This can happen with new players who are native English speakers too, as D&D has a fair deal of vocabulary not everyone knows. Words like charisma and melee really got popularized by D&D.
Deep cut here: When I was a kid (ages past) and first heard friends talk about D&D, I thought there was a lens to keep you on the border. And without it, you might go straight Into The Unknown.
If your character concept is "complete" before choosing your class, consider being a human. Other choices carry along more "baggage" that may distract from what you're shooting for.
Other players can be like "What kind of elf would...?" etc., but they don't do that for humans.
Are you quoting something with those ellipses?
If "5.2" were a marketing decision, then it would probably be getting used in their marketing materials. But there you see stuff like "One D&D."
Incrementing the second number here is in line with general "geek numbering system" convention. It doesn't seem to me like marketing barged into the production room and insisted on a more "marketable" version number — not that that has never happened, but marketing would most likely have wanted "5.5" not the inscrutable "5.2."
I'm not sure it's an exact match, but SRD 5.1 was published around the same time as the PH accrued the "This printing includes corrections to the first printing" message in the front matter.
They both contain the corrections from the previously-published errata.
So if you will, if your PH has that message, and it probably does, you've probably been playing 5.1 for a while now.
I ran 2 tables in 4E, but when 5E came out they never wanted to go back.
It all came down to keeping track of all the powers, nobody liked that. They also hoarded their encounter and daily powers, rarely using them (and hoarding encounter powers doesn't make a lot of sense).
I was a little disappointed because the one table was about to hit their paragon paths, which seemed like fun, and the players seemed excited for. It's a concept I wouldn't mind seeing in a new game – it was a little like choosing a subclass at 10th level.
SRD 5.1 was released 8 years ago though, long before TCE. And since Tasha's rules are all considered optional, that book didn't really revise the rules, just expand on them.
For anyone wondering where this is coming from, WOTC announced their new System Reference doc associated with the upcoming book releases, and that is SRD 5.2.
I agree, that's the version number. Marketing types might want a catchier name, but "five-two" may be the most clear way to communication what version you're talking about.
While my players will easily kill 30 minutes collaborating on what to buy, a session like this is definitely more fun if there are NPC's involved.
We had a memorable session when the PC's found the Emporium of Evil, where they tried to find the magic items that weren't TOO cursed, speaking to all manner of morally questionable merchant. (They bought a lot, actually.)
You can also brainstorm the next quest this way. Whether or not the party wants to take a quest from a one of these merchants, they can certainly hear rumors. You can see what they take interest in, and build your next plot arc off of that base.
Some trouble can always pop up when the shopping is winding down, requiring decisive action by the party.
@timgrant
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