Quote Originally Posted by Psyren View Post
This is not a system issue. If you, as the DM, want "off-stats" to matter, you have the tools to do so - just come up with checks using those stats to enable or enhance things the characters want to do. For example, Acrobatics checks to "disengage" for free, Insight checks to measure a monster's relative CR or danger level, Int checks to identify/exploit their weaknesses, Deception checks to feint during combat etc. So long as you're building on the existing framework without taking anything away, and you don't make the consequences for failing those checks slapstick/punishing, players will be interested in trying them, and you may even get a few more average scores at character creation or a few ASIs going to off-scores. Be the change you want to see.
I mean regardless of DM shifting ability modifiers to be more equality distributed they still promotes dump or pump because of how they scale.