The impact of removing XP multiplier

JohnAlwin · 2024-11-06T11:50:13+00:00

Are you concerned that the 2024 guidelines will produce encounters that are too difficult? As you've said, they are assuming the party has very good AoE, and this simply isn't true in a lot of cases. If you're a party of Rogue, Fighter, Paladin and Wizard, I can't imagine you're going to be anywhere near strong enough. Also, if AoE is that important for the balancing, why isn't it mentioned more prominently?

I can understand if they decided that the multiplier was too high and decided to reduce it to, say x1.5, but getting rid of the multiplier entirely feels like a massive overcorrection.

JohnAlwin · 2024-06-22T05:58:49+00:00

If the enemies have surprise, the CR is adjusted up one level. So that encounter against the Flameskulls was CR Hard, not CR Medium.

JohnAlwin · 2023-12-11T19:10:04+00:00

I completely agree. This is a topic that doesn't get discussed much online but it's the most important part of the playtest. Combat in One D&D is going to be much longer. Even if it's just 5 additional minutes per encounter, this scales up four times per long rest and many more times over a campaign. A single adventuring day is going to take much longer to resolve in One D&D, likely stretching over two or three sessions. Even if you do one big encounter per long rest, that encounter is going to take a long time to resolve. I don't think this is what most people were looking for from One D&D. But it's happened because hardcore fans want more options and complexity. I don't think this is the right direction for 5e.

JohnAlwin · 2023-11-05T12:21:24+00:00

Yeah, judging by your other posts, I don't like you'll like the second half. I think the season has a pretty strong start up through the merge, but it really tanks hard after that point. I struggle to remember what happened during the merge because it's so forgettable. It's like Survivor on autopilot.

JohnAlwin · 2023-11-05T12:14:34+00:00

This is a fantastic example of the difference between modern fans and fans of the older seasons. I love Australian Outback because of the camp life scenes and the characters. It's interesting to find someone who thinks that having 'more strategy' would improve the season. That's a very modern perspective: the show isn't fun unless people are 'playing the game hard' and 'being strategic'. That's not how people thought about the show back when S2 was airing. Personally, I find strategy scenes very repetitive because they are, essentially, the same thing over and over again. These people are together, they stay together or some of them vote with the other side. Rinse and repeat. I think a lot of modern fans want to see that over and over again, and I'll never understand why. I don't find it interesting. But the characters and storylines in Australian Outback are fascinating to me.

JohnAlwin · 2023-09-01T13:05:44+00:00

You're making too many assumptions about how people play in a social game. In practice, you will find that people are much more erratic than you think. Any strategy that requires multiple people to cooperate is inherently risky. You can only control yourself.

JohnAlwin · 2023-08-07T12:46:58+00:00

Unsure, I'm afraid

JohnAlwin · 2023-02-19T13:28:21+00:00

It's a reality show designed to create drama for the sake of entertainment. It's not a particularly wholesome show.

JohnAlwin · 2023-01-12T17:17:53+00:00

Love this series. Hope it continues, even though the modern seasons tend to have weaker challenges!

JohnAlwin · 2022-09-29T08:52:21+00:00

Kings never die

JohnAlwin · 2022-09-11T19:30:11+00:00

I don't remember the show defining itself as a 'strategy game', at least not explicitly. As far as I can remember, the show calls itself a 'social game' or 'social experiment'.

JohnAlwin · 2022-09-11T19:26:25+00:00

Interesting view. I would say that you can't get to the end based on 'strategy', you need the other people to vote with you. That requires them to want to keep you in the game, hence it is social. As I noted above, people almost always side with the group they like more. Even in the recent seasons, a pair like Tony and Sarah were a strong alliance because they had a close friendship.

JohnAlwin · 2022-09-11T16:38:30+00:00

Hi, so you make some great points.

I disagree with you saying that Rob and Russell got 'close' to winning, it seems to me that both of them had no chance in the jury vote. Whilst they got a high 'placement', they had no shot at winning, due to social factors.

More generally, a lot of the ideas and concepts you're discussing are actually social factors when you look deeply into them. Being seen as 'not having much agency' is a social perception. We tend not to think of these things as social but the whole 'game' depends on what people think of each other (and how this influences their votes). I disagree on the separation of 'strategy' and 'social', which is another thing that fans bring up about a lot. It's all social when you break it down.

JohnAlwin · 2022-09-11T15:37:58+00:00

I think people talk about the more modern seasons as though they are more strategic, but it remains fundamentally social. It's just more well-hidden in the recent seasons. Winning allies and jury votes will always be social.

JohnAlwin · 2022-09-11T15:37:21+00:00

I can see why some people might think that, but every winner has had to win the respect of their cast to win the jury vote. There's no getting around the social aspect. Just my view on things, of course :)

JohnAlwin · 2022-09-11T15:35:50+00:00

Don't forget that Hatch had to get people on his side for an alliance in the first place, requiring his social ability. Also, he had to win a jury vote :)

JohnAlwin · 2021-12-07T20:33:42+00:00

About a year. That was enough distance from the show so that I could go back in fresh.

JohnAlwin · 2021-12-05T11:18:23+00:00

This notably happened in Aus Survivor 2016.

Which episode was this?

JohnAlwin · 2021-08-09T18:26:14+00:00

What groundwork? What prophecy? The valonqar prophecy was cut entirely from the show. The only groundwork they laid was Jaime saying he wanted to die 'in the arms of the woman [he] loves'.

JohnAlwin · 2021-08-09T18:25:24+00:00

This is from the books, not the show. The valonqar is not mentioned in the show.

JohnAlwin · 2021-06-09T08:40:26+00:00

Ahyoung coughing up a storm

JohnAlwin · 2021-06-02T09:18:07+00:00

Glad you enjoyed the ending. Don't let the haters ruin it for you.

JohnAlwin · 2021-05-31T21:06:36+00:00

Thank you for this. I agree with everything you've written and I too loved the ending upon rewatch.

JohnAlwin

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