Sunday D&D

My Sunday crew has had a hard time getting together regularly over the last few months. Summers are always full of conventions, vacations, and other events that disrupt our weekend gaming. Anyway, now that it's firmly into Fall, the game as picked up again. Since what we were playing was interrupted, we decided to start a new D&D game run by one of the guys who hasn't run anything for us before. I missed the first session, but jumped into the second one with no problems. Here's the set up:

We're members of the Waterdeep guard and in the first session the other players did some questionable things that have earned our group a bad reputation. (I guess stopping people from looting an inn, then taking it over for yourselves just didn't sit well with some.) So, we were sent out of town to take care of a problem at a nearby monastary and along the way hilarity ensues.

I don't really need to get into the details of the story. What I really wanted to concentrate on was my character and the play experience. I'm playing a human wizard who's all about control (this is 4th edition D&D, if I hadn't mentioned that), so he uses an orb to extend his controlling abilities, and he has a number of spells that slow, daze, immobilize, or in some way hinder his targets.

I had a blast! This is the first session in which I felt like I was consistently effective and that the powers I was using were not only cool, but that they were helping the other characters. I was able to stand back out of harms way (mostly) and tie up our opponents, which made it easier for the hand-to-hand members of the party to step up and do their thing.

I realized a few years ago what I really enjoy about D&D and gaming in general: Magic. Sure it's fun to chop people up with a sword or get in a really good backstab, but magic and spells are where it's at for me. They effects are cooler and more varied and the way they "look" in the game is also cooler. "I blast you with a fireball" is so much more satisfying to me than, "I slice you with my greatsword."

Anyway, I was happy to finally have that response to the game. So far I've felt a little separated from the new system, probably because I've been analyzing it a bit. Sunday's game broke that down for me and I really had a good time. Hopefully that will carry over to my Tuesday night game (tonight!).

This post makes me wonder what others think of the new system in terms of the "fun factor". Have you been able to just enjoy the game and what your character can do? Is it too fiddly? (With the minis and various effects, etc.) Do you feel constrained by the powers? Or is it hitting on all cylinders for you?

I'll fill you in on any cool events from tonight's game. I think it's going to be all about zombie killing, so I may get to use Turn Undead finally.