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Message: <blockquote data-quote="hawkeyefan" data-source="post: 7621366" data-attributes="member: 6785785">Each system has pros and cons in relation to combat versus non-combat solutions; I didn’t mean to sound like I was advocating one system over another in that way. 1E Made combat costly and potentially very dangerous, so clever play was often expected in order to avoid combat. The drawback here is that the game mechanics for non-combat options were minimal at best. My criticism of 3E’s skill system is not so much that it was limited in what actions it covered, but more that its resolution of those tasks was pretty bland compared to combat. Most actions involved a DC and a skill check and little more. This is not to say that this basic system couldn’t be built upon or tweaked to produce something a bit more meaningful, just that as presented, the system was pretty basoc, and only seemed like such an improvement because of what had been in place before. My experience is that 3E tried for a very scientific approach to crafting encounters and adventures. There was a budget calculated in order to keep things within the expected range and that’s what it did. And players became very aware of that. After playing 3E for a time, my players almost never hesitated to enter combat. I had to actively alter the system in order to make them think of combat as the last option. I find this to be true of 5E, as well, although it’s easier to adjust.In the sense that now there were at least rules in place, yes absolutely! My experience with 4E is pretty minimal, but the Skill Challenge system seemed to be an attempt at what I’m describing. I think that games that make non-combat challenges more engaging will wind up seeing them come up more often...nothing surprising, really. If sneaking into a lair is as much fun at the table as killing the monster would be, and equally rewarding for the character....then it would happen more often. Especially when, as you say, everyone can be involved and not just the Thief.</blockquote>

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