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What makes us care about combat balance in D&D?
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<blockquote data-quote="pemerton" data-source="post: 6666203" data-attributes="member: 42582"><p>I'm not sure what you mean by "at its heart". As [MENTION=87792]Neonchameleon[/MENTION] has posted upthread, the sort of exploration you describe has not been at the heart of the game for decades. Even the most famous AD&D modules - the GDQ series and the A series - are not primarily focused on exploration, but rather are "save the world" campaigns in which acquiring treasure (and thereby XP) is a secondary concern within the context of the fiction (though not necessarily for the players of those modules!).</p><p></p><p>Heroic conflict is pretty core to the fantasy genre (either its LotR or its REH versions), and combat is one of the preeminent forms of heroic conflict. If D&D is going to be true to the genre that draws players to it, it has to be able to handle combat in some satisfactory fashion.</p><p></p><p>4e isn't the only model, of course, but it's one.</p><p></p><p></p><p>From WotC's point of view, D&D has to be something that will sell in sufficient volume. If those customers want combat, the system (and its adventures) will deliver it.</p><p></p><p>From my point of view, as a player - and I don't think I'm unique in this thread! - D&D is only one of many RPGs I'm familiar with, and not the only one I am playing currently. I play 4e because it is a good system, and one of its good features is its combat system. For my swords-and-sorcery game, though, which is rather more gritty, I am using Burning Wheel.</p><p></p><p>EDIT:</p><p>Which edition are you talking about? What you describe is not true for 4e, which has positioning and condition-infliction (and also various interrupts and the like that render defences non-static) as integral parts of its combat system. It's 4e's departure from hit point ablation as the essence of combat resolution that is one of the things that makes it a system I'm interested in playing.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="pemerton, post: 6666203, member: 42582"] I'm not sure what you mean by "at its heart". As [MENTION=87792]Neonchameleon[/MENTION] has posted upthread, the sort of exploration you describe has not been at the heart of the game for decades. Even the most famous AD&D modules - the GDQ series and the A series - are not primarily focused on exploration, but rather are "save the world" campaigns in which acquiring treasure (and thereby XP) is a secondary concern within the context of the fiction (though not necessarily for the players of those modules!). Heroic conflict is pretty core to the fantasy genre (either its LotR or its REH versions), and combat is one of the preeminent forms of heroic conflict. If D&D is going to be true to the genre that draws players to it, it has to be able to handle combat in some satisfactory fashion. 4e isn't the only model, of course, but it's one. From WotC's point of view, D&D has to be something that will sell in sufficient volume. If those customers want combat, the system (and its adventures) will deliver it. From my point of view, as a player - and I don't think I'm unique in this thread! - D&D is only one of many RPGs I'm familiar with, and not the only one I am playing currently. I play 4e because it is a good system, and one of its good features is its combat system. For my swords-and-sorcery game, though, which is rather more gritty, I am using Burning Wheel. EDIT: Which edition are you talking about? What you describe is not true for 4e, which has positioning and condition-infliction (and also various interrupts and the like that render defences non-static) as integral parts of its combat system. It's 4e's departure from hit point ablation as the essence of combat resolution that is one of the things that makes it a system I'm interested in playing. [/QUOTE]
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