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Mike Mearls: A Paladin, Ranger, and Wizard With Arcane Tradition Walk Into A Tavern
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<blockquote data-quote="Ainamacar" data-source="post: 7648883" data-attributes="member: 70709"><p>It is only a limiter if that table wants it to be. It assumes the game has X organization or a close analog, it assumes that the roleplaying consequences of belonging to X organization (or its close analog) are respected at the table, and in many cases it assumes the roleplaying restrictions used to justify mechanical benefits are of a similar magnitude from table to table even when roleplaying consequences are respected. If any of these are violated then the mechanics were justified on a premise that does not hold. The easier something is to ignore without inherent side-effects the less well it serves as one side of a trade off.</p><p></p><p>I grant that some campaign-dependent considerations are necessary when trying to achieve mechanical balance, even of the most bird's-eye-view variety. For example, we'd generally assume that the campaign won't only involve fighting undead or monsters with immunity to fire even though someone might reasonably run such campaigns. (And for other types of balance, like spotlight balance, similar notions hold.) However, those assumptions should be few in number, have a clearly-defined scope, and, if possible, a predictable impact when violated. In other words, whatever notion of balance one has aimed for should "fail gracefully" as the campaign moves away from these assumptions. Plus, modules should (I think) be able to deal with altering assumptions of those kinds much more easily. Adding non-mechanical assumptions at the class-level to justify baked-in mechanical benefits invites a tangle, and ends up making the game less playable for those who don't follow the new assumption, and no more playable for those who do.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ainamacar, post: 7648883, member: 70709"] It is only a limiter if that table wants it to be. It assumes the game has X organization or a close analog, it assumes that the roleplaying consequences of belonging to X organization (or its close analog) are respected at the table, and in many cases it assumes the roleplaying restrictions used to justify mechanical benefits are of a similar magnitude from table to table even when roleplaying consequences are respected. If any of these are violated then the mechanics were justified on a premise that does not hold. The easier something is to ignore without inherent side-effects the less well it serves as one side of a trade off. I grant that some campaign-dependent considerations are necessary when trying to achieve mechanical balance, even of the most bird's-eye-view variety. For example, we'd generally assume that the campaign won't only involve fighting undead or monsters with immunity to fire even though someone might reasonably run such campaigns. (And for other types of balance, like spotlight balance, similar notions hold.) However, those assumptions should be few in number, have a clearly-defined scope, and, if possible, a predictable impact when violated. In other words, whatever notion of balance one has aimed for should "fail gracefully" as the campaign moves away from these assumptions. Plus, modules should (I think) be able to deal with altering assumptions of those kinds much more easily. Adding non-mechanical assumptions at the class-level to justify baked-in mechanical benefits invites a tangle, and ends up making the game less playable for those who don't follow the new assumption, and no more playable for those who do. [/QUOTE]
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