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<blockquote data-quote="clearstream" data-source="post: 5163965" data-attributes="member: 71699">The outcome of a given encounter is typically a normal distribution. Most encounters are not resolved with a single dice roll: at the least two are rolled (the attack, and the damage). Ignoring that and trying to inject your distribution in a new place is kind of silly tbph. It's like worrying about the distribution on each of those d6, taken alone.The issue is not the difficulty in figuring the odds, the issue is that because any modifier means different things at different points in the range the game can get more swingy and player options can narrow (even down to always using Aid Another, because that makes more difference than having your own attack). Others have made this point repeatedly, pointing out for example that in setting up your character choices between a weapon that does more damage or a weapon that has a mod to hit can easily become non-choices.The problem isn't just not knowing what +1 means, it is that +1 means different things to every participant. Sometimes a Bless is mandated, othertimes it is pointless. Foes a few levels up the spectrum will be unfightable, a few levels down trivial, narrowing the range for player interaction and reducing fun. The + or - 5 guideline certainly won't hold: so players had better like fighting level + or - 1 for the rest of the campaign!I had thought the 'it's more like r-l' point might be defensible: but it just doesn't pass. One could no doubt architect a system where 3d6 works well, but to spatchcock it on to 4ed is plain bad design.-vk</blockquote>

[QUOTE="clearstream, post: 5163965, member: 71699"] The outcome of a given encounter is typically a normal distribution. Most encounters are not resolved with a single dice roll: at the least two are rolled (the attack, and the damage). Ignoring that and trying to inject your distribution in a new place is kind of silly tbph. It's like worrying about the distribution on each of those d6, taken alone. The issue is not the difficulty in figuring the odds, the issue is that because any modifier means different things at different points in the range the game can get more swingy and player options can narrow (even down to always using Aid Another, because that makes more difference than having your own attack). Others have made this point repeatedly, pointing out for example that in setting up your character choices between a weapon that does more damage or a weapon that has a mod to hit can easily become non-choices. The problem isn't just not knowing what +1 means, it is that +1 means different things to every participant. Sometimes a Bless is mandated, othertimes it is pointless. Foes a few levels up the spectrum will be unfightable, a few levels down trivial, narrowing the range for player interaction and reducing fun. The + or - 5 guideline certainly won't hold: so players had better like fighting level + or - 1 for the rest of the campaign! I had thought the 'it's more like r-l' point might be defensible: but it just doesn't pass. One could no doubt architect a system where 3d6 works well, but to spatchcock it on to 4ed is plain bad design. -vk [/QUOTE]

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