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Dissapointed with Attunement
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<blockquote data-quote="FireLance" data-source="post: 6034527" data-attributes="member: 3424"><p>Unfortunately, I think 4e got the math right, but the psychology wrong.</p><p></p><p>They could have retained the same balanced math and made magic items seem like raw power-ups if they had just done the following:</p><p></p><p>1. Re-work monster levels so that they are equal to the level of the characters that they are supposed to be a standard challenge for plus the bonus from the magic items that the characters are supposed to have. So, if a 12th-level monster is supposed to be a standard challenge for a 12th-level party armed with +3 gear, it is now a 15th-level monster (12 + 3).</p><p></p><p>2. State in the rules that a monster of level X is supposed to be a standard challenge for a party of the same level. However, if the party is armed with +Y gear, it is able to take on monsters of <em>higher</em> level (X + Y)!</p><p></p><p>I know it seems like sleight of hand that shouldn't fool anyone with a basic grasp of mathematics, but somehow, it makes a significant difference psychologically. A 12th-level party without magic items that can "only" take on a 9th-level monster feels bad about it, and one that has the "expected" +3 gear and takes on a 12th-level monster feels that the gear is "necessary". A 12th-level party without magic items that takes on a 12th-level monster feels that is routine, and one that has +3 items and takes on a 15th-level monster feels good about the fact that their equipment "allowed" them to take on a higher-level challenge. <em>This is even if the 9th/12th level monster and the 12th/15th level monster have exactly the same game statistics except for level.</em> </p><p></p><p>People are just funny that way, I guess.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="FireLance, post: 6034527, member: 3424"] Unfortunately, I think 4e got the math right, but the psychology wrong. They could have retained the same balanced math and made magic items seem like raw power-ups if they had just done the following: 1. Re-work monster levels so that they are equal to the level of the characters that they are supposed to be a standard challenge for plus the bonus from the magic items that the characters are supposed to have. So, if a 12th-level monster is supposed to be a standard challenge for a 12th-level party armed with +3 gear, it is now a 15th-level monster (12 + 3). 2. State in the rules that a monster of level X is supposed to be a standard challenge for a party of the same level. However, if the party is armed with +Y gear, it is able to take on monsters of [I]higher[/I] level (X + Y)! I know it seems like sleight of hand that shouldn't fool anyone with a basic grasp of mathematics, but somehow, it makes a significant difference psychologically. A 12th-level party without magic items that can "only" take on a 9th-level monster feels bad about it, and one that has the "expected" +3 gear and takes on a 12th-level monster feels that the gear is "necessary". A 12th-level party without magic items that takes on a 12th-level monster feels that is routine, and one that has +3 items and takes on a 15th-level monster feels good about the fact that their equipment "allowed" them to take on a higher-level challenge. [I]This is even if the 9th/12th level monster and the 12th/15th level monster have exactly the same game statistics except for level.[/I] People are just funny that way, I guess. [/QUOTE]
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