"Fan Errata": a Proposal to Rewrite Some of Poorly Worded Rules of 5e

[Merudo]

Although 5e is pretty damn good, I've notice a handful of rules that are either confusing, unclear, or where RAW & RAI are incompatible.

I therefore make the following proposal: we should make a "fan errata" to correct the worst of these rules, with the intent to make a strict reading of the text closer to RAI and to close some unintended loopholes.

Of course, each individual DM would be free to adopt the "fan errata" or not; but having it out there would simplify time for the busy DM who wants, say, workable Vision/Obscuration rules without having to analyze a lengthy discussion on this forum or on the RPG stack exchange.

This "fan errata" would be reminiscent of fan patches that exist for computer games. These fan patches were created by gamers to correct existing bugs overlooked by the developers. The list of games with "fan patches" is numerous, and include games such as

• Baldur's Gate 2
• Dragon Age: Origins
• Fallout 4
• Final Fantasy 6
• Skyrim
• Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines

and many other games.

As a start, I've identified a few rules that I believe would benefit from a rewrite. I hope the proposed errata would unambiguously answer the following questions:

• Vision & Obscuration: Can a creature see behind mundane darkness, fog cloud, & the darkness spell?
• Rest: Under which conditions can a PC take a short or long rest, and can the two types of rests be combined?
• "Enter the spell's area": What's the definition of "entering a spell's area" for spells such as Moonbeam & Cloud of Daggers?
• Dropping a Weapon: Is dropping a weapon "free", or does it use the object interaction action?
• Shield Master: When can the shield push be taken?
• Surprise: What happens if a character only notices some of the threats, but not all of them?
• Dead Creature: Is a dead creature still a creature, or is it an object?
• Casting more than one spell: Under which conditions can a PC cast more than one spell during a turn?
• Wild Shape: Which feature(s) can be used in Wild Shape?

In addition, the wording for some spells is plain confusing and should be improved upon. Examples: Awaken, Black Tentacles, Freedom of Movement, Goodberry, Shadow of Moil, Simulacrum, Wall of Fire, etc.