D&D 5E Is Tasha's More or Less The Universal Standard?

[James Gasik]

That's a pretty low bar though. I mean, more people believe in UFO's than in Congress.

 

[Guest 7034872]

That's a pretty low bar though. I mean, more people believe in UFO's than in Congress.

And that's not the UFOs' fault.

 

[James Gasik]

And that's not the UFOs' fault.

I can't decide if I want to respond to your post with a "haha" or a "sad".

 

[Parmandur]

That's a pretty low bar though. I mean, more people believe in UFO's than in Congress.

Forsooth tis an understatement.

I also trust the D&D Studio about the fundamentals of D&D than forum posters. Sorry, yall, just how it is.

 

[JiffyPopTart]

I mean, sure, it works. But it isn't the base assumption of the game's balance, rolling is. Characters rolling high ornlow doesn't break the game, and a point buy build able to squeeze out a little extra isn't a big deal at all.

I don't think any stat method breaks the game. I'm just pointing out people do use the array.

I prefer array/buy because I have never seen a player feel short changed by using it while I have many times when they can't catch a break rolling.

 

[Parmandur]

I don't think any stat method breaks the game. I'm just pointing out people do use the array.

I prefer array/buy because I have never seen a player feel short changed by using it while I have many times when they can't catch a break rolling.

Yes, I'm sure people do. But they are irrelevant to balance discussions, which center on the assumed rule which is rolling. Making it easier to get a 16 via point buy doesn't change the game balance, because the designers assume that a 20 in a Class's primary stat is possible as standard. It doesn't make a difference.

 

[Maxperson]

Not according to the people who built the underlying math of the game, no. Is it useful? Yes. So are all 6 Abilities. There is no balance difference between the bonuses.

It's statements like this(and some of Crawford's rulings) that make it so that I can't trust what they say. Dex giving bonuses to hit, damage, reflex saves(most common I think) and AC is better than Intelligence which adds to hit, damage(but less often than dex) and int saves(least used). All the stats are not equal.

 

[Maxperson]

So you feel that it is more powerful. What is the mathematical basis...?

He gave it to you. It's a fact that dex saves are far more used that say int or str, and than higher AC is better than lower AC, and that going first can help sometimes(less so in 5e than in prior editions where save or suck/die existed). Dex is mathematically superior to str or int in what it helps with in the game. We can count the number of dex saves among monsters vs. int and str. We can compare the bonuses to hit vs. an AC 13 or 16. Dex saves are also the most common save for traps.

 

[Parmandur]

It's statements like this(and some of Crawford's rulings) that make it so that I can't trust what they say. Dex giving bonuses to hit, damage, reflex saves(most common I think) and AC is better than Intelligence which adds to hit, damage(but less often than dex) and int saves(least used). All the stats are not equal.

Tell that to a Wizard or an Artificer. Or someone making a save against a 20 Int Wizard's Spell. Or someone trying to resolve a Skill check related to the 5 Intelligence Skills that are often significant.

Yes, intelligence is not usually as useful for a Barbarian or Fighter. Doesn't mean it doesn't have the same mathematical value as a game attribute.

And again, I trust Crawford's handle on the game rules more than most peoples. He has been in hip deep with the mathematical apparatus WotC has, that they don’t share (though Mearls got pretty loose goosey about that in his Happy Fun Hour), for years of in depth playtesting.

 

[Parmandur]

He gave it to you. It's a fact that dex saves are far more used that say int or str, and than higher AC is better than lower AC, and that going first can help sometimes(less so in 5e than in prior editions where save or suck/die existed). Dex is mathematically superior to str or int in what it helps with in the game. We can count the number of dex saves among monsters vs. int and str. We can compare the bonuses to hit vs. an AC 13 or 16. Dex saves are also the most common save for traps.

Spell saves are fairly important much of the time. None of this seems to be a robust statistical analysis, but statements of gut feeling. I'm not buying it. Gut feeling doesn't really hold up for me as evidence against the statements of the game's designers.