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Worlds of Design: Stratagems
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<blockquote data-quote="Garthanos" data-source="post: 8412154" data-attributes="member: 82504"><p>No there is nothing fair or unfair mentioned in the definition of stratagem that is your bias. And nobody wants a fair combat in D&D land not a soul. They want winning odds one way or another. I think skill challenges are a fine tool for making the odds beatable better than a spell casters insta wins (yes most of those are gone but sleep really was a pretty done deal as were many others)</p><p></p><p>The McGuffin generally refers to a situation usually tied to an item needed to defeat but more generally any enemy so badass it needs extra arrangements to bring things down so they are beatable ie to unfairly beat the enemy. How that looks? the enemy would have been a level +7 encounter insane except for extreme optimizers... but your skill challenge either avoids or does things like bloodies the enemy or removes all the enemies minions they depend on or whatever makes it work etc.</p><p></p><p>What exact effects can be achieved by a skill challenge as I said are up to your game. Escapes (aka avoiding entirely are a classic SC) and if you literally said you couldn't avoid a fight it was the DM deciding that.</p><p></p><p>Skill challenges are really just a DM tool and I would say their effects are even on the table without explicitly using that tool but they provide general guidelines for reward worthy challenges that are not combat themselves. They are very open ended on purpose so your players and DM can decide what can be accomplished.</p><p></p><p></p><p>So magic items made for casters are not helping casters very much?</p><p>Magic weapons are helping non casters because non-casters use them... seems like a no duh</p><p></p><p>Side effect ends up being with magic items are explicitly optional in 5e if non-casters according to you need them more then some campaigns will nerf martial types and the game says cool go ahead they are optional (aka martial types do not need to be significant)</p><p></p><p>It was common to have a low magic item campaign back in the day</p><p></p><p>I can do that low magic in 4e and nobody gets nerfed in fact I can do a no magic game without casters even (with no or very very extremely few monster differences).</p><p></p><p>Invisibility spells cast on stealthy characters preferentially are a 4e thing too ... just like Warlords preferentially targeting barbarians.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Garthanos, post: 8412154, member: 82504"] No there is nothing fair or unfair mentioned in the definition of stratagem that is your bias. And nobody wants a fair combat in D&D land not a soul. They want winning odds one way or another. I think skill challenges are a fine tool for making the odds beatable better than a spell casters insta wins (yes most of those are gone but sleep really was a pretty done deal as were many others) The McGuffin generally refers to a situation usually tied to an item needed to defeat but more generally any enemy so badass it needs extra arrangements to bring things down so they are beatable ie to unfairly beat the enemy. How that looks? the enemy would have been a level +7 encounter insane except for extreme optimizers... but your skill challenge either avoids or does things like bloodies the enemy or removes all the enemies minions they depend on or whatever makes it work etc. What exact effects can be achieved by a skill challenge as I said are up to your game. Escapes (aka avoiding entirely are a classic SC) and if you literally said you couldn't avoid a fight it was the DM deciding that. Skill challenges are really just a DM tool and I would say their effects are even on the table without explicitly using that tool but they provide general guidelines for reward worthy challenges that are not combat themselves. They are very open ended on purpose so your players and DM can decide what can be accomplished. So magic items made for casters are not helping casters very much? Magic weapons are helping non casters because non-casters use them... seems like a no duh Side effect ends up being with magic items are explicitly optional in 5e if non-casters according to you need them more then some campaigns will nerf martial types and the game says cool go ahead they are optional (aka martial types do not need to be significant) It was common to have a low magic item campaign back in the day I can do that low magic in 4e and nobody gets nerfed in fact I can do a no magic game without casters even (with no or very very extremely few monster differences). Invisibility spells cast on stealthy characters preferentially are a 4e thing too ... just like Warlords preferentially targeting barbarians. [/QUOTE]
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