I've played and ran some 3.5 and I really loved it. With the years worth of supplements, homebrews, expansions, etc., the rules and mechanics are robust enough to allow as much freedom as you need. And besides, anything you could come up with probably already had a rule explained in some publication or another. But that also made it feel kind of bogged down (for me at least). It's hard to make an off-the-cuff ruling or request when a player can cite a rule buried in a obscure article in a decade old magazine.
Lately, I've been playing in a 5th edition game and I'm DMing one as well. 5th is still young, so there's not the same breadth of material, but the core mechanics are intelligently streamlined and allow for the same freedom as 3.5 without the volumes of rules. It feels like a really strong base that focuses on fun and it has quickly become my preferred edition.
I've played and ran some 3.5 and I really loved it. With the years worth of supplements, homebrews, expansions, etc., the rules and mechanics are robust enough to allow as much freedom as you need. And besides, anything you could come up with probably already had a rule explained in some publication or another. But that also made it feel kind of bogged down (for me at least). It's hard to make an off-the-cuff ruling or request when a player can cite a rule buried in a obscure article in a decade old magazine.
Lately, I've been playing in a 5th edition game and I'm DMing one as well. 5th is still young, so there's not the same breadth of material, but the core mechanics are intelligently streamlined and allow for the same freedom as 3.5 without the volumes of rules. It feels like a really strong base that focuses on fun and it has quickly become my preferred edition.