Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Nagora" data-source="post: 5693688" data-attributes="member: 56645">I think weak DMs and players have always looked to mechanics to differentiate things in the game and in that light the degeneration of the game is easy to understand. This is why the massively more complex character generation of 3e is treasured by many and why 4e's outlandish and counter-intuitive combat is also welcomed by those that like it - all the fancy mechanics give the players' something to do instead of using their imaginations, which is harder than memorizing feats and traits (or just reading them off cards and character sheets). But if you're looking at the details of specific abilities or stats as being the source of inspiration for an exciting role-playing game then I think you've already lost. It isn't how big it is, it is how you use it. A given 1e game can be much more exciting than a given 4e game and vice versa given the right/wrong players and DM. From that PoV, the accumulated "development" of later design paradigms has in fact delivered precisely nothing, for they have not managed to reliably build a more enjoyable role-playing game, although they may have delivered a more enjoyable tactical combat game or character design game for those who want such things (which is not a small number).</blockquote>