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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Fanaelialae" data-source="post: 8373638" data-attributes="member: 53980">You've either forgotten what we were talking about or you're shifting goalposts. What I had said earlier in the thread was that as characters gain levels they get tools to bypass all pillars of play, not just combat or social. IMO, exploration is actually the hardest to bypass simply because, unlike the other two, it encompasses so much. Even if the players take spells to bypass X, Y, and Z, I can just use A, B, and C to engage them instead.I'll give you an example from one of the games I played in about an encounter that evoked curiosity and wonder, which you were so dismissive about. We found a site that resembled Stonehenge, but on a much more massive scale. We began investigating, and over the better part of a six hour gaming session, we uncovered that it was the titan equivalent of a supercomputer that had been built by Cronus. It functioned by raising/lowering the stone pillars which created harmonics in the constant wind. By figuring this out we were able to find a hidden chamber that contained a being left by Cronus, which had been originally intended to replace humanity before Cronus was slain. This being wasn't at all hostile, however, but rather curious, having never met humans but having watched them for eons through the supercomputer.We were by no means forced to overcome the site. We could have easily ignored it and kept adventuring. Instead, it kept the entire group engaged for the better part of six hours. Unearthing it's secrets significantly changed the course of that campaign, particularly the epilogue. Such are the benefits of adding encounters that evoke curiosity and wonder. However, much like a good combat or social encounter, you do have to put in a little more effort than just placing a "waterfall" in front of them and describing how "wondrous" it is.</blockquote>

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