Destiny, Social Gaming, Shared World, and Numbers

by SonofMacPhisto , Tuesday, June 11, 2013, 05:32 (3975 days ago) @ RaichuKFM

Buddy, here's the thing: Stats aren't always incidental to the point of role-playing (Which can be the point, but it doesn't have to be; hack-and-slash is good too). They are often important to the role-playing. Otherwise, you would have either a DM arbitrarily assigning success or failure, unmodified dice deciding everything, or interactive storytelling. All of those could probably make for great fun, but so can stat-heavy D&D, even if people don't bother with character personalities. To each their own, Cody. Really, if you want to express your opinions, express your opinions. Don't just up-and-say that objectively, stats are bad, because you CAN'T. You can't make a generalization when it is about something as wildly subjective as fun. This is what makes you so inflammatory; you take a controversial/contrary/divided opinion and prevent it as truth.

should know the stats are incidental and a small part of the experience.

Nope, stats are fairly important in the games I play in. If I had to say what was most part of the experience, I'd say probably more actions than stats or role-playing- not that either one is the important part, just the result of smashing them together is what they play for. That's just my group, and only my perception of it at that.

When I said that stats are important to role-playing, I mean they provide an outline for a character. They can be used to get someplace to start with a character, and that can make building a character off of that easier. They aren't necessary, but not even Role-playing is necessary; most games find a balance between those extremes. And if you debate that, I'm gonna stick with the Dungeon Master's Guide's view of how the game should work over yours.

Isn't there a pretty big debate in the D & D community about roleplaying vs. stats? Or am I remembering something different? Looks like you on Cody are on the opposite sides of the question.

I also like your appeal to authority at the end - which is to say I don't. ;)