cohesive set in the final book.
Finally, things I haven't done any serious work on yet:
- Feats - I think some feats would be an interesting way to add some new ideas I have that are a bit too small to work into an advanced class or something like that by itself.
- Languages - A short section on langauges that you might want to use in a modern setting, grouped together into language families for ease of use when it comes to working out how difficult translation may be. Mostly a flavour text section.
- Multiclassing - I want to present some alternate multiclassing rules that would allow you to essentially take an advanced class like a prestige class for increased character diversity and to emulate the system in d20 Modern of having the base classes and advanced classes totally separated.
- Restricted Items - Some light rules laying out how you might deal with certain items being illegal to own in a campaign if that's your thing.
- Spells - Just a small selection of modern-themed spells, but I'm not going to create loads since other people have already done it better than I would.
- Using Electronic Devices
- Tools - Honestly I thought for sure I'd already done this. I'm planning to do basically the same thing as the Player's Handbook regarding this, but I also want to add something like the tools section from Xanathar's Guide to Everything since I like the additions there.
- Repairing Items - This may end up folded into the previous section, but I want to add some light repairing rules. My main motivation here is regarding vehicles, since they can feasibly take a decent chunk of damage and having a way to work that off in downtime sounds interesting.
- Skills - Just something short about how to deal with meshing 5E skills with a modern campaign, whether through changing the skill list or expanding the definition of the redular 5E skills.
- Campaign Models - In the original d20 Modern book they had a handful of these sections. They're not really something I've seen in many other books, they were basically like a rough guide on how to structure a certain type of campaign without really fixing the campaign setting, which I really like and want to include in this book.
- Character Sheet - Including a custom sheet in the book seems kinda fun.
- Creatures - Currently unsure if I want to relegate this to a separate document, but I want to convert most of the creatures in d20 Modern that aren't already in 5E, plus a couple ideas of my own.
Wow with it all written out like that it sure looks like a lot of work, but at least most of the stuff I haven't started on is fairly small sections. Please let me know in the comments if there's anything in particular you want me to prioritise in the next few weeks, I'm pretty much up for everything. Well that's all for now, I hope to see you next time.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI've been interested in modern conversions to 5e which led me to Wilson's conversion and you.
I've already tested a few of your base classes and advanced classes. In general the feedback from my players were positive too but I mist confess that I personally disliked a few abilities and also believe tgat you could work on them. The 5th edition tries to streamline the game making it easier and faster, meaning less real-time calculations and bookeeping. So, the Tough Hero should not have abilities that reduce incoming damage by constitution modifier which may even flutuates and every round tge player will be doing this simple math over and over again. The game needs to be simple... you take half or not. You dont reduce or increase numbers which are way too frequent. Also suggest you to adjust ammunitions caliber damage accordingly to the weapons. So you won't be using different dices when calculating damage or averages...
In general, loved your content cause they seen to be based in d20 modern books from 3.0 - 3.5 era. Keep the good work! :)
Ah, have you ever heard about Spycraft 2.0 (Crafty games). They have also a good modern material worthy of reading. :)
Best regards
I just came across you material and base on the few post htat I've read it seems pretty cool stuf! Congrats for this great work.
ReplyDeleteIs there somewhere where I can find/get all the material at once instead of having to go to each post?
Tks
HL
Hi, there's a page on the blog that collects the most recent versions of all the content in the conversion, with links to either the related blog post or directly to the GM Binder doc.
Deletehttps://decisionparalysis.blogspot.com/p/d20-modern-conversion-masterlist.html
So I'm one of those weirdos who's still playing a d20 Modern game by the real rules. I've been running the same online game now for over 12 years!
ReplyDeleteBut now that I've been playing more 5e, the original d20M rules are starting to feel cumbersome (especially for an online game), which led me to this site. Fantastic work, friend! At least at a first read, it looks like I'll be able to take everything as is, with maybe a few little tweaks to match the tweaks I'm already using in my game now.
The only big hole I'm seeing is multiclassing. One of my players has 2 base classes with an advanced class and I'm not sure how to handle that just yet. I see here that multiclassing is on your list to update -- do you have an idea of how that would work, or is it a whole big subsystem?
Hi! I answered another question about how I'd make multiclassing work in the conversion on the main page for the conversion, I've copied the text of my other reply here:
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I know the basic idea behind how multiclassing would work, but wording it is an absolute mouthful. This is largely due to how spellcasting progression works in 5e. Here goes:
1. When multiclassing, you can choose to gain levels directly in an advanced class, or in a base class without taking an advanced class with it.
2. Levels in a lone base class act like normal multiclassing, but you can skip over the levels where you would gain an advanced class feature. When skipping a level this way, your total level must be at least one less than the class level you are gaining. For example, if you are a Fast Hero 1/Strong Hero 5, having skipped the first advanced class level on Strong Hero, your total level is 5. Therefore, you can't skip the 2nd advanced class level on the Strong Hero class, as you need to have a total level of at least 6.
3. Levels in a base class with an associated advanced class that has spellcasting count towards your total spell slots available like in normal D&D 5e. If the highest spell slot normally available is 5th level, they count as half levels. If the highest spell slot normally available to the advanced class is 4th level, they count as one third levels.
4. When taking levels in an advanced class by itself, treat the levels you would gain their features at normally as level prerequisites. If the advanced class has spellcasting, it also counts towards your total total spell slots available like in normal D&D 5e. If the highest spell slot normally available is 5th level, they count as full levels. If the highest spell slot normally available to the advanced class is 4th level, they count as two thirds levels.
Phew, like I said it's a total pain as it is now. This is why I never really released them formally. To improve them probably means reworking how the entire levelling system works for the supplement though. It's definitely a struggle to combine the slightly more free-form levelling from d20 Modern with the pretty rigid, simplified system of D&D 5e.
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Oh awesome, I didn't dig that deep into the comments on the main page. I definitely see why you haven't written them up though, it's a mouthful! Seems to be a really good start though.
DeleteOne thing I was thinking of doing was taking a cue from the multiclass system used by The Dungeon Coach (on YouTube). My thought was essentially each level you can choose any feature from anything you multi-class in, up to your character level for your main class, and your level - 1 for your off class. For instance, if you were a Fast/Smart at total level 5, and your first level was Fast, then when you gain 6th level you could take any feature from the Fast class up to level 6 or anything from Smart 1-5. You don't have to take the features in order, unless they chain off of one another, and you can't take anything twice. Any time you could take an advanced class you can take the same or a new class, with similar rules (i.e. you have to be at least 6th level before you can take your 2nd advanced class, but you could take 2 levels in different advanced classes).
Obviously it's also fairly wordy :-p And I'd need to make sure that there aren't any combos that would be super killer taking them this way.
Anyways, thanks again for your work, and thanks for the reply! I'm excited to start using these rules (hopefully my players go for the conversion).