What did they do, rules-wise, which made the Exploration pillar work so much better? The link doesn't contain any details, and I haven't played Adventures in Middle-Earth 5E.
-From the Player's Guide: Page 164
The journey rules break down a journey into three distinct stages, each one influencing the one that follows it in some way. The first stage represents the company embarking on the journey: plans are made, supplies gathered, maps studied and routes agreed upon. The company decides between them who will undertake which tasks on the road. It also represents the company’s ability to stay to the course, to keep their spirits high amid weather and difficult terrain.
The second stage represents events arising, and the tasks carried out by members of the company during the course of the main part of the journey. Depending on the length of the journey, the company will make one or more rolls that represent the challenges or opportunities that they find placed in their way. These rolls will determine both the nature and the magnitude of the encounters they will face.
The third stage of the journey is representative of the company’s arrival at its destination. The Guide makes a roll, often modified by the outcomes of the tasks undertaken by other members of the company during the main part of the journey. The result of this final roll will determine whether the company arrive in high spirits, full of tales of bold deeds, beautiful sunsets and delicious meals cooked over open fires, or if they trudge the final miles, footsore and dispirited, backs bent under the weight of packs, silently brooding upon empty bellies, wrong turns and poor choices."
Journey Rules Summary
•Players assign tasks and plan route.
•Loremaster determines Peril Rating of the journey.
•The Guide makes an Embarkation Roll: 1D12 modified by the Guide’s Survival proficiency bonus plus half their Wisdom bonus minus the Peril Rating.
•The Loremaster either relays the result, or optionally hints at it.
•Determine the number of Journey Events.
•Events are created by rolling a d12, potentially modified by the Embarkation result.
•Events are played through, noting down the result for reference.
•The Arrival roll (d8) is made, and results are applied.
-This is an example of how one person was applying it to their DND games. Goes into a bit more detail such as stuff about the Roles that members of the Company(party) can take, some tables, and how the results affect the Journey overall.
The Exploration phase is arguably the weakest of D&D 5E's three pillars, so I take a stab at adapting Adventures in Middle Earth's Journey system for D&D.
multiplenerdgasms.com
The overall main purpose of the subsystem was to avoid making the Exploration pillar of DND less "hand wavey" or fast forwarding through the kind of stuff that could happen. Additional books in the Adventures in Middle-Earth 5E line added more charts and stuff to Journeys.
There were various charts and results that could make thing easier or add complications to the challenges that you could encounter. At times skill challengish .
cubicle7games.com
