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<blockquote data-quote="Hussar" data-source="post: 7072360" data-attributes="member: 22779">We are quite possibly talking past each other here.&nbsp; Forcing the PC's out of their comfort zones is, to me, exactly what a DM is for.&nbsp; So, you dump statted Str in favor of Dex?&nbsp; Cool, no problem.&nbsp; But, that means when, say, the Exploration pillar kicks in, and you have to climb, jump, and swim your way through that dungeon, you're going to struggle.&nbsp; I make absolutely no excuse for that.&nbsp; You (generic you, not you Caliban) chose to dump stat in order to get that higher bonus.&nbsp; That means that there are going to be times when you shine more and times when you will suck harder.&nbsp; But, I'm certainly not going to shy away from adding elements to the game just because it makes you (again, generic you) look bad.&nbsp; It's no different than that character that dump stats Cha.&nbsp; I try my hardest to balance the campaigns I run between all three pillars - combat, exploration and talkie bits.&nbsp; Which means, that 1/3 of the time, that character is going to suck.&nbsp; One third of the time, however, that character will shine more.&nbsp; But, that's the choice of the player.&nbsp; If a player chose to make his character 16,16,16, 8,8,8, I look at that character as having a giant bullseye painted on it.&nbsp; Sure, it's shining really well in one area, but, it's going to suck rocks in another.&nbsp; And, I have no problems pushing the consequences of that choice.&nbsp; Your character has an 8 Wis?&nbsp; At some point, the dice gods will smile and that random encounter during the night will come up on your watch.&nbsp; And now it's ambush time because your Passive Perception of 9 means that drunken orcs can sneak up on you.&nbsp; Never minding that eventually there will be some baddie with a charm spell and it's going to make you its bitch for the encounter.&nbsp; AFAIC, this is a self resolving issue.&nbsp; You want to hyper focus your character?&nbsp; Go right ahead.&nbsp; But, don't expect me to pull punches and enable your decisions.&nbsp; Instead of making sure you race to that 20 score as fast as possible, why not make a slightly more rounded character and then you won't be coming up short when things don't always go your way?</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Hussar, post: 7072360, member: 22779"] We are quite possibly talking past each other here. Forcing the PC's out of their comfort zones is, to me, exactly what a DM is for. So, you dump statted Str in favor of Dex? Cool, no problem. But, that means when, say, the Exploration pillar kicks in, and you have to climb, jump, and swim your way through that dungeon, you're going to struggle. I make absolutely no excuse for that. You (generic you, not you Caliban) chose to dump stat in order to get that higher bonus. That means that there are going to be times when you shine more and times when you will suck harder. But, I'm certainly not going to shy away from adding elements to the game just because it makes you (again, generic you) look bad. It's no different than that character that dump stats Cha. I try my hardest to balance the campaigns I run between all three pillars - combat, exploration and talkie bits. Which means, that 1/3 of the time, that character is going to suck. One third of the time, however, that character will shine more. But, that's the choice of the player. If a player chose to make his character 16,16,16, 8,8,8, I look at that character as having a giant bullseye painted on it. Sure, it's shining really well in one area, but, it's going to suck rocks in another. And, I have no problems pushing the consequences of that choice. Your character has an 8 Wis? At some point, the dice gods will smile and that random encounter during the night will come up on your watch. And now it's ambush time because your Passive Perception of 9 means that drunken orcs can sneak up on you. Never minding that eventually there will be some baddie with a charm spell and it's going to make you its bitch for the encounter. AFAIC, this is a self resolving issue. You want to hyper focus your character? Go right ahead. But, don't expect me to pull punches and enable your decisions. Instead of making sure you race to that 20 score as fast as possible, why not make a slightly more rounded character and then you won't be coming up short when things don't always go your way? [/QUOTE]

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