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Resting and the frikkin' Elephant in the Room
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<blockquote data-quote="Tony Vargas" data-source="post: 7200510" data-attributes="member: 996"><p>To a point. The game assumes 2-3 short rests/day, for only 6-8 encounter, so roughly every-other encounter. A short rest after every encounter is thus twice the 'expected resources' for the short-rest-recharge class. Similarly, a 3 encounter day, even if it is three deadly encounters, means about double the daily resources available in each encounter - and a 5 MWD, six to eight times the expected resources - if you can even belt them out that fast. <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /></p><p></p><p> That's what I consider the 'best' (most in keeping with 5e philosophy) solution.</p><p></p><p> 'Spotlight' balance, yes, and there are a lot more tools you can take advantage of than just pacing. The 6-8 encounter guideline aims at a degree of mechanical balance around resources.</p><p> That does sound a tad like assigning blame. But, no, it's not choosing to create an issue, it's making a story based decision - that is impacted by an existing issue with the system. (When the assassins sent by the BBEG ambush them in a 'safe' area, while their guard is down, boom, single-encounter day, with attendant issues.) </p><p></p><p> We can certainly compensate for it in other ways. You can even leverage it. If you're already working towards spotlight balance in your campaign, for instance, having a single-encounter, telegraphed-threat day to let the prepped daily caster shine, a few-encounter day where the Barbarian can rage every time, a scenario in an undead-and-trap-infested tomb where the Thief & Cleric shine, and then a heist scenario where the Thief and Bard shine, is all perfectly reasonable - and pacing is just one tool you can use to make a given PC the star that time around.</p><p></p><p></p><p> Or merely to illustrate it. It may not be painfully obvious that a barbarian will be doing better relative to a fighter in a shorter day, but compare a 3-rage barbarian to a 1-Action Surge Campion in a 3-encounter/no-short-rest day, and it becomes pretty obvious. Extreme cases, like strict inferiority, are useful in illustrating something, even if they hopefully rarely happen...</p><p></p><p> Sounds like there's a conflict there.</p><p></p><p> It necessarily does in the sense the guidelines hold it together, in the first place. Which is not saying much, at all, really, since the guidelines are just a step towards imposing class balance and estimating encounter difficulty, not nearly sufficient in themselves. </p><p></p><p> And BA helps with that, certainly, if, for instance, you can find an excuse to amp up numbers.</p><p> And BA doesn't much get in the way of that, either. </p><p> And there was great rejoicing. <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Tony Vargas, post: 7200510, member: 996"] To a point. The game assumes 2-3 short rests/day, for only 6-8 encounter, so roughly every-other encounter. A short rest after every encounter is thus twice the 'expected resources' for the short-rest-recharge class. Similarly, a 3 encounter day, even if it is three deadly encounters, means about double the daily resources available in each encounter - and a 5 MWD, six to eight times the expected resources - if you can even belt them out that fast. ;) That's what I consider the 'best' (most in keeping with 5e philosophy) solution. 'Spotlight' balance, yes, and there are a lot more tools you can take advantage of than just pacing. The 6-8 encounter guideline aims at a degree of mechanical balance around resources. That does sound a tad like assigning blame. But, no, it's not choosing to create an issue, it's making a story based decision - that is impacted by an existing issue with the system. (When the assassins sent by the BBEG ambush them in a 'safe' area, while their guard is down, boom, single-encounter day, with attendant issues.) We can certainly compensate for it in other ways. You can even leverage it. If you're already working towards spotlight balance in your campaign, for instance, having a single-encounter, telegraphed-threat day to let the prepped daily caster shine, a few-encounter day where the Barbarian can rage every time, a scenario in an undead-and-trap-infested tomb where the Thief & Cleric shine, and then a heist scenario where the Thief and Bard shine, is all perfectly reasonable - and pacing is just one tool you can use to make a given PC the star that time around. Or merely to illustrate it. It may not be painfully obvious that a barbarian will be doing better relative to a fighter in a shorter day, but compare a 3-rage barbarian to a 1-Action Surge Campion in a 3-encounter/no-short-rest day, and it becomes pretty obvious. Extreme cases, like strict inferiority, are useful in illustrating something, even if they hopefully rarely happen... Sounds like there's a conflict there. It necessarily does in the sense the guidelines hold it together, in the first place. Which is not saying much, at all, really, since the guidelines are just a step towards imposing class balance and estimating encounter difficulty, not nearly sufficient in themselves. And BA helps with that, certainly, if, for instance, you can find an excuse to amp up numbers. And BA doesn't much get in the way of that, either. And there was great rejoicing. ;) [/QUOTE]
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