The Cats
2019-01-03, 06:49 PM
The Goal
To collect useful data through ‘actual play’ to help determine what changes need to be made to balance the participating homebrews.
The Execution
I will be running two parties concurrently through Tales from the Yawning Portal. One will be the homebrew party, the other will be an official content counterpart.
There will be no DM or other players. I will run each encounter as written with no changes. I will stick to RAW (or RAI if RAW is unclear) as much as possible, with a few exceptions listed below. I will be replacing Tomb of Horrors with a less cerebral dungeon.
I will record data every encounter for both parties and post a comparison of the data, along with any qualitative observations I have, after each session.
I’ll post a link to the spreadsheet with the data once I’ve completed the first session.
Exceptions from RAW and Optional Rules
I will be diverging from RAW in the following ways, in order to expedite the process and conserve my sanity.
A single initiative check for each member of both parties will be made at the start of each session. The characters will use that order throughout, inserting combatants as they roll their initiatives.
Food and ammunition will not be tracked.
Any art objects or gems found will be converted to their gold value and added to party funds.
Roleplay encounters will be resolved arbitrarily or through skill checks based on DCs provided by the book, if any.
If I discover any other mechanics are too cumbersome for a project like this, I will add to this list.
I will be using the following optional rules.
All enemy combatants will use average damage for their attacks.
Enemy combatants will use group initiative.
Leveling will be done through milestones based on the recommended levels in TftYP.
The Timeframe
There is none. I will play sessions whenever I feel like doing so. Each session will likely just be a small handful of encounters. I will post the data for each session before I start in on the next one. There will occasionally be long breaks between sessions. This project will take a long time to complete.
The Homebrew Party
Rurik, the hill dwarf Druid of the Circle of the kami Guardian (by me) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=23570786&postcount=1)
Mist Under Waterfall, the tabaxi Planesplitter with a Transitive Sphere of influence (by me) (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Yjwa-ssGtnSpWEBPpyqIUcyzaPD-jPjp/view?usp=sharing)
Severiel Fiendspeaker the high elf Summoner with a Fiendish Alignment (by Grod the Giant)
(http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=23569287&postcount=1)
Daron Cartswain, the human Destined with a Mighty Destiny (by MoleMage) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=23412011&postcount=3)
Richard Calloweye, the half-elf YAWR Warlock of the Fiend (by theVoidWatches)
(http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?572329-Yet-Another-Warlock-Rewrite-Eldritch-Dice-(PEACH)-v0-1-6)
Their Counterparts
Rurik with a Goatee, the hill dwarf Circle of the Land druid
Mist with a Goatee, the wood elf Horizon Walker Ranger
Silk Fireblade, the human Bard of the College of Swords
Faron Stonecutter the mountain dwarf Fighter Battlemaster
[TBD]
The Participants’ Responsibilities
The participating creators are responsible for keeping their brews’ changelogs up to date, providing level-up information and updating the character sheets for their brews and counterparts, and making all post-rest decisions for their brews and counterparts. They will also make all mundane gear purchases for their characters whenever the party is in town.
Post-rest decisions are anything a character can choose after either a short or a long rest. Examples include a Druid’s prepared spells, the Summoner’s servitor, etc.
I will state if the party is taking a short or long rest after each session. If the other creators don’t state their decisions before I start a new session, I will use the same decisions they made after their previous rest.
I will similarly state if the party has leveled up. If the other creators are unable to provide level-up information in a reasonable amount of time I will level their characters up for them temporarily, converting to their decisions once they have a chance to post them.
If I state the party is returning to town the participants can use party funds to purchase anything from the Player’s Handbook. If you are making a large purchase or there are not enough funds to get everything everyone wants, we will have to debate the merits of our purchases until we come to an agreement. I encourage everyone to be very willing to compromise so this process can be done quickly.
When the party finds magic items I will distribute them based on who I think can best utilize them. If you disagree we can discuss as above, or just put it to a vote.
Discussion and debate about potential changes to each other’s brews based on the data unveiled is strongly encouraged.
To collect useful data through ‘actual play’ to help determine what changes need to be made to balance the participating homebrews.
The Execution
I will be running two parties concurrently through Tales from the Yawning Portal. One will be the homebrew party, the other will be an official content counterpart.
There will be no DM or other players. I will run each encounter as written with no changes. I will stick to RAW (or RAI if RAW is unclear) as much as possible, with a few exceptions listed below. I will be replacing Tomb of Horrors with a less cerebral dungeon.
I will record data every encounter for both parties and post a comparison of the data, along with any qualitative observations I have, after each session.
I’ll post a link to the spreadsheet with the data once I’ve completed the first session.
Exceptions from RAW and Optional Rules
I will be diverging from RAW in the following ways, in order to expedite the process and conserve my sanity.
A single initiative check for each member of both parties will be made at the start of each session. The characters will use that order throughout, inserting combatants as they roll their initiatives.
Food and ammunition will not be tracked.
Any art objects or gems found will be converted to their gold value and added to party funds.
Roleplay encounters will be resolved arbitrarily or through skill checks based on DCs provided by the book, if any.
If I discover any other mechanics are too cumbersome for a project like this, I will add to this list.
I will be using the following optional rules.
All enemy combatants will use average damage for their attacks.
Enemy combatants will use group initiative.
Leveling will be done through milestones based on the recommended levels in TftYP.
The Timeframe
There is none. I will play sessions whenever I feel like doing so. Each session will likely just be a small handful of encounters. I will post the data for each session before I start in on the next one. There will occasionally be long breaks between sessions. This project will take a long time to complete.
The Homebrew Party
Rurik, the hill dwarf Druid of the Circle of the kami Guardian (by me) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=23570786&postcount=1)
Mist Under Waterfall, the tabaxi Planesplitter with a Transitive Sphere of influence (by me) (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Yjwa-ssGtnSpWEBPpyqIUcyzaPD-jPjp/view?usp=sharing)
Severiel Fiendspeaker the high elf Summoner with a Fiendish Alignment (by Grod the Giant)
(http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=23569287&postcount=1)
Daron Cartswain, the human Destined with a Mighty Destiny (by MoleMage) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=23412011&postcount=3)
Richard Calloweye, the half-elf YAWR Warlock of the Fiend (by theVoidWatches)
(http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?572329-Yet-Another-Warlock-Rewrite-Eldritch-Dice-(PEACH)-v0-1-6)
Their Counterparts
Rurik with a Goatee, the hill dwarf Circle of the Land druid
Mist with a Goatee, the wood elf Horizon Walker Ranger
Silk Fireblade, the human Bard of the College of Swords
Faron Stonecutter the mountain dwarf Fighter Battlemaster
[TBD]
The Participants’ Responsibilities
The participating creators are responsible for keeping their brews’ changelogs up to date, providing level-up information and updating the character sheets for their brews and counterparts, and making all post-rest decisions for their brews and counterparts. They will also make all mundane gear purchases for their characters whenever the party is in town.
Post-rest decisions are anything a character can choose after either a short or a long rest. Examples include a Druid’s prepared spells, the Summoner’s servitor, etc.
I will state if the party is taking a short or long rest after each session. If the other creators don’t state their decisions before I start a new session, I will use the same decisions they made after their previous rest.
I will similarly state if the party has leveled up. If the other creators are unable to provide level-up information in a reasonable amount of time I will level their characters up for them temporarily, converting to their decisions once they have a chance to post them.
If I state the party is returning to town the participants can use party funds to purchase anything from the Player’s Handbook. If you are making a large purchase or there are not enough funds to get everything everyone wants, we will have to debate the merits of our purchases until we come to an agreement. I encourage everyone to be very willing to compromise so this process can be done quickly.
When the party finds magic items I will distribute them based on who I think can best utilize them. If you disagree we can discuss as above, or just put it to a vote.
Discussion and debate about potential changes to each other’s brews based on the data unveiled is strongly encouraged.