D&D 5E for Old Fogeys: What Old-School DMs Like Us Should Know About How this Edition Compares to Earlier Versions of Dungeons & Dragons

We all started DMing RPGs a long time ago. In the case of Thorin and Tony, we held on to older editions long after new ones were released (stretching 1E material into 2E and flat refusing to move to 3E later on). But Dungeons & Dragon 5E has been around for 10 years now and is bigger than any edition has ever been in terms of sales, player base and media exposure. WotC recently announced that they’ll be releasing an update for 5E in 2024, not a replacement, and the edition itself shows no signs of slowing down. We like it quite a lot, even if there are things we miss from older editions.

Now, even old-school RPG players who haven’t played a new edition in decades are wondering what they’d need to know to run 5E. Players like Jeff, who emailed us and said, “After 40-ish years, my daughter and son-in-law got me back into RPGs with 5E and I have been playing for the last 2 years or so. In all this time, I have never been a DM/GM.” And he had a few questions about running 5E that we do our best to answer in the podcast.

In this episode, Thorin, Tony and Dave talk about how DMing 5E is different from older editions of D&D, how the culture around playing it has changed, and what every old-school D&D DM should know about running the system if they haven’t played it yet.

2:00 A reader question: What do you need to know as an older gamer getting in D&D 5E?

4:00 How does 5E use ability scores and skills compared to older editions

10:00 Sword & sorcery roleplaying (old-school D&D) vs. heroic roleplaying (5E)

15:00 5E skills vs. 2E proficiencies

18:00 D&D 2E overbearing shenanigans that you can’t use in D&D 5E (and some other shenanigans we’ve seen)

25:00 Really high skill bonuses, impossible feats, and how not to be a dick DM in D&D 5E

34:00 Other things old-school DMs should be prepared for in 5E:

• Limited magic resistance

• Hit dice used for healing during short rests

• Long rests healing everything

• Positive numbers are good now (a change from 2E and earlier)

38:00 Is D&D 5E more cooperative with the players than earlier D&D systems?

42:00 DMing in a more emotionally intelligent time

45:00 Was classic D&D’s difficulty fun or good for the game?

48:00 Is it too hard to kill players in 5E?

50:00 5E magic is more constrained in terms of world-altering power, but wizards are more balanced with other classes now

53:00 D&D 5E spells, abilities, actions, etc., do what they say and nothing more

55:00 The redeployment of alignment and “evil” in D&D 5E mechanics

59:00 5E and class balance

64:00 Final thoughts