I think the idea to have Balanced key of "Core" is the best approach too, because then you can go either direction from there. Meaning if you want to make the game more challenging for your vets or simpler for your new players, you can do that more easily when the foundation is sorta set in the touchstone that way. Players who are transitioning from the table top to BG3 or vice versa, could have that mode that they can go to in order to learn how it's all been translated. Then venture from that basis into ways to make that experience more fun for the given player, whether that's making it easier or harder, or just better suited to whatever group is playing right?
Examples that come to mind immediately would be anything in an S tier category on the Spell list currently. Stuff like Haste and Spirit Guardians and Counter Spell at the first big power spike in BG3, cause those just run roughshod over other things and set the whole play pattern across the board. They're also harder to nerf once you get everyone all used to using them in particular ways with limited downsides at the base level of play, since they then define optimal play and optimal builds. Other spells which do similar things, but where the overlap here just gets lost in the shuffle, as one thing becomes way more mechanically useful at the expense of everything else. Like Counter Spell is easily the best in class right now, because it takes the opponent off the table on the fly, but then you also know what they're casting and at what level, and the practical result in-game becomes more like table tennis and sorta lackluster. Pre-buffing Haste has a blitz effect across the board, cause it affects just about everything else in the playpattern with the action stack. Granted that is super BG in it's way, with that need for speed (boots) and so I kinda let that slide, but again the idea of stacking that with Twinned Meta and like before you know it's melting all the glue that holds the whole thing together lol.
I'd like to have some sort of mode that gives a de-buffed core rules spin on any big change that was made. The whole idea of borrowing that type of grading tells us how much video games have caught up to the TT experience, and this game is trying to position itself as exactly that sort of hybrid. I guess maybe in the same way BG1 did that for RTS of the era. I think it's working cause cinemascope is a good hook and the basic system of combat and the core mechanics of D&D are so transparent. The transparency is probably more important than anything else, cause that's what you get with a dice game and shared systems and the thing that differentiates a D&D pathfinder vampire white wolf sort of game from a more custom system. Faerun as a setting does something similar for the narrative cause it's kitchen sink, but also transparent, meaning anyone can just look up those sourcebooks or wikis to figure out the broader context.
ps. I also really like the idea of randomization in structure for a game based on dice. Right now the randomization is pretty much positional and based on PC/NPC movement before joining initiative. I think they could randomize encounters and that would work, and be in keeping with the BG1 spirit, but it'd have to really be done right. I think things like starting location could probably be randomized or available party comps or strongholds and things of that sort, basically randomizing sequence rather randomizing the total number/kind even if that departs from the BG formula somewhat. Waylaid by enemies was a hallmark too, so they could try for that I think with some grace to take a few liberties on how it's re-imagined for a BG3. All that stuff could probably work, but it might only be for players who vibe on that sort of run. Usually I think that would work better as a gauntlet style dungeon crawler or something more Icewind Dale 3 if that ever were to happen, but I could see it here. Just needs to be handled with care so it doesn't spoil the groundhog day thing overmuch.
Last edited by Black_Elk; 13/11/23 06:07 AM.
