What It Means to Teach Something

I have many small problems with D&D 5E. But they are minor problems. I can fix these things through good DM techniques, or superior prep, or hacks. And I don’t begrudge a game minor problems. Maybe the things I don't like may be features, not bugs, for other players. 

I only have one big problem with 5E: It’s difficult to teach to new players. 

When you teach something, you endorse it. The act of teaching includes implicit statements like “this game is worth the learning curve” and “you should spend your time learning this game, instead of another game.” 

And those are endorsements I’m not really willing to make, relative to the many other TTRPGs that boast superior design, or a lower barrier to entry for new players. 

My quantum character sheet was my attempt to bend 5E toward a true pick-up-and-play game. And even that is really more of a vaguely 5E-compliant hack than a true compliment to 5E itself. 

Maybe I’ll get there someday. Until then, I just have to be honest with players that 5E is a compromise – a good game, and one I enjoy running, but not what I would reach for first if they just asked me “what should I really learn how to play?”