ToV PDF Thoughts, Part 16

I live in a world where the 2024 D&D books are not a part of my discussion or thoughts about the system.

It is also a fun place, free from the AAA gaming monetization schemes that Wall Street pushes on the community. I can buy physical books, have the PDFs to own, and not have to pay someone a monthly fee to play a game (I choose to support Hero Lab, but I have been using that for 10+ years for more games than just this).

I'm thrilled that Level Up Advanced 5E is an exceptional game offering a unique and engaging gaming experience. Tales of the Valiant is the next one.

Having both to choose from or playing both is amazing. All my expansion books and adventures work with either, for the most part. Some work better than others; some feel like one system supports them better, while others feel like the other. I am free to mod them both.

Better death saves and fatigue rules? Those are part of Level Up, and I can add them to ToV.

Both have their own design goals and design teams. They are well-supported, and communities are forming around them. Part of me worries so many have walked away from 5E that ToV will have an uphill battle to find fans. Level Up was established very early, years ago, by people who were unsatisfied with D&D, and the group of fans there is a solid one with some excellent support for a game many have never heard about or considered an option.

The 2024 books I am not getting, nor do I engage with clickbait on them daily. The cover reveal was an exception since that was such horrible cover art that did not have a message.

But I do worry about the entrenched communities. We have also had the best players for my play style (old-school fans) leave the game in mass. Is there anyone left in this game that likes the things I do? Despite a few bright spots, the community buzz on ToV is very low, given what I expect. I am not seeing a lot of activity on Facebook. YouTube is mostly silent. The algorithms are working against the game, or the advertisers don't want the game to succeed.

I enjoy both ToV and Level Up.

For me, they are guilt-free 5E.

One feels like 4E.

The other feels old-school.

But so many have walked away from 5E, and I wonder if players like me are the exception. Castles & Crusades is going strong, many OSR games are getting a post-OGL bump, and many are still loving Pathfinder 2. A lot left in the 5E community are the hardcore Wizards supporters, with years of buy-in on D&D Beyond. They are not going; any game that threatens their digital content (which they don't own, will be invalidated, and need to be repurchased someday) is the enemy.

Just "losing players to ToV" threatens their "investments."

For me, the only way to win in a scenario like that is not to play. I support Hero Lab since it supports many games, and my investments are leveraged across a few games and companies. It does not support Wizards D&D (officially), and ToV allows me to use my 5E books.

And I am still doing Level Up sheets by hand. That is the most freedom.

But we have lost so much in the 5E world. While it is still the largest, it is not what it used to be, and people are becoming entrenched in their game choices.

And many of the best players have moved on.

There are communities out here around alternate 5E that are unique and fun places.