Thread by @DanTalksGames

One of my big beefs with #dnd has been what I call my Aesthetic of Numbers theory, but I've been struggling to describe it in a way that puts my issues with it into perspective. Now I finally have it:

It's like trying to arbitrate a wrestling match. And that's EXHAUSTING. 🧵

To describe my theory, what it comes down to is this: most players don't actually care about the raw numbers rolled in a d20 game. What they care about is the appearance of those numbers doing something.

The example I give is, as a DM, do you actually set a hard number for a DC when you get your players to roll a skill check, or do you just make a snap decision based on what they roll?

The better question is, would your players care either way?

That's the Aesthetic of Numbers.

This reddit thread I linked about a week ago is a perfect example of the arbitrariness of numbers. In it, a DM says they don't even keep track of hit points anymore, and progress based on narrative beats and guesswork from damage taken.

reddit.com/r/dndnext/comm…

The real test for the want of aesthetic, however, comes with wanting to be honest and take away that veil.

Say you go to your players hey guys, I don't actually track HP and I pull DCs out my arse. None of this actually matters, let's play a rules lite game instead.

But turns out they don't want to. Not because they don't want to learn a new system, but because DnD is the experience they want. They just want you to arbitrate it in a way that makes every encounter go, mysteriously, exactly as it seems like it should.

They still want to roll damage numbers and feel like they're achieving something, because ultimately, that's the point: it's a game. They want to WIN it. A rules lite experience is more narrative, and simply removes the illusion of being rigged for a story that guarantees success

So what the expectation now is to:

1. Have the illusion of a numbers-based system
2. Maintain the appearance of mechanical integrity while not betraying you're actually fudging the numbers
3. Have that illusion portray a gripping story and work in service to that

It is, essentially, wrestling. It's the aesthetic of a game, but is a rigged spectacle. The group doesn't want to go to the theatre (a rules lite game) because they KNOW that's just a narrative. Wrestling has all the tension of a sports match, with none of the unpredictability.

Now, the line that's always used in response to this is the classic 'Let people play/run the game as they want, it's not hurting anyone else's experience.'

Except it is, because if this is the expectation, it gets added to the 'this is what good DMs should do' check list.

Simply put, needing to balance the illusion of the numbers mattering is MORE work for the GM to worry about.

And the reality is, the reason this needs to happen is, the balance in 5e is crap. Individual disparity between characters is too wide, and the CR system doesn't work.

This video by Matt Coville is the single most frustrating video I've seen on YouTube, because it comes so close to hitting the mark on the issues with 5e, both as a game and the culture surrounding it, but then missed the point spectacularly in two ways:

1. It implies inability to balance encounters is innate to game design and not a 5e-specific problem, and
2. It suggests that this real time adjustment of maths should be an expectation for any DM

I disagree with these points, vehemently. On point one, there are systems out there where the balance is actually good and you don't have to rebalance on the fly because the maths actually wor-it's PF2e, of course it is, you knew I was going to say that.

But it doesn't have to be Pathfinder. Pretend I'm talking about this standard for any game other than Pathfinder. The issue is that if the expectation for these back end systems is 'it can't be done', then every numbers based TTRPG will be a wrestling match.

I don't want to run a wrestling match. I want to run a GAME. I want the numbers to just work and to tell a story organically, not have to fudge them to tell the story I want. That's what would help me most as a GM, not be told to literally change monster stats mid-combat.