Just listened to @BrandesStoddard and @DMSamuel talking about 3rd edition D&D's economy on @thetomeshow.

Wow, that's some flashbacks, and has me thinking about one of the components that comes along with wealth being equivalent to character power progression. 1/7 #dnd

— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) May 30, 2020

There were means to destroy objects and magic items in 3e, many of which were rooted in legacy D&D things. Spells, monster offensive and defensive abilities, action maneuvers, all kinds.

If you did that, though, you were permanently removing power from the PCs. That sucks. 2/7 As a player I was terrified of it, and as a DM I could both see that my players were terrified of it, and I avoided it because it threw off the balance curve of the campaign so harshly. So I never did it. It wasn't fun, and made more work for me. 3/7

— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) May 30, 2020

Now, though, 5e assumes zero magic items for the basic math that sets up the game. Even the most lowly magic item you find is gravy. Removing the requirement/expectation of magic items removes some of that sacrosanct status. 4/7 As a DM in 5e, I can disenchant, shatter, and steal magic items without the fear of crippling a character and throwing my campaign into deeper uncertainty, challenge-wise.

That's an exciting thought, not because I want to run out and destroy all my players' favorite stuff, 5/7

— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) May 30, 2020

But because it’s a shackle removed. It’s a dial that can be adjusted to create stories, tension, and motivation, but without risk of dropping the bottom out of the entire game.

As a DM, designer, and player, that makes me happy. 6/7 A slightly ironic final note, I'm still glad there's no Mordenkainen's Disjunction spell. That was the ultimate dick move. If you're gonna blow up magic stuff, make it more individually meaningful.

My goal as a DM is for players to have more fun this session than the last. 7/7

— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) May 30, 2020

I was just about to ask about this spell! I joined during 3.5, but only discovered Mordenkainen's Disjunction in the last year. It seemed both incredibly epic and utterly devastating to a player.

— Justice Arman 📜 Candlekeep 🏰📚 (@justice_arman) May 30, 2020

Thinking a little more about it, Mord’s disjunction is the ultimate expression of why the sunder maneuver sucked so much as a player in 3.5: It exists only to destroy your treasure. You are crippling yourself if you use it. 1/2 That spell was the ultimate "this is here for the DM/villain, not so much for you." OR it showed up so late as to not matter, or to be too risky to use (you blow up the villain's artifact and NERULL shows up to see just wtf you thought).

— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) May 30, 2020

Yep. And honestly, I’m not a huuuge fan of those DM only spells. I just cringe thinking about them in an antagonistic DM’s hands!

Weapon sundering sounds cool, and it totally can be, but it’s a bummer to have something you worked to achieve crumble to dust. Some spells exist pretty much only for dungeon creation. Magic mouth, for instance. PCs /can/ find a way to use it, but, it's almost always a stretch to find those moments.

— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) May 30, 2020

In fact, it's no niche I actually had to check and refresh myself that it was actually in the 5e Player's Handbook. 😂😂😂

— Dan Dillon (@Dan_Dillon_1) May 30, 2020