Tovec
Explorer
Which is also what you expect from a /game/.
Which D&D is. A 'roleplaying' game, but still a game.
A balanced game can put just exactly as much challenge before the party as the DM sees fit.
Want a more challenging scenario, dial it up.
I'll admit, a bad game is a challenge to run, though, if that's what you're getting at...
I'm sure others have said what I'm going to say, and indeed more eloquently. I just wanted to give a quick reply before I went to sleep.
You said "I'm still waiting for someone to explain why they think a game should be less like an actual sport, and more like an actual war." and I gave an answer. Please do not ignore the bulk of the answer because you have a personal point to make.
My reply had nothing to do with the back and forth about balance you seem to be having with others on this thread. It had to do with the crux of the question you put forth. You ask "why should a game be less a sport and more a war" and I reply..
Because sports are easy, because sports are meant to be fair.
I reply..
Because wars are meant to be hard, because wars are meant to mean something.
My fault, I guess, was saying "yes it is a game" when I mean to say that just because it is a game does not mean it should be simple. It does not mean it should be limited to the good guys win, always. It does not mean that it should be a kids TV cartoon where the wily rabbit always gets the better of the hunter with the shotgun. I severely think that the guy with the overwhelming odds should have the upper-hand, every time. I think that the good guy(s) should be killed, every time, unless they come up with a way to defeat big bad. It should be hard, it should not be handed to them on a silver platter just because they are the good guys and ought to win.
They are adventurers living a hard lifestyle, they get paid the big bucks not only because they are strong and courageous but because they have the knack for defeating the enemy where all others have failed. Because they risk their lives, and have a chance of not returning to their homes at the end of an adventure. They shouldn't simply win because they tried. They should win because they prepared. That is the point I was trying to make, the point which you glossed over in favour of the "it is a game" comment.