D&D General Is power creep bad?

[EzekielRaiden]

Something I’ve noticed in recent years … is that readers desire precision in metaphors and analogies, even though metaphor is — by definition! — not supposed to be taken literally. People seem much more interested in taking analogies apart, identifying what doesn’t work, and discarding them rather than — more generously and constructively IMO — using them as the author intended to better understand the subject matter. The perfect metaphor doesn’t exist because then it wouldn’t be a metaphor.

It would help if the metaphor actually did the thing being claimed, though.

Negative inflation is actually bad. Your point was that inflation is a thing everyone agrees is bad...but we need some inflation or things go almost as bad as (or perhaps worse) than if we have high inflation. It is not at all clear--and, in fact, many people claim to want!--negative power creep, that is, bringing unbalanced powerful options back into line with the rest of the game. (This is often one of the reasons given to justify hyper-reductionist stances on classes, for instance.)

It's one thing to say, "Yes, I know the metaphor isn't perfect, the imperfections aren't relevant to the point!" It's quite another for the imperfections to be directly relevant to the central claim.

 

[Lanefan]

Since they say imitation is the sincerest form of ripping off good ideas and calling them a homage:

Book came out yesterday
Makes me wanna play
What they said wasn't real
Makes a rogue wanna steal

Adventurin' underground
Guess I'm playin', accuracy bound
All's I got is an urge
Got no meanin' just action surge

Take time with a wounded bard
'Cause she likes to heal
Take time with a wounded rogue
'Cause she likes to steal
Take time with a wounded bard
'Cause she likes to heal
The rogue likes to steal

I'm half the Fighting Man I used to be
(This I feel as I drown)
(My relevance fades away)
Well, I'm half the Fighting Man I used to be
(This I feel as I drown)
(My relevance fades away)
Well I'm half the Fighting Man I used to be
Half the Fighting Man I used to be

Feelin' uninspired
The Wizard makes a fire
Everybody run
The Monk's got a gun

Think the new book's kinda neat
Then the DM tells me it's power creep
Errata don't mean a thing
Guess I'll leave it up to me

What song is this a rewording of?

 

[Baldurs_Underdark]

Powercreep from new expansions/books/etc. is bad.
Powercreep from homebrew items/spells/feats/etc. is good.

In my next games, I'm gonna stick to PHB, MM and DMG because WotC seems to publish content faster than I can read it and I'm tired to adjusting encounters and stories to new content. And then I'll spam the players with lots of homebrew stuff that fits the setting, because I can create those faster than they can (ab)use it.

 

[James Gasik]

What song is this a rewording of?

Creep by Stone Temple Pilots.

Creep

 

[John R Davis]

Yes

 

[delericho]

If the game is going to add options, some power creep is inevitable - a character built (well) with PHB+supplement available will always be at least as powerful as one built with PHB alone. So if we want more options, we pretty much have to accept that there is going to be creep. And since I'd rather have those options than not...

That said, while the overall power will creep, and while I consider that a byproduct of a good thing, what I don't consider a good thing is where individual options creep in power. So if a splatbook publishes a subclass that is strictly better than subclasses in the PHB, that's a bad thing IMO.

(Thinking on it, one thing that would be really good would be if WotC maintained a discipline of adding options in inverse proportion to the power-level of the class they're building on. So rather than Wizards always getting the lion's share of the good stuff, instead the new "X's Something of Everything" books should focus more heavily on options to boost the Ranger and Monk. That way, any power creep that does occur serves the useful purpose of bolstering weaker options, rather than giving more to the already-haves.)

 

[Yora]

Power creep is bad because it sidelines the core content of the original base game. When the things that used to be good and smart in the original game no longer make much sense or have much purpose because of rules expansions and customization options, it's no longer the original game.
And that's bad for people who like that original game. Playing only with the basic rules and content is always an option, but then all the new content has gone to waste. Having new content that adds to the base game instead of pushing it aside it better.

 

[NaturalZero]

Creep by Stone Temple Pilots.

Creep

Not sure if you're making a joke about 90s bands sounding the same. lol.

 

[Helldritch]

Power creep is bad, but unavoidable. As an edition ages, people want more and moar. It is very hard to have a good balance and still sell books. This is across all games I have seen so far (and I have seen quite a fair share in my days...)

We will have 5.5 this is a fact. How long after that will we have a 6th? Simple, when the 5.5 start to feel way too wonky for the tastes of those who play it. It happened in 1ed with UA. In 2ed, in 3.xed and in 4ed. It happened and will happen again.

The higher the Power Creep, the sooner and edition will end. It is as simple as that.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

It would help if the metaphor actually did the thing being claimed, though.
.

….still not getting it.