Qralloq says:
@kalajel has been going through the books, as I understand it, in some detail.
Currently I'm finishing on the Adventurer's Guide which is the equivalent of the PHB. After which, I'll still need to read Treasures & Trials (DMG), and Monstrous Menagerie (MM), though I did took a quick peek at this last one...
So far, I really liked what I read. Reading those books, I get a feeling very similar to what I had when I read Pathfinder 1st edition, not because a5e is more complex, but because the changes brought to the game makes so much sense and are so intuitive compared to the original ruleset. If I had to describe a5e in one word, it would be customization. You have so many options to allow you to make your character your own, it's really nice.
First, for character creations, races, now called heritages, no longer gives you any ability modifiers, those having been moved to the background. Instead, each heritage gives you some traits, the choice of a gift on 1st level, and then another choice (for most heritages) of a paragon at 10th level. There are some exceptions, like a dragonborns or planetouched where their paragon is "locked chosen" by your choice of gift at 1st level as they are simply a continuation of the gift. there are also no "half-heritages", but you can make "mixed heritages" by taking the traits of one heritage, and the gift and paragon of a second one. This allows you to recreate half elves and half orcs, but allows you to experiment with a draconic gnome, an elven planetouched, or a what the child of a halfling and a gnome would look like.
Continuing with character creation, you must then choose your culture which grants you a few more traits and proficiencies. Then your background which gives you your ability modifiers (only 2 +1 this time around) with a minor feature, proficiencies, connection (bond, ideal, flaw, etc. all rolled into one), and a memento (your trinket). Finally your destiny which offers you some alternate ways to gain and spend inspiration, and if you fulfill your destiny or reach 16th level, a new ability.
For the classes a few names have been changed, with the monk now called the adept, the barbarian now called the berserker, and the paladin now being called the herald. Customization continues here as at first level, you must choose between two or more class features to make your character even more unique, and as such you can end up with a more pugilist-like adept, and a more friar Tuck-like cleric who wears only robes and no armor... This ability to customize your character continues at later level as you often have a choice of a few ability to make as you level up. In some case, this choice can be changed after a long rest. As for the archetypes (sub-classes), they haven't tried to recreate the one from DnD5, so you have a bunch of new ones, meaning that with the Battle Master gone, this allowed them to introduce the Warlord as a new class (basically 3.x's marshal/4's warlord). All martial classes also now have exertion (their take on the monk's ki pool and the battle master's superiority dice) that can be used to activate maneuvers which can be learnt by the martial classes, with adept having the most exertion, and the fighter having the largest selection of maneuvers to choose from.
Equipment is an interesting affair, with them banking on equipment properties (some tag or descriptor) to allow for a wider variety of weapons and armor. Equipment now also needs to be maintained (by the introduction of a camp action to maintain your gear). They also pulled a bit of a Five Torches Deep here in having your character being able to carry a number of supplies (food and water) equal to their Strength score above what they can normally carry.
There is also a section on strongholds, which feels it should have been in T&T, but is still very welcomed here as upgrading your stronghold to a certain grades grants you some abilities as well as giving you this missing +1 ability modifier you "lost" at character creation...
Feats seems to have been balanced, since Deadeye (their version of Sharpshooter), now only allows you to take a penalty equal to your proficiency bonus on your ranged attack rolls to gain a damage bonus equal to twice that amount (so only a +4 damage at low levels, but which can eventually climb to a +12). Also, 3.x's prestige classes have made a comeback of sort, but under synergy feats form (a small chain of feats which requires you to have at least 3 levels of both prerequisite classes before you can take the first feat). Synergy feats are also used to allow your players to play a lich or a vampire.
There is a large section about downtime activities, which again feels it should have been part of T&T, but is still a welcomed addition. This is then followed by the combat section (basically the rules of the game), and then an expensive list of combat maneuvers for the martial classes (as mentioned above).
The spellcasting section is really interesting as players can now find rare and unique variants of spells as treasures which can do a little something extra. In fact, players can create their own variant of spells as well using the aforementioned downtime activities.
Finally, the appendixes in which we see that exhaustion has not been split into fatigue (physical fatigue) and strife (mental and/or emotional fatigue), and both are tracked individually of one another.
All in all, I really like what they've done with the 5e ruleset and I can't wait to read the other books. As for running a game, I'm already quite busy with the games I'm running or am playing in, but if one of those games ever dies, I might be tempted to give a5e a try.
