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<blockquote data-quote="kalani" data-source="post: 6740010" data-attributes="member: 88085"><p>I take it that Adventurers League is your first Organized Play experience. Had you been familiar with previous OP systems (<em>Living City, Living Greyhawk, Living Forgotten Realms</em> or even <em>Pathfinder Societies</em>) you would realize several things.</p><p></p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">By it's very nature, OP campaigns are more restrictive than home games in the sense that DMs and Players are expected to follow the meta-rules of the campaign, and are given limits. Each OP campaign has a document which lists the campaigns "house rules" by which all tables operate, and DMs/Players are not given any flexibility in altering these rules outside of making suggestions/giving feedback.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Adventurers League</strong> is less restrictive than previous OP campaigns, with DMs being given far more flexibility, and being given a lot of lattitude to make <strong><em>rulings</em></strong> (not to be confused with <em>rules</em>) at their table. Previous OP campaigns frequently tied a DMs hands to the point where they had very little (if any) power to adjust difficulty among other things.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">In a home game, the DM has the authority to make adjustments as necessary for their group - banning X or Y option (or combination) for the sake of balance. DMs lack this authority in an OP setting, relying on the rules of the OP campaign itself to help prevent abuses (see next point).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The <strong>Story Origin</strong> mechanic may appear arbitary, until you realize that it is an attempt to pre-emptively prevent the kinds of abuses that plagued other OP campaigns. LFR in particular had a policy of "everything is legal". As more and more products are released, the potential for a broken combination increases exponentially (as new products are not balanced against all pre-existing products, and are generally only balanced internally, and with the options in the player's handbook<s>). <br /> <br /> This resulted in character optimizers running rough-shod over the entire campaign, leading to an arms race with mod-designers, and hedging out the casual gamer in the process. It also created a toxic and hostile environment whereby many optimizers felt entitled to criticize the build-choices of their fellow players, while also creating an elitist mentality of "optimize or go home".<br /> <br /> The Story Origin mechanic was designed to help prevent these kinds of toxic enviroments from occuring. Had this mechanic been introduced in the 3.5 or 4E era, the Story Origin mechanic would have been hailed as a godsend. Unfortunately, due to the products that have been released in 5e to date - it appears (on the surface) to be an arbitary restriction, as the kinds of disruptive abuses it was designed to prevent are currently impossible (even if everything was legal). It may be several years before 5E grows to the point where the Story Origin mechanic achieves it's designed goal - but since nobody knows what might come down the pipe, the mechanic itself is designed to play it safe.<br /> </s></li> </ul><p><s></s></p><p><s><strong>Organized Play</strong> <strong>is not for everyone (and that's perfectly ok). </strong></s></p><p><s>You have obviously given AL a try, and if you find it not to your liking - we are welcome to suggestions and feedback, but ultimately - the decision is yours whether you feel the program provides the gaming experience you are looking for, or whether a different play experience is better suited to your tastes. I hate it when people get elitist on either side of the OP fence.</s></p><p><s></s></p><p><s><strong>Many players love OP programs and prefer them to home games.... Many other players (and DMs) feel stiffled under such systems.</strong> </s></p><p><s>I get the impression you are one of the latter (and there is nothing wrong with that). </s></p><p><s></s></p><p><s>I personally enjoy a consistent set of rules and not having to deal with arbitary DM decisions, especially those decisions many DMs make because of their personal feelings (often at the expense of player feelings/wishes), rather than for balance. Some DMs take it into their head, that it is their game - and the player's are simply guests. </s></p><p><s></s></p><p><s>I prefer to come from the PoV, that everyone at the table is equal, and has an equal right and responsibility to ensure that the game is fun for everyone (regardless of whether they are a player or DM). As such, I tend to consult all my players in a session 0 in order to determine what kinds of games everyone wants, and what kinds of restrictions/rules they are willing to accept. I won't ban a race/class for example if doing so will upset my players. Other DMs are not as diplomatic, and simply say - "Like it, Lump it, or here's the door".</s></p><p><s></s></p><p><s>I have been burned by dictatoral DMs on too many occasions, to the point where I have lost trust that your average "random DM" has the maturity not to let the power go to their head. I enjoy home games, but I need to have trust in my DM and fellow players as too many games can be destroyed by one disruptive player (or DM). Organized Play programs often (but not always) limit the ability to be disruptive in this way....</s></p><p><s><strong></strong></s></p><p><s><strong>IMHO, Adventurers League succeeds better than most OP programs in this regard</strong></s></p><p><s>It is for this reason, that I joined the AL campaign staff as I want to help it grow, and have longevity.</s></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="kalani, post: 6740010, member: 88085"] I take it that Adventurers League is your first Organized Play experience. Had you been familiar with previous OP systems ([I]Living City, Living Greyhawk, Living Forgotten Realms[/I] or even [I]Pathfinder Societies[/I]) you would realize several things. [LIST] [*]By it's very nature, OP campaigns are more restrictive than home games in the sense that DMs and Players are expected to follow the meta-rules of the campaign, and are given limits. Each OP campaign has a document which lists the campaigns "house rules" by which all tables operate, and DMs/Players are not given any flexibility in altering these rules outside of making suggestions/giving feedback. [*][B]Adventurers League[/B] is less restrictive than previous OP campaigns, with DMs being given far more flexibility, and being given a lot of lattitude to make [B][I]rulings[/I][/B] (not to be confused with [I]rules[/I]) at their table. Previous OP campaigns frequently tied a DMs hands to the point where they had very little (if any) power to adjust difficulty among other things. [*]In a home game, the DM has the authority to make adjustments as necessary for their group - banning X or Y option (or combination) for the sake of balance. DMs lack this authority in an OP setting, relying on the rules of the OP campaign itself to help prevent abuses (see next point). [*]The [B]Story Origin[/B] mechanic may appear arbitary, until you realize that it is an attempt to pre-emptively prevent the kinds of abuses that plagued other OP campaigns. LFR in particular had a policy of "everything is legal". As more and more products are released, the potential for a broken combination increases exponentially (as new products are not balanced against all pre-existing products, and are generally only balanced internally, and with the options in the player's handbook[s]). This resulted in character optimizers running rough-shod over the entire campaign, leading to an arms race with mod-designers, and hedging out the casual gamer in the process. It also created a toxic and hostile environment whereby many optimizers felt entitled to criticize the build-choices of their fellow players, while also creating an elitist mentality of "optimize or go home". The Story Origin mechanic was designed to help prevent these kinds of toxic enviroments from occuring. Had this mechanic been introduced in the 3.5 or 4E era, the Story Origin mechanic would have been hailed as a godsend. Unfortunately, due to the products that have been released in 5e to date - it appears (on the surface) to be an arbitary restriction, as the kinds of disruptive abuses it was designed to prevent are currently impossible (even if everything was legal). It may be several years before 5E grows to the point where the Story Origin mechanic achieves it's designed goal - but since nobody knows what might come down the pipe, the mechanic itself is designed to play it safe. [/s][/LIST][s] [B]Organized Play[/B] [B]is not for everyone (and that's perfectly ok). [/B] You have obviously given AL a try, and if you find it not to your liking - we are welcome to suggestions and feedback, but ultimately - the decision is yours whether you feel the program provides the gaming experience you are looking for, or whether a different play experience is better suited to your tastes. I hate it when people get elitist on either side of the OP fence. [B]Many players love OP programs and prefer them to home games.... Many other players (and DMs) feel stiffled under such systems.[/B] I get the impression you are one of the latter (and there is nothing wrong with that). I personally enjoy a consistent set of rules and not having to deal with arbitary DM decisions, especially those decisions many DMs make because of their personal feelings (often at the expense of player feelings/wishes), rather than for balance. Some DMs take it into their head, that it is their game - and the player's are simply guests. I prefer to come from the PoV, that everyone at the table is equal, and has an equal right and responsibility to ensure that the game is fun for everyone (regardless of whether they are a player or DM). As such, I tend to consult all my players in a session 0 in order to determine what kinds of games everyone wants, and what kinds of restrictions/rules they are willing to accept. I won't ban a race/class for example if doing so will upset my players. Other DMs are not as diplomatic, and simply say - "Like it, Lump it, or here's the door". I have been burned by dictatoral DMs on too many occasions, to the point where I have lost trust that your average "random DM" has the maturity not to let the power go to their head. I enjoy home games, but I need to have trust in my DM and fellow players as too many games can be destroyed by one disruptive player (or DM). Organized Play programs often (but not always) limit the ability to be disruptive in this way.... [B] IMHO, Adventurers League succeeds better than most OP programs in this regard[/B] It is for this reason, that I joined the AL campaign staff as I want to help it grow, and have longevity.[/s] [/QUOTE]
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