Vaalingrade
Legend
We really need to normalize starting at the fun levels rather than slogging through zero to hero every time someone has an idea for a new campaign.
If a player “feels” that their character has a risk of death, then character death is real. In a game of fantasy, it is the player imagination that makes the game “real”.The problem I see is that if you never actually get to those levels, the aspirational benefit is just as false as games where you're told character death is on the table but no one ever actually dies.
After the third of fourth time it doesn't happen, that illusion starts to crack for me.If a player “feels” that their character has a risk of death, then character death is real. In a game of fantasy, it is the player imagination that makes the game “real”.
Only when that illusion is broken do you truly have a problem
Nothing in the universe is more than a speed-bump to 8 5E PCs.I have been a player 3 times for a 1-20 campaign. For my money, after 12th level the game gets really wonky. I mean, I had to actively abstain several times from ruining the DM's encounter he built. There was one time I had to abstain from ruining his entire dungeon. And he was a very good DM! It's just the game, the spells, and the safeguards placed in get wonky. And unless you are spending hours poring over your players' character sheets and simulating how they are going to mess with your encounter, then they can mess it up pretty easily. It also didn't help we had eight players!
As a DM, I have gone to 15th. It was difficult to find that balance. Often times, the encounters were either too easy, and other times, they were just right. Never had an encounter that was too difficult, but that just goes to show how many tricks a 13th or 14th level group has.
I have been a player 3 times for a 1-20 campaign. For my money, after 12th level the game gets really wonky. I mean, I had to actively abstain several times from ruining the DM's encounter he built. There was one time I had to abstain from ruining his entire dungeon. And he was a very good DM! It's just the game, the spells, and the safeguards placed in get wonky. And unless you are spending hours poring over your players' character sheets and simulating how they are going to mess with your encounter, then they can mess it up pretty easily. It also didn't help we had eight players!
As a DM, I have gone to 15th. It was difficult to find that balance. Often times, the encounters were either too easy, and other times, they were just right. Never had an encounter that was too difficult, but that just goes to show how many tricks a 13th or 14th level group has.
Consider.I have been a player 3 times for a 1-20 campaign. For my money, after 12th level the game gets really wonky. I mean, I had to actively abstain several times from ruining the DM's encounter he built. There was one time I had to abstain from ruining his entire dungeon. And he was a very good DM! It's just the game, the spells, and the safeguards placed in get wonky. And unless you are spending hours poring over your players' character sheets and simulating how they are going to mess with your encounter, then they can mess it up pretty easily. It also didn't help we had eight players!
As a DM, I have gone to 15th. It was difficult to find that balance. Often times, the encounters were either too easy, and other times, they were just right. Never had an encounter that was too difficult, but that just goes to show how many tricks a 13th or 14th level group has.
There's a couple of problems with your scenario. First, you had 8 players. Second, you had 8 players.[/I]
Oof!But that's the perfect group size to throw three hundred orges at! You never wanted to throw three hundred orges at your party??
Just make sure they aren't in meteor storm formation.But that's the perfect group size to throw three hundred orges at! You never wanted to throw three hundred orges at your party??