My Life As A Gamer: An Example Of How Changing The Rules Changed The Game

Logistics is too often ignored in RPG play despite it being part of the rules and thus part of the game.

Ignoring rules is no different than changing them, so ignoring the rules changes the game.

To illustrate this I will, again, point to the difference between AD&D 1st Edition and D&D3, specifically the rules regarding Magic-User/Illuionist spell-casters and meeting material and time requirements to use magic.

• AD&D1e: You are expected to have the specific material components required at the time of casting by default, or as otherwise specified by the spell. Substitutions are not allowed.

  You are expected to rest for 8 hours prior to spell memorization, and each spell so memorized takes 15 minutes per spell level in uninterrupted study from one's spellbooks (e.g. 9th level spells take two hours and 15 minutes to memorize each). A high-level Magic-User or Illusionist can spend days getting ready if starting from empty.

  The player is forced to pay attention to his supples of materials, and to spend time out of active play recovering spent spells.

  This prompts the player to seek out devices to handle most utilitarian use of magic or to create his own once he is able. This compels the player to engage in the economic level of play.

  Add JeffroGygaxian Timekeeping, as one should, and you see the Magic-User easily shifting away from day-to-day action as he levels up out of necessity which allows other classes room to step up and show what they've got.

• D&D3: Buy a Component Pouch, or spend a Feat, and you're sorted on materials (barring corner cases). All spells are recovered after 8 hours of rest and one hour of study (for Wizards) regardless of level.

  Now there is no reason to forge ahead once the party's magic runs out.

  The game--as is now known--turned into "Linear Warriors, Quadratic Wizards"--because there was nothing at all holding back the disproportionate power of the spellcaster from dominating play.

  Fighters, Rogues, etc. all became defacto Henchmen to the Clerics, Druids, Wizards, and Sorcerers and soon those four classes dominated serious play due to how potent they were and how quickly they could recover their charges to go again.

The kicker? D&D3's official rules are codified ignoring of AD&D1e's rules.

The reason people complained about magic dominating the game is because they ignored the rules that served to check it. They waived spell components and memorization times "because that's not fun", not thinking about the cascading effects of doing so, and then complained that the casters dominated the game.

They made no attempt to ascertain what the game actually does, or how its components work, because they could not--and therefore did not--see how the whole machine worked. That as an abstraction too far for them.

Instead it was "I play magic guy. I wanna do magic stuff. Not doing magic stuff not fun, so toss stuff that lets others have fun" and somehow that stuck. It has to do with the known--and completely retarded--tendency of players to never retreat from a fight that goes south, or to pull back when they run low of resources. (See the whining about Clerics and healing spells.)

All D&D3 did is make that official, and its ongoing fork by Baizo has not bothered to do what needs be done to fix it with predictable results.

This is why do not fuck with a game until you understand what it is and how it works; you avoid unintended consequences by not making changes that break things that are necessary for the game to function as intended.

As most people are end users and thus have neither the skill nor the acumen to do so properly, they should not do so at all. If the game doesn't do what they want, PLAY SOMETHING ELSE! (Ars Magica is right there, you Mage-lovers.)

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Christmas Day is a week from today. I hope all of you got your shopping done.