DnD combat doesn't rely around a rogue sneaking around and stacking 5 barrels of explosives around all enemies. It's a neat trick for sure, but I feel that it's gimmicky and doesn't feel like DnD.
This totally feels like D&D to me. Not in the specifics but players trying really intricate tricks to solve problems is a big part of play. The environmental stuff IMO is there to try and capture some of that tabletop creativity. Certainly could do with some tweaks and changes throughout EA but I am sure that if as a DM I put an explosive barrel in a game the party would start collecting all they could to set up exactly this kind of trick.
You are entitled to your opinion, of course, but I do not understand you guys when you use buzz words like creativity and connect it to the insane spam of ground effects. I engange a group of goblins, and literally everyone of them, spam me with fire and acid and darkness (from archers of all things). Archers, melee and spellcasters all feel the same, they all spam area effect. And spellcasters are nothing special, archers duplicate their effects.
I think Larian have been far too ham-fisted with all their changes and additions. They seem to have forgotten that for all it's fantastical elements D&D has it's own logic and natural laws the same as our world does. Their lack of finesse might have worked in a whimsical world like DOS but it wont fly in D&D. They haven't stopped to think:
A) Does this make thematic sense? B) Does this make logical sense? C) Does this make gameplay sense?
For example lets take throwables:
A) Does grease explode like a grenade when it comes into contact with fire? Does Acid instantly burn through metal/treated leather armor and boots? B) How big would a bottle have to be to create a 2-3-4m square of [insert liquid] and could you realistically store/throw it effectively? C) If said vial of a suitable size to carry/throw shatters on impact with someone would it also create a giant puddle around them? D) How are we going to implement these items so they are not annoying and overutilized to the point were Wizards are irrelevant and Fighters are guaranteed suicide? E) Why would every goblin be running around with dozens of complicated to manufacture arrows/containers full of equally complicated to manufacture alchemical liquids and who would trust basic grunts with such items? F) Why when looting said goblin is there no arrow/container on their corpse even after I savescum and kill it before it can use said item?
