"Unscaled Adventures" -- good, bad or ugly?
- Thread starter Nifft
- Start date
Hr. Depends on what you mean by "scaled world".
Personally, I'm not into the idea that all encounters are of CR/EL of exactly equal to the party's level. However, I'm not into entire worlds and stories that ignore the PC's either.
Thus, I turn to the DMG: most encounters are supposed to be of the equivalent CR type, with a few weaker and a few stronger. Sometimes it goes easy, sometimes you hav to run, but on average, you wind up even.
Personally, I'm not into the idea that all encounters are of CR/EL of exactly equal to the party's level. However, I'm not into entire worlds and stories that ignore the PC's either.
Thus, I turn to the DMG: most encounters are supposed to be of the equivalent CR type, with a few weaker and a few stronger. Sometimes it goes easy, sometimes you hav to run, but on average, you wind up even.
Kahuna Burger
First Post
I find the poll a little too limited (not to mention biased in the way the options are phrased) to vote in, but I believe that scaling adventures can be perfectly realistic. Gaining enemies, gaining sponsors, going places you wouldn't have been capable of previously, etc... or even just seeing a threat in a different way that makes what would have previously been an epic battle into a plot hook, I have no problem, either as a player or DM with scaling adventures by player ability.
On the other hand I don't think every encounter should be right at some magic power point - everyone should get a chance to run away, and a chance to kick some ass once in a while. As for realism... its isn't a simulation, its a story. All the guys who ran into great wyrms at first level are dead now, and didn't get stories written about them.
Kahuna Burger
On the other hand I don't think every encounter should be right at some magic power point - everyone should get a chance to run away, and a chance to kick some ass once in a while. As for realism... its isn't a simulation, its a story. All the guys who ran into great wyrms at first level are dead now, and didn't get stories written about them.
Kahuna Burger
StalkingBlue
First Post
Verisimilitude. I prefer a world that doesn't feel like it's entirely tailored around Our One Group of Heroes - much more realistic and exciting.
Nifft
Penguin Herder
I'll give a relevant example: IMC, NPCs tend to be around 10th level, with 2/3 of a city's total levels being in an NPC class (usually Expert, but some Aristocrats too). I do this because my meta-plot extends through Epic levels, and I don't want to
PCs are the focus of the story, and their actions are the heroic battle-tipping ones -- not always the "slay-the-leader" type of battle-tipping, more often the "get-vital-info-to-base" type, or even the "scout-and-find-stuff-out" type.
Missions have multiple objectives, the first usually being "don't get caught". Killing targets of opportunity is encouraged, so long as you don't endanger the other more important goals of your mission.
When the PCs get to around 10th level, they start attracting the attention of powerful players on the cosmic stage. When they get to 30th level, they are powerful players on the cosmic stage. In the mean time, they get to deal with -- or avoid -- threats that range from CR2 to CR20, as appropriate for the area. Threats of CR30+ are certainly around, too, but they aren't on the wandering charts.
Kahuna: I tried to bias *both* extremes -- they should both sound Ebberon-ready.
PCs are the focus of the story, and their actions are the heroic battle-tipping ones -- not always the "slay-the-leader" type of battle-tipping, more often the "get-vital-info-to-base" type, or even the "scout-and-find-stuff-out" type.
Missions have multiple objectives, the first usually being "don't get caught". Killing targets of opportunity is encouraged, so long as you don't endanger the other more important goals of your mission.
When the PCs get to around 10th level, they start attracting the attention of powerful players on the cosmic stage. When they get to 30th level, they are powerful players on the cosmic stage. In the mean time, they get to deal with -- or avoid -- threats that range from CR2 to CR20, as appropriate for the area. Threats of CR30+ are certainly around, too, but they aren't on the wandering charts.
Kahuna: I tried to bias *both* extremes -- they should both sound Ebberon-ready.
