Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="tetrasodium" data-source="post: 9285925" data-attributes="member: 93670">Starting out with the tropical but, bounded accuracy prevents the (low)mixed levels in a mixed level party from feeling it & that is a terrible thing for everyone else at the table.  I'll use an example from one of my campaigns where a player I'll call Alice  would regularly show up late. The lateness started in the 5-10 or so minute range for reasonable reasons & eventually grew into an hour or more into a 2-3 hour session*. If Alice keeps up with the group then she is expected to be a full PC in encounters that the GM will either need to adjust or accept that it might be too tough for the party minus Alice.  If Alice continually falls further & further behind as levels advance it doesn't have as much impact when she shows up midway into fight two or three of the session and opens with a fight ending nova starting with her biggest guns down the line knowing that the group needs to rest after needing to make up for the chilli's she's eating.  Every time she drops a level behind the group it ensures that her absence will make less and less disruption to encounters she misses while  the group is less & likely to be put out by the missing party member or find an interesting boss battle melted by  fresh PC's reckless nova  -- All of those combined make encounter creation easier for the GM to manage too.There are lots of reasons that a player might fall behind though, choosing to come in with a new PC  after making the GM kill the old one so they could distribute old magic items across the group and push for new ones a $level PC would have collected is a common one IME.  By coming in at a lower level it puts some cost on the player doing it and minimizes the impact of  "noob with a high level purchased character they don't know how to play in the raid"☆ type effects while they learn to play and decide how to grow the character just built so it fits the group. Skipping the grow to fit the group part often tends to result in a player making a PC to solve what they felt was a particular problem that was maybe only planned to be an issue for a couple sessions there is now a PC devoted to deleting.  These too are good reasons why mixed level parties should be possible in a way that the low level PC feels it.* For reasons like this[spoiler] <ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Someone: Everyone remember that the game is at $ time today</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Alice-text:"I want to stop and order food since I've been at work all day"</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Over_optimistic_Group-text: Yea most of us too, that's why we started waiting a bit to order pizza so you could get here before it gets delivered or close enough that it's still hot.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Alice-text: "oo that's right I'll think about it"</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Group stalling the GM's efforts to start: Anyone heard from alice? >someone pings Alice</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Alice-text: "I'm getting off off work now & clocking out in a minute, should be on my way soon"</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">GM: "ok I see where this is going, lets start now" </li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">group: butbutbut Alice is out and we will be down a person, that's going to make things tough on us >fine lets order pizza</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">20minutes later.... anyone know where the heck Alice is?  She only works like 2 miles away</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Alice-text: "I got off work a ago and just driving to $-local resteraunt   to put in a food order because I've been at work all day and want to eat"</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Pizza arrives</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">GM: we are starting now</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">players butbutbut...</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">10-20 minutes later<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">GM: someone find out what alice is doing</li> </ul></li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Alice-text: There was a wait at $applebees but I finally put in my order & just waiting on food now</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">annoyed GM who saw this coming again when alice started today: Ok we are starting now</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Group: butbutbut</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> GM30-40 minutes into a 2 hour session that hasn't even begun: no.  Roll initiative >butbutbut>bob what's your AC</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Fight ends & group dithers a bit hoping to give Alice more time but really wants to check on Alice before they open the door & charge in or whatever</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">5 minutes later Alice-Text:  There was some delays in the kitchen/ they got my order wrong & had to do it again. My food is coming out soon</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">I wish this was hyperbole.  </li> </ul>.[/spoiler]☆ wow & other MMOs must have coined a word for those by now but it's not coming to mind & my googlefu was weak this morning</blockquote>

Verification