[Agon] - Let's talk about balance

[Darcy Burgess]

Hi John,

Would you mind lifting the hood a bit on your decision to not include a mechanic to give the GM more Strife as the Heroes improve?

Thanks,
Darcy

[John Harper]

Sure thing.

Since Agon is my take on D&D, I wanted to have PCs that grow in effectiveness as play goes on. Leveling up in D&D was always a fun reward, and I wanted that same feel. However, one thing that always bothered me about D&D was the fact that your opposition leveled up with you. At level 1, you fought goblins and rats. At level 5, you fought ogres and trolls. So, you were never really "more powerful" since the adventures were always beefed up to match your level.

I wanted to avoid this with Agon. That's why the GM gets a fixed Strife budget. Individual monsters grow in power relative to the Names of the heroes, but the overall adversity the GM can bring does not increase. So heroes get "more powerful" relative to the problems they face, but they still have to fight tough individual creatures who will give them a challenge.

[Darcy Burgess]

Hi John,

That tracks.  I'm surprised, but it makes sense.

I was expecting something along the lines of "heightening the competition between the players".

Cheers,
Darcy