Well-done math games. I got 46 as well. Yeah, in the end modifiers only serve three purposes: to convolute simple target numbers and to specify how good a character is in a certain ability. The third, I´d say, are feeling the growth a character has. A +12 feels bigger than a +3, and it feels gigantic if a PC started with a +3 and then moved to the aforementioned +12.
Yes, eight is a good target number for a task of average difficulty. But the actual DC should be based on an average character, not specifically on the character attempting the task. Depending on the system, two characters can have wildly different modifiers, and players will notice if all the barbarian's perception checks hover around DC 9 while the rogue's are DC 19. That's the main point of modifiers, to allow characters to have different strengths and weaknesses.
Good point; and on top of that, I was making the video to point to the way that most modifiers hide that target number so you're still letting each character have their own strengths & weaknesses while simplifying things under the hood / behind the math.
@@StagRPG Some of this might be just be that your mind works differently than the average player. Most people are better at addition than subtraction, so it makes sense to make a game that adds a modifier rather than subtracts a difficulty as the average person will have an easier time of it.
"Hit minus and then your original number" What TTRPG mechanic has you subtract your original die roll? I think you're saying "if this player needs to roll 8 it should just say difficulty 8." But the bard should be better at smooth talking than the barbarian. So even though the dedicated smooth talker should have a ~65% chance at success against a target at any point of the game, the social situations are growing in difficulty along with the bard's skill. This means: a) the gap in skill in this area between the bard and the barbarian grows as the game goes on; the barbarian might possibly get lucky at seducing the shopkeep in their hometown but has no chance at talking down the mid-game evil king b) the bard can come back to the starting town and use their level-10 social skills against level-1 targets If you want to have the option to ignore the modifiers and test their roll against an 8, I would recommend talking to your players about it. "hey in my experience the whole thing of adding a bunch of modifiers to a die roll gets in the way of storytelling and game designers lie constantly anyway so if it is cool with you i am going to occasionally fudge the numbers for narrative purposes." If they feel the same way then great. But if everyone's doing one thing and they figure out you're doing another, you're going to kill their engagement.
And I'm not saying that the demonstration I used is *literally* true. It is an illustration of the concept: hiding a few essential numbers behind a flurry of ultimately meaningless modifiers
46.
Glorious
I knew right away you were playing math games:)
SSSSHHHH! Don't tell anyone! 😆 (But, so is every modifier-heavy game out there!)
It's not all doom & gloom. I promise we talk about a way that all this stuff can help set you free.
Well-done math games. I got 46 as well.
Yeah, in the end modifiers only serve three purposes: to convolute simple target numbers and to specify how good a character is in a certain ability. The third, I´d say, are feeling the growth a character has. A +12 feels bigger than a +3, and it feels gigantic if a PC started with a +3 and then moved to the aforementioned +12.
Number go up! 😂
Yes, eight is a good target number for a task of average difficulty. But the actual DC should be based on an average character, not specifically on the character attempting the task. Depending on the system, two characters can have wildly different modifiers, and players will notice if all the barbarian's perception checks hover around DC 9 while the rogue's are DC 19. That's the main point of modifiers, to allow characters to have different strengths and weaknesses.
Good point; and on top of that, I was making the video to point to the way that most modifiers hide that target number so you're still letting each character have their own strengths & weaknesses while simplifying things under the hood / behind the math.
@@StagRPG Some of this might be just be that your mind works differently than the average player. Most people are better at addition than subtraction, so it makes sense to make a game that adds a modifier rather than subtracts a difficulty as the average person will have an easier time of it.
Bro, I got 46 💀
🙏
46
🙏
"Hit minus and then your original number" What TTRPG mechanic has you subtract your original die roll?
I think you're saying "if this player needs to roll 8 it should just say difficulty 8." But the bard should be better at smooth talking than the barbarian. So even though the dedicated smooth talker should have a ~65% chance at success against a target at any point of the game, the social situations are growing in difficulty along with the bard's skill. This means:
a) the gap in skill in this area between the bard and the barbarian grows as the game goes on; the barbarian might possibly get lucky at seducing the shopkeep in their hometown but has no chance at talking down the mid-game evil king
b) the bard can come back to the starting town and use their level-10 social skills against level-1 targets
If you want to have the option to ignore the modifiers and test their roll against an 8, I would recommend talking to your players about it. "hey in my experience the whole thing of adding a bunch of modifiers to a die roll gets in the way of storytelling and game designers lie constantly anyway so if it is cool with you i am going to occasionally fudge the numbers for narrative purposes." If they feel the same way then great. But if everyone's doing one thing and they figure out you're doing another, you're going to kill their engagement.
This is why I play solo 99.9% of the time. 😆
And I'm not saying that the demonstration I used is *literally* true. It is an illustration of the concept: hiding a few essential numbers behind a flurry of ultimately meaningless modifiers
46
🎲
46