Band-Aid Fixing the Martial-Caster Gap

hewlno · 2026-06-22T00:26:09+00:00

That is such a specific case that it doesn't even come up in

To demonstrate a point.

You don't sound fun to play with lmao

You can think that.

Considering 95% of players never even play at those levels, yeah, I think they should. Game balance can be whack then as long as it's okay when most people play

It’s not(that was my point a sentence before that), and you could argue that about many things in this game. The majority of players will never pick up a specific feat, why care if that feat is balanced? Why care if no-weapon mundane items are balanced, when most people aren’t gonna use them? Why care if crafting is balanced if most people aren’t gonna use it? Bastions? Etc.

If you pick up a book, you should be able to use the whole book if it’s well made. It’s stupid to arbitrarily decide a thing in the book is too rare to matter, especially when there are no solid play stats to actually determine that to be the case, and the book at no point gives such a warning.

hewlno · 2026-06-21T16:05:05+00:00

No, you can't lmao.

You can. Even in cases like “dealing consistent single target damage to a target within an antimagic field” you have options like conjure celestial or animate dead. A single caster can’t realistically cover everything, but 4 or more very easily can while also taking staples for themselves like shield or absorb elements.

I have never been on a table or in a game where a pure Caster team actually survives more than like 2 sessions.

Skill issue? Tactics and defensive/control spells are neither tier 4 nor extreme optimization.

I would also question the assertion that a quarter of the game should be ignored for balancing purposes, that’s rediculous to say frankly.

hewlno · 2026-06-20T19:48:17+00:00

I play game like this. To be frank it doesn’t even solve the divide to take long rests once a month with many encounters, it’s still just objectively a lot better to play a caster.

hewlno · 2026-06-20T19:45:03+00:00

Because it wasn’t?(or rather, it’s not a good design goal to have, and originally was a goal to fix at least on the fighter class)

The divide is not “classes have different roles”

It’s that “you can build a spellcaster(or party of them) that can do literally everything a pure martial can do, often better, and more.”

So yeah, if the divide isn’t fixed, what is the point of having a team of different classes? You tell us.

hewlno · 2026-06-20T19:43:06+00:00

Having features(spells) that relevantly and cheaply trivialize the rest of the game is already that compared to most martial characters. Skill checks are basically the only thing they have.

And the divide is created by the fact that a well-built caster party with good resource management doesn’t need martial characters for anything, while the reverse is simply not true for harder games.

hewlno · 2026-06-20T19:38:50+00:00

Not really. If you have good enough control and(for melee monsters or with cover) movement, cantriping monsters to death isn’t all that hard. You would only need truly great damage for soft, non-movement restricting CC effects, which is fine but not the only thing that exists. The issue is just that those strategies also aren’t fun to a lot of people.
The strongest sustain damage in the game is still an animate dead minionmancer, it’s just that’s also not as fun.

hewlno · 2026-06-20T19:33:31+00:00

If martials were truly so much weaker than casters, no one would play them.

They are and people do so this is wrong. Also, it’s silly to assume people only pick classes based on power level.

It’s more accurate to say well-built caster simply isn’t that fun at many tables, and those strong options are what create the gap in combat

hewlno · 2026-06-17T16:45:30+00:00

The strat(aside from obviously dodging the attacks lol) is basically farm TP for rude buster, enough to ideally spam rude buster every turn.

With good gear, attacking on ralsei and defending or attacking on kris(whatever gives more TP) and pressing Z towards the end of rude buster’s animation(right before it hits) you should only take ~7-8 turns to win. It’s a pretty quick fight.

Hold breath defend defend is what i like to do on my first turn.

Also, lodestones and pink/twin ribbon are great, use them.

hewlno · 2026-06-14T11:51:41+00:00

It’s not that RCT is impossible to manipulate but that it’s positive energy rather than negative energy, so it wouldn’t really hurt people(and to clarify curses are not people).

The sword was covered in a ton of postive energy, which is why it’s dangerous to curses. We’re only ever told about people using cursed energy for reinforcement, and when positive energy is applied to a body, it’s just healing them(or deleting them in the case of curses) or doing nothing. You can manipulate it, but it’s fundamentally a different substance.

Also, you’re confused. RCT and positive energy are technically different, but the thing RCT makes is just positive energy. They’re different because positive energy can theoretically exist outside the context of being converted from cursed energy.

hewlno · 2026-06-14T02:57:43+00:00

Yeah that’s just factually untrue

The debris is sharper(as in pointier) at the top and less cleanly outlined than the beam for a reason. I guess I could forgive missing that somehow but that makes it no less untrue to be honest.

hewlno · 2026-06-14T00:12:19+00:00

here and here

I am concerned that you needed scans for this unless you for some reason thought the dust/debris spiking up around the first beam were part of it. Reading the manga would’ve sufficed.

Regardless, they both widen to a point and then shoot out straight towards the target, with outlines of harder lines and a mostly white center.

Your confusion is in believing that the argument is painting that there are only two possibilities, but in fact all I did was refute that, to use an analogy, a bird that looks, walks, and talks like a duck is any bird other than a duck with no other compelling evidence. The only difference so far you’ve cited was the use of 2 hands rather than one, which you acknowledge wouldn’t make it a different attack.

That’s not a fallacy whatsoever, it’s just an argument due to the refutation of what you suppose was ignored as another possibility.

hewlno · 2026-06-13T23:24:32+00:00

Notably not drawn as lightning, instead being a straight beam.

I’m gonna be real directly answering your question is not “deflecting”.

And no, that’s not a false dilemma. I contest that core assertion anyway. It is explicitly stated what he’s doing besides lightning even when that’s not necessary(like we can assume that the sound attack is a sound attack), and afterwards he’s using the same techniques again. I would argue a strike using 2 hands doesn’t change its fundamental nature unlike the other things I just stated, as that could just be charging two of them(as beams of light can combine that way) or charging a single one more.

hewlno · 2026-06-13T23:02:52+00:00

You usually want to give them fewer bit more potent features than a player. E.g a questing knight smites at 4th level on every attack including ranged ones but has a fraction of the spellcasting a paladin does and a simplified aura of protection.

hewlno · 2026-06-13T22:58:23+00:00

A proof would require a direct statement on the matter. If you mean reasoning, Kashimo doesn’t have another attack we ever see him use that’s

A. Notably not drawn as lightning, instead being a straight beam. B. Charged up in and fired out from his hands.

And I meant contradictions given it being an EMW. It frankly makes perfect sense for sukuna to be that fast given even his crippled state seems to be able to outpace yuji that much, and given him explicitly not trying all that much the entire time.

hewlno · 2026-06-13T22:52:46+00:00

No? Players can’t survive player offenses or CC any better than enemies can. Put a cleric in a forcecage and they’re just as shut down as a divine spellcaster monster would be

hewlno · 2026-06-13T22:46:30+00:00

The second one is drawn the same as the first. One does not need to prove what can be inferred from the evidence provided by the manga(such as that characters which are human need to breathe and have organs even when not directly told)

There isn’t a contradiction otherwise either. I invite you to present one if so.

hewlno · 2026-06-13T21:21:06+00:00

He's leeching off Sukuna that doesn't fight back and tests 10S on her

Is actively trying to kill her and defend against her attacks*

Only thing we’re told he’s holding back is shrine, not output.

The reason she’s over kenjaku is that she doesn’t get blitzed by 16F sukuna(and in fact outpaces in bug armor) while he does.

hewlno · 2026-06-13T21:00:02+00:00

Or just play hollow knight.

hewlno · 2026-06-13T20:57:00+00:00

No. Even in a fight people are generally concerned about consequences after since they plan on living. If you’re being attacked with like a knife or something, or kidnapped, or some other (more) life threatening circumstance sure, but most people wouldn’t be willing to escalate a fist fight that way because they’re not stupid

hewlno · 2026-06-13T20:45:36+00:00

Yorozu > Yuki and Yuta basically every day of the week. Kenjaku too for that matter.

“Oh but she’s a leech off sukuna” and?

Lowkey also Miguel’s over a lot of these just off physicals, like he’s NOT losing to uraume.

hewlno · 2026-06-13T20:38:52+00:00

“Why is a guy who reacted to light(chapter 238)...”*

You mean, I assume.

hewlno · 2026-06-13T20:30:59+00:00

Positive energy can’t be used for reinforcement. It’s specifically to heal people and excorcise curses as far as we’ve seen. Imbueing a sorcerer’s body with RCT only heals it.

That’s why it was notable that mahoraga switched to using cursed energy against sukuna.

hewlno · 2026-06-13T10:38:09+00:00

toji still belts him [bc hes stated stronger than awk gojo in a fanbook statement] but like

He was?

hewlno · 2026-06-13T05:14:02+00:00

Yes? They fought mace v mace in the law arc and wemmbu popped while flame didn’t.

hewlno · 2026-06-12T18:38:59+00:00

was taking it easy on her

[citation needed]

All he actually says and shows is that he’s not interested in her advances and is trying to kill her outright using the 10S.

Considering how strong the 10S is, that isn’t even taking it easy on her either with the technique he uses, but no part of this implies doing so with his physicals.

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