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[FireLance]

Originally Posted by Alex319

1. Why is it that the "mundane" resource management (rations, fatigue) is generally seen as tedious, while the "fantastic" resource management (power uses, item charges) isn't?

I think the key issues are consequence and replaceability. Mundane items tend to either have minimal consequences if a PC does not have them (e.g. many game systems have few or no consequences for skipping a meal) or be easily replaceable (so that even if the PCs run out, it is usually trivially easy to obtain them), or both. Thus, I believe that many players don't spend more effort on management of mundane items beyond thinking "How much of mundane item X do I need before I can replace them?" and then writing that number down on their character sheets.

On the other hand, fantastic resources often have significant effects when used, or are less easy to replace, or both, so players find that it is worth the effort to track them and to carefully consider when to use them.

However, I believe that the difference is one of scale rather than any inherent quality of mundane or fantastic resources. At low levels, many PCs find it worthwhile to track mundane resources because they can only be replaced at (relatively) significant cost. And at higher levels, should fantastic resources have minimal consequences relative to the PCs' abilities, and be easily replaceable, I believe the players will also spend less effort to track them, e.g. wands of low-level healing spells in 3e.

2. Would it be possible to design a game system where "mundane" resource management takes center stage, and is as important to the game as the "fantastic" resource management is in games like D+D? (Do such systems already exist? How well do they work?)

As mentioned, low-level games are likely to involve the tracking of mundane resources because they tend to more significant relative to the power level of the PCs, and replacing them is not trivial relative to the PCs' resources. In order for mundane items to remain relevant at higher levels, this must continue to be true as the PCs grow in levels. This usually does not happen in games like D&D because fantastic resources often replace mundane resources, e.g. spells and magic items replace mundane food and drink, and magical ammunition replace mundane arrows and bolts. Hence, one way to ensure that mundane items remain relevant is to ensure that there are no magical substitutes for whatever mundane resources you want the players to continue managing.