Handbook of Heroes

[Keltest]

I'd feel the same if I took down an enemy many times more powerful than me. If I beat up a evil twin or managed to take down the tarrasque many levels earlier than CR would lead us to expect. But when game balance dictates that you're mechanically superior to your opponent, mechanical choices begin to feel hollow. What I mean is that the game is stacked in favor of the players. Just think how often you've experienced a TPK. I'm betting it's significantly less than half the time. It's that knowledge that's hard to reconcile with the power fantasy.

I... guess I don't understand the concern then. Sure, past a certain point how much extra force you bring to the table starts to make the specific flavor somewhat meaningless in an abstract kind of way, but that doesn't mean im going to enjoy roasting somebody alive, or cleaving them in twain, or bluffing them into thinking theyre a vampire in sunlight or whatever shenanigans I have chosen as my idiom any less. Im perfectly capable of going on a power trip for my character. After all, being good at my idiom was my goal. I'd feel rather foolish if I was so bad at it that I kept getting killed and losing fights all the time. The trick, to me, is making the decisions that get you there seem as meaningful and important as they will turn out to be.

Also, my favorite sentient item ever was a holy sword created by minions of the God of Mirth and Laughter. It was a talking sword that when drawn in combat would just constantly prattle on and on. It was fairly opinionated and moderately knowledgeable, so I could use it as a DM mouthpiece when I needed to (ie to heckle my players), and it actually had a fairly hefty penalty to hit due to the distraction factor. But it balanced that out by rendering the party immune to sound-based attacks, and had a very, very impressive bonus to damage, on top of being a vorpal sword, because why not? So you would be swinging around wildly with this thing, listening to it heckle you about how badly you suck at swordfighting, and then every now and again you would just accidentally decapitate your target.