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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Blackbrrd" data-source="post: 6252126" data-attributes="member: 63962">I really prefer what is referred to as rules heavy games. Like DnD. Actually, I am almost exclusively a DnD player. I have played: Basic, AD&D 2nd ed, 3e, 3.5 and 4e. What makes it for me is the asymmetrical class design. 4e is kind of lacking in that respect with it's AEDU setup and the Wizard just doesn't have the same feel as one from the earlier editons.If you look at computer games, it's a game like Starcraft that really shows how far you can go with an asymmetrical desgin. There are three races: Terran, Zerg and Protoss, with 10-15 different unit types each, and none of them are mirrors of each other. Each unit type has it's strengths and weaknesses. The game is easy to play, but really, really hard to get good at, the depth of understanding goes on for several levels as you learn it.The reason I brought it up is that I think there is a misconception that a game needs to have symmetrical design to be balanced. They tried that with 4e, to make it "lighter", but instead added on so many options in character creation, that it's overwhelming to new players (if you give them all the options, like through the character builder).Now, you can have complexity (detail) in other areas that I find just annoying. For instance percentage based systems. Most people I know have no problem adding 4 and 7 together, but if you ask them to add 44 and 79 together, they are going to run into problems*. It's something that slows down the game needlessly. If you have 4 in a stat or 44 doesn't really matter if you roll a d10 instead of a d100.Other examples are systems which relies on bunches of dice to settle an outcome. A 20d6 meteor swarm being a good example. Why not just 56+4d6? This is something that really slowed down my last (and only) d&d 3.5 game which had five full casters (the campaign run to a stand-still around level 18).What I really like is character changing choices. For instance: I don't use spell points for my spells, I use health! Or: I can't dodge attacks, but get 50% damage resistance. I don't like a bazillion skills that are applied in the exact same way, and the only thing I can do is add another of these skills or increase my chance of success in one of those.Dnd's spells (or Powers in 4e) is quite character changing. The mechanics are a bit fiddley, and the decision for all to have AEDU, instead of the earlier at-will / daily divide really made the characters less unique. I prefer the very squishy pre-3e casters and the versatility that they had in every edition except 4e.I prefer playing DnD 3.5 around level 4-8, which I think is a sweat spot with no save-or-die and good balance between casters and the other characters. My current group really likes the level grind though, so I am currently playing 4e.*I don't have this problem, but then I used an algorithm to calculate  the square root of 5 to three digits when I was 14 because I got bored  looking at a play at school</blockquote>

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