Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="Dausuul" data-source="post: 4148988" data-attributes="member: 58197">You raise a legitimate concern, but there is an opposite problem that one must also consider--the system in which EVERYBODY has above-average scores in stat X because it's just too valuable to accept a penalty in, and everybody dumps stat Y unless it's important to their class.For example, in 3.X, how often did you see a character with a below-average Constitution score?&nbsp; Pretty seldom, I'd imagine; Constitution was just so valuable to everybody that you simply didn't take a low stat in it.&nbsp; Likewise, it was unusual to see characters with Dexterity penalties, though not unheard-of.&nbsp; On the other hand, Charisma was routinely used as a dump stat by anybody who didn't have Charisma-based class features.So there's a balance to be struck, and I think 4E strikes it pretty well.&nbsp; Consider:* While you get to pick which stats to use for your defenses, you'll always have three different stats contributing to them.&nbsp; This discourages one-stat wonders.* As far as we know, you don't get to pick which stats apply to your skills; those are still fixed.Iron Heroes did a lot of experimenting with letting players pick which stats to use.&nbsp; There were feat chains that let you use different stats on attack rolls, and the Weapon Bond trait which let you pick any stat and use it in place of Strength for your melee attack and damage rolls with a certain weapon.While this did allow people to focus more heavily on one stat than would otherwise have been possible, it also produced a lot more diversity.&nbsp; You saw characters specializing in every stat and every role; I once played a highly effective melee warrior with Strength 10 and Intelligence 20.&nbsp; If 4E allows this kind of flexibility, it will be a more than acceptable trade-off to me.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Dausuul, post: 4148988, member: 58197"] You raise a legitimate concern, but there is an opposite problem that one must also consider--the system in which EVERYBODY has above-average scores in stat X because it's just too valuable to accept a penalty in, and everybody dumps stat Y unless it's important to their class. For example, in 3.X, how often did you see a character with a below-average Constitution score? Pretty seldom, I'd imagine; Constitution was just so valuable to everybody that you simply didn't take a low stat in it. Likewise, it was unusual to see characters with Dexterity penalties, though not unheard-of. On the other hand, Charisma was routinely used as a dump stat by anybody who didn't have Charisma-based class features. So there's a balance to be struck, and I think 4E strikes it pretty well. Consider: * While you get to pick which stats to use for your defenses, you'll always have three different stats contributing to them. This discourages one-stat wonders. * As far as we know, you don't get to pick which stats apply to your skills; those are still fixed. Iron Heroes did a lot of experimenting with letting players pick which stats to use. There were feat chains that let you use different stats on attack rolls, and the Weapon Bond trait which let you pick [i]any[/i] stat and use it in place of Strength for your melee attack and damage rolls with a certain weapon. While this did allow people to focus more heavily on one stat than would otherwise have been possible, it also produced a lot more diversity. You saw characters specializing in every stat and every role; I once played a highly effective melee warrior with Strength 10 and Intelligence 20. If 4E allows this kind of flexibility, it will be a more than acceptable trade-off to me. [/QUOTE]

Verification