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I do think the "group huddle to problem solve" happened more (just a gut feeling), but that feels more just like a generational/cultural shift than anything caused by a game's specified procedures. Maybe not, though. 3e did have a lot more spells that were essentially "auto-win" or "trump...

Yea, we definitely play with different people, on top of the fact that it seems we're looking for very different experiences out of our games, even when playing the same system.

That would work for Path A in @Pedantic's scenario, sure. But Paths B and C both look like everyone involved would need to make personal skill checks. I really never want to provide encouragement to split the party; people gravitate towards that too often (because "it's what my character would...

Sure, that can work. My worry as a GM there would be that scenario would encourage the party to split up, based on each character's individual odds of succeeding at one of the three paths.

Yea, that's a big NO for me, lol. I remember games where the group would spend hours pouring over their spell lists and features, looking for ways to solve a specific encounter or problem. I had a lot of the spells and features, and I was still bored out of my mind. :) "You cast wall of...

If you have a specific solution in mind, I'd love to hear it. What's a specific scenario in which OSR-style "grapple with the environment" is wedded to a longer, detailed skill list? Doesn't have to be a specific game, just an outline of a play procedure.

One thing I've noticed about several of the 3pp creators I respect is that they put out their material for free for years, sometimes going through a dozen revisions, before it arrives at an actual finalized version that gets published (if it even ever does). I wonder if the constant revenue...

I think it's in tension when the skills that are meant to be tested by recourse to player ingenuity are ALSO options that can be resolved by a simple skill check. You can have a gameplay loop that requires both to successfully navigate the challenge, but it's problematic when it becomes an...

Well, I definitely see that as feature, not bug; I hated the "magic problem solving" elements of 3.X. I was much happier moving the non-combat aspects of the game into skill checks and freeform narration. "Magic problem solving" generally boiled down to avoiding confrontations and conflicts...

<shrug> I don't know what to tell you. We always managed just fine without a rogue. MC dips, feats, UA class replacements, and PrCs all made it pretty easy to be a skill monkey with a caster chassis if desired. Nothing you're saying changes the underlying calculus that if you want to be...

I spent most of 2007 advocating for a core of warblades and warmages, with unified spell slot progression across all classes, to be the core of the nascent 4e. "Make everyone casters" was, to my mind, the single best advance of 4e. Casters are simply more fun to play.

A smart player, who knows their character is going to be acting as party face, certainly does. People don't make their characters in a vacuum; they discuss who's going to handle what role and plan for it. At least my groups do. A delta of a couple of points on a Diplomacy roll simply isn't...

It's only tangentially connected (outside of the Nvidia connection, this is about a neural network, not LLMs), which is one of the reasons the tenor of your posts seems so off. It's not like Nvidia is using their GPUs for PCs to support their LLM server farm GPU business; right now, it's the...

I mean, that's fine if you're not concerned, but that's the core of the argument around class tiers and class imbalance. I mean, I didn't care much either, but I was also savvy enough to look at the nascent CharOp sites and realize that playing casters was the better option, so that's what I...

There are more games available on Steam than I can finish in ten lifetimes. If every single game studio winked out of existence right now, I'll still have games to play till I die, as will my children and probably my children's children. There's enough to worry about with AI's ability to...

Yea, but that isn't really the argument. It's not about a specific player, it's about the integrity of the class niche. I agree that if a player in your group is playing a rogue, than using your wizard spell slots to cover stealth and lockpicking is a waste. Where the issue arose is if the...

At least with the extra lighting, my 47 year old eyes can see the bad cinematography. :)

Functionally irrelevant. At its core, 5e is a neotrad game based around demonstration of character concept, not player skill. If a player isn't able to demonstrate their character concept effectively, as a GM, you give them a bit of an assist. I'm the most skilled "operator" of the 5e rules...

For the record, this is a well-done post that communicates the drawbacks of the algorithm clearly. I appreciate you taking the time to do this. Other posters could do well to reflect on your method of conveying criticisms clearly and with a minimum of unnecessary rage.

I'll always upvote a Phineas and Ferb reference.