Guilt-free 5E is a great place to play in. ToV and Level Up A5e are awesome games with differing design philosophies and goals, and I can see myself playing either. Decolonizing my table from any traces of Wall Street influence has made me happier.
The rules are just that - the rules. Not a controversy. There's no threat of monetization or a VTT. There are no endless inane playtest document YouTube videos. There are no AI art blow-ups. People in the company aren't out there saying stupid things. There aren't people making clickbait videos about stock prices or who D&D could be being sold to. We are not wondering where the Spelljammer art originated and how it got approved. Nobody is angry about a classic module being changed. The community around D&D is huge but massively toxic, and the parent company does not help things. I don't need to 'make excuses' about why I am playing a Wizards game.
With Open 5E, my mind is free.
The game is about my world again.
The rules are a neutral space.
The negativity and 'why am I supporting this' feelings are gone.
When I ask myself 'Which games do I want to sell' - part of that involves the question, "If I had one fantasy game and no others, which one would make me the happiest?"
Some of the games ending up on the losing side of that question - at least for me - are shocking. I limit the pool to 3 or 5 games, which is a tricky question to answer. A version of Open 5E is always in that group. Pathfinder 1 and 2 are not. DCC is on the fence, leaning yes. C&C is also on the fence but leaning no. OSE is not in my group. Shadow of the Demon Lord isn't. S&W isn't. Games from Wizards are in my sell boxes, and going out the door, I don't care for them anymore.
I spent some time reading the ToV alpha release and beta documents and trying to forget A5E for a while. If ToV was my game, could I play here and have fun? The answer is always yes.
Like A5E, there is a lot of "nut tightening" in ToV. The balance of the game is essential, which will give us a lot of complaints from the power gamers. The tight rules here and the simple presentation give me that Old School Essentials vibe. It is not the depth of reworking that A5E does to the system, but it is more like straight 5E in the theory of play.
The math and game mechanics design in Kobold Press is solid and much better than the Wizards team. They do great work here and care that all options seem balanced and fun. I am here for stories and adventure, not broken builds and exploits.
This is a reworking of class mechanics and balances for 5E while keeping the game as simple to play and learn as possible. Again, this reminds me of OSE. A5E takes a lot of "mental operating system space" to play, just because of the depth of the changes - ToV does not have that deep of a reworking. That is a huge plus. I would miss the A5E improvements, but...
This blurb from the ToV GM's Guide intrigues me:
Go beyond the basics! Use new Game Master tools to customize your TOV campaign for advanced combat, social, and exploration encounters.
They know there is a demand for advanced rules covering these areas, just like A5E gives us, and they want to deliver their version. They will be optional and plugged into the game, and the phrase on customizing campaigns and "advanced combat, social, and exploration" gives me hope the classic pillars of play will be explored and expanded upon.
ToV will be a solid offering if they keep a strong base 5E compatibility and expand the game modularly. This is what I am looking for in a new version of 5E. With Level Up A5E, they created a compelling modded game that stands independently. ToV is a new "clean room" version of 5E with a robust and compatible base and possible modular expansions.
Both of those are highly appealing.
If ToV embraces a modular approach, this will be highly appealing.
Kobold Press also has many class option books for many backgrounds, class options, and heritages. These convert in quickly, so if you wanted to stay in the Kobold-verse with ToV, your options would be amazing.
That, and Midgard is the next Forgotten Realms. I put Midgard a step above Golarion in quality and detail, offering a lot of variety. ToV feels massively underestimated, like Pathfinder 2 was when it was released. People want more, and they want a lot. If ToV can deliver a classic, simple, expandible game, it will be a massive win for Open 5E.
Part of the problem with launching a new version is the pressure of people wanting more.
What this needs to be is a fresh start in a familiar place.
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