I suppose it's a different strokes-for-different-folks situation... most people in my circle lament the loss of druids and such things as animal companions. They might have bogged combat down a bit but they also made it more interesting. I don't really see how something like an animal companion or a paladin mount would slow combat down any more than having an additional player character, if it was integrated with the new combat system. For instance, because the module was balanced for a larger group than we were using, we ended up doubling up on characters halfway through our system, and that didn't even double the time it took to get through a round.
One thing I forgot to mention that I was very glad to see: the easing away from "Vancian" magic for wizards. "I cast magic missile on the orc. See you guys tomorrow." Yeah. Apart from being a terrible game mechanic, it doesn't really map to any (outside of Vance's writing) concept of what a wizard is and how magic works you're likely to find in fantasy and folklore.
Actually, the wizard's one of my favorite classes in terms of how it was handled. I like that they kept the "flavor" cantrips in place... that was a reassuring sign that while the system is most heavy on combat resolution, they really don't intend for the game to be nothing but that.
Though, in order to keep the Old Skool flavor for magic missile, I'm already declaring a house rule for my future campaigns: magic missile can be split into individual 1d4 attacks, or a d4 can be sacrificed for a bonus to hit.
You seem to have your finger more on the pulse of this great rampaging beast than I do... do you have any idea what the ETA on D&D Insider and the virtual tabletop is? I will be very happy to give them my money for that stuff. The people I was gaming with live two hours away and gas is 'spensive.
Re: 4e
One thing I forgot to mention that I was very glad to see: the easing away from "Vancian" magic for wizards. "I cast magic missile on the orc. See you guys tomorrow." Yeah. Apart from being a terrible game mechanic, it doesn't really map to any (outside of Vance's writing) concept of what a wizard is and how magic works you're likely to find in fantasy and folklore.
Actually, the wizard's one of my favorite classes in terms of how it was handled. I like that they kept the "flavor" cantrips in place... that was a reassuring sign that while the system is most heavy on combat resolution, they really don't intend for the game to be nothing but that.
Though, in order to keep the Old Skool flavor for magic missile, I'm already declaring a house rule for my future campaigns: magic missile can be split into individual 1d4 attacks, or a d4 can be sacrificed for a bonus to hit.
You seem to have your finger more on the pulse of this great rampaging beast than I do... do you have any idea what the ETA on D&D Insider and the virtual tabletop is? I will be very happy to give them my money for that stuff. The people I was gaming with live two hours away and gas is 'spensive.